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Oliver! Reviewing the situation...
Posted by Jack on Thursday 8th January 2009 at 2:42PM
| This week, UK Tickets decided to go and see Oliver! at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane, a show that promises so much after two roles were cast on BBC television and, making things even more exciting, British comedy legend (and personal hero) Rowan Atkinson was drafted in to play Fagin. As Oliver! is one of my favourite shows anyway, my fear of overexcitement and anticlimax went into overdrive and it took a great deal of effort to cast aside all expectations and go in with an open mind.
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As I said, I love Oliver! and I have to say, this is the first production of it I have seen that did justice to every single aspect. While many fans, myself included, have a tendency to grit their teeth as they say that Oliver’s whiny voice and irritating presence are part of his appeal, Harry Stott completely shone in the role. For the first time, Where is Love became one of the show’s numbers that gave me goosebumps, as his voice had a power and maturity that I never expected would suit Oliver as much as it did. Similarly, Robert Madge was perfect as the Artful Dodger with exactly the right level of precociousness.
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I had heard whispers that Jodie Prenger tends to overact, but I was hugely impressed. Certainly, she was a little hammy, but then what Nancy isn’t? With such brassy songs and dialogue, I got the impression that she was simply relishing the role rather than trying too hard, and it did wonders as she ploughed through the show with power and passion. Louise Gold and Julian Bleach were hilariously sinister as Mr and Mrs Sowerberry and Burn Gorman played Bill Sykes as a slightly psychotic young savage. While the fact that the character sings in the show often detracts from the menace of the quiet Oliver Reed in the 1968 movie, Gorman makes even the song My Name genuinely frightening.
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| Rowan Atkinson was nothing short of a comic tour de force and delivered much more than I expected. I laughed so hard during You’ve Got to Pick a Pocket or Two and Reviewing the Situation, it physically hurt to open my eyes and not smile for several minutes afterwards. While some have accused him of being ‘too Mr Bean’ in the role, one must remember that Mr Bean was the very embodiment of the physical humour that makes Rowan Atkinson so great. Sure, his timing, intonation and movement did bring Mr Bean and much of his other work to mind at times but that was never going to be bad thing. Far from simply regurgitating his old habits, Atkinson put so much of his inimitable style into Fagin, it was as if the role was brand new.
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While Rowan Atkinson will be popular with Brits and tourists alike, surely an equal selling point should be the set and production. With an immense cast of children and adults, Oliver! utilises the full depth of the Drury Lane stage with production value to rival Lord of the Rings before it, and also Wicked at the Apollo Victoria. As a child, I saw the production at the Palladium in the early 1990’s and the main image that stays with me is that of Oliver running on the spot while a screen depicting buildings moved behind him. None of that nonsense here. As Oliver escapes from the Sowerberrys, the entire set disappears and Oliver is suddenly in the countryside. When he is accused of stealing from Mr Brownlow, the rapidity and seamlessness of the scene changes as Oliver runs through the streets of London is genius.
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Not much to report on the downside, unsurprisingly. The fact that Oliver was taller than Dodger took a little bit of getting used to at first, and the way Noah Claypole pronounced ‘workhouse’ as ‘wurkus’ was a bit annoying but other than those very, very minor points, Oliver! at Drury Lane pushed all my buttons. If you’re a fan of this show, I defy you to be disappointed. It’s big, it’s bright and UK Tickets loved every minute of it.
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UK Tickets have exclusive tickets available for the press night of Oliver! at Drury Lane at 7pm on Wednesday 14 January 2009. Click here to book for what's sure to be one of the West End's most star studded evenings of 2009!
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