When Charles Dickens was 12 years old, his middle-class father was sent to debtor’s prison. Charles had to give up treasured possessions, leave school and work in a shoe-blacking factory for a few years to survive. This experience forever changed him, giving him a heart for the poor. 

As an adult, Dickens, already a well-known novelist and serialist working in Industrial-Era London, was moved to write a political pamphlet calling for more decent treatment of poor children in his society. However, Dickens canceled the publication of this pamphlet at the last minute, telling an acquaintance that he believed a heartfelt Christmas story would do much more towards changing people’s attitudes than a political pamphlet. He wrote A Christmas Carol shortly after, completing it in just six weeks. Dickens achieved his goal: a marked uptick in charitable giving in London was noted the first Christmas after the book was published. His work helped strengthen the connection between festivity and charity in Christmas celebrations ever after. 

As theatre storytellers, we too believe that storytelling is much more powerful than simply telling people how to behave. We have imbued the storyteller you will meet tonight with Dickens’ fervor and passion for the poor. May his story remind us to keep our hearts open to those in need and not to become desensitized to the beauty of life and to those around us. It’s as timely today as it was in 1843.