Tickets, on sale now at http://ManualCinema.com, are $15 for on-demand, at-home screenings that will run Nov. 26, 2021-Jan. 3, 2022. Ticket buyers have the option to enjoy the recorded version anytime within 48 hours of purchase. Each stream concludes with a pre-recorded, post-show “Puppet Time” video featuring Manual Cinema’s artists revealing how the on-screen magic was made. Closed captioning is available to all viewers.
The world premiere of Manual Cinema’s Christmas Carol took place Dec. 3, 2020, live from Manual Cinema’s studios in Chicago. The company went on to perform the show—in a carefully controlled, socially distanced setting—and stream it live more than 20 times during its debut run.
Manual Cinema is an Emmy-winning performance collective, design studio and film/video production company that Drew Dir, Sarah Fornace, Ben Kauffman, Julia Miller and Kyle Vegter founded in 2010. Manual Cinema combines handmade shadow puppetry, cinematic techniques, and innovative sound and music to create stories for stage and screen.
On Thursday, Dec. 16, at 7:30 p.m. CT, Manual Cinema will host a Facebook Live event to bring its artists and audiences together for a live discussion about the making of the original production in 2020, and how its story and themes still resonate one year later.
Content warning: This production includes themes of loss and grief related to the COVID-19 pandemic.