Good tidings ahead! Estella Scrooge (A Christmas Carol with a Twist) is now available for licensing.

Estella Scrooge features a book by Tony Award winner John Caird (Children of Eden, Les Misérables, Daddy Long Legs, Nicholas Nickleby, Jane Eyre, Candide) and music and lyrics by Tony Award nominee Paul Gordon (Emma, Daddy Long Legs, Jane Eyre). 

A modern-day take on Charles Dickens’ beloved 1843 novella, A Christmas Carol, Estella Scrooge features a new Scrooge for the 21st century and wittily incorporates characters and plot lines from Dickens’ other great novels, including Great Expectations, Little Dorrit and Bleak House, among others. 

Estella Scrooge is a young Wall Street tycoon with a penchant for foreclosing. A hotelier in her hometown of Pickwick, Ohio has defaulted on his mortgage, and Estella fancies the idea of lowering the boom personally. Arriving at Harthouse on Christmas Eve, Estella discovers that the defaulting party is her childhood sweetheart, Pip Nickleby. A good and generous soul, Pip has transformed the property into a refuge for the sick, dispossessed and homeless. A freak snowstorm forces Estella to take refuge at Harthouse. That night, just as it happened to her ancestor Ebenezer, she is haunted by three visitations...and oh, what uninvited houseguests they are! 

Drew Cohen, the President and CEO of Music Theatre International stated, “Estella Scrooge is going to bring joy, good cheer and a healthy dose of humor to audiences this holiday season. John Caird’s book is sure to inspire performers and patrons alike. Paul Gordon’s music and lyrics take a classic tale and make it new. Everyone at MTI can’t wait to see how theaters celebrate the holidays with this fantastic new musical.”   

In 2020, an incredible production of the show was digitally captured during the pandemic, utilizing cutting-edge technology. The fully-realized all-star cast production, a dazzlingly cinematic musical theatre adventure, was filmed using green screen while employing strict social distancing practices, with hundreds of images, animations and digital environments blended in post-production with the footage of the actors to bring the story magically to life. The production features Betsy Wolfe, Clifton Duncan, 2020 Tony Award winner Lauren Patten, Patrick Page, Carolee Carmello and 2020 Tony Award winner Danny Burstein, with direction by John Caird.

To view a trailer and rent or purchase the stream, please visit: https://www.streamingmusicals.com/film/estella-scrooge/

“We’re so happy to be collaborating with our dear friends at MTI to bring our new holiday musical to vibrant life,” said John Caird and Paul Gordon. “Estella Scrooge is a modern-day retelling of the much-loved Dickens classic, made by colliding together the plots of Christmas Carol and Great Expectations along with a few of the great man's other works, adding a catchy score and a host of hilarious and haunting characters, and watching the sparks fly!  Estella first came to life as a film, shot in the fall of 2020 at the height of the pandemic, one actor at a time, one scene at a time, under strict Covid rules. We had an wonderful time putting it together, as you can judge for yourself on StreamingMusicals.com, but now we can anticipate an even greater pleasure: companies performing the show as we first imagined it!  On an actual stage! With live actors playing to live audiences! God bless us everyone!” 

License Estella Scrooge today

Read the libretto for free!