Holiday drama: A selection of innovative seasonal shows

A Klingon Christmas Carol

Commedia Beauregard, Chicago, (312) 848-6327

Lauded by Conan O’Brien during last year’s inaugural production for “honoring the true meaning of Christmas,” this version of Dickens’s oft-staged story is performed entirely in the language of Star Trek’s Klingons. The play’s Scrooge character is “SQuja,” an inhabitant of the planet Qo’noS who is visited by three spirits that help him reclaim his warrior honor. For non-devotees, a screen with English subtitles is provided. Through Dec. 31

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Some Lovers

The Old Globe, San Diego, (619) 234-5623

This world-premiere musical updates O. Henry’s “The Gift of the Magi” with music by Burt Bacharach and book and lyrics by Spring Awakening creator Steven Sater. Here an aspiring musician and a student, both struggling to make ends meet in modern-day New York, are the sweetly misguided couple. When future versions of themselves go back in time to warn of the consequences of their gifts, events play out much as they do in the 1906 short story. Through Dec. 31

When the Clock Strikes

Boston University Theatre, (617) 542-1399

Mike Daisey offers a more thoughtful alternative to the usual drunken revelry that takes place on New Year’s Eve. The creator of this year’s The Agony and the Ecstasy of Steve Jobs applies the same mix of skepticism and fascination to the social and cultural baggage that comes with celebrating the kickoff of each year, which for many people arrives less with festiveness than with anxiety about the future. Through Dec. 31

A Christmas Carol, Oy! Hanukkah, Merry Kwanzaa

(Happy Ramadan)

Czechoslovak-American Marionette Theater, Brooklyn, N.Y.

(212) 868-4444

It’s hard for a show to get more ecumenical—although the London setting and the basic story are the same as in Dickens’s novel. This Christmas Carol features songs in Czech, English, Hebrew, Latin, and Swahili sung by an a cappella choir. Three dozen marionette puppets of varying sizes act it all out. Through Jan. 1