Alliance Theatre’s production of A Christmas Carol has been an Atlanta tradition for decades. Though many adaptations have been played at the Alliance, one thing remains true through their commitment to equity, diversity, and inclusion; equitable casting. On stage, Alliance Theatre represents not only the diversity of modern day Atlanta, but also that of historical London. England has a long history of immigration that has brought many different people and cultures together in its capital city.
This story takes place during the Industrial Revolution, wherein England’s economy experienced rapid growth through shipping routes and the factory system. During the 1600s, London experienced increased growth and diversification in population due to the Transatlantic Slave Trade. Many people from North America and the West Indies were brought to be household servants, work in cotton mills, or to be sold through slave ports. London, Bristol, and Liverpool were the main ports for slave trade. This continued to be the case even after emancipation was officially declared in England in 1838.
By the mid-1700s, the Industrial Revolution was well underway. England’s economy became dependent on international trade, and they needed cheap labor to support the shipping industry. Many job opportunities were created with the target workers being immigrants of color from the colonies in Africa, Malaysia, India, and the West Indies. These workers were hired as sailors and paid unfair wages to work in horrible conditions. Chinese, Malay, Indian, Somali, and Yemeni workers were often picked up to work on ships trading with Asia, while people from West Africa and the West Indies were typically picked up to work on ships on the Atlantic routes. Many of these workers hired in their native countries were abandoned upon arrival at the shipping ports in England, and so they had to settle in the cities near the coast, London being a major hub.
Other immigrants fled to England because of poverty and war. In the 1840’s, due to the Great Famine, a million people immigrated from Ireland to other places to find better resources, job opportunities, and relief. Many from the Scottish Highlands had to flee Scotland because of unsustainable rent prices, foreclosures, poor harvests, and a lack of jobs. There were also immigrants from the villages of southern Italy fleeing poverty and the civil war.
People came to London for many different reasons but many shared one thing in common: a desire for a better life. Through this massive immigration, England now has diverse communities throughout the country to be represented on stage. Oftentimes, newly arrived immigrants would settle within communities of people who shared their language and culture. This created pockets of different cultures throughout England. For example, Limehouse was a common city for people of Chinese descent, Italians who settled in the city settled in Clerkenwell, and many of the European Jewish community settled in Spitalfields. Black and African communities settled in London, Bristol, Liverpool, and Brixton.
As one can see, it is likely that a diverse and varied group of people populated Charles Dickens’ classic story. While this play represents the diversity in London, Alliance’s production presents the classic work for an Atlanta audience, representing our own city’s diversity through an entirely local cast of Atlanta actors. With a piece that has been done so many times before, and has typically excluded BIPOC people in its reiterations, the Alliance has taken this story and made it not only relatable, but accessible for audiences in Atlanta to enjoy