Scrooge: the Musical, like all incarnations of A Christmas Carol, is a transformation story. Rarely has that been so clearly represented as in this year's impeccable production at Capital Playhouse.

Start with Ebenezer himself, played by veteran Tacoma actor Michael Self. It struck me in Act I that Scrooge is usually played with a twinkle in his eye, as if to signal that he's really a mensch in disguise. But that isn't the Scrooge of Dickens' novel. "No wind that blew was bitterer than he," Dickens sighs, "no pelting rain less open to entreaty." In other words, that "clutching, covetous old sinner" is an odious monster, cruel to everyone including children and his merriest relatives. Self and director Troy Arnold Fisher have the courage to let Scrooge be Scrooge, making his redemption from impending hellfire all the more dramatic. What a character arc! Self is up to the task, and while his singing timbre opens in Scrooge's "grating voice," it blooms with salvation in Act II.

To read Christian Carvajal's full review, click here.

Scrooge: the Musical

Through Dec. 30, 7:30 Wed.-Sat., 2 p.m. Sun., $28-$39
Capital Playhouse, 612 E. Fourth Ave., Olympia
360.943.2744