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Nebraska Theatre Caravan

Relive the adventures of the Nebraska Theatre Caravan, which brought A Christmas Carol to audiences across the country. Explore photos and stories from the tours that helped spread the spirit of the show far beyond Omaha.

The Nebraska Theatre Caravan

The Nebraska Theatre Caravan was founded in 1976 as a joint project between the Omaha Playhouse and the Nebraska Arts Council “to bring together a small group of professional performer-teachers for workshops in Omaha and out-state.” The original 12-week program soon became a full-time program touring to Greater Nebraska, Kansas and Wyoming, and in its second season was playing to 45,000 people in 37 communities.

In 1979, the Caravan started touring the Charles Jones adaptation of A Christmas Carol nationally with one company touring the Midwest. Three years later in 1982 another company was added to tour the East Coast and a third to tour the West Coast in 1987.

Since its inception the Nebraska Theatre Caravan produced over 100 fully mounted productions, many of which were new works, and played to 160 Nebraska communities and hundreds of others across the nation. The national tour of A Christmas Carol performed in over 600 cities, in 49 states, 4 Canadian provinces, and was seen by over 3 million audience members.

The Nebraska Theatre Caravan closed in 2019.

Founding and Early Years

1976: The Nebraska Theatre Caravan was founded as the professional touring wing of the Omaha Community Playhouse.

1979: The Caravan began its national tour of A Christmas Carol, a production adapted by Charles Jones.

1982: A second company was added to tour the East Coast.

1987: A third company was added to tour the West Coast.

Links

Nebraska Theatre Caravan: Promotional Video

Nebraska Theatre Caravan: Show Clips

London Calling – Omaha Magazine, 2020

BTS at the Tilles Center

Nebraska Theatre Caravan Images

A promotional image of Matt Kamprath as Scrooge on the East Coast Tour. He performed as Scrooge on the East Coast for 20 years.

Matt Kamprath as Scrooge and Spencer Newman as Tiny Tim on the East Coast Tour.

An image of Matt Kamprath as Scrooge in the Counting House scene.

Matt Kamprath as Scrooge with the Charity Men.

Matt Kamprath as Scrooge with Jacob Marley on the East Coast Tour.

An image of the East Coast Tour, featuring Matt Kamprath as Scrooge with Christmas Past.

Promotional images of Matt Kamprath as Scrooge.

An image of Fred and Millie's ball, with the characters playing Blind Man's Bluff.

An image of Nils Haaland as Scrooge.

A promotional image of Nils Haaland as Scrooge on Tour. Nils is also the Scrooge on Standby for the 2025 production of "A Christmas Carol."

Ohio Theatre Venue for the Midwest Tour of "A Christmas Carol."

An image of the opening tableau of "A Christmas Carol."

Paul Kerr as Scrooge on Tour.

An image of the touring Cratchits with Dan Chevalier as Bob Cratchit.