Yes this really is great news for young Danny - a perfect casting choice in my opinion! A charming Nipper who went on to become a confident Gavroche in the West End stage production of Les Mis!
Ex Artful Dodger/Gavroche - Robert Madge was sitting very close by to me in the audience of Sweeney Todd yesterday. Now I wonder if he's got his eyes on the role of Toby??! He would be very good at that and would probably be much more appropriately aged than the current guy James McConville.
On the way over to London this week my jet stopped over in Birmingham so I headed down to the Hippodrome to see this touring version of Oliver!
Despite all the hype about the West End revival a few years ago it never really did it for me. It didn't really grab me. So, I wasn't expecting all that much from the touring version. WRONG.
I enjoyed it far better than the London show.
The only name I recognised in the cast was Stevie Hutchinson from BETM. Reading through the programme before the show I saw that Nancy was being played by Samantha Barks who finished third in that BBC show I'd Do Anything. So, for me, there was no overbearing celebrity factor affecting (spoiling?) the show.
I also thought that this time there was a more serious (darker) element than the keep-it-light-at-all-costs Drury Lane attempt. The serious scenes were much more convincing and much better staged. The orchestra was magnificent and the fantastic songs were all performed brilliantly by principals and ensemble.
Being a tour I wasn't expecting much of the set. Wrong again. The set was terrific with the shifting London backdrops being spectacular.
The two boys who played Oliver and Dodger were Joseph Bennett and Max Griesbach. They may both be small in stature but performed their roles with much confidence and aplomb. Up to the time of his being taken home by Mr. Brownlow, Oliver was made to look much more like a scruffy little runaway workshop boy rather than some kind of little angel.
My favourite song in this show is "Who Will Buy" and I wasn't disappointed. A beautiful rendering.
I suppose that the cast may change as the tour progresses but I rate this version as the best I have seen.
Yes, thanks for the review, Pat, and I'm glad you enjoyed the show. So you thought it better than London, then! Now I'm looking forward more than ever to seeing it in Norwich in July!
It features Brian Conley as Fagin, he has just started in B'ham, Samantha Barks as Nancy, she has just left the production, Harry Polden as Oliver and Max Griesbach as Dodger. The video was recorded in Manchester
I saw this production at Norwich on Thursday afternoon (12th) and was quite blown away by it. It has been heralded as one of the best touring productions ever to come to the city. No wonder, as it is almost completely sold out for the rest of its run there. For me the show was enhanced because some of the main characters act in a far less 'over the top' and extravagent way which I felt was to the detriment of the West End production. For example those playing the roles of Mr Sowerberry, Mrs Sowerberry, Mr Bumble and Mrs Corney acted in a more realistic way and less 'pantomime like'. The script, however, seems identical and I have to say that the scenery and set were most spectacular.
Cat Simmons was an excellent Nancy and there was a massive roar of applause for Brian Conley when he appeared as Fagin.
10 year old Joseph Bennett and 13 year old Jaydon Vijn stole the show with their highly enthusiastic and accomplished performances as Oliver and Dodger respectively. The only performer that I recognised from the London production was the chap who sings 'Knives to Grind...'
I always felt the finale in London to be too rushed. Here there was a much greater opportunity for all the cast to receive their accolades and bring the show to a more measured conclusion. The dynamics between Fagin and Nipper were highly entertaining!
Do see it if you get a chance. I think it is off to Plymouth next.
I saw the show on Saturday afternoon (the 14th) and agree with everything Westletonion said. It is a wonderful production with brilliant sets, some different to those in Drury Lane. I particularly liked St Paul's Cathedral and Bloomsbury Square.
I also saw Joseph Bennett and Jaydon Vijn as Oliver and Dodger respectively who were both really good. The production seemed darker than that in London, no doubt due to a truly evil Bill Sykes played by Iain Fletcher, with rather more violence than I remember. I had previously seen Jaydon as Nigel in Matilda a few months ago.
Brian Conley and Car Simmons as Fagin and Nancy were spot on, and the little boy who played Nipper was just hilarious. He had a great rapport with Fagin who had to carry him off the stage at the end! All in all, a production well worth seeing if you can!
