The Echo recently had the pleasure of spending some time with Drew McVety, an award winning Broadway and film actor – who has played violin with Sting, and is currently outstanding as both Sherlock in A Sherlock Carol and the show’s producer. We hope you enjoy the exclusive interview that follows below!

A Sherlock Carol wonderfully combines the two unlikely characters of Sherlock Holmes and Ebeneezer Scrooge. A new twist on a classic holiday tale emerges that entertains and delights from start to finish. Spoiler alert – there may or may not have been a murder! 

Audiences will enjoy the mystery, fun and redemption, which is central to the original Charles Dickens’ Christmas Carol. We also gain new perspective on Scrooge, having learned that as promised he spent the balance of his life making the world a better place in contrast to his earlier years, where his sole motivation was the pursuit of money at the expense of all other outside interests, relationships and happiness. 

A Sherlock Carol has great potential to become the annual holiday production and tradition Broadway needs. After seeing it once you will want to see it again (and again)!  

1.     How do you handle the stress of being both the lead actor and producer in A Sherlock Carol? 

That stress is enormous because I am responsible for making sure the whole show is paid for, that the design is made, the production made, that everyone gets their paychecks – as well as playing the role every night. I find doing the role really gives me a release from those kinds of worries. When I’m doing the part, I feel great because all I have to do is think about being Sherlock Holmes – when I have to think about everything else, that can be more stressful.

2.     How did your extensive acting experience help make you a better producer?

That is such a great question and it moves me a little bit. As a producer I have the power to do things in a more humane way and I’ve been able to do that in several areas in our company, which makes me very happy – especially when we have a Christmas schedule it can get very, very tiring on the actors because the schedule becomes even more strenuous than a normal Broadway schedule, which is already crazy. And many of our people have families. So, especially in a Christmas show like this, we are actually taking them away from their own families to do this. I’ve been able to rearrange the schedule a little bit and to other things on the ground floor to help my fellow actors. It is very satisfying.

3.     What is your favorite scene in A Sherlock Carol?

That is really hard to say because I believe it is a brilliant play and I like the whole play. There is nothing like the final turnaround when you get to be happy at the end. And if you do it right it is such a release and a relief – and if the audience is with us as it was today – it just feels wonderful. So, I have to say the turkey boy is my favorite scene.

4.     How long has the show been in development?

I’ve been around since the first conversation for this show, which was in a dressing room in Nantucket with the writer. He and I were doing a play together three years ago. We made the script that fall. We were all ready to do it and then the pandemic hit. We had to sit on it for a year and a half. We were lucky enough to get a theater offered to us. 2021 was our first season and this is our second season.

5.     Sherlock has a huge fan base. What has the fan response been?

It’s been wonderful. It really has. We’ll have people from last year and they will come back this year. They will come 2 and 3 and 4 times – they want to make it their holiday tradition. And that’s what we’ve always aimed for this show – to be a holiday perennial classic in New York City. And our fan base is making that possible. It just grows and grows and grows. Even when we were performing last year during COVID, we still had that momentum and we are still building up.

6.     Do you have plans to bring Sherlock into any other productions? 

I certainly hope so. We have a London production this year that is phenomenal. And we have just completed a licensing deal, which means that community theaters and amateur theaters and students and schools and regional theaters can now do it all over the world. That is going to be a growth that we have. We are also trying to find a permanent home in New York City so we can do it every year.

7.     What advice were you given as a producer that took you the longest to unlearn because it was wrong? 

This is such a great question. The reason we were able to get backing and serious considerations from other producers in New York is because we said we did not want to make money in New York off Broadway. It is almost impossible to make money off Broadway. We said what we are going to do is use this off-Broadway venue to build a brand that would then be able to go for licensing and everything else. That would be the show’s biggest longevity. I had to unlearn that being a producer is about having money or is about making money necessarily with your production. So, I had to unlearn that.

8.     What advice would you give to aspiring high school actors and directors?

If you love the theater – if you love doing this – you will follow it with all of your heart. It will take you on a journey effortlessly. It will be hard. Everybody says this is a hard way to make a living. But the thing I’ve noticed is the work has already been done. You will simply follow it. So, follow your heart would be my advice.

The Facts:

Location: New World Stages, 340 W 50th Street, New York

Running Time: Approximately 2 hours with one intermission.

Ticket Price Range: $80 to $134

Website: www.asherlockcarol.com