6th Street Playhouse
Running through December 15, 2019

Is there anyone whose holiday heart won’t be warmed by Charles Dickens’ classic tale of young Oliver, the orphan boy who endures many trials before finding his true home? 6th Street Playhouse creates a bold and richly entertaining staging, with innovative elements and two actors rotating in the title role. Featuring excellent principal performances and an energetic ensemble, this is a production not to miss this season.

Orphaned Oliver (played by talented young performers Cecilia Brenner and Gus Jordan in alternation) languishes in the workhouse, where asking for a bit more food gets him sold to a punishing undertaker and his ruthless wife (Dwayne Stincelli and Maureen O’Neill). He escapes and makes his way to London, where poverty and crime abound. Befriended by The Artful Dodger (Mario Herrera), he joins a gang of youthful pickpockets ruled by sly but sort of lovable Fagin (David Yen).

In Fagin’s den he enjoys meeting prostitutes-with-hearts-of-gold Nancy (Brittany Law) and Bet (Madison Lewis), but fatefully crosses paths with Nancy’s boyfriend, arch criminal Bill Sikes (Zachary Hasbany). The plot thickens as Oliver is lost, then found, then lost again, then in mortal danger, then… you get the picture. It’s not pretty, but it is, after all, Dickensian; and it’s musical theatre, so it’s bound to work out for the best. …

To continue reading about this production, see the full review at Sonoma County Gazette:
Oliver!