01 Dec 2025 God bless us everyone, and especially Dolly Parton

By KD Reep 

When actor Ken Orman takes the stage as Ebenezer Scrooge in “Dolly Parton’s Smoky Mountain Christmas Carol,” he’s not just portraying one of literature’s most famous misers — he’s stepping into a role that beautifully blends redemption, music and mountain spirit.

The national tour of the show, featuring original songs by Dolly Parton and a book by David H. Bell, stops in Conway on Dec. 10 at Reynolds Performance Hall, bringing with it all the heart, humor and harmony of the Smoky Mountains.

Set in the 1930s in East Tennessee, this reimagining of Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol” casts Scrooge as the owner of a mining company town. His power and greed have left him cold and alone — until a Christmas Eve snowstorm and three ghostly visitors invite him to see life, and love, anew.

“It’s quite an ordeal,” Orman said. “Scrooge dominates the entire culture of this town. He owns it, he runs it, and he’s not afraid to crush anyone who gets in his way.”

That intensity isn’t far from Orman’s earlier career where he spent 30 years in finance before pursuing acting full-time. “The sense of domination still exists in that world,” he said. “Even with all the technology and regulations, the attitude is the same. So, I know this guy. I’ve met him. I might’ve been a little like him.” Orman’s journey to the stage wasn’t fast or easy. “It took a long time,” he admitted. “I had to be patient and real with myself. Imposter syndrome is real, and it can last for decades.”

But once he found his creative calling, there was no turning back. The New York-based actor has since built an impressive résumé that includes roles in “Vindication” (Angel/Prime Video), “Love & Death” (HBO Max) and stage productions such as “Our Town/Nuestro Pueblo” and “Travisville.” He also produced “All About Bette: An Interlude with Bette Davis,” starring his wife, actor Morgana Shaw, with narration by Robert Wagner.

“Maybe performing was always what I wanted,” Orman reflected. “As a kid, you’re told who you’re supposed to be — a football player, a businessman. But this? This feels like who I really am.”

It’s no surprise this musical feels like home for Orman. “It’s such a very American story now,” he said. “The music Dolly wrote — the folk, bluegrass, gospel — it’s just beautiful.”

Directed and choreographed by Antoinette DiPietropolo, the production features a 16-member cast and six live musicians. “They’re youthful, energetic and so talented,” Orman said. “There’s a lot of joy in this group, and you can feel it on stage.”

Parton has said she wrote the songs to capture “the warmth, love and good memories” of her own Smoky Mountain Christmases, and Orman believes audiences will feel every bit of that love.

This year, he will spend Christmas far from home. His wife is filming in Texas, and their daughter, a law student at the University of Maryland, hopes to catch a nearby performance. Still, Orman says the family’s hearts are full.

“This will be our first Christmas in New York, and we’re a little bummed to miss it with each other,” he said. “But we both understand what it means to do work that feeds your soul.”

The couple’s anniversary also falls during the tour, but fate has its own sweet twist: Shaw will join him for the Lafayette, La., show before meeting friends in New Orleans.

“It’s not the usual candlelit dinner,” he said. “But we’ll be together — and that’s what matters.”

And in truth, Orman celebrates Christmas every night on stage. “When we perform this show, we’re surrounded by love, joy and forgiveness,” he said. “It’s Christmas every time the curtain rises.”

At the heart of this production and of Orman’s performance lies a message as old as Christmas itself.

“There’s something about unconditional love and kindness that always wins,” he said. “It perseveres over negativity, greed and fear. This story brings that home in such a beautiful way.”

He credits much of that emotional power to the show’s youngest performers. “The boys who play Tiny Tim — they’re just the sweetest kids,” he said. “When they look up and say, ‘Mr. Scrooge,’ it melts you. You see how love changes people.”

As audiences fill theaters across the country this holiday season, Orman hopes they leave inspired to share that same spirit of compassion.