Wednesday, 15 January 2025

Oliver! - Review

Gielgud Theatre, London



*****



Music, lyrics and book by Lionel Bart
Freely adapted from Charles Dickens' Oliver Twist
Revised by Cameron Mackintosh
Directed and choreographed by Matthew Bourne


Cian Eagle-Service and Billy Jenkins

Matthew Bourne’s production of Oliver!, arguably the greatest English musical ever written, was outstanding when it opened in Chichester last summer. Now transferred into the West End, it is a privilege to be back soon, reviewing the situation of this production that sparkles even brighter than before. Rarely does a show offer such breadth and depth of performances, across the entire cast, as is achieved by Bourne with his wondrous company. Co-Producer and reviser Cameron Mackintosh has had a lifelong love affair with Oliver! and the subtle revisions that he brings to Lionel Bart’s brilliant original move the show effortlessly into the 21st century.

On press night it was the sublimely talented Cian Eagle-Service playing Oliver, delivering a finish to his big solo, Where Is Love? that all but took the roof off the Gielgud. Rarely, actually NEVER, has that song been sung by a child performer with such power, passion and intensity.

Bart’s genius - aside from penning a show that delivers so many hit songs in rapid-fire succession - was to take the bleak brutality of Dickens’ novel and imbue it with nuanced and perfectly pitched bittersweet comedy. The fun begins early on with Katy Secombe and Oscar Conlon-Morrey paired as Widow Corney of the workhouse and  the beadle Bumble. In a double act that in the original Oliver! was to inspire Boublil & Schoenberg in their creation of the Thenardiers in Les Miserables, they capture the duo’s heartless bombast and petty penny-pinching to a tee. With pinpoint vocals and a mastery of physical comedy, their work is flawless.

Next up are Stephen Matthews and Jamie Birkett as the undertaking Sowerberrys. Again, harsh irony and tragedy but overlaid with comic class - and it should be noted there’s a fine turn from Birkett in act two with her reprise of Where Is Love? in the role of Mrs Bedwyn.

Oliver’s arrival in London of course introduces the show’s most colourful characters. Billy Jenkins is The Artful Dodger, whose cockney vocals and nifty footwork are everything a Dodger should be and more. Aaron Sidwell has grown into the role of Bill Sikes, his understated menace proving both ugly and chilling.

As Nancy, Shanay Holmes has also matured into this most intriguing and complex of roles. Holmes is yet a further example of this company’s vocal magnificence with her take on As Long As He Needs Me giving the Gielgud’s rafters another rattling.

And then of course there is Fagin. Much like Steven Spielberg made us wait before our first glimpse of the shark in Jaws, so too does Bart let most of act one go by before Simon Lipkin erupts from a trap door.

Lipkin’s take on the old Jewish fence is carefully researched and meticulous in its delivery, unlocking Fagin’s humanity and vulnerabilities with a sprinkling of immaculately timed humour. As we see Fagin care for the newly-arrived Oliver into his den of thieves, Lipkin imbues the role with a rarely seen pathos. His skills in comedy and magic are also used wonderfully and with his spectacularly klezmer-esque Reviewing The Situation, his is one of the finest musical theatre performances in town right now.

Lez Brotherston’s designs are simply stunning. Amidst a whirl of wrought iron staircases and bridges, and a deft deployment of the Gielgud’s revolve, Brotherston shifts the narrative across the country and the capital, aided in no small measure by Paule Constable and Ben Jacobs stunning lighting designs. In the pit, Graham Hurman’s orchestra are spot-on throughout.
 
Consider yourself well-in to witness this fantastic spectacle!


Booking until 28th September
Photo credit: Johan Persson

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