Kids sharing a big role of tiny person

The two boys playing Tiny Tim in South Coast Repertory’s annual holiday production of “A Christmas Carol” know the meaning of family tradition.

Parker Cohn’s sister played the part of Belinda last year, and Phillip Swanson’s three older brothers were cast as Tiny Tim in prior years’ productions.

Parker, 8, and Phillip, 9, said director John-David Keller (or “JD,” as Parker refers to him) explained the importance of the show to them.

“JD, the director, said it’s not only a long-running play anymore, it’s a tradition. And since it’s a tradition now, people take their children to see it,” Parker said.

“When they’re all grown up, they take their children, and then when their children are all grown up, they take their children,” Phillip said.

Dickens’ classic tale of the Cratchit family and its effect on Ebenezer Scrooge, the old, embittered miser, is now in its 28th season at South Coast Repertory.

Keller said he looks forward to the changes the children bring to the show each year, keeping it fresh and new for the audience.

He said there are plenty of adults who misbehave more than kids, and he tells the boys that Tiny Tim’s role takes an importance equal to any of the adult character’s.

The boys are eager to work, he said, and very smart.

Keller described Parker as “8 going on 40.”

Parker came up to him a few weeks ago at rehearsal to offer a word or two of encouragement.

“I just want you to know that I think you’re very capable,” Parker told him.

Because of child labor laws, the actor playing Tiny Tim can work only a certain number of hours per day, which is why the two boys trade off in the role.

For such young actors, the boys are well-versed when it comes to explaining the theme of the play and what learning their lines entails.

“Scrooge is like a name that is kind of rude,” Parker said, adding that while Scrooge doesn’t really care about anybody else, he really likes Tiny Tim and changes himself consequently.

“He gets very nice by the end of the story. It changes him and makes him nice,” Parker said.

“He doesn’t want Tiny Tim to die because the family already has too much on their hands,” Phillip said.

The boys have been rehearsing every day for more than a month. They have a lot of lines, they said, and some of them are long, making memorization difficult.

They read their scripts and practice lines at home, they said, adding that it helps to know which lines precede theirs.

“I memorize the lines that come before my lines, and then I can know when it’s my turn,” Parker said.

“If we forgot our lines, someone would just say their lines and skip over the mistake, so the audience wouldn’t know what had happened,” Phillip added.

To audition for a part in “A Christmas Carol,” children must be second-year students in the repertory’s youth program.

“To get in to the Christmas Carol, you kind of have to go through a competition,” Parker said.

The boys said a favorite scene is when Tiny Tim stops his father to look at a toy horse on a cart.

Phillip’s favorite line in the play is when his character says: “Wait, father, wait. Please, Father.”

Parker’s favorite line is, “Look father, it’s that magnificent horse.”

Although it’s early in the season, the boys said the play gets them into the Christmas spirit and that the best part is what happens to Scrooge.

The actors said Scrooge is mean because he’s a businessman, and everything, for him, has to do with money.

“The ghosts show Scrooge that if he doesn’t change, by the next Christmas, there’s a tombstone that they wipe off and it says Ebenezer Scrooge,” Parker said.

Phillip said the ghosts are showing him that if he doesn’t change his ways he’ll have to roam the earth and haunt other people like his dead partner, Jacob Marley.

“A mean sourpuss guy turning into a really, really nice guy is the best part,” Phillip said.

Parker also enjoys the end of the play.

“I love the part when I just bow,” he said.

IF YOU GO

WHAT: “A Christmas Carol”

WHEN: Previews begin today. Opening night is Friday; the show runs through Dec. 24. Call for showtimes.

WHERE: South Coast Repertory, 655 Town Center Drive, Costa Mesa

COST: $23 to $55

INFO: Call (714) 708-5555 or go to www.scr.org

SUE THOENSEN may be reached at (714) 966-4627 or at [email protected].