Meet the Cast of A Christmas Carol's Past: Mike Kopera

Meet Mike Kopera

I played Peter Cratchit and Young Scrooge for at least one year at MBT (maybe two?), back when Geoffrey Sherman was artistic director.  It was one of Booth Colman’s last years as Scrooge if I recall.

I have one vivid memory of nodding to sleep backstage during a tech rehearsal while the adult cast was trying to learn how to move the perikctoi - the giant three-sided scene towers that had a different picture on each side...and apparently weren’t easy to move! [ Editor's note: this was the set design used in 1996.]

But I recall Diana Van Fossen and some other actors singing “The Coventry Carol” during this transition and, as I sat backstage presumably waiting a long time for my entrance (ah, the beauty of tech rehearsals), I felt this warm sense of calm and peace hearing the “loo lay loo lahs.”

To this day, that song makes me feel warm and cozy inside. 

Since then, I went to Northwestern where I majored in theatre, then moved to LA in 2005.  I’ve produced 4 feature films and had a handful of small roles in commercials and TV shows, including “Fresh Off the Boat” and “The Resident.”

I’m still pursuing acting (auditioning for less theatre these days, but still doing the occasional live improv performance at “The Groundlings”), have a day-job at the W Hotel in Hollywood, am married and have 3 kids.

I live in the hills of Mt. Washington, a fun, artsy area of LA.

My nephew, David Kopera, now carries on the "A Christmas Carol" tradition, and I’m very proud of him!!