Great Stories Alive! Performance with Passion & Purpose

Box 11045, Portland, OR 97211

DickensChristmasCarol.net

FOR RELEASE: December 7th, 2010

Media Contact: Al LePage, Actor, 503-335-3876 / Al.LePage@SpireTech.com

OPB Radio Christmas Carol program premiers Christmas Eve,

"Victorian Englishman" performs with some historical twists!

Photo: David Krapes

Time travel to the nineteenth-century American West for Dickens classic story, new one-man show based on the historic script and performed like Dickens did

A newly produced OPB Radio program of Dickens' Christmas Carol by "EnglishmanThomas Hutchinson, Traveling Thespian" portrayed by Portland actor Al LePage, willpremier on OPB Radio stations throughout Oregon on Christmas Eve, Dec. 24, at 8 PM.

The program begins by taking listeners back to the early American West of the mid-1800's, and the performance itself is a shortened version of Dickens original publicreading script done in the acting-style used by the famed author as well. LePage does all18 characters, men and women, boys and girls, in this one-man show, and plays his

harmonica, sings a song, and does many of the sound effects too. The program will berepeated Dec. 25, at noon, and offered as a podcast on OPB.org from December 15-31.

"I wanted to look for a storyteller close to home,” notes Lynne Clendenin, Vice-PresidentOPB Radio Programming, "to provide a more intimate experience of a classic story and

then Al walked in. What a master storyteller!"

LePage originally called OPB Radio a couple of years back about an idea he had for aweekly series of dramatic programs on early Oregon history for Oregon's

Sesquicentennial, and mentioned in reference to doing some of the characters from thepast that he had experience, such as performing his own one-man show of A ChristmasCarol. The idea sat on the shelf for a while, but LePage had a performance professionallyvideotaped and edited, and DVD's duplicated for the holidays in 2009. He immediately

brought a copy of the master to OPB Radio for their consideration, and they wanted totalk about producing a show. The meeting happened and the project moved forward,recording the performance in the spring, editing it together with music and minimalsound effects during the summer and fall.

"I wanted a very high quality product," says LePage, "and they did too. We all sat downand got creative, sharing various ideas to make it a great show. We talked about givingit a rougher versus a refined flavor, and about using traditional carols played on

traditional instruments from Dickens' time period, too. And, I wanted to have fun doingit, I wanted it to be a joyous experience for everyone involved. Some of their besttechnical and creative people were involved in both recording and editing myperformance, and I really appreciated that."

LePage wanted to tell it from the perspective of the "Victorian Englishman and TravelingThespian" character he'd already developed to share American history with people athistoric sites and other venues, and OPB Radio agreed. So, there's references not only to

the mid-nineteenth century Pacific Northwest and California, but also a little of Dickensown performance history has been weaved in, too. Specifically, the very first and lastlines spoken in the program, in the introduction and conclusion, are the very same onesthat Charles Dickens himself said for both the very first line he spoke during his first

public reading performances in 1853 and the very last line he ever spoke for his lastperformance in 1870.

"It's been great working with everyone at OPB Radio," added LePage, "I hope it brings

listeners, besides a message of hope through personal transformation and generosity,lively laughter and heartfelt tears, too, for this and future holiday seasons."

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Al LePage, actor/producer of Great Stories Alive!, began bringing history to life throughimprovised portrayals of real people from the past for over eight years at historic sites,

museums, and other venues throughout the Pacific Northwest. He's written and produced hisown one-man show historical dramas, appeared on the nationally televised PBS “HistoryDetectives” series in roles ranging from a bartender to Robert E. Lee. He's been givingperformances of the Carol to benefit charity in the United States and Canada since 2006, and

will be performing it this holiday season on location where Dickens himself did during his1867 American tour in Boston at the historic Parker House Hotel and on the same exactcalendar date the famed author did at 88 Tremont Street, today's Converse Hall.