This time of year, reruns of holiday specials-Island of Misfit Toys, anyone?-have a way of transporting you back to your childhood. Former "The Colbert Report" writers Peter Gwinn and Bobby Mort are playing off of that nostalgia in "Twist Your Dickens, or Scrooge You," which brings together beloved characters from Peanuts holiday specials, "A Christmas Carol,""Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer" and more in a decidedly grown-up show directed by Matt Hovde (The Second City). We called Gwinn in advance of the show's Friday debut at the Goodman Theatre to learn about the process of writing an adult comedy for the holidays and more.
'Twist Your Dickens, or Scrooge You'
Go: The Owen Theatre at Goodman Theatre, 170 N. Dearborn St.
Tickets: Dec. 5-28 $15-$45. 312-443-3800; goodmantheatre.org
How the different characters' worlds mesh in the play:
"They all mesh together on a cinematic level ... almost everything, even the uh, some of the Peanut stuff, the original inspiration for the scene came out of the text of 'A Christmas Carol.' One of the first things Bobby and I did was go back and read the story, which we had never done. Some of the scenes of the show are a retelling of that narrative, but there are other scenes in the show that are inspired by something cinematic that we reacted to when we were reading the story. So like, [Charlie Brown's friend] Linus doesn't meet Scrooge in the show; they are separate scenes. Hopefully in the general holiday umbrella, it all fits together."
On beloved childhood characters in adult comedy:
"It colored the process a little bit, especially when I was reading the story. I mean, Scrooge, some of the things he says would not be uh, unusual [laughs]. It wouldn't shock you coming from the mouth of a current Republican congressman. There is a tragic amount of overlap there and we touch on that a little bit."
On working with co-writer Bobby Mort:
"Bobby and I have known each other for years; we worked together at Improv Olympic [now called iO] back in the early years, so it was great. We wrote it together in person sometimes and over Skype sometimes and separately sometimes. And just both had a hand in everything. We just swapped the scripts back and forth. It took us about five months, maybe six, if you count rewrites."
On the improvisation style of the play:
"We found ways to couch some improv within the contexts of the 'Christmas Carol' story; I don't want to spoil them, but we found some that I think work. Some fun moments to play around with the audience. There is a couple of places in there where they get to yell stuff."
Why it's OK for a holiday show not to be heart-warming:
"The goal of this show is just fun and having a great time, and there is a zero percent chance your heart will be warmed by this production. You will not leave with a warmed heart ... unless you have a couple of drinks. It's fun and funny and you will be happy. But it won't necessarily make you want to shake hands with your fellow man. Everything that you think is going to be there is there, and everything you don't think is going to be there is there ... and there's swear words. If you ever wanted to see Ebenezer Scrooge swear, you should definitely come to the show."
[OPTIONAL PULLQUOTE]
"There is a zero percent chance your heart will be warmed by this production." -Peter Gwinn