Ebony Scrooge Review – Dickens’ soulful hip-hop with a Caribbean twist | Dance

WWho knew Bob Cratchit was such a good dancer? In hip-hop theater company ZooNation’s new Christmas show, Charles Dickens goes places he’s never been before. Choreographer and director Danielle “Rhimes” Lecointe has created a fresh, fun, and funky reinvention of A Christmas Carol, with a Caribbean twist, that flips the story and transforms Ebeneezer into Ebony. This curmudgeon is a fashion maven, “as cold as a December wind in London,” strutting across the floor in a flowing cloak while her staff freeze in her wake. There is no Christmas holiday for them, it is like a machine as they create their monochromatic designs. Meanwhile, her beautiful niece Freddie has been neglected, and Bob Cratchit dreams of color amidst Ebony’s strict black-and-white world (but he has a secret soft spot for her nonetheless).

Leah Hill’s Ebony is a charming villain, the sharp edges of her runway dancing befitting her personality. But of course, the ghosts come to haunt her: first the ghosts of the present, who take off her elegant high heels and make her wear sneakers instead – now that’s a nightmare! Flashing back to the past, Scrooge returns to her Caribbean roots, and suddenly a warm glow and new tunes bathe the stage, and Ebony’s dramatic story of grief and loss comes to the fore.

The characters are not fully fleshed out. ZooNation shows always have fairly broad lines but a lot of heart. One minute you’re wondering if you’re really buying into the emotional ride, and the next you’ve got a lump in your throat. And the story certainly serves as a framework for the wonderful dancing. The standard is just blistering across the board, the energy is sparkling. Lecointe draws from a wide range of street dance styles – boom dancing, infectious house dancing, soft and sassy fashion – each scene concise (and vividly told through text and song, with music by award-winning Michael “Mickey G” Assante).