Michael Cerveris on Becoming Scrooge in A Christmas Carol at PAC NYC

Host Christine Nagy sits down with two-time Tony Award winner Michael Cerveris, now starring as Ebenezer Scrooge in the Tony Award-winning production of A Christmas Carol at the Perelman Performing Arts Center. From the challenges of inhabiting one of literature’s most iconic characters to the magic of Jack Thorne’s immersive adaptation, Cerveris shares behind-the-scenes stories, reflections on holiday traditions, and why this heartwarming production continues to resonate with audiences year after year.

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:02):
iHeartRadio Broadway presents Inside Broadway, the podcast about Everything theater.
It's where you hear what happens from the ticket window
to the stage door, with the stars and creative forces
that make it all come alive. Here's your host, light
FMS Christine Nagy.

Speaker 2 (00:22):
Well, welcome to Inside Broadway. I'm Christine Nagy. Today we
have such a special guest, two time Tony Award winner
Michael Servius. You may know him from his unforgettable performances
in Fun Home, Assassins, Headwig and The Angry Inch, and
so many other iconic roles. And now Michael is stepping
into one of the most legendary characters of all time,

(00:43):
Ebenezer Scrooge in the Tony Award winning production of A
Christmas Carol, which is playing downtown Manhattan at Pearlman Pac
and YC. Which is a beautiful new building. To me, Michael,
that I just discovered. It's a gorgeous performance space and
you just had your opening night. Congratulations, we did, Thank
you very much, Thank you so much.

Speaker 3 (01:04):
It is it is a beautiful building. And I also
had not been down there before. I had been down
in New Orleans when when the Angelical Ball was happening,
so I didn't see it down there, so I'm gonna
have to see it uptown when it when it opens.
But it is a beautiful space and it's you know,
it's particularly moving because it's part of the World Trade Center, uh,

(01:27):
you know site, and so there's sort of that aspect
to it too when you when you walk into the theater,
you are kind of moved by that as you go in,
and then the theater itself is just it's just a beautiful,
very variable space too. They can we're using two of
the three performing spaces, but they can apparently use all three.

(01:49):
They can just use one. They can raise and lower
the seating levels to whatever kind of configuration you want.
So it's a really special new place, I think.

Speaker 2 (01:57):
Yeah, definitely is. There's a special vibe there, and especially
given this show, which is incredibly beautiful, this production of
a Christmas Carol, this production is well, it's i would
say it's traditional in some senses, and then it's also modernized.
I'm sure you can explain it much better than I can.

Speaker 3 (02:19):
No, I think that's absolutely right. It is. You know,
all of your favorite elements are there, the cratchets and
tiny tim and the Three Spirits and Marley and Scrooge himself.
But it's very interesting. Jack Thorne did the adaptation, and
people may know him from The Curse Child, The Harry

(02:40):
Potter or more recently Adolescents, the series that he wrote
that was on Netflix. It was a big hit a
couple of years ago. He's also written several other really
extraordinary television programs for England. So there is all of

(03:01):
the classic stuff, but there is a definite modern sensibility,
and I think what he does best of all is
actually going back to Dickens's original In it's you know,
Dickens was very concerned about the inequities between the people
who have a lot and the people who don't have

(03:22):
much at all, and that was because his own father
was sent to Denor's prison when he was a young boy,
so it was very personal to him and I think
Jack really captures that aspect of it and the social
consciousness of Dickens. And then he does some really interesting

(03:45):
things kind of giving a little more background to why
Scrooge is the way he is. And most importantly, I
think they really wanted Scrooge to be someone who is
not at the very end of his life, who if
he is able to change his life, is actually going

(04:05):
to be around for a while to have a positive
impact in the world. And also they look at the
change in Scrooge, not just as you know it was
one moment thing and just now he's a nice guy
and everything's great. They show him actually trying now to
go back out into the world and be a different person,

(04:27):
and that it's not just a simple, easy thing. And
there's a scene with Scrooge and Bell in the second act,
late in the second act that's one of my very
favorite scenes in the show where Scrooge tries to start
his life again and it doesn't go seamlessly.

Speaker 2 (04:48):
Yeah, incredibly moving. I think we were so touched by it,
everyone in the audience. There's also this whole immersive quality.
There's kids in the audience and you're able to get
them involved. And how do you feel taking on against
such a big, iconic character like Scrooge.

Speaker 3 (05:07):
Well, I feel incredibly honored and privileged to be a
part of this production in particular. And also I just
I've always loved a Christmas Carol. I've watched it every
year since I was little, in all the various incarnations,
everything from the Black and white Ulster sim One, which

(05:28):
is a personal favorite, to the Muppet, Christmas, to pretty
much everything. And it's funny. On the first day of rehearsal,
someone said, you know, the other people who've played this role,
because it's been done so many times in the UK,
I think this is there ninth year maybe or tenth

(05:51):
and then it was done here on Broadway and on
a tour out west, and they said, at one point
or another, most of the actors who played Scrooge have said,
it's kind of like doing King Lear and it really,
it really is. It's sort of like demands the entire
scope of your your acting ability and then asks for

(06:14):
a little more too, And so it's a real satisfying,
gratifying challenge to to find your own way into it.
But it feels it feels that you know that large
in scope, and and everybody has expectations of their their

(06:35):
favorite Scrooges and how Scrooge is supposed to be, and
so you sort of put that to the side and
you just kind of offer your own. But but it's
it's a real it really feels like a privilege to
get to do this.

Speaker 2 (06:48):
Yeah, well, you're definitely doing it and I was wondering,
you know, if you feel pressure taking on this legendary role.
But also I have to share with you the evening
that I was there. I went. I went with my
friend Anne, who's also an actress, and she's kind of
just arranging her coat in her seat, you know, when
we're in the audience and you hear her go oh hi, hi,

(07:11):
and oh thank you and welcome and we're so happy
you're here and please enjoy the evening. And I'm thinking, what, like,
is her fan club behind us, Like what is going on?
So then I go to arrange my coat and I
end up going, oh, hi, welcome, please enjoy your evening.
Did you realize that the entire Clinton family was sitting

(07:35):
with us in the.

Speaker 3 (07:35):
Audience, Yes, yes they did. They did let us know
because there's no way we're not going to know who's
in the audience. So they thought better to let them
know beforehand so they're not just like shocked when they
go out to hand out Clementines or yes, you know,
I was particularly anxious and said, they do know that,

(07:57):
Like I will run around the theater and I'll be
you know, come around from behind them and be shaking
hands and reaching out to people and a ringing bells
in their faces, and I just didn't want to get
tackled by you know, Social Security, social secret service, secret service. Yeah,
well I don't want to get tackled by Social Security either.

Speaker 2 (08:18):
Yeah, that's it. Yeah, but I had I had the
same feeling because there was one point where I was like,
I was just desperate because I wanted my chapstick really bad,
and I was sitting right in front of Bill Clinton,
and I thought, if I reach into my purpose, suddenly
I know, am I going to scare secret Service? It's
like it's just chapstick. But I have to tell you

(08:38):
he wasn't just saying this to be nice, because we
heard him remark to Hillary after the first act. He
leaned over to her and he said, I'm so happy
we came. And then he started chatting with my friend
Ann and me, and he said that this was such
a beautiful production, and he said that I've lived a

(08:59):
long time now and I see Scrooge differently. And he
said that you, Michael serverus, were making him feel every
time Scrooge's heart changed a little or something changed for him,
that he really saw that in you and this production
and he was really moved by it, and we all.

Speaker 3 (09:18):
Well, thank you for thank you for letting me know
that that really means a lot.

Speaker 2 (09:23):
Oh. Absolutely, yeah. I felt like you should know that
the whole family just enjoyed it. We all did. We
had a beautiful experience in the in the audience. I
just feel like this show is community based, Like you
make us feel like we're all involved.

Speaker 3 (09:37):
It absolutely is, And that is definitely the specific intention
of this production, and it's considered in every single aspect
of it, from the staging itself that includes the audience
and puts the action smack in the middle of the
audience in the most most involved way, to the to

(10:02):
the writing that makes a big point of the communal
aspect of Christmas and and the communal aspect of change
and reinvention and and what do you do when you
want to become a better person, You engage with your community,

(10:23):
and even down to things like when when we're doing that,
it's so sort of transporting Christmas section and we start
talking directly to the audience again, Matthew said, I don't
I don't want you to ever say ladies and gentlemen.
I want you to call them neighbors. I want you
to refer to them as friends, but I don't want

(10:45):
you to say ladies and gentlemen, because that makes you
think of an audience as separate from the performers. And
I want this to feel like everybody is on the
same level. And it's why at the beginning of the show,
the company comes out without dialects and are just themselves,
and that everything's designed to kind of erase the barriers

(11:06):
and the divisions between them and us, and and it's
an intentional thing, and I think it's beautiful and really
fitting for this particular story.

Speaker 2 (11:19):
It is, and you do you have a beautiful cast.

Speaker 3 (11:21):
Everyone is wonderful, they really are, and they're delightful people
and just remarkably talented. And that's another privilege to get
to spend the evenings with them and the weeks.

Speaker 2 (11:35):
So you know this this show is a limited run,
so as you can tell, we kind of really enjoyed it,
and I suggest that you go see it. We just
have through January fourth, and you know how time goes
pretty quickly.

Speaker 3 (11:48):
So especially during the holidays, it does.

Speaker 2 (11:51):
So we definitely want to check for tickets for PACNYC
dot org. That's a place for tickets.

Speaker 3 (11:57):
Right, yes, exactly. And you know, funny because it's easy
to sort of dismiss it. It's like, oh, I've seen
Christmas Carol, you know, and there's lots of other stuff
to see, and which is true, of course, but it
really is not. It's it's not the Christmas Carol that
you know, exactly. I mean it is, but it's a

(12:17):
lot more. It's got a different kind of depth and
seriousness about it. In all of the delight and the
fun and all of that. It's you know, it's a
very serious piece of theater for people who are looking
for that. It's also just great fun for people who
are looking for that. So it's it's hope, I hope

(12:40):
people don't immediately just go, oh, well, you know, I've
seen Christmas Carol. I kind of know what happens. It's
like it's it's I mean, you know what happens in
Hamlet too, but you're still going to see Hamnet.

Speaker 2 (12:51):
So good point, and again this one is really special.
Thank you for such a memorable evening, and to your
to your cast and your career, thank you so much.

Speaker 3 (13:00):
Oh, thank you for being there, absolutely so.

Speaker 2 (13:02):
Michael Servius as Ebenezer Scrooge and Christmas Carol now playing
at PACKNYC through January fourth. For tickets, please visit PACANYC
dot org. And Michael if you don't mind sticking around
a little bit, because we like to go behind the
scenes and kind of ask what happens maybe backstage or
in your life as you're preparing to do a Christmas Carol?

(13:22):
Would that be okay?

Speaker 3 (13:24):
Absolutely?

Speaker 2 (13:25):
Thank you, well, welcome back to behind the scenes where
we turn off the stage lights and uncover what truly
drives Broadway's most remarkable talents, and today that person is
Michael Servers, who brings Ebenezer Scrooge to life and a
Christmas Carol at Pac and YC. Michael, we love giving

(13:46):
listeners a glimpse into the personal side of the performance.
Do you have any pre show rituals or superstitions that
you do before going on stage.

Speaker 3 (13:56):
I think my pre show rituals change sort of showed
to show the physical and vocal warm up aspects of
things change kind of to accommodate whatever it is I'm doing.
So in a musical, I'm going to do a certain
kind of warming up that I may not do for
a straight play. Although I'm finding with Scrooge that the

(14:18):
vocal demands even though I'm the one person in the
cast that doesn't sing in this show that has a
bunch of Christmas music, which I think is appropriate for Scrooge.
But may have found some people who are coming to
see me knowing me from musicals. But it's still like
vocally as demanding as any musical I've done. When I

(14:40):
was doing Tammy Fay, somebody showed me the blowing through
a straw into water and humming and vocalizing while you're
doing that, which turns out to be a really great
warm up. So I do that, and that's a gentle
kind of thing. I used to way way over warm up.
I used to sing like five notes high than I

(15:00):
was ever going to have to sing in the show,
and do all this stuff. And then finally a friend
who was an opera singer said, you know, if you
were running, you know, a mile race, you wouldn't run
a marathon to warm up for the mile race. Maybe
just sort of get blood flowing to your vocal cords
and limber up and stuff. But you know, don't work

(15:22):
harder than you need to just to get ready to
work and that made a lot of sense to me.
I'll listen to different kinds of music as I'm getting ready,
as i'm preparing, I like to be ready a little
ahead of time, so I'm not feeling pressured and under
the gun clockwise and and I do you know, I

(15:48):
have little things that I've collected along the way that
I always want to have on my dressing table, my
little box of things and notes or photographs that I've
found in newspapers years ago that just kind of travel
with me. So I think, mostly so I feel like

(16:09):
I have a sense of continuity in my career and life,
because because in other ways everything seems so random and
disjointed and disconnected. So it's nice to kind of feel
a part of, you know, my own history as well
as the history of the things I'm working on.

Speaker 2 (16:29):
You do have a lot going on, you know, many
aspects of your career. I know you've got your band
as well, and your dogg Evangeline, who I always see
on Instagram, who's so adorable. Are you able to bring
her to the theater with you?

Speaker 3 (16:44):
Yes, she comes all the time. The one show she
hasn't she didn't come to was Opening night last night
because it was going to be a big party afterwards,
and I thought that was going to be a little challenging,
mostly because she would just be constantly wanting to get
French fries from wherever they may be. But yeah, I
got her when I was doing Fun Home and she

(17:06):
was just a few months old, and she grew up
backstage and learning how things work back there and getting
to know all the different people, and she just loves
going to the theater. Immediately, it was adopted as the
building's dog. And I have told people that they're welcome
when I'm on stage, They're welcome to go into my
dressing room and just hang out with her. And I'm

(17:28):
constantly coming back to the dressing room, whether it was
this or Fun Home or Tammy Fay or whatever, and
there are always people in there just hanging out with Ev.
Because she even has her own spot on the sign
in sheet.

Speaker 2 (17:42):
Oh that is so sweet, and her own Instagram account.
I should add, she's got a good following. So what's
something about being a theater performer that you think other
folks might not realize that would surprise them.

Speaker 3 (17:56):
Well, I think one thing that may surprise them is
is how much the audience is a part of a show.
You that we're very impacted by by silences by you know,
sounds by we can sort of feel whether people are
leaning forward and listening or sort of sitting back and

(18:19):
kind of being disconnected, and they really are a part
of the night. And I think it might help people
understand when they can be distracting if their phones are
on or you know, people are talking or whatever. And
I think the other thing that might really surprise people
is how how much harder the degree of work and

(18:45):
focus and the amount of your life that is involved
in your work. I mean, we're on the one hand,
really in the really fortunate position of doing for a living,
you know, earning our living and putting food on the
table and paying our rent and stuff by doing the

(19:05):
thing that we love to do. That's a really privileged
thing that not everybody gets to make money doing the
thing that they actually like to do. A lot of people,
probably the majority of people, work hard to be able
to do what they want to do with their lives,
and we get to sort of have those things be
the same thing. But it also takes up your life,

(19:28):
like you don't put it away when you go home.
It's from the time you wake up to the time
you go to sleep. That's what you're doing and it's
and also I think they'd be surprised how little money
people make, given that they live in New York and
have to survive. It is not a if you're doing

(19:51):
it for the money, you're really going to be surprised.

Speaker 2 (19:56):
Well, I know you do it for the love and
the passion because it's comes through in your work and
I know that you're giving it your all. And again,
thank you so much because you've given us so many
beautiful performances.

Speaker 3 (20:08):
Oh, thank you. It's a gift to me to get
to well.

Speaker 2 (20:13):
Thank you so much, Michael Servis. So this is you know,
behind the scenes. Thank you for giving us some insight.
And please don't forget that you can catch Michael in
a Christmas Carol now playing at pac NYC running through
January fourth. For tickets, visit PACANYC dot org. I thank
you again, Michael Servis, Thank you for listening. Be sure
to follow at iHeartRadio Broadway on all your favorite social platforms.

(20:37):
Check out the iHeartRadio Broadway channel to stream your favorite
Broadway hits free on the iHeartRadio app and add it
to your presets, to keep the magic of Broadway with
you wherever you go, till next time. I'm Christine Nagy.
This is inside Broadway.