Oliver

Directed by Rowan Alfred, this youth production of the Lionel Bart’s masterpiece was performed in the round using both the floor of the auditorium and the stage leaving only the tiered seating with additional two rows of side seating on either side of the auditorium, which worked very well. And with a cast of forty-nine they certainly needed the space. It was also a minimalist set without any scenery, furniture and very few props.

They also chose to perform without the ‘now standard’ to most shows, but prone to go wrong, face mics! Instead, they used handheld mics which were very neatly and strategically placed or deftly handed from the current performer to the next as part of the choreography. For me this worked very well indeed. Good decision and some of the principals with powerful voices hardly needed a mic at all, which was very encouraging indeed.

The stage itself was rarely used except for the really important scenes or those where a suggestion of height was required such as returning Oliver to his grandad, Nancy’s murder and Sykes’ demise. Again, very cleverly thought-out use of space.

Musical direction was in the capable hands of Ian Tipping and Emily Wainwright-Meekins. The excellent mixed adult and school aged band which was situated in plain sight to the rear of the stage itself was conducted by Ian Tipping and consisted of: Tabitha Ashurst - Flute/Piccolo, Claire Rawson - Clarinet Tenor Sax, Jake Steven - Clarinet 2, Tom Hingston - Violin, Mike Dodson - Drums, Jennifer Warburton - Piano, Ben Atkins - Double Bass, Louie Thompson and Lara Borg - Cello.

There was some excellent well drilled choreography by Ellen Tipping, appropriately tailored to allow the young performers to show their level of performance very well indeed.

Lighting and sound by George Colledge and Peppercorns Academy was particularly well done. Add in smoke effects which were almost continually used, that didn’t choke the audience I hasten to add, and you really did recreate the murky, atmospheric, Victorian London streets.

There was a wide array of Victorian costumes, or probably more correctly ‘ragamuffin outfits,’ spread across the whole cast sourced by Lucy Goldstone, Liv Laroche, Ellen Tipping, Emily Wainwright-Meekins and Riverside Theatre Company members. The principals in particular looked very authentic. Well done indeed for dressing such a large cast so well!

I think I’m right in saying this was a cut down version with interlocking dialogue between scenes, with the performance very much concentrating on the musical numbers, opening with a rousing number of ‘Food, Glorious Food’ involving all the cast.

The cast was led by young Evie R as a very plausible Oliver, who looked every inch the street urchin and can certainly hold a tune, as amply demonstrated in ‘Where Is Love,’ carrying this part off with great aplomb.

Mr Bumble, played by George and Widow Corney, played by Beth who were both suitably nasty led the whole company in the title song, ‘Oliver.’ Followed by ‘I shall scream’ and ‘Boy for Sale’. Mr and Mrs Sowerberry, played by Isaac and Liv, were if anything even nastier, with help from daughter Charlotte, played by Nelly and Apprentice Noah Claypole, played by Sammy, giving us an excellent ‘That’s Your Funeral’ before Oliver runs away to London.

Then we get to the excellent Fagin’s gang, where Joseph was exactly what I would expect the Artful Dodger to be, cemented by a great version of ‘Consider Yourself.’ Zach playing Fagin himself, one of the greatest villains in literature, led excellent versions of amongst others, ‘You’ve Got To Pick A Pocket Or Two,’ and ‘Reviewing The Situation.’ ably supported by the rest of the gang, Bet played by Aoibhe and Charles Bates, played by Octavia. And you certainly wouldn’t like to take on the equally evil Bill Sykes, very sternly played by Kacey with a commanding stage presence.  

The most powerful voice and my standout performance has to belong to Lucy who played Nancy with an excellent rendition of ‘It’s a Fine Life’ (with Bet) and ‘I’d Do Anything,’ capturing the dichotomy of Nancy beautifully – her nurturing side for Fagin’s young boys and the pull of Bill to great personal cost. Definitely one to watch for the future.

And finally to Olivers rescuers, The kindly Mr Brownlow played by Ethan, his housekeeper Mrs Bedwin played by Emma L, his kindly old friend Dr Grimwig played by William R and Old Sally, played by Ada whose stealing of Agnes’ locket leads to revealing Oliver’s identity. Well done to all of them. 

The huge chorus, certainly played their part, knew their positions to the inch and filled the stage with lots of memorable moments that made the afternoon thoroughly enjoyable

This was a fast-paced show, drilled to a very high standard and executed pretty much to military standard. Much credit must go to Stage Manager, Raeanna Hammerbacker, who marshalled this vast cast backstage with all entrances on time and on cue. She also ran the show in the absence of the Director, Rowan Alfred who was unable to see his own show in the flesh, but only via live video link whilst on his prearranged honeymoon in Sweden. Well done to him, his cast and crew, a real team effort all round.

Finally, many thanks also to FOH Manager Christina Yau who looked after us royally during the show.

 

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