Oliver in Sharbot Lake

Jeff Green | May 08, 2024

A lot went into the excellent production of “Oliver” at the Oso Hall in Sharbot Lake last weekend. It all started with Brian Robertson, who felt that the North Frontenac Little Theatre (NFLT) needed to dream big, after struggling with two issues for a number of years, COVID and finding a new home, after splitting with the Limestone District School Board and moving to a more intimate space at the Oso Hall.

He thought a musical was the way to do it, and Oliver was the one that most suited his purposes. It has important roles for actors of all ages, a dynamic score, and he thought he could make it work in a confined space like the Oso Hall.

If it worked, he argued, it would bring new people into the Little Theatre fold, and create new excitement about the company in the local community, which it needed. Since moving to the Oso Hall, NFLT had put on smaller productions, living within the limitations of the small stage at the hall.

He managed to convince the NFLT executive to give it a try, and began a year-long process to put the production together. Not only did this require endless enthusiasm and attention to detail on his part, but he needed to infect others as well, because theatre is a collective art. Adam Parker came on as musical director last fall, and his efforts over six months were as important as anything else. The cast and crew came together in the fall, and over the winter, the scope and breadth of the effort kept increasing.

By the time opening night came about last Wednesday, amid the opening night jitters, there was a feeling that it was all going to work out.

And all of that effort and innovation paid off, The first performance was good, and each performance built on the last. I saw the Thursday night performance and part of the Sunday matinee, and the play was memorable on Thursday, as I will detail a bit later, and nearly flawless in its execution on Sunday.

For the audience, the experience started before the music and movement started. The main performance space was the floor space in the middle of the hall, but there were three other platforms around the hall and the actors came and went from five different entrances/exits. From the time the actors began darting about during the prologue, until the intermission, there was no break in the action. Musical productions and dialogue intermingled and the set changes were carried out by the actors as they came and went, in a continually choreographed stream, only interrupted by applause after each number.

On Thursday there was a notable exception, when Evie Michie, playing Oliver, took a nasty tumble just after bringing down the house with her rendition of “Where is Love”. She left the stage briefly, after being tripped up as she was leaping from bench to bench and then flipping over, saying “I need to take a break”. After a few minutes, however, she was back, after a warning that her condition was going to be monitored and if she ran into any difficulty that would be the end of the evening.

Photo: Art Holloway

All eyes are on Oliver in any production of this play, but on this night it was doubly so, and as the evening wore on, it became clear that Evie Michie was only getting stronger. It was a remarkable performance, thrilling to see.

Craig Godfrey's Fagin was a nuanced, sympathetic portrayal of a man struggling with his role in the world, with a hint of malice when necessary. The way he played off the gang of children thieves that he simultaneously protects and exploits, was particularly effective.

He did an excellent job on “Reviewing the Situation” as well.

Mason Moore's Artful Dodger was also a sympathetic portrayal, and that made his relationship with Oliver and Fagin quite poignant. Moore gets better and better each time he takes on a role, and he can sing as well.

The most obvious aspect to Virginia Beckett's portrayal of Nancy was her singing and acting in “Oom Pah Pah” and “As Long As He Needs Me”, but the push and pull of her relationship with the polar opposites in the world of the play, Oliver and Bill Sikes, required acting skill as well, and she was up to it.

Erik Zierer played two kinds of evil, he played Bumble as a comical character with a heart of stone, and was especially effective as a the malevolent Bill Sikes, dressed in black with exaggerated black makeup, suggesting death from the first time he appears on the black stairs at the far end of the theatre, right until he kills Nancy, and is then killed himself.

Carrie Bell played the Widow Corney as a tease, capable of ingratiating herself when it suited her, but whose true nature only comes out when she realises after marrying Mr. Bumble that she has to then live with Mr. Bumble.

Greg Morris and Martina Field played Mr. and Mrs. Sowerberry. They were presented all in black with black makeup, in the same manner as Bill Sikes, and played their roles impeccably, each in their own distinctive and decidedly creepy manner. It was very effective. Morris also played Mr. Brownlow, a completely opposite role, as the London gentleman who understands Oliver's true station in life.

Joelle Parr and Hope Andrew had to be on their toes throughout the performance, as they each played multiple singing and acting roles. They were fully engaged in each role.

Alder Legacy-Zierer was ubiquitous as well, using his long hair as a prop on several occasions. As Noah Claypole, the undertaker's assistant, every word he uttered seemed poised to drive Oliver into a state of rage. Beth Freeland, now an NFLT veteran, brought considerable warmth to the role of Mrs. Bedwin, Brownlow's housekeeper. Ryan Michie played several roles, a suitably pompous portrayal of the ineffective Dr. Grimwig being the most memorable. Taylor Trussel also had a lot to do, as Dodger's sidekick Charley and an integral member of the kids ensemble who brought some ballet skills into the mix. She also did some choreography for the production. And Emily Mallett got to arrive and die in short order as Old Sally, a key moment in the play. The vendors (Anna Parker, Colleen Zavrel, and Christina Michie) also doubled as Londoners, adding colour to the production, as did Elva Lee Ball and Terry Freeland.

Aside from the named characters in Oliver, the energy and commitment of the kids in the play are what create the spectacle that made it work, and they had to weave around a small space while singing, at times without hesitation, and they pulled it off.

I also heard from both the producer and other actors, that unlike in some previous musicals put on by the Little Theatre over the decades, (and this is the third Oliver – there were productions in 1993 and in 2004) the kids were a pleasure to be around throughout the months of rehearsals and in the final week of daily dress rehearsals and performances. On the other end of the age spectrum, the 9 member choir included singers in their 40s to their 80s. They were also well behaved during rehearsals, although a bit less active than the kids, and came to sing when it mattered.

A veteran backstage crew made the production possible and should be mentioned, including Margo McCullough, Linda Bush and Fred Barrett (stage managers) Jeff Simon and Steve Trussell (lighting and sound) Carol Pepper (set painting) Colleen Zavrel (costumes) as well as Lily Legacy and Tim White (makeup), Brian Robertson, Gord Sirrs, and Fred Barrett (sets)

Oliver was produced by Art Holloway and Jan Levitt.

NFLT will be back in the fall with a scary Halloween production, if all goes to plan.