This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

Who would think Charles Dickens' bleak novel about a workhouse orphan named Oliver Twist, based on its author's childhood experiences with debtors' prison, could be transformed into a buoyant, upbeat musical whose popularity transcends time? English pop songwriter Lionel Bart saw the story's potential and created "Oliver!" in 1960. Half a century later, the current production at Pioneer Theatre Company reveals the show's remarkable resilience: it is as fresh and exuberant as ever.

One of the most-acclaimed musicals, "Oliver!" reached Broadway in 1963 and won three Tony Awards, including best original score. Not bad work for a man who couldn't read or write music and hummed the songs as someone transcribed them. The 1968 film version won six Academy Awards, including best film.

The show owes its success to that interesting fusion of Dickens' colorful characters and Bart's memorable music. Almost every song is a winner, and the music has remarkable range, from tender ballads like "Where Is Love?" and "Who Will Buy?" that highlight Oliver's innocence and vulnerability to songs that explore character like Nancy's poignant "As Long as He Needs Me" and Fagin's "Reviewing the Situation"; from comic ditties like "I Shall Scream" and "That's Your Funeral" to big production numbers like "Consider Yourself," "I'd Do Anything" and "Oom-Pah-Pah."

The combined company of local actors — many of them children — and out-of-towners attacks the musical numbers with boundless energy and enthusiasm. In the opening number, "Food, Glorious Food," for instance, the orphans clamber all over the dining table as they dance and sing. Thanks to Tom Griffin's musical direction and Sarah Shippobotham's dialect coaching, their diction is impeccably crisp and clear.

Maxwell Rimington's Oliver is an engaging combination of inquisitive cockiness and wistful innocence, an effective contrast to Christian Labertew's scrappy, self-assured Artful Dodger, although Labertew is so tall that he looks too old for the role. Bill Nolte's greedy, crotchety Fagin is more eccentric than villainous and turns "Reviewing the Situation" into a comic tour-de-force. Natalie Hill's brassy, big-hearted Nancy powerfully expresses the way she's trapped in "As Long as He Needs Me." The weak link in the cast is Howard Kaye's Bill Sykes, who never rises above a one-dimensional villain, making it difficult to understand why Nancy sticks with him. Kevin Ligon and Linda Griffin are alternately conniving and inept as the hapless Mr. Bumble and Mrs. Corney.

George Maxwell's multilevel set is a cross-section of Victorian society: Gothic stone buildings and a wooden platform and walkway above the dark subterranean basement where Fagin and his pickpockets dwell. Kirk Bookman's muted golden lighting brightens to spotlight singers and dancers, and the lighted building windows give the set the look of illustrations from Dickens' novels. Director Karen Azenberg efficiently uses PTC's turntable to keep the action flowing from scene to scene and creates striking stage pictures at the end of the production numbers. Her and Lenny Daniel's choreography is lively and clever but simple enough to make all the dancers look good. K.L. Alberts' costumes sharply differentiate class, from sophisticated suits and dresses for the gentry to the bright patchwork outfits of Fagin and his crew and the drab beige garb of the orphans.

It's not hard to see why audiences respond so warmly to Oliver's story. His search for home and identity — though harrowing — has a happy ending, and Bart's music captures the vibrancy of Dickens' world and the vividness of his characters. As the days shorten and the weather gets colder, that's a gift worth celebrating. —

'Oliver!'

The irrepressible energy and exuberance of PTC's well-matched cast reveal why "Oliver!" remains perennially popular.

When • Reviewed Dec. 2; plays Mondays through Thursdays at 7 p.m. and Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 p.m. through Dec. 17 with Saturday matinees at 2 p.m.

Where • Simmons Pioneer Memorial Theatre, 300 S. University St., Salt Lake City

Tickets • $40 to $62 in advance; $5 more on the day of the show. Half price for students K–12 on Mondays and Tuesdays. Call 801-581-6961 or visit http://www.pioneertheatre.org for tickets and information.

Running time • Two hours and 15 minutes (including an intermission)

Holiday special • "Food, Glorious Food" Drive: PTC is collecting canned goods and nonperishable food items for the Utah Food Bank. Bring your donation to the theater and drop it off in the lobby.