Oliver!

This production had all the ingredients one expects from a performance of this iconic show and the cast worked very hard to produce a very good production.  This performance was at the beginning of the run and that there were, inevitably, a few glitches to sort out in this new venue.  However nothing stopped the cast from giving very strong performances.

All the Principals played their parts well and it is always difficult, in these circumstances, to single out particular performers. Melissa Berreclough (Widow Corney) nailed the character completely and her interaction with Mrs Bumble (Ken Brown) was very entertaining.  Henry Bashford gave a very good, if a little tentative, performance as Oliver and Luke Brown was excellent as the Artful Dodger.   Trevor Marsh (Fagin) also nailed the character, although his accent slipped a little in some of the songs.  Roger Parkins (Bill Sykes) was more bully than menacing but he portrayed the character strongly.

All the supporting principals gave good characterisations and the ensemble worked very hard in all the scenes.   If I have a criticism it is that the children in the workhouse were not dirty or scruffy enough.  These day’s girls have to be included but neat pony tails doesn’t do it for me.  I would have liked to have seen the girls much more wild haired and all of the children much dirtier.  However none of that affected their individual performances which were very good.

The scenery was excellent, just enough to portray each scene and the crew were slick, making each change as seamless as possible.  The lighting was good, although there were one or two glitches as there was with the sound.  However I am sure this got sorted out as the cast and crew settled into the run.  Costumes were spot on.

Merlin have been doing pantomimes for some years and occasionally branch out into doing a musical.   Based on this production I look forward to seeing more musicals from the company in the future.

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