Virus shuts many UK theatres but online the show goes on by Jill Lawless, The Associated Press Posted Dec 16, 2020 2:52 am EDT Last Updated Dec 16, 2020 at 2:56 am EDT LONDON — When Andrew Lincoln steps onstage at London’s Old Vic Theatre as Ebenezer Scrooge in “A Christmas Carol,” he looks out on an empty auditorium. The spectators are beyond the theatre walls, in houses and apartments, staring at screens. In this pandemic year, the Old Vic’s seasonal production of Charles Dickens’ classic is being livestreamed nightly until Dec. 24, with ticket-holders around the world tuning in over Zoom. “It’s a very strange experience, doing something theatrical on a stage and then not feeling the reverb of an audience,” said Lincoln, the British actor who starred for nine seasons in AMC zombie drama “The Walking Dead.”