Britain's What's On Event Guide
Mark Shanahan’s A Sherlock Carol
For the festive season, the Barn Theatre is proud to present a production for all the family: Mark Shanahan’s A Sherlock Carol, opening on 12th December 2025.
The show offers a dramatic and musical experience that captures the warmth and light of a traditional Victorian Christmas, while appealing to 21st-century playgoers through modern stagecraft and an intriguing murder mystery. It’s not a pantomime, but with a nod to old time music hall, audience participation in the songs is encouraged!
The story is an artful mashup of much-loved characters and episodes from the imaginative worlds of Charles Dickens and Arthur Conan Doyle, with some ingenious twists. At the start, Sherlock Holmes has lost his mojo; having defeated his arch-nemesis Moriarity at the Reichenbach Falls, he has lost his taste for sleuthing and descended into melancholy. It takes a supernatural apparition – none other than the ghost of Ebenezer Scrooge himself – to get him back on track. For Scrooge died in suspicious circumstances and it will require some serious detective work to clear away the mists surrounding his demise.
Sprawling Victorian London is the setting, teeming with inhabitants and shrouded in fog. With its rapid scene changes and long list of characters, the script evokes the scale and complexity of the metropolis, a theatrical challenge that director Hannah Sayer relished. The show is both extremely dynamic and carefully choreographed; expect rapid-fire costume and prop changes as the actors switch roles and much use of revolving stages to convey movement between scenes. It is fortunate that Hannah has a cast of seasoned performers to work with, many of whom will be familiar from previous productions at the Barn Theatre.
The show offers a dramatic and musical experience that captures the warmth and light of a traditional Victorian Christmas, while appealing to 21st-century playgoers through modern stagecraft and an intriguing murder mystery. It’s not a pantomime, but with a nod to old time music hall, audience participation in the songs is encouraged!
The story is an artful mashup of much-loved characters and episodes from the imaginative worlds of Charles Dickens and Arthur Conan Doyle, with some ingenious twists. At the start, Sherlock Holmes has lost his mojo; having defeated his arch-nemesis Moriarity at the Reichenbach Falls, he has lost his taste for sleuthing and descended into melancholy. It takes a supernatural apparition – none other than the ghost of Ebenezer Scrooge himself – to get him back on track. For Scrooge died in suspicious circumstances and it will require some serious detective work to clear away the mists surrounding his demise.
Sprawling Victorian London is the setting, teeming with inhabitants and shrouded in fog. With its rapid scene changes and long list of characters, the script evokes the scale and complexity of the metropolis, a theatrical challenge that director Hannah Sayer relished. The show is both extremely dynamic and carefully choreographed; expect rapid-fire costume and prop changes as the actors switch roles and much use of revolving stages to convey movement between scenes. It is fortunate that Hannah has a cast of seasoned performers to work with, many of whom will be familiar from previous productions at the Barn Theatre.
Fri 12 Dec to Saturday 20 December
Barn Theatre, Handside Lane, Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire AL8 6ST
A Sherlock Carol runs at the Barn Theatre from Friday 12th to Saturday 20th December, evenings 8pm, matinee on 20th December, 2.30pm. Tickets cost £16 from Barn Theatre box office on 01707 324300 or online at www.barntheatre.co.uk
Organised by
Barn Theatre Club, Welwyn Garden City
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