One of the more charming and nostalgic Christmas choices this season will be the Guthrie Theatre's mounting of the Dickens' classic, A Christmas Carol. That's because John Gielgud's voice will be used for the narration.

According to an Associated Press report, an official from the Minneapolis theatre flew to London to tape Gielgud's recitation. "His voice will marry beautifully with those of the actors on stage and is a perfect fit with the language of Charles Dickens," said artistic director Joe Dowling. Previous credits for the 93-year-old Gielgud include the National Theatre's 1947 Medea and Crime And Punishment, both of which played on Broadway. He debuted in 1921 at London's Old Vic and on Broadway in 1928's The Patriot. He also won an Oscar for Arthur.

Spokesperson Kemp Powers told Playbill On-Line, "We've done Christmas Carol for over 20 years. For a number of years, we had the narrator be someone portraying Dickens at the dinner table with his family. Last season we had various company members narrate throughout the story."

A Christmas Carol at MN's Guthrie Theatre will play Nov. 21-Dec. 28.

--By David Lefkowitz