The annual question when considering an overview of holiday-related productions in American theatre is not, "Who is doing A Christmas Carol?"
You might rather ask, "Who isn't doing it?"
From New York City, where Madison Square Garden stages its annual musical spectacle, to Detroit, Chicago, Milwaukee, Houston, Portland and elsewhere, there are plenty of variations on the 1843 Dickens short story, complete with Scrooge and his ghosts, the singing of traditional songs, and the classic regional theatre role known as "Turkey Boy." (How many actors on Broadway will admit to having played the boy who fetches the fowl in the butcher's window for Scrooge on Christmas morning?)
There are so many holiday adaptations of A Christmas Carol and other perennials, that Theatre Communications Group, the resident theatre's service organization, doesn't include them in its annual list of the most-produced scripts in the country. Who could count that high?
But what's the flip side of A Christmas Carol?
Here's a roundup of everything
* The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis presents the touring troupe, Imaginary Theatre Company, through Dec. 23, offering Bah! Humbug!, a one-act, family-friendly adaptation of Dickens. Ironically, the show isn't meant to prime youngsters for the Rep's adult Christmas Carol: Scrooge and Co. are not part of the Rep's subscription tradition. Call (314) 968 4925.
* Broadway diva Lillias White ( The Life, How to Succeed...) sings in what might be the best-titled evening of holiday cheer: A gospel version of "Messiah" called Too Hot to Handel, using pop idioms. She and the Corncordia Orchestra (with Vivian Cherry, Thomas Young and others) sing Dec. 23 at Avery Fisher Hall in New York City. Call (212) 721-6500.
* Frank Bogues' satiric perennial, A Bogus Christmas Story, which has played spaces throughout New York City, resurfaces through Dec. 23 at the Duplex Cabaret Theatre in Greenwich Village. The story of Bogues' family life at the holidays is told "through Nebraska charm, Irish wit and New York attitude," according to production notes. A band joins actor writer Bogues on stage. Call (212) 255-5438.
* Actor William McKeon not only gets to play the plum role of Scrooge in his Dickens' Christmas Carol, he plays all of London and spirits from the other side, too. His one-man adaptation continues to Dec. 31 at the Shubin Theatre in Philadelphia. A signed performance for the deaf community (interpreted by McKeon's actress-sister, Diane) is Dec. 27. Call (215) 750-9690.
* There's nothing like Hate for the Holidays, the comic revue staged through Dec. 27 by Moving Arts in Los Angeles. The sendup of everything festive includes sketches and monologues about Christmas Eve retail workers, a homeless mission at Thanksgiving, family dinners, and more. Their credo: It isn't a wonderful life. Call (323) 665-8961.
* An on-leave cop returns to duty to solve the apparent slaying of a department Santa Claus (is this the sequel to Santaland Diaries?) in B Street Theatre's Bearing Gifts, through Jan. 3, 1999. Theatre co founder Buck Busfield wrote the world premiere. Call the San Francisco venue at (916) 443-5300.
* Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas!, the classic story of a monstrous Scrooge who loots Whoville on Christmas Eve, has made it to the musical stage, adapted by librettist-lyricist Timothy Mason and composer Mel Marvin at the Old Globe Theatre in San Diego (through Jan. 3, 1999). Call (619) 239-2255.
* Christmas, Italian-style is the angle of Ma, a home-for-the holidays play by Roy and Tree Washburne, by Actor's Edge Productions through Jan. 10, 1999 at the Gene Bua Theater in Burbank, CA. The Lombardi family Christmas features "a water-gun fight, a devastating theft, an unusual marriage proposal and Christmas caroling," according to production notes. Call (818) 705-2370.
* A popular Chicago tradition since 1995, the musical, The Christmas Schooner, continues sailing through Jan. 3, 1999 at Bailiwick Repertory. With songs by Julie Shannon and book by John Reeger, the story evokes the 19th-century ritual of ships that crossed Lake Michigan to deliver Christmas trees to the Windy City. Call (773) 883-1090.
*South Coast Repertory Theatre presents a contemporary Latino Christmas play, La Posada Magica, through Dec. 27, as a cultural counterpoint to its annual staging of A Christmas Carol (also to Dec. 27). It concerns 14-year-old Gracie's holiday doldrums and how a posada (a procession) of her neighborhood friends cheers her. It's performed in English, with songs in Spanish. Call (714) 708-5555.
-- By Kenneth Jones
