If there is any truth in the old theatrical saying "never work with children or animals," then there are some very brave (and hugely talented) actor/musicians working at The Watermill in Bagnor, where they are staging their big summer musical, Lionel Bart’s Oliver!. Bart’s classic and enduring adaptation of Charles Dickens’ Oliver Twist is a real crowd-pleaser, featuring some of the best songs and choruses known to musical theatre. And as everyone knows, it also features orphans and hungry ones at that!
This production, directed by Luke Sheppard with musical arrangements by Paul Herbert, more than meets the challenges of fitting a large scale show onto a very small stage. Choreography by Tim Jackson ensured energetic and thrilling deliveries of all the big chorus numbers. The orphans (played by children from the local area) were superbly drilled, and acquitted themselves admirably. But the success of this show really rests with the excellent performances of all the main adult characters. Graham Lappin as Mr Bumble (who runs the orphanage) and Susannah van den Berg as Widow Corney gave us a little gem of a scene as he wooed her for her hand in marriage - how could we forget lines like "As my lovey-dovey’s tubby, would she love a chubby hubby?". Cameron Blakely’s Fagin was delightfully wicked, if a little too flamboyant at times. But without doubt our hearts were completely stolen by the kind-hearted but ill-fated Nancy (Alice Fearn), who proved to be Oliver’s only friend during times of extreme peril. Fearn’s performance was a real tour de force that left us reeling and shouting for more. Her wonderful voice was very reminiscent of Georgia Brown in Lionel Bart’s original production back in 1960 so it’s fair to assume that he would have been as delighted with her as we were.
As always at the Watermill, the expertise of the cast was demonstrated by the excellence of the music which was a real pleasure to listen to. The popularity of Lionel Bart’s music has been proven over the years, and was never better illustrated than by last night’s audience. The Watermill has a great tradition of the cast performing in the garden during the interval, but for this show we didn’t just watch, we joined in with gusto - and we knew all the words!