A Christmas Carol: Meet Pat Mahoney (Bob Cratchit)

What do you find appealing about your character and this show?
When I first read for Bob Cratchit, the ‘Tiny Tim’ monologue resonated with me on a personal level, and I felt something different from what I’d seen depicted before.  For me, Bob Cratchit embodies the Christmas spirit; it’s one thing to keep your spirits high when times are easy, but quite another to hold them aloft when your family’s future is uncertain.
 

What have you learned about yourself in playing the role of Bob Cratchit?
In July of 2021, I became a father.  My wife and I had been planning and praying for years, and so when the day finally came, we were overjoyed and overburdened all at once.  Suddenly, I had to learn how to balance a fledgling acting career, full-time parenthood, and work.  I’d be lying if I said it’s been easy.  Yet, in reading about life in Victorian England, I’ve been reminded of how good we all have it in modern times, even in the uncertainty of a pandemic. 

I’ve come to think of Bob Cratchit as a role model; he’s responsible, hard-working, and maintains a stoic optimism which places his family over his own personal comfort.  And he does it all with a smile, or at least, as close to a smile as one could get in those days I imagine.  In playing the fictional Bob Cratchit, I am reminded that many real people before me have had it tough.  They made it through and so can I.

 

What do you want the audience to experience/take away from this show?

A Christmas Carol has become so prolific that many of its characters have become clichés, in stark contrast to the vibrant, living, breathing people who leapt off the page after Dickens first put pen to paper.  This year, I hope the audience will see the story in a less dismal light; not a quaint morality play recited by rote, but a rich tapestry woven by every human being it depicts.  

 

How does this show differ from other shows you have worked on?

What stands out to me in this show is how non-traditional our cast is.  Each actor has made choices which feel authentic and real, bringing their characters to life in ways that ‘break the mold’ of what one might expect from A Christmas Carol.  This is in no small part thanks to our director, Carol Clark, whose tutelage and dedication has helped no fewer than two groups of children and adults of all ages come into their own.  I don’t think this show would be quite as special if not for her.

 

How long have you been acting and what made you get involved in theater? 

How did you get involved with LTA?

I was involved in theatre in high school and college, but I had never had the courage to pursue it into adulthood.  I have been a personal trainer for years, and on the side, have narrated audiobooks and voice characters in video games.  But stage acting?  It wasn’t lucrative, I thought.  It was a hobby at best.  I would never make it.  Then COVID disrupted everything, and I decided, ‘why not take the plunge?’  I auditioned for ‘Sister Act,’ in 2019, landed a role, and the rest is history. 

 

What advice would you give others who are interested in working in theater?

Come in with an open mind.  If you think you lack talent, chances are, you only lack experience or training.  That can be whatever you make of it.  For me, I had years of training in public speaking and minimal experience learning the technical details of the theatre world.  I was delighted to find out LTA offers classes that range from the Business of Acting to Improv workshops.  The resources are endless!  In my first two years alone, I have found myself enlightened and enriched by everyone around me.  I look forward to many more to come.