Debut of “A Christmas Carol” 2007

The spirit of Christmas will come alive Dec. 7-8 when the City Youth Ballet of Johnson City debuts the Charles Dickens classic, “A Christmas Carol” at the Veterans Administration Memorial Theatre at Mountain Home.Doors open at 7 p.m. for the 7:30 p.m. performances.

The holiday production tells in ballet the beloved story of Ebenezer Scrooge’s quest to learn about the joy of giving.

“A Christmas Carol” features the talent of some 20 dancers, all members of the City Youth Ballet’s junior and senior companies. They are led by senior dancers Anna Daught, Edith Dunbar and Gwynn Root, who portray the spirits of Christmas past, present and yet to come, respectively. Junior dancer Maggie Hensley carries the role of Tiny Tim.

Scrooge is portrayed by David Clinkscales, a Texas A&M theater major and professional actor now studying for the ministry at Emmanuel School of Religion. Robert Kitchens, whose talents have been featured at Barter Theatre as well as a number of productions at Milligan College, portrays Robert Cratchit.

“Our dancers and the professional actors have created a true gift to our community in that this entire evening will put the audience in the Christmas spirit,” said Susan Pace-White, the CYB’s artistic director, and one of the production’s chief choreographers along with Traci Honeycutt.

Opulent costumes of the Victorian era are another highlight of the performance, many of them created by CYB’s wardrobe mistress, Sharon Ritchie. In addition, the colorful stage sets are being created by local artist Peggy Root.

The ballet’s debut marks a change in the history of City Youth Ballet and the training school, the Johnson City Ballet Academy. For 27 years, the ballet organization has presented “The Nutcracker.” A change was made this year to offer something new to audiences as well as challenge the dancers with a production that showcases the dancers’ artistry and athleticism.

Already, more than 500 children are signed up to attend the school performances and a number of senior citizen groups will attend another daytime show Dec. 7.