American Conservatory Theater — Attraction in San Francisco

A WHYNOT Christmas Carol was so painstakingly awful that it reflects on A.C.T. Easily one of the worst shows we have ever seen. Barely any plot, no character development, preachy, political, pretentious, and utterly devoid of Christmas spirit.

This is a nihilistic “meta” play that exists almost exclusively to stoke the ego of playwright Craig Lucas. Random diatribes, nonsensical transitions, and a narrative structure whose only ‘structure’ is the butchering of Dickens’ masterpiece. What was intended as a meta experience, with behind the scenes crafting of A Christmas Carol, amounts to nothing more than the playwright’s obnoxious opining about society and theater itself — in one long, drawn out inside joke about theater life that never hits a punch line. If you ever wanted to pay to sit in on a boring pre-production meeting where egos debate lines — this is a play for you!

I feel bad for the actors because many of them are very talented. I also feel bad for the production team because they did their best with a very bad script. But I most feel bad for the children and families who walked out utterly dumbfounded expecting an entirely different experience. One father noticeably comforted his daughter after having to sit through it. To give you a small morsel of its arrogance, the playwright even tries to unravel and dismiss the entire parable of Scrooge in a final diatribe about how we (society) are doomed. …Yes, for a Christmas play, folks.

The only cool thing was a puppet. Hats off to the designer. It was the only thing the audience was cheering about as we exited. One couple remarked “what on earth did we just see? I don’t know — but at least the puppet was pretty cool.”

To give you an idea of preview performance excitement — we didn’t see a single patron pursue the extensive WhyNot merch stand after the show.

Save your money. Save your donations. I wish we did. We need to make a statement that hijacking the branding & commercial appeal of A Christmas Carol into this type of self-serving nihilistic programming is just wrong.

A Christmas Carol at A.C.T. was a tradition. A San Francisco staple. A thing that families looked forward to every year.

Much like a point in the play when the entire cast turns their rears to us to perform to the backstage (this really happens) — this play disgraces the love & loyalty of its Christmas audience. 1 star for the modern...

Great place, I saw the Christmas Carole, though 2 complaints actually...there was no live orchestrw pit which was very dissapointing, had to listen to blasting stereo system lol..

One VERY important thing that you should be aware of is the deceptive Concession Booth... You can buy an assortment of chips, sweets, and candies, but you can't eat them while watching the performance (You are allowed to drink things with a closed lid) It is actually a really stupid rule and counterintuitive to vending snacks if they can't be eaten in the theatre. I began looking for any sign that says no snacks eating and there was a very small sign on the entrance to the main seating area AFTER you buy snacks. (Kinda stupid.) Also when the show starts they ask that you open your drinks and snacks before the show starts so...it just doesn't really make sense. The venue shouldn't be selling snacks ,just for people to eat after the performance , it just simply makes no sense.

Other than that really dumb rule, it's a nice play and...

Just rating the theater and not the the performance,the theater upper seats are not made for men above 5"9 and above 6 feet or people with hip and knee replacement in the upper balcony especially in the "lodge" section I'm 6'2 and 240 and I thanks god that the person next to me in the lodge section on stage left wasnt there, I could angle my knees, it still was brutal or otherwiseI, probably would of left. when we got there the staff didnt say this way ladies and gentlemen, I did buy the cheap seats for 179$, they yelled not ask "ticket person holding tickets first then you toss your wallet and keys into a bin for metal decorator. Which I dont think it pick up my belt buckle, then someone scan your ticket and sent you on your way to wander and find your seats. if you want to get someone attention how about a light flicker instead of yelling...