By LAURA LEE COTTON
laura@newsroom.byu.edu
Set in a rehearsal hall with modern actors in practice clothes, Sundance's production of 'Oliver!' is a fun change from the average summer theater musical.
The play's story follows the young life of Oliver Twist as he searches for love and shelter. Without a mother or father, Oliver struggles through the hardships of life as an unwanted orphan being sold as menial labor and later being tied to a ragged bunch of thieves on the streets of London.
With only a huge table and rehearsal hall props -- such as lockers and chairs -- the actors act out scenes and perform songs and dances as if in rehearsal, but with all the vigor and precision of opening night. It feels as if the audience is in on a secret.
Before the show even starts, the rehearsal ambiance is created with the audience being able to hear the musicians warming up and crew preparing the stage. As the time grows close for the performance to begin, the actors start to walk out and practice their dances, teasing and playing with one another. The audience can also hear the actors singing their scales and scrambling for their scripts off stage. This display of the rehearsal process entertains the audience, but confuses some who don't know of the show's twist from the usual musical staging.
With Christopher Lloyd leading the cast as Fagin, the show has incredible energy. The cast seems to have so much fun hamming up their performances in this less-formal production. With his usual magic, Lloyd captures the attention of the audience -- hamming up his own performance with falsetto try-to-be-opera notes and his ballet moves. Opposite Lloyd, Dustin Harding plays Oliver Twist with appropriate innocence that is impressive for so young an actor. His clear and sweet singing voice differentiates his character from the others.
The supporting acting company includes both older and younger actors which, as a whole, mixes well to keep the youthful energy of the show while preserving a mature talent level. Despite the age and fame differences, the cast members interact well with each other and with the audience as well.
The one letdown of the show is the ending -- it seems rushed and sudden. The quickness of the conclusion confuses the audience on exactly how Oliver is saved. After the energy and the playfulness of the preceding scenes, the way the ending was presented is a bit disappointing.
The whole appeal to Sundance's production of 'Oliver!' is that the cast and crew really play with the rehearsal idea. The cast and crew throw in little surprises and pranks that spice up the story and perk up the audience. Pencils become weapons, lockers become doors, the table becomes the stage and one cellular phone becomes, shall we say, a link 'back to the future.'