"OLIVER"

SSAOS 2002 production

• Music, Book and Lyrics by Lionel Bart
  

• SSAOS Production at The Customs House, South Shields, 19th - 23rd November 2002 

• First produced in London at the New Theatre on 30th June 1960 and ran for 2 618 performances. That production included amongst the cast - Ron Moody as Fagin, Georgia Brown as Nancy and Barry Humphries as Mr Snowberry.

The plot, based on Dickens' second novel "Oliver Twist" is a straightforward tale of a young boy, born in poverty, seduced by the illusory glamour of the criminal underworld, rescued by the forces of goodness who eventually succeeds to his inheritance. Underlying this is an exposure of the infamous Poor Law and the workhouse system in Victorian England.

Much of Dickens's "Oliver Twist" was sugared up in the neatly filleted re-making of the novel into a musical. Fagin became the loveable rogue, his band of thieves was transformed into a pack of dancing imps, and the bunch of starving orphans dreamed of food in an uncharacteristic sweet way. But Lionel Bart didn't pull back all his punches and produced an effective love story between East End Nancy, the tart who befriended Oliver and her bullying man, Bill Sykes.

The role of Fagin in the original production, which ran for 2,618 performances from 30th June 1960, will always be remembered for Ron Moody's  immortal stage (and later) screen portrayal of the part in which he sings 'You've got to Pick a Pocket or Two', 'Be Back Soon', and 'Reviewing the Situation'.. Other main characters, too, stay in the mind. The hapless Nancy with her torch song 'As Long as He Needs Me' and the pub song 'Oom-pah-pah' ; the cheery, amoral Artful Dodger singing 'Consider Yourself (at Home)'  are now part of English literary and theatrical folklore. And who can forget the brutal Bill Sykes so perfectly played by Oliver Reed in the 1968 film version of the play.

This interpretation of Dickens by Lionel Bart contains some memorable songs mentioned above which can be, as we say, 'whistled by the butcher lad on his bike' - other songs include "Food Glorious Food', Oliver's 'Where is Love' and  'I'd do Anything'.  

The show is packed with good sing-able tunes. As people were passing through the foyer of the Custom's House after the show some could be heard humming one or other of this plethora of musical hits.

Cast

Ross Cosby, Owen Parker, Anthony Smith, Daryll Hall, Mark Parkin, John Whitfield, Shelly Lamb, Lisa Millar, Gary Wemyss, Laurence Scott, Janet Peel, Debra Doyle, Frank Saxby, Heather Mc Loughlin, Stephanie Allen, Ben Prudhoe,Ian Wells, Moira, Milburn, Peter Skevington, Lauren Stephenson, Lyndsay Marsden, Jenny Richardson, Ethne Brown, Angela Lyons, Andrew Richardson, Fred Godfrey.                                    
The dog Bullseye was played by Izzy. 

SOME OF	THE PRINCIPALS   Charey Bates - Gary Wemyss Oliver (1) - Owen Parker Artful Dodger (2) - Mark Parkin
	Fagin-Anthony Smith Artful Dodger (1) - Daryl Hall
		Nancy - Shelley Lamb Bet - Lisa Millar
Mr Bumble - Laurence Scott Widow Corney - Janet Peel	Mr Brownlow - Ian Wells Dr Grimwig - Peter Skevington Mrs  Bedwin - Moira Milburn                 Oliver (2) - Ross Crosby

 See also the Junior Productions of "OLIVER" in 1987 and1997

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