Oliver!

Premiered in London in 1960, this musical has been a constant favourite ever since. Such is its, and GTG’s reputation, this was a sell-out production.

The programme contained well-designed and evocative sketches of London scenes dotted about the lower section of the pages throughout. There was a very interesting piece on Lionel Bart’s intriguing career and somewhat sad life. An interesting ‘Director’s Welcome’; great cast photos (costumed and in rehearsal); comprehensive cast and production team profiles; and an appetite-whetting description of their autumn drama, all made a great read.

The scenery was excellent – dark, dingy, threatening, cobbled streets, dark corners, dim alleyways. The sets were cleverly simple, a wooden platform up high, at one stage to suggest London Bridge, but used in many scenes, under which was concealed Fagin’s den, which could be completely sealed off when not in use. All parts of the stage were used, set changes were very unobtrusive, living rooms appeared and disappeared, silently too! A great job from the designer Roger Ness and the stage crew.

Props were good too. Light, easy to handle bowls for the urchins; a coffin; a super-long chain of handkerchiefs emerging from Fagin’s pocket for Oliver’s ‘lesson’; Fagin’s treasure box; Bill Sykes evil, heavy cosh.  But the best props emerged in ‘Who will buy?’. A basket of beautiful red roses; a milkmaid’s yoke with two buckets dangling; a delicious-looking array of strawberries; and a knife-grinder’s machine. All made me think of what a stroll round the streets of London might have been like in Victorian times.

Lighting was very important in this production, and succeeded well in evoking all the necessary moods, from the dire workhouse and undertaker’s premises, to the cosy room of Widow Corney, to the scary yet friendly den of Fagin, to the golden glow of the happy scene at Mr Brownlow’s.

The nine-piece band was excellent, under the direction of Steven Bean, and I especially enjoyed the klezmer violin solo by Juliet Balch in ‘Reviewing the Situation’. Exquisite! The singing was splendid, from the children, the chorus, the soloists. Once again, I especially thrilled to the exquisite harmonies of ‘Who will buy?’ This was unforgettable, an especially fine rendering from Sue Starbuck (Roses), Ellie Cahill-Nicholls (Milk), Becky van Orden (Strawberries) and Mark Waters (Knifegrinder). Moreover, I must praise the excellent clarity of the singing of all, including especially the children. One could understand EVERY word – a rare occurrence, I have to say.

Alison Chapman, choreographer, always has a good sense of appropriate challenge for her cast. So here our chorus, of mixed ages and abilities, using the whole stage, managed to delight us, the children especially so.

Now to the production itself, and firstly, we had a fine cast of young people. Their enthusiasm and their fine voices were wonderful. Of course, there are two Olivers and two Artful Dodgers involved in such a long run. On the night we attended, sadly our Oliver, (William Oakley), after a fine rendition of ‘Where is love?’, became unwell and had to withdraw. Enter Oliver Number Two, (Joel Seaman), who jumped in just like that, and afforded me thus the opportunity to enjoy the performances of BOTH these promising performers. Well done, both of them!

The Directors obviously did a great deal of hard work with their excellent cast, the young people seemed so natural, used the stage well, interacted with the adults and each other so appropriately, all went so smoothly. Great work!

Oliver is obviously a fine ensemble piece, so I will praise the whole team, but there are some cast members who deserve special mention. The interaction between Mr Bumble (Dave Sillett) and Widow Corney (Emma Culley) was a delight, both before and after their marriage! The bleak scene at the undertaker’s was well-played by all concerned, with the stale relationship of Mr and Mrs Sowerberry contrasting well with the cuddles and flirting we had enjoyed minutes before between Mr Bumble and his comely Widow Corney. We also saw Oliver’s character emerge, as he stood up for himself so strongly in his fight, verbal and physical, with Noah Claypole. Well played by Oliver Number One.

Enter Fagin. Great casting here, Andrew Blagden inhabited this great role with aplomb – he was jolly; scheming; kind; solicitous (go and have a wash); anxious; peace-loving; woolly-headed; avaricious; wavering (reviewing his situation); full of joie de vivre despite all the odds. Andrew brought out all his richness of character, all his predicaments, worries, doubts, and small delights. He gave us a superb rendition of ‘Reviewing the Situation’ – a fine voice, great gestures, movements and facial expressions. Marvellous!

The larger-than-life Ben Dray made a very menacing indeed Bill Sykes, pacing about, clutching his awesome cosh, shoulders hunched, evil expression. He was really quite threatening, a great performance.

The Artful Dodger (Jackson Laing) was a chirpily cheerful cheeky chappie, and played his role well.

But Nancy! WHAT a Nancy! Cheryl Hacker lived the role, in that stunning red dress, from start to finish. She had amazing stage presence, her voice and her rendition of her songs were superb, she included everyone on the stage with her looks and her gestures; she exuded passion, unrequited love, kindness, loyalty, and East End toughness and positive spirit. Glorious!

Andrew Culley and David Dray, I am not surprised you found this co-adventure challenging, with its huge cast, (but such great casting).  You managed to get very nuanced performances from all, bringing out all Bart’s themes and character observation so well, and you created such an enjoyable show. Oliver is joyful, so full of spirit and energy, and sadness and life, and your cast pulled it off brilliantly. Thank you.

  

Show photographs by TiCa Photography

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