Disclaimer: All of the newsies, plus Medda Larkson and Brian Denton, belong to Disney. Charles Dickens wrote "A Christmas Carol", and I'm using the dramatization by Michael Paller. I own Springs, Ariana, Tessie, Taylor, Cindy, Ace, Seraph, Cerise, Jade, the Darte twins, Bethany, Bliss, Fish, Mikko, and Curls.
Shout-Outs:
Anon: Young Ebenezer is Scrooge as a young boy at school, Young Scrooge is the young man who falls in love with Belle. Ebenezer Scrooge is the old man who is visit by the three ghosts.
Stretch: I'm glad that Specs gets a big part, too! Here's another chapter for you.
"Remind me again why I'm at school at 6:30 in the morning," Mush requested drowsily, resting his head on my shoulder. I pushed it off, stood up, and we walked toward the front of the auditorium.
"Because we're having play rehearsal before school so that the football and volleyball teams can all make it to practice this afternoon," I replied.
"We did this other years, though, and we never had to be here till 7:00," Bumlets pointed out, joining the conversation.
"Apparently Ms. Larkson likes to get an early start," I said. "Besides, it's partly your fault. You're one of the people on the football team!"
"Everybody! Gather in a circle on the stage, please!" Ms. Larkson called. She was wearing a lacy pink skirt and her bright red hair was curled and styled in an elaborate messy bun.
"Uh, nice dress, Ms. Larkson!" Jade Gessler called. She's a senior and best friends with Cerise.
"Why, thank you darling!" Ms. Larkson exclaimed. "I always like to dress up to match whatever drama I'm working on. And you may all call me Medda. I want us to be one big, happy, Christmas Carol-y family!"
"Really," Mush muttered to himself, a look of disbelief on his face.
"Now," Medda began, "I'd like to introduce my assistant, Mr. Brian Denton." A young man with greasy brown hair, khakis, and a red-checked bow tie climbed up to the stage.
"He's kind of cute!" Felicia Darte exclaimed to her twin sister, Leticia.
"How can they think that?" I whispered to Bliss McNamorn, a sophomore sitting near me. "He's wearing a bow tie!"
"Now, now, students, you can talk later," Medda interrupted. "It is time to practice. But first, I'd like to get to know all of you. So if you'd please go around the circle and say your name, your character in 'A Christmas Carol,' and what grade you're in." She pointed to Jack Sullivan-Kelly. "We'll start with you."
"Uh, my name's Jack," Jack began with a British accent. "My parents divorced, so I just moved to the states from England this year. I'm a junior, and I'm the narrator."
"Well, it's nice to have someone else who's new," Medda said with a welcoming smile. "Next."
"Uh, my name's Specs, 'cause of my glasses, I'm a senior, and I'm Scrooge."
"I'm David Jacobs," Dave began.
"Nah, he's the walkin' mouth!" Spot shouted, and then flashed his trademark grin.
"And who would you be?" Medda asked, trying unsuccessfully not to smile.
"I'd be Spot Conlon, president of the junior class, and Old Joe in this play."
"Well, nice to meet you, Mr. Conlon, now if we could please get back to David," Medda said.
"Like I was saying," David began again, glaring at my brother, "I'm David Jacobs, I'm a sophomore, and I play Bob Cratchit."
"Hey, everybody, I'm Mush, I'm another sophomore, and I'm Fred, whoever he is."
"He's Scrooge's nephew," I reminded Mush.
"Thank you, darling, and what's your name?" Medda asked me.
"I'm Seraph Conlon, and I'm a sophomore like Mush. I play Mrs. Cratchit."
"Do you happen to be related to Spot?" Medda asked, saying the name as if he was a god. Sheesh, you'd think a grown woman would know enough not to fall for his grins.
"Yes, I'm his sister," I admitted grudgingly.
"That must be wonderful!" Medda said, giving Spot another huge smile. "Now, who's next?"
"I...I guess I am," Pie Eater said quietly. "I'm Pie Eater Sidoni, I'm a senior, and I play Jacob Marley."
"Excuse me dear, I didn't quite catch your name," Medda said, cupping one hand around her ear. "Speak up! Don't be shy!"
"His name's Pie Eater, and he's my boyfriend," Jade announced. "I'm Jade Gessler, I'm also a senior, and I play Martha Cratchit."
"Thank you Jade, darling. Now who's next?"
"That'd be me," a blond-haired boy said. "My name's Dutchy, 'cause I look Dutch, even though I'm really Ukrainian. I'm a junior and I play the Ghost of Christmas Past."
"Ukrainian...I believe my grandmother was part Ukrainian," Medda said.
"Are you sure it wasn't part Transylvanian?" Bumlets whispered to me.
"Well, it could have been Transylvanian, I'm not sure," Medda replied, overhearing Bumlet's comment. "And you're the Ghost of Christmas Present, correct?"
"That's me," Bumlets confirmed. "My name's Bumlets Lucero and I'm in tenth grade."
"And who's our last ghost?" Medda wondered. "That's you isn't it?" She pointed to Snoddy.
Snoddy wiped his nose on his sleeve and nodded. "Yeah. My name's Snoddy, because of my allergies. I'm a senior, and I'll be right back after I-achoo! -find some Kleenex." Snoddy ran off stage, and Medda turned toward Skittery.
"And who are you, darling?"
Skittery made a face at being referred to as a "darling". "Uh, I'm Skittery. I'm a freshman, and I play Young Scrooge."
"Wonderful. And Young Ebenezer and his sister Fan are played by elementary students, correct?"
"Actually, I'm young Ebenezer," a short Italian kid said. "And I'm a junior. The name's Racetrack. And Springs Hawthorne is Fan. She's a freshman."
"You're a junior?" Medda asked, amazed. "I never would have guessed...you're such a cute little boy! Now, who's next?"
"I am. I'm a freshman, my name's Boots, and I play Dick Wilkins."
"Wonderful! Next."
"My name's Jake Conrad, I play Fuzzy-wug, and..."
"Wait a minute darling," Medda interrupted (again!), "but I have your name down as Joe Conrad."
"It is. Jake's a nickname. Anyway, I play Fuzzy-wug..."
"It's Fezziwig!" I exclaimed. "F-E-Z-Z-I-W-I-G. Get it straight!"
"All right!" Jake shouted. "I play FEZZIWIG! And I'm a senior."
Medda looked a little shocked at my outburst. "Yes, Fezziwig, of course," she murmured to herself. "All right then, who plays Mrs. Fezziwig?"
"I do," Ariana Montoya said with a heavy Spanish accent. "My name's Ana Montoya and I am in twelfth grade. I am from Spain, but I am staying with my cousins here in Carleton this year."
"Another new student!" Medda exclaimed. "And from Spain. How romantic! Now, where's Belle Fezziwig?"
"Right here," a girl said, running into the auditorium. "Sorry I'm late, they were taking pictures of the volleyball team this morning, since we've had a winning season so far and all that. And my name's Anna, also."
"But we all call her Ace," I finished for her. "And she's a sophomore."
"Thank you darling, and congratulations on your season, Anna," Medda said. "On to the Cratchit family. We already have Bob and Mrs. Cratchit, but we need...Peter."
"Here," Itey said. "I'm Itey Maldonado, and I'm a freshman."
"Okay and Jade is Martha so who's Belinda?"
"I am," Cerise said. "My name's Cerise, I'm a senior, and I'm also Spot's girlfriend."
Medda beamed. "And I bet you look absolutely exquisite together! And who's Tiny Tim?"
"Oh, I am. My name's Crutchy, and I'm a sophomore."
"Wonderful, and I see you brought the crutch along with you already," Medda said.
"Actually, he brought it because he sprained his ankle on the first day of football practice, and then again when he was walking to the cafeteria yesterday," a blond-haired boy wearing an eye patch said. "And my name's Kid Blink, and I wear an eye patch because I was a pirate in Peter Pan last year and I stole it from the prop department. I'm Topper this year, and I'm a junior."
"Thank you, Mr....er...Blink," Medda said. "And I believe we have two identical twins, do we not?"
"Yes," Felicia said loudly. "I'm Felicia, she's Leticia, I'm Mrs. Fred, she's Mrs. Fred's sister, and we're both sophomores."
"Wait," Mush whispered to me. "If she's Mrs. Fred, does that mean I'm married to her?"
"Yes." Mush pretended to vomit.
"Are you all right?" Medda wondered.
Mush blushed slightly. "Sure, fine, go on."
"All right, dear, if you're sure," Medda agreed. "Now, for our three men. I believe you're all freshmen, correct? Now, our fat man is..."
"Me. Snitch," Snitch volunteered.
"All right, and the man with a handkerchief is..."
"Me. Snipeshooter."
"And the thin man..."
"That'd be me, Swifty."
"Yes. Swifts, Snipey, and Snitchshooter. That shouldn't be too hard to remember."
"Yes, except for the fact that it's SNITCH, SNIPESHOOTER, and SWIFTY," I corrected, exasperated.
"Well, thank you darling, although you don't have to shout," Medda said. "What's your name again? Oh yes, you're Spot's little sister, aren't you?" I glowered. "Anyway...what about Mrs. Dilber and the Charwoman?" Medda asked.
"I'm the Charwoman," Bliss said. "My name's Bliss McNamorn, and I'm a sophomore. Mrs. Dilber is Bethany Smythe, a junior. She's over there." Bliss pointed toward a girl sitting at the corner of the stage, holding a mirror in one hand. With the other, she was applying yet another coat of garish red lipstick to her already overdone face.
"Lovely. And our Portly Gentlemen are?"
"Me and Curls," Mikko Saunders volunteered. "We're both seniors."
"Who act like second graders," I commented under my breath, and Bumlets nodded in agreement.
"And, last but not least, the Undertaker," Medda said. She looked around at the sea of faces. "Where is the Undertaker?"
"It's Fish, isn't it?" I asked.
Medda flipped through a stack of papers laying near the front of the stage. "Don Hallman is what my list says."
"That's Fish," I replied. "He's on swim team. They have practice in the mornings. He's a junior."
"Oh, all right then," Medda said. "So we have everybody but Tessie, Taylor, Cindy, and Lucas. Since they're still in elementary, they'll just come to the weekend practices. Now, let's begin rehearsal..."
Shout-Outs:
Anon: Young Ebenezer is Scrooge as a young boy at school, Young Scrooge is the young man who falls in love with Belle. Ebenezer Scrooge is the old man who is visit by the three ghosts.
Stretch: I'm glad that Specs gets a big part, too! Here's another chapter for you.
"Remind me again why I'm at school at 6:30 in the morning," Mush requested drowsily, resting his head on my shoulder. I pushed it off, stood up, and we walked toward the front of the auditorium.
"Because we're having play rehearsal before school so that the football and volleyball teams can all make it to practice this afternoon," I replied.
"We did this other years, though, and we never had to be here till 7:00," Bumlets pointed out, joining the conversation.
"Apparently Ms. Larkson likes to get an early start," I said. "Besides, it's partly your fault. You're one of the people on the football team!"
"Everybody! Gather in a circle on the stage, please!" Ms. Larkson called. She was wearing a lacy pink skirt and her bright red hair was curled and styled in an elaborate messy bun.
"Uh, nice dress, Ms. Larkson!" Jade Gessler called. She's a senior and best friends with Cerise.
"Why, thank you darling!" Ms. Larkson exclaimed. "I always like to dress up to match whatever drama I'm working on. And you may all call me Medda. I want us to be one big, happy, Christmas Carol-y family!"
"Really," Mush muttered to himself, a look of disbelief on his face.
"Now," Medda began, "I'd like to introduce my assistant, Mr. Brian Denton." A young man with greasy brown hair, khakis, and a red-checked bow tie climbed up to the stage.
"He's kind of cute!" Felicia Darte exclaimed to her twin sister, Leticia.
"How can they think that?" I whispered to Bliss McNamorn, a sophomore sitting near me. "He's wearing a bow tie!"
"Now, now, students, you can talk later," Medda interrupted. "It is time to practice. But first, I'd like to get to know all of you. So if you'd please go around the circle and say your name, your character in 'A Christmas Carol,' and what grade you're in." She pointed to Jack Sullivan-Kelly. "We'll start with you."
"Uh, my name's Jack," Jack began with a British accent. "My parents divorced, so I just moved to the states from England this year. I'm a junior, and I'm the narrator."
"Well, it's nice to have someone else who's new," Medda said with a welcoming smile. "Next."
"Uh, my name's Specs, 'cause of my glasses, I'm a senior, and I'm Scrooge."
"I'm David Jacobs," Dave began.
"Nah, he's the walkin' mouth!" Spot shouted, and then flashed his trademark grin.
"And who would you be?" Medda asked, trying unsuccessfully not to smile.
"I'd be Spot Conlon, president of the junior class, and Old Joe in this play."
"Well, nice to meet you, Mr. Conlon, now if we could please get back to David," Medda said.
"Like I was saying," David began again, glaring at my brother, "I'm David Jacobs, I'm a sophomore, and I play Bob Cratchit."
"Hey, everybody, I'm Mush, I'm another sophomore, and I'm Fred, whoever he is."
"He's Scrooge's nephew," I reminded Mush.
"Thank you, darling, and what's your name?" Medda asked me.
"I'm Seraph Conlon, and I'm a sophomore like Mush. I play Mrs. Cratchit."
"Do you happen to be related to Spot?" Medda asked, saying the name as if he was a god. Sheesh, you'd think a grown woman would know enough not to fall for his grins.
"Yes, I'm his sister," I admitted grudgingly.
"That must be wonderful!" Medda said, giving Spot another huge smile. "Now, who's next?"
"I...I guess I am," Pie Eater said quietly. "I'm Pie Eater Sidoni, I'm a senior, and I play Jacob Marley."
"Excuse me dear, I didn't quite catch your name," Medda said, cupping one hand around her ear. "Speak up! Don't be shy!"
"His name's Pie Eater, and he's my boyfriend," Jade announced. "I'm Jade Gessler, I'm also a senior, and I play Martha Cratchit."
"Thank you Jade, darling. Now who's next?"
"That'd be me," a blond-haired boy said. "My name's Dutchy, 'cause I look Dutch, even though I'm really Ukrainian. I'm a junior and I play the Ghost of Christmas Past."
"Ukrainian...I believe my grandmother was part Ukrainian," Medda said.
"Are you sure it wasn't part Transylvanian?" Bumlets whispered to me.
"Well, it could have been Transylvanian, I'm not sure," Medda replied, overhearing Bumlet's comment. "And you're the Ghost of Christmas Present, correct?"
"That's me," Bumlets confirmed. "My name's Bumlets Lucero and I'm in tenth grade."
"And who's our last ghost?" Medda wondered. "That's you isn't it?" She pointed to Snoddy.
Snoddy wiped his nose on his sleeve and nodded. "Yeah. My name's Snoddy, because of my allergies. I'm a senior, and I'll be right back after I-achoo! -find some Kleenex." Snoddy ran off stage, and Medda turned toward Skittery.
"And who are you, darling?"
Skittery made a face at being referred to as a "darling". "Uh, I'm Skittery. I'm a freshman, and I play Young Scrooge."
"Wonderful. And Young Ebenezer and his sister Fan are played by elementary students, correct?"
"Actually, I'm young Ebenezer," a short Italian kid said. "And I'm a junior. The name's Racetrack. And Springs Hawthorne is Fan. She's a freshman."
"You're a junior?" Medda asked, amazed. "I never would have guessed...you're such a cute little boy! Now, who's next?"
"I am. I'm a freshman, my name's Boots, and I play Dick Wilkins."
"Wonderful! Next."
"My name's Jake Conrad, I play Fuzzy-wug, and..."
"Wait a minute darling," Medda interrupted (again!), "but I have your name down as Joe Conrad."
"It is. Jake's a nickname. Anyway, I play Fuzzy-wug..."
"It's Fezziwig!" I exclaimed. "F-E-Z-Z-I-W-I-G. Get it straight!"
"All right!" Jake shouted. "I play FEZZIWIG! And I'm a senior."
Medda looked a little shocked at my outburst. "Yes, Fezziwig, of course," she murmured to herself. "All right then, who plays Mrs. Fezziwig?"
"I do," Ariana Montoya said with a heavy Spanish accent. "My name's Ana Montoya and I am in twelfth grade. I am from Spain, but I am staying with my cousins here in Carleton this year."
"Another new student!" Medda exclaimed. "And from Spain. How romantic! Now, where's Belle Fezziwig?"
"Right here," a girl said, running into the auditorium. "Sorry I'm late, they were taking pictures of the volleyball team this morning, since we've had a winning season so far and all that. And my name's Anna, also."
"But we all call her Ace," I finished for her. "And she's a sophomore."
"Thank you darling, and congratulations on your season, Anna," Medda said. "On to the Cratchit family. We already have Bob and Mrs. Cratchit, but we need...Peter."
"Here," Itey said. "I'm Itey Maldonado, and I'm a freshman."
"Okay and Jade is Martha so who's Belinda?"
"I am," Cerise said. "My name's Cerise, I'm a senior, and I'm also Spot's girlfriend."
Medda beamed. "And I bet you look absolutely exquisite together! And who's Tiny Tim?"
"Oh, I am. My name's Crutchy, and I'm a sophomore."
"Wonderful, and I see you brought the crutch along with you already," Medda said.
"Actually, he brought it because he sprained his ankle on the first day of football practice, and then again when he was walking to the cafeteria yesterday," a blond-haired boy wearing an eye patch said. "And my name's Kid Blink, and I wear an eye patch because I was a pirate in Peter Pan last year and I stole it from the prop department. I'm Topper this year, and I'm a junior."
"Thank you, Mr....er...Blink," Medda said. "And I believe we have two identical twins, do we not?"
"Yes," Felicia said loudly. "I'm Felicia, she's Leticia, I'm Mrs. Fred, she's Mrs. Fred's sister, and we're both sophomores."
"Wait," Mush whispered to me. "If she's Mrs. Fred, does that mean I'm married to her?"
"Yes." Mush pretended to vomit.
"Are you all right?" Medda wondered.
Mush blushed slightly. "Sure, fine, go on."
"All right, dear, if you're sure," Medda agreed. "Now, for our three men. I believe you're all freshmen, correct? Now, our fat man is..."
"Me. Snitch," Snitch volunteered.
"All right, and the man with a handkerchief is..."
"Me. Snipeshooter."
"And the thin man..."
"That'd be me, Swifty."
"Yes. Swifts, Snipey, and Snitchshooter. That shouldn't be too hard to remember."
"Yes, except for the fact that it's SNITCH, SNIPESHOOTER, and SWIFTY," I corrected, exasperated.
"Well, thank you darling, although you don't have to shout," Medda said. "What's your name again? Oh yes, you're Spot's little sister, aren't you?" I glowered. "Anyway...what about Mrs. Dilber and the Charwoman?" Medda asked.
"I'm the Charwoman," Bliss said. "My name's Bliss McNamorn, and I'm a sophomore. Mrs. Dilber is Bethany Smythe, a junior. She's over there." Bliss pointed toward a girl sitting at the corner of the stage, holding a mirror in one hand. With the other, she was applying yet another coat of garish red lipstick to her already overdone face.
"Lovely. And our Portly Gentlemen are?"
"Me and Curls," Mikko Saunders volunteered. "We're both seniors."
"Who act like second graders," I commented under my breath, and Bumlets nodded in agreement.
"And, last but not least, the Undertaker," Medda said. She looked around at the sea of faces. "Where is the Undertaker?"
"It's Fish, isn't it?" I asked.
Medda flipped through a stack of papers laying near the front of the stage. "Don Hallman is what my list says."
"That's Fish," I replied. "He's on swim team. They have practice in the mornings. He's a junior."
"Oh, all right then," Medda said. "So we have everybody but Tessie, Taylor, Cindy, and Lucas. Since they're still in elementary, they'll just come to the weekend practices. Now, let's begin rehearsal..."
