Synopsis
The musical Oliver! is based, very loosely, on Charles Dickens' novel Oliver Twist. The story begins in the workhouse where all the orphan boys are arriving into the dining hall ready for their dinner. They're half starved and live on a diet of gruel and are only fed pitiful amounts of that. Oliver has the cheek to ask for more and is told by the workhouse owners to go and gather up his belongings. He is sold and becomes an apprentice undertaker but life is not happy there for Oliver either. The undertaker and his wife taunt Oliver and make him sleep in the basement amongst all the coffins. The day after he has arrived he gets into a fight after someone insults his dead mother and is locked in a coffin, however, he manages to escape and finds his way to London where he meets a street thief known as the Artful Dodger. Dodger offers to be Oliver's friend and gives him a place to stay but Oliver doesn't know that his new friend is a criminal and that his new landlord, Fagin, is the leader of the gang. Other characters turn up at the den that night including Nancy, who is the girlfriend of a terrifying man named Bill Sykes. Oliver and Dodger go out to do their first pickpocketting job but they are caught and Oliver is left to be arrested for the crime after Dodger manages to run away. The boys had chosen a very wealthy man to steal from called Mr Brownlow who takes pity on Oliver and agrees that Oliver should go to live with him, rather than be locked away.
The adults are all in the pub where Nancy is entertaining the crowds, something she clearly does on a regular basis. Dodger tells Fagin that Oliver has been taken to Mr Brownlow's house and the decision is made that they cannot leave Oliver there as he may give away their operation leading the police to be after them. The next morning, when Oliver is on an errand for Mr Brownlow he is kidnapped by Nancy and Bill and taken back to Fagin's den. Bill goes about beating Oliver but the boy is protected by Nancy. Both Nancy and Fagin express their wish for a better life but it seems nothing is likely to change for the pair since they have ties to this life that they cannot escape from. Back in the workhouse, the owners discover a gold locket that Oliver's mother left when she died in childhood and realise that the boy probably has wealthy relatives. They visit Mr Brownlow, hoping to profit from a reward for giving information about Oliver but he throws out the greedy pair. However, he has recognised a picture in the locket and realises that Oliver is his great nephew (although some versions of the script say Brownlow is his Grandfather). Nancy then arrives at Mr Brownlow's house and promises that she will bring Oliver to him after he change of heart, however Bill Sykes follows Nancy as she sneaks Oliver out. He kills her and takes Oliver hostage once more. Nancy's body is discovered quickly and a large crowd forms, during which Bill is killed by a policeman. Oliver is reunited with the Brownlows and goes off to be with them. There is one last bit of the story that needs to be wrapped up... Fagin. He seems to have decided once and for all to lead a good life but he meets the Artful Dodger and they decide that rather than giving up their life of crime they simply need to move to another location. Some people never change!
The adults are all in the pub where Nancy is entertaining the crowds, something she clearly does on a regular basis. Dodger tells Fagin that Oliver has been taken to Mr Brownlow's house and the decision is made that they cannot leave Oliver there as he may give away their operation leading the police to be after them. The next morning, when Oliver is on an errand for Mr Brownlow he is kidnapped by Nancy and Bill and taken back to Fagin's den. Bill goes about beating Oliver but the boy is protected by Nancy. Both Nancy and Fagin express their wish for a better life but it seems nothing is likely to change for the pair since they have ties to this life that they cannot escape from. Back in the workhouse, the owners discover a gold locket that Oliver's mother left when she died in childhood and realise that the boy probably has wealthy relatives. They visit Mr Brownlow, hoping to profit from a reward for giving information about Oliver but he throws out the greedy pair. However, he has recognised a picture in the locket and realises that Oliver is his great nephew (although some versions of the script say Brownlow is his Grandfather). Nancy then arrives at Mr Brownlow's house and promises that she will bring Oliver to him after he change of heart, however Bill Sykes follows Nancy as she sneaks Oliver out. He kills her and takes Oliver hostage once more. Nancy's body is discovered quickly and a large crowd forms, during which Bill is killed by a policeman. Oliver is reunited with the Brownlows and goes off to be with them. There is one last bit of the story that needs to be wrapped up... Fagin. He seems to have decided once and for all to lead a good life but he meets the Artful Dodger and they decide that rather than giving up their life of crime they simply need to move to another location. Some people never change!
Main Characters
- Oliver - Naive and lonely orphan boy who is the star of the story
- The Artful Dodger - The boy who befriends Oliver. His real name is Jack Dawkins.
- Nancy - Bill's girlfriend who takes a liking to Oliver and cares for him as if he was her son.
- Fagin - Teaches the homeless boys of London to pick pockets in exchange for lodgings.
- Bill Sykes - One of Fagin's former pickpockets but now just a violent and scary man!
- Mr Brownlow - The wealthy man who takes in Oliver after his first foray into the world of crime and is later revealed to be related to the boy.
- Bet - Nancy's younger sister.
Musical Numbers
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Right at the beggining of the show, this is the first time we meet Oliver in the workhouse.
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Creators
Book/Lyrics/Music by Lionel Bart
Bart (1930-99) was born to a Jewish family in East London, names Lionel Begleiter. He was the youngest of seven children and showed artistic talent at an early age. He was an acomplished painter and his teachers described him as a musical genius when he was six years old. He did not, however, apply himself to the violin lessons that they provided for him and never learnt how to read or write musical notation. At 14 he won a scholarship to a prestigious Art School but his dream of being an artist ended when he left the school. He changed his name to Bart after completing his National Service in the Air Force although it is not clear why he chose the name Bart.
Bart was first noticed for his songwriting for his pop music after he wrote hits for several male singers including Cliff Richard and Tommy steele. He won a number of Ivor Novello Awards and wrote the theme song for the James Bond film "From Russia With Love". His first professional musical was 'Lock Up Your Daughters' in 1959, followed by 'Fings Ain't Wot The Used T'Be'. When Oliver! was released it became an instant hit and was the first modern British musical to successfully transfer to Broadway. At the time of the film it is said that Bart was earning £16 a minute from the show.
Bart (1930-99) was born to a Jewish family in East London, names Lionel Begleiter. He was the youngest of seven children and showed artistic talent at an early age. He was an acomplished painter and his teachers described him as a musical genius when he was six years old. He did not, however, apply himself to the violin lessons that they provided for him and never learnt how to read or write musical notation. At 14 he won a scholarship to a prestigious Art School but his dream of being an artist ended when he left the school. He changed his name to Bart after completing his National Service in the Air Force although it is not clear why he chose the name Bart.
Bart was first noticed for his songwriting for his pop music after he wrote hits for several male singers including Cliff Richard and Tommy steele. He won a number of Ivor Novello Awards and wrote the theme song for the James Bond film "From Russia With Love". His first professional musical was 'Lock Up Your Daughters' in 1959, followed by 'Fings Ain't Wot The Used T'Be'. When Oliver! was released it became an instant hit and was the first modern British musical to successfully transfer to Broadway. At the time of the film it is said that Bart was earning £16 a minute from the show.
Notable Productions
On Stage
Oliver! premiered at the New Theatre in the West End on June 30th 1960. It enjoyed 2618 performances before the production crossed the Atlantic. Many investors for this production were gathered by English pop singer Alma Cogan for whom the role of Nancy was written, even though she was not able to perform the role.
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Before making it to Broadway, Oliver! toured the US, starting in Los Angeles in 1962. Much of the staging matched the West End production with the sets being shipped over from London, including a brick wall mural of London that formed the backdrop for the show. The lighting, however, was an all new design with different colours being used in different scenes to set the mood and change the atmosphere.
The show's Broadway opening was on January 6th, 1963 where the production ran for 744 performances. Several of the cast from the West End reprised their roles including Nancy. The show recieved then Tony Award nominations winning three. |
There have been many revivals and overseas performances but the one which gained the most attention was the 2009 West End revival. The show opened on 14th January 2009 and ran for two years, closing in January 2011.
Two of the roles for this production were chosen by the public through a BBC TV show called "I'd Do Anything". The show looked for a Nancy and an Oliver, the later being triple cast. English comedian Rowan Atkinson played the role of Fagin initially although Russ Abbot, Omid Djalili and Griff Rhys Jones also took on this part during the run. |
On Film
A film version of Oliver was released in 1968, winning six Oscars including Best Picture. Several of the songs were extended for the film whilst others (including Bill Sykes' "My Name") were omitted. The role of Oliver was played by Mark Lester although it was revealed in an interview in 1988 that he couldn't sing and his voice had been dubbed by the daughter of the film's musical director.
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Interesting Facts
- Michael Caine auditioned for the role of Fagin for the original West End production and has confessed in a later interview that he "cried for a week" after he didn't get the part.
- Kieth Hamshere, who played Oliver on the West End has since left the world of performance and but still works in the arts, working in Hollywood as a still photographer. He is best known for his work on Star Wars and Indiana Jones.
- Oliver! has played in 22 different languages: Basque, Bulgarian, Czech, Danish, Dutch, Estonian, Faroese, Finnish, French, Frisian, German, Greek, Hebrew, Hungarian, Icelandic, Italian, Japanese, Norwegian, Polish, Slovakian, Spanish and Swedish.
- In Food Glorious Food the boys dream of cold jelly and custard but in foreign translations of productions, some of the local delicacies boys dream of are; a fresh fish (Finland), goulash soup and chestnut puree (Hungary), huge cakes and pork chops (Poland), meat pudding (Sweden), porkham (Japan).