There could very well be one less teen begging for a new iPhone this holiday season now that 15-year-old Chloe O’Malley already got the perfect gift: a role in the National Arts Centre’s production of A Christmas Carol. It stars the beloved Andy Jones as Scrooge and is directed by Jillian Keiley, the artistic director of the NAC’s English Theatre.
“It’s the best thing I could have asked for,” the well-rounded student of Lisgar Collegiate Institute told Around Town during Friday’s opening night party. “I can’t believe I’m here. It’s awesome.”
O’Malley is a veteran of the NAC stage but not as an actor; she’s danced in such productions as The Nutcracker and Swan Lake. A Christmas Carol marks her first foray into theatre.
It’s been a thrill, she said, to work alongside the cast and to be mentored by Jones. “I’ve learned so much from him,” said O’Malley, who’s had previous acting success in television.
Photos: Around Town at opening night party for NAC's A Christmas Carol
Around Town was at Friday’s opening night party for the National Arts Centre’s production of A Christmas Carol.
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From left, A Christmas Carol child cast members Sébastien Cimpaye (Tiny Tim), Chloe O'Malley (Belinda), Max Dillabough (Tiny Tim), Louis Brault (Peter), Ry Prior (Peter) and Clara Silcoff (Belinda) on Friday, December 16, 2016, at the opening night of the holiday classic at the National Arts Centre.
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Attendees of A Christmas Carol, which opened at the National Arts Centre on Friday, December 16, 2016, amused themselves before the show and during intermission with the visual and tactile displays set up outside the theatre.
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Attendees of A Christmas Carol, which opened at the National Arts Centre on Friday, December 16, 2016, amused themselves before the show and during intermission with the visual and tactile displays set up outside the theatre.
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Attendees of A Christmas Carol, which opened at the National Arts Centre on Friday, December 16, 2016, amused themselves with the visual and tactile displays set up outside the theatre.
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NAC English Theatre artistic director Jillian Keiley, director of A Christmas Carol, with actor Andy Jones (Scrooge) at the National Arts Centre for the opening night of A Christmas Carol on Friday, December 16, 2016.
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Well-known Ottawa actor Pierre Brault was at the National Arts Centre on Friday, December 16, 2016, to see his 13-year-old son, Louis Brault, perform in A Christmas Carol.
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From left, Travis Facette with Ottawa theatre artists Patrick Gauthier, Kate Smith, Emily Pearlman and Bronwyn Steinberg at the National Arts Centre on Friday, December 16, 2016, for the opening night of A Christmas Carol.
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A Christmas Carol cast member Chris Ralph (Fezziwig), with his wife, Nicole Milne, and the play's set and costume designer, Bretta Gerecke, at the National Arts Centre on Friday, December 16, 2016, for the opening night of the holiday classic.
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A Christmas Carol cast member Charles Douglas (Fred) with, from left, his sister Merryn Douglas, mother Carol Theoret-Douglas and fellow cast member Bénédicte Bélizaire (Mrs. Fred) at the National Arts Centre on Friday, December 16, 2016, for the opening night of the holiday classic.
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James Richardson, founding artistic director of Third Wall Theatre, at the opening night of A Christmas Carol at the National Arts Centre on Friday, December 16, 2016, with cast member Kristina Watt (Mrs. Cratchit).
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Lili Connor with fellow cast member and deaf actor Jack Volpe (narrator and Christmas Future) at the National Arts Centre on Friday, December 16, 2016, for the opening night of A Christmas Carol.
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From left, University of Ottawa law professor Tony VanDuzer with NAC Canada Scene producer Heather Moore and Glenn Nuotio, donor relations manager for the Magnetic North Theatre Festival, at the National Arts Centre on Friday, December 16, 2016, for the opening night of A Christmas Carol.
Other local youth with roles in the classic holiday pick-me-up include Sébastien Cimpaye, Max Dillabough, Ry Prior, Clara Silcoff and second-generation thespian Louis Brault, 13. His dad is well-known Ottawa actor and playwright Pierre Brault. “It was deeply moving just to be able to sit in the audience and watch my son up there, and with just a tinge of jealousy,” said Brault, who’s also a stand-up comic.
As well, the cast includes Ottawa actors Emily Pearlman, Chris Ralph and Kristina Watt, along with Lili Connor and Charles Douglas, who grew up in Ottawa.
A Christmas Carol continues at the NAC until Dec. 31.
