OLIVER!

1963

Book Music and Lyrics By Lionel Bart

Freely adapted from Dickens' "Oliver Twist"

Directed by Peter Coe

Designed by Sean Kenny

Orchestrations by Eric Rogers

Musical Director Donald Pippin

Technical Supervisor Ian Albery

Lighting by John Wyckham

Workhouse Boys and Fagin's Gang:  Johnny Borden, Eugene Endon, Bryant Fraser, Randy Gaynes, Bobby Gold, Sal Lombardo, Christopher Month, Patrick O'Shaughnessy, Alan Paul, Barry Pearl, George Priolo, Robbi Reed, Christopher Votos

Londoners:  Jed Allan, Barbara Bossert, Jack Davison, James Glenn, Lesley Hunt, John M. Kimbro, Michael Lamont, Allan Lokos, Dodie Marshall, Richard Miller, Moose Peting, Ruth Ramsey, Nita Reiter, Ray Tudor, Maura K. Wedge

OLIVER! had its premiere in London's West End at the New Theatre (now known as the Albery) on June 30, 1960 and ran for 2,618 performances, over six years, making it the longest running British musical til that time.  Among the cast for this 1960 version were:

Several years into that run, David Merrick acquired the American rights and launched a five-month pre-Broadway tour of eleven cities on August 6, 1962.  The original cast album was recorded in Hollywood, California on August 19, 1962.  While it was unusual at the time to put out an original cast album before a show opened on Broadway, in this case the show had by then had a successful multi-year run in London, and bootleg copies of the London album began showing up in the U.S., so in order to supply American audiences with the home grown version, the original cast Broadway album was recorded five months before the show opened on Broadway.  It is for this reason that Michael Goodman appears on the album as the Artful Dodger; by the time the show opened on Broadway, this role had been taken over by David Jones (who later went on to be one of the Monkees) (although this replacement took place very late in the pre-Broadway tour, as a December 1962 Theatre Arts magazine still listed Goodman in the cast.  Apparently he was replaced because he grew too tall!)

Of the four performers from the original London cast who were also in the original Broadway cast (Georgia Brown, Barry Humphries, Danny Sewell and Hope Jackman), Danny Sewell stayed with OLIVER! the longest.  He began his career as a boxer, turning professional on his 16th birthday, but was stricken with polio in 1947.  Despite this, he fought 38 times and was never defeated.  His first stage role was ONE MORE RIVER; he appeared in the films SATURDAY NIGHT AND SUNDAY MORNING and THE CRIMINAL.  Update, May 2001:  I have heard from Danny Sewell's daughter, Laura, who was a young child while her father was in OLIVER!  She gave me the sad news that he died in early May 2001 at the age of 70.  His credits after leaving OLIVER! include THE HOMECOMING on Broadway, plus EQUUS, THE ELEPHANT MAN and other shows in New York and regionally.  He played Joey, the younger son, in the 1971 Off-Broadway revival of THE HOMECOMING for which he won an Obie.

Barry Humphries played Mr. Sowerberry, the undertaker in the original London cast as well.  He later achieved greater fame in his one-woman shows in drag as Dame Edna Everage (in fact, he was back on Broadway again as DAME EDNA in 1999, 2004 and 2010).  He played Fagin in the 1967 London West End revival which costarred Marti Webb as Nancy and Phil Collins as the Artful Dodger.  It ran for a further 331 performances (less than a year after the original production had closed!); Humphries returned to play Fagin again in the 1997 London Palladium revival.

Alice Playten, who played Bet, went on to a considerable career in New York theatre. Her Broadway credits include her debut as Baby June in the original Ethel Merman version of GYPSY, HELLO DOLLY (as Ermengarde), GEORGE M!, HENRY SWEET HENRY (Tony nomination and Theatre World Award), RUMORS and SPOILS OF WAR (Drama Desk nomination).  Off-Broadway she starred in PROMENADE and THE LAST SWEET DAYS OF ISAAC.  She received an Obie Award for her performance as Mick Jagger in LEMMINGS and another Obie for her portrayal of Mamie Eisenhower in FIRST LADIES SUITE.  She won a Clio for her Alka Seltzer TV commercial where she played a newlywed, giving her husband (played by Terry Kaiser) indigestion by feeding him "marshmallow meatballs and poached oysters".   She  played Mrs. Mayor in SEUSSICAL back on Broadway.

On January 6, 1963 OLIVER! opened on Broadway at the Imperial Theatre during a 15-week newspaper strike and ran for 774 performances, closing on November 14, 1964.   It then went on a nine-month tour and returned to Broadway at the Martin Beck Theatre for 64 more performances.  Simultaneously, there was a second "bus and truck" company touring America.

Clive Revill replaced Ron Moody as Fagin on Broadway and was nominated for a Tony Award but lost to Zero Mostel for FORUM.  Georgia Brown was also nominated for a Tony in the role of Nancy but lost to Anna Quayle in STOP THE WORLD.  The show won three Tony awards:  one for Lionel Bart's fabulous score, the second for Sean Kenny's amazing set and the third for conductor and musical director Donald Pippin.

Stanley Eichelbaum, writing about Sean Kenny's sets, lighting and costumes in Theatre Arts (December 1962):  "The Dickensian London conjured up by Kenny for Oliver! is an extraordinarily mobile tangle of wooden stairs, impregnable doorways, slatted walls, narrow bridges and murky, timbered arches, set against a low-keyed backdrop of London's East End of a century ago. ...  Below it is a triple turntable, electronically controlled, that shifts the setting between the various indoor and outdoor locales in full view of the audience."  At each revolve, the set turned into the workhouse, a street market, a funeral parlor and Fagin's den, among other locations.  Kenny is quoted:  "What I visualized was a great millwheel -- an enormous turning thing -- with wooden beams, bridges across streets, heavy wooden doors."  The set had to be built in London and shipped to Broadway because the American scenic designers' union wouldn't accept Kenny as a member.  Between 1960 and 1970, Kenny designed the sets for 32 West End productions, including four Lionel Bart shows, LOCK UP YOUR DAUGHTERS (1959), OLIVER (1960), BLITZ! (1962) and MAGGIE MAY (1964); in addition, he worked in television and film.  He died June 11, 1973 at the age of 40.

I am indebted to John Groushko for the following image files of Sean Kenny's preproduction sketches:

John S. Wilson, reviewing the original cast album in Theatre Arts (December 1962):  "Lionel Bart's zestful music and lyrics for his adaptation of Oliver Twist -- a potpourri of music hall songs, Threepenny Opera atmosphere, Irma la Douce tunefulness and amiable roguery -- is sung with great flair by a cast that reaches heights of brilliance in Clive Revill's ripely theatrical Fagin and Georgia Brown's lusty Nancy.  No musical has been projected so successfully on a disc since My Fair Lady."

My own experiences with OLIVER! began when it arrived at the Forrest Theatre in Philadelphia on its post-Broadway nine-month national tour in 1965.  I was just 18 , still in high school and had seen only two other shows, LA BELLE and THE ROAR OF THE GREASEPAINT -- THE SMELL OF THE CROWD; my friends and I used to hang out at the stage door before and after the Saturday matinees.  The little boys who played the Workhouse Boys and Fagin's Gang were so adorable, my friends and I went back to the stage door every Saturday for as long as the show was in Philadelphia.  At that time, the cast included:

Workhouse Boys and Fagin's Gang:  Joey Baio, Tommy Battreall, Paul Dwyer, Anthony Endon, Eugene Endon, Harry Gold, Lee Koenig, Greg Lange, Michael McCormick, Jackie Perkuhn, Ricky Rosenthal, Brett Smiley and Victor Stiles.

Londoners:  Ted Bloecher, Barbara Ramsay, Dominic Chianese, Georgia Dell, Lee Howard, John M. Kimbro, Paul Kroll, Richard Miller, Moose Peting, Sherill Price, Terry Robinson, Hugh Shine, Mary Ann Squitieri, Gretchen Van Aken, Richard Wulf, Virginia Sandifur.

Robin Ramsey was only 26 when I saw him as Fagin; according to an article published in the Philadelphia Bulletin, it took him an hour each performance to apply makeup to age himself for the role.  Originally from Australia, he took over the role on Broadway about a year before the show came to Philadelphia.  At the time I saw it, he was newly married to Barbara Bossert, one of the original "Londoners", who had changed her name to Barbara Ramsey and was playing the Strawberry-Seller in the WHO WILL BUY number.

Maura K. Wedge was also a "Londoner" from the original cast, who had understudied Georgia Brown and finally won the role of Nancy.  I later saw her as Dulcinea in a tour of MAN OF LA MANCHA.

In addition to being a "Londoner", Dominic Chianese was the "wrangler" in charge of the workhouse boys/Fagin's pickpockets and eventually went on to play Sowerberry, the undertaker;  Chianese went on to be a regular on THE SOPRANOS, a HBO TV series about the Mafia.

George Priolo was one of the original boys and had previously played Charlie Bates, the only other named member of Fagin's gang.

Donnie Smiley, who played Bet, was the sister of Brett Smiley, one of the boys who eventually went on to play Oliver himself.

Joey Baio, one of the Workhouse Boys/Fagin's Gang, is the brother of Scott Baio (who went on to star as a child as BUGSY MALONE and had the syndicated TV series CHARLES IN CHARGE).  Joey got to play the Dodger when this company of OLIVER! returned to Broadway.

Virginia Sandifur, another "Londoner", went on to the original cast of FOLLIES (where she created the role of Young Phyllis) and I also saw her in GOOD NEWS at Papermill Playhouse in New Jersey.  She performed on Broadway in seven musicals, including starring roles in I LOVE MY WIFE, RODGERS AND HART, PERFECTLY FRANK and SMITH (opposite Don Murray).  She was also a featured performer in COMPANY and co-starred with Lauren Bacall as Eve Harrington in the national tour of APPLAUSE.  She appeared in "Sondheim: A Musical Tribute" on Broadway and the "Cy Coleman Tribute" at Lincoln Center. She also appeared in the National Tour of SIDE BY SIDE BY SONDHEIM.  Continuing her Sondheim connection, she was featured in the 20th Anniversary Celebration of FOLLIES at Lincoln Center. Her other credits include television, film, and concert performances.

[You are probably wondering why I am blathering on about some of these relatively obscure cast members, but it pleases me to recall these names from long ago and to point out that hard work and talent pay off, and you can rise in the pecking order from a lowly chorus part with not even a character name in the Playbill to a featured role.]

When this company of OLIVER! returned to Broadway in 1965 (a balcony seat for the Saturday matinee at the Martin Beck Theatre was only $3.60!), the cast included:

Workhouse Boys and Fagin's Gang:  Tommy Battreall, Paul Dwyer, Anthony Endon, Eugene Endon, Lee Koenig, Greg Lange, Bart Larsen, Christopher Month, Jackie Perkuhn, Sonny, Rocco, Ricky Rosenthal and Brett Smiley.

Londoners:  Walter Blocher, Ted Bloecher, Reese Burns, Dominic Chianese, Sally Cooke, Marise Counsell, Georgia Dell, Walter Hook, Lesley Hunt, Michael McCormick, Richard Miller, Moose Peting, Terry Robinson, Virginia Sandifur, Gretchen Van Aken and Richard Wulf.

So, Victor Stiles was promoted from a Workhouse Boy/Fagin's Gang member to Oliver, Robin Ramsey's wife had left the cast; and Christopher Month, one of the original "boys" had returned to the cast.

Michael McCormick was promoted from a Workhouse Boy/Fagin's Gang member to a "Londoner". Amazingly, he cropped up in March, 2000 opposite George Wendt in an off-Broadway production called AN EMPTY PLATE IN THE CAFE DU GRAND BOEUF.

In New York, Richard has appeared in the following:

Richard appeared in several New York nightclubs and cabarets, including Chili Etc., Brothers and Sisters and Don't Tell Mama where he last appeared September and October, 2001 in a cabaret act called NEWLY NEWLEY. . . CELEBRATING THE MUSIC OF ANTHONY NEWLEY.

Workhouse Boys and Fagin's Gang:  Chris Month, Mark Month, Michel Month, Bill King, Lee Franklin, David Reese, Steven Oliva, Anthony Endon

Londoners:  John Beyer, Wendy Shaffer, Sam Schuman, Gracie Angelo, Ludmilla Tchor, Charley Peak, Dylan Davis, Regina Ann Sesso.

So, Georgie Priolo had returned to the role of the Dodger and Chris Month was joined by two brothers as Workhouse Boys/Fagin's Gang.  Eugene Endon had outgrown the role but his brother Anthony still carried on the family tradition.

I have a program from a Mineola Theatre production with Brett Smiley as Oliver, but I don't have a playbill, so it's possible that I didn't see this show, but my friend Janet Hill saw it and got me the program.  It is in this production that Dominic Chianese played Mr. Sowerberry.

Workhouse Boys and Fagin's Gang:  Eugene Endon, Bobby Gold, David Henesy, Christopher Month, Mark Novack, Jackie Perkuhn, David Reese, Sonny Rocco

Londoners:  Ted Bloecher, John Borden, Lynn Carroll, Suzan Cogan, Patricia Drylie, Edmund Gaynes, Yvonne Harvey, Zale Kessler, Sylvia MacDonald, Jacqueline Maria, Keith Perry, Darrell Sandeen, Ilona Simon

Sadly, Brett Smiley died at 60 in 2016, after an abortive career as a rock singer.

David Henesy who played one of the Workhouse Boys/Fagin's Gang was a regular on the supernatural soap opera DARK SHADOWS where he played David Collins.

(OLIVER! was revived in England again in 1977 with Roy Hudd, returning to the Albery Theatre where the original show opened, and ran for two and a half years for an additional 1,139 performances.)

The next time I saw OLIVER! was a 1983 London revival at the Aldwych (Saturday evening for 12 pounds 50 pence) with the following cast:

Ron Moody was the original Fagin in 1960 and recreated the role for the big budget 1968  film, which won six Oscars, including Best Picture of the Year.

In September 2007 I had an email out of the blue from David Garlick, who as you will see below, also played the Dodger on Broadway in 1984.  He tells me he went on to play The Artful Dodger in the BBC adaptation in 1985 - and appeared in the BAFTA-award winning short KURT, MUNGO, BP and ME, (1984) written by poet and ex- Scaffold band member Roger McGough.  He now fronts British rock and roll band The Lowriders.

This is one of the few productions in which Bill Sikes' dog, Bullseye, was given a credit.  The production was brought over to Broadway and I saw it in April of 1984 at the Mark Hellinger Theatre ($40 for first row orchestra center on a Wednesday evening) with the following cast:

.

Gregg Edelman was a "Londoner" in this production; he went on to star in CITY OF ANGELS (1990) and the Roundabout revival of 1776 for which he won the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical.  He was nominated for a Tony in 1993 for ANNA KARENINA.

All the productions I saw were directed by Peter Coe (the director of the original 1960 London version as well) except for the Mineola Theatre production and the one at the Valley Forge Music Fair which, being done in a tent, was also the only production not to use the wonderfully intricate set designed by Sean Kenny.  This was a multilevel architectural wonder in the way that it revolved, "unfolded" and moved vertically and horizontally in the time it took the orchestra to play the music that changed one scene to another.  Since OLIVER! was only the third show I had seen at the time I first saw it in 1965, I was less impressed with it than I eventually became by the time I saw the 1983 revival in London.  There was just something about seeing OLIVER! in London with an entire cast of authentically British performers that was very magical as well.

There was a further London revival which opened December 5, 1994 at the Palladium Theatre with the following cast (which was also recorded on an original cast album):

Lionel Bart was 28 when he wrote the book, music and lyrics to OLIVER! based on the 1838 Charles Dickens classic OLIVER TWIST.  (Bart had changed his last name from Begleiter when he was 24.)  He had started out writing pop tunes for Tommy Steele (having been in a skiffle group called the Caveman with him), and had written two previous successful West End Shows, FINGS AIN'T WOT THEY USED T'BE (music and lyrics - 1957) and LOCK UP YOUR DAUGHTERS (lyrics - 1959).  According to Rex Bunnett writing in The Musicals, originally Bart was looking to create a vehicle to star Tommy Steele when he decided to adapt OLIVER TWIST, but that plan went out the window when Bart limited the show to the early part of the book that also formed the basis for the successful 1948 David Lean film.  By the time OLIVER! opened on Broadway, Bart had 3 hit shows running simultaneously in London, OLIVER!, LOCK UP YOUR DAUGHTERS and BLITZ (music and lyrics).  He died April 4, 1999.

FOOD, GLORIOUS FOOD

Click here for a 30-second soundbyte.

When I first saw OLIVER! my heart sank when the curtain went up because the stage was so dark and dismal and also because for a while, I suspected the entire show would be sung like an operetta.  However, now that I have seen the show many times, the opening is possibly my favorite part.  The "dark and dismal" set and lighting are totally appropriate for the workhouse where the orphan boys sing their rousing anthem to food:

Is it worth the waiting for?
If we live 'til eighty-four
All we ever get is gru...el!
Ev'ry day we say our prayer --
Will they change the bill of fare?
Still we get the same old gru...el!
There's not a crust, not a crumb can we find,
Can we beg, can we borrow, or cadge,
But there's nothing to stop us from getting a thrill
When we all close our eyes and imag...ine

Food, glorious food!
Hot sausage and mustard!
While we're in the mood
Cold jelly and custard!
Pease pudding and saveloys!
What next is the question.
Rich gentlemen have it, boys:
In-di-gestion!

Food, glorious food!
We're anxious to try it.
Three banquets a day --
Our favourite diet!
Just picture a great big steak --
Fried, roasted or stewed.
Oh, food,
Wonderful food,
Marvellous food,
Glorious food.

Food, glorious food!
What is there more handsome?
Gulped, swallowed or chewed --
Still worth a king's ransom!
What is it we dream about?
What brings on a sigh?
Piled peaches and cream, about
Six feet high!

Food, glorious food!
Eat right through the menu.
Just loosen your belt
Two inches and then you
Work up a new appetite.
In this interlude --
Then food,
Once again, food
Fabulous food,
Glorious food!

Food, glorious food!
Don't care what it looks like:
Burned, underdone, crude --
Don't care what the cook's like.
Just thinking of growing fat --
Our senses go reeling.
One moment of knowing that
Full-up feeling!

Food, glorious food!
What wouldn't we give for
That extra bit more --
That's all that we live for.
Why should we be fated to
Do nothing but brood
On food,
Magical food,
Wonderful food,
Marvellous food,
Fabulous food,
Beautiful food,
Glorious food!

Writing in OPEN A NEW DOOR (2001), Ethan Mordden says:  "There was no overture. After a bit of quaint fanfare, the curtain rose on . . . the workhouse.  To anxious altered chords, an underling opened a gate as orphan boys filed in to take their places at table.  A vamp punctuated by woodblock strokes led to FOOD, GLORIOUS FOOD."  

OLIVER!  

Mr. Bumble, the parish beadle, enters.  (The dictionary defines a beadle as an inferior parish officer in England having a variety of duties, as the preservation of order in church service, the chastisement of petty offenders, etc.)  He is accompanied by the Widow Corney, the Workhouse Mistress.  Mr. Bumble hands out the day's meagre food to the boys.  When he signals the boys they can start eating, they wolf down the food to the tune of OLIVER.  When they finish, Oliver requests a second helping. 
Click here for 30-seconds of OLIVER!

MR. BUMBLE:	For what you are about to receive May the Lord make you truly thankful.
BOYS:	Amen.
OLIVER:	Please, Sir, I want some more.
MR. BUMBLE:	What?
OLIVER:	Please, Sir, I want some more.
MR. BUMBLE:	More!
WIDOW CORNEY:	Catch him!
MR. BUMBLE:	Snatch him!
WIDOW CORNEY:	Hold him!
MR. BUMBLE:	Scold him!
WIDOW CORNEY:	Pounce him! Trounce him! Pick him up and bounce him!
MR. BUMBLE:	Wait! Before we put the boy to task May I be so curious as to ask His name?
BOYS:	O-li-ver
WIDOW CORNEY AND MR. BUMBLE:	Oliver! Oliver!
MR. BUMBLE:	Never before has a boy wanted more!
MR. BUMBLE AND WIDOW CORNEY:	Oliver! Oliver!
MR. BUMBLE:	Won't ask for more when he knows what's in store. There a dark, thin, winding Stairway without any bannister Which we'll throw him down, and Feed him on cockroaches Served in a canister
ALL:	Oliver! Oliver!
MR. BUMBLE:	What will he do When he's turned black and blue? He will curse the day Somebody named him
ALL:	O-li-ver!
MR. BUMBLE AND WIDOW CORNEY:	Oliver! Oliver!
MR. BUMBLE:	Never before has a boy wanted more!
MR. BUMBLE AND WIDOW CORNEY:	Oliver! Oliver!
WIDOW CORNEY:	He won't ask for more When he knows what's in store.
MR. BUMBLE:	There's a sooty chimney Long overdue for a sweeping out Which we'll push him up, And one day next year With the rats he'll be creeping out!
ALL:	Oliver! Oliver!
MR. BUMBLE:	What will her do In this terrible stew? He will rue the day Somebody named him...
ALL:	O-li-ver!

I SHALL SCREAM

Click here for a 30-second sound byte.  Oliver is dragged off as Bumble and the Widow do a bit of courting.  When the beadle sneaks a kiss, the Widow protests:

WIDOW CORNEY:	Mr. Bumble, I shall scream!
MR. BUMBLE:	No, you wouldn't, heigh-ho. If I wanted something special, Then you couldn't say "no". Did I nearly catch you smiling? Yes I did, and it's beguiling. If your hand is close, I'll press it. Yes, you like it -- come confess it! Yes, you do.
WIDOW CORNEY:	No, I don't.
MR. BUMBLE:	Yes, you do!
WIDOW CORNEY:	I shall scream! I shall scream! Til they hasten to my rescue, I shall scream.
MR. BUMBLE:	Since there's nobody that's near us Who can see us or can hear us, If I ask you can I kiss you Say what will my pretty miss do?
WIDOW CORNEY:	I shall scream, scream, scream!
MR. BUMBLE:	If I pinch you one pinch -- From you shy protective shell, Can I un-inch you one inch? Will my blithesome, buxom beauty Let her suitor do his duty? Though his lap ain't very large, dear Sit upon it -- there's no charge, dear. Will you sit?
WIDOW CORNEY:	No, I shan't
MR. BUMBLE:	Will you sit?
WIDOW CORNEY:	I shall scream! I shall scream! For the safety of my virtue I shall scream. Though your knee is rather cozy, See my cheeks are getting rosy. You would have me in your power. If I sat here for an hour.
MR. BUMBLE (gasping under her weight):	I shall scream, scream, scream!
WIDOW CORNEY (getting off his lap):	You're a naughty bad man, If you think I can't be proper, Prim and haughty -- I can And you'll pardon if I mention You must state your true intention. How?
MR. BUMBLE:	Is there not another room here?
WIDOW CORNEY  (regretfully):	No.
MR. BUMBLE:	If there were a bride and groom here -- Would there be?
WIDOW CORNEY:	Well, there might.
MR. BUMBLE:	We shall see.
WIDOW CORNEY:	I shall scream! I shall scream! At the thought of what you're thinking, I shall scream!
MR. BUMBLE:	You will wonder where that scream went When we come to an agreement. As my lovey-dove is chubby, Could she love a chubby hubby?
WIDOW CORNEY:	I shall scream, Mr. Bumble! I shall scream, Bumble-Wumble! I shall scream, scream (what, now?) scream! (Kiss).

BOY FOR SALE

Click here for a 30-second sound byte.  Oliver is brought to Mr. Bumble with all his worldly belongings in a small bundle.  Bumble takes him off to sell, singing:

One boy,
Boy for sale.
He's going cheap.
Only seven guineas.
That or thereabouts.

Small boy,
Rather pale
From lack of sleep.
Feed him gruel dinners;
Stop him getting stout.

If I should say he wasn't very greedy,
I could not, I'd be telling you a tale.
One boy,
Boy for sale.
Come take a peep.
Have you ever seen
As nice a boy for sale?

 THAT'S YOUR FUNERAL

Mr. Bumble takes Oliver to the undertaker's parlor of Mr. and Mrs. Sowerberry and sells him into indentured servitude for 5 pounds.  Sowerberry intends to use Oliver as a coffin follower.  We learn Oliver's full name is Oliver Twist, named by Mr. Bumble when his mother died in childbirth.  Sowerberry puts a top hat on Oliver and is pleased with the effect.  

Writing in OPEN A NEW DOOR (2001) Ethan Mordden claims that Barry Humphries, who played Mr. Sowerberry, "proved to be so intriguingly Dickensian that Bart wrote THAT'S YOUR FUNERAL especially for him.  It's a piece of comic guignol."  

MR. BUMBLE:	He's a born undertaker's mute: I can see him in his black silk suit Following behind the funeral procession With his features fixed in a suitable expression. There'll be horses with tall black plumes To escort us to the family tombs, With mourners In all corners Who've been taught to weep in tune. Then the coffin lined with satin. That's your funeral.
MRS. SOWERBERRY:	That's your funeral.
SOWERBERRY:	Large enough to wear your hat in. That's your funeral.
MRS. SOWERBERRY:	That's your funeral.
SOWERBERRY:	We're just here to glamorize you for that Endless sleep.
MR. & MRS. SOWERBERRY:	You might just as well look fetching When you're six feet deep.
MRS. SOWERBERRY:	At the wake we'll drink a toddy To the body beautiful.
MR. SOWERBERRY:	That's your funeral.
MRS. SOWERBERRY:	Not our funeral.
MR. & MRS. SOWERBERRY:	That's your funeral.
SOWERBERRY:	If you're fond of overeating That's your funeral.
MRS. SOWERBERRY:	That's your funeral.
SOWERBERRY:	Starve yourself by undereating That's your funeral.
MR. BUMBLE:	That's my funeral.
MRS. SOWERBERRY:	Visualize the earth descending on you clod by clod. You can't come back when you're buried Underneath the sod.
MR. & MRS. SOWERBERRY:	We will not reduce our prices. Keep your vices usual.
SOWERBERRY:	That's your funeral
MRS. SOWERBERRY:	Not our funeral.
ALL:	That's your funeral.
MR. BUMBLE:	I don't think this song is funny.
SOWERBERRY:	That's your funeral.
MR. BUMBLE:	Here's the boy, now where's the money?
SOWERBERRY:	That's your funeral.
MRS. SOWERBERRY:	That's your funeral.
MR. BUMBLE:	That's your funeral.
SOWERBERRY:	We don't harbour thoughts macabre, There's no need to frown
MR. & MRS. SOWERBERRY:	In the end we'll either burn you up or nail you down. We love coughs and wheezes And diseases called incurable. That's your funeral. No one else's funeral.
SOWERBERRY:	That's your...
MRS. SOWERBERRY:	That's your...
MR. & MRS. SOWERBERRY:	Funeral!

WHERE IS LOVE?

Oliver is given some scraps to eat and then is left alone to sleep among the coffins.  He sings:

Where is love?
Does it fall from skies above?
Is it underneath the willow tree
That I've been dreaming of?
Where is she
Who I close my eyes to see?
Will I ever know the sweet "hello"
That's meant for only me?

Who can say where she may hide?
Must I travel far and wide?
'Til I am beside the someone who
I can mean something to.
Where,
Where is love?

Who can say where she may hide?
Must I travel far and wide?
'Til I am beside the someone who
I can mean something to.
Where,
Where is love?

The next morning Noah Claypole arrives for work; he calls Oliver "Workhouse" and rags him about his mother, goading Oliver into a fight.  Oliver winds up in a coffin, which Noah and the Sowerberries sit upon.  They get Mr. Bumble, who tries to intimidate Oliver to no avail.  Bumble blames the Sowerberries for feeding him meat.  Bumble lets Oliver out of the coffin and he manages to run away.

CONSIDER YOURSELF

A week later Oliver is walking along Paddington Green.  The Dodger comes by, dressed in a top hat and an oversized overcoat, and sizes up the runaway.  The Dodger offers Oliver lodgings with a "respectable old gentleman" named Fagin.  They introduce themselves, Dodger as Jack Dawkins to his "hintimate" friends, which upon reflection, he realizes he doesn't have.  Click here for 30 seconds of CONSIDER YOURSELF.

DODGER:	Consider yourself at home. Consider yourself  one of the family. We've taken to you so strong, It's clear we're going to get along. Consider yourself well in. Consider yourself part of the furniture. There isn't a lot to spare. Who cares? Whatever we got we share! If it should chance to be We should see Some harder days, Empty-larder days, Why grouse? Always a chance we'll meet Somebody to foot the bill, Then the drinks are on the house! Consider yourself our mate. We don't want to have no fuss, For after some consideration, we can state Consider yourself One of us! Consider yourself...
OLIVER:	At home?
DODGER:	Consider yourself...
OLIVER:	One of the family?
CAPTAIN:	We've taken to you
OLIVER:	So strong?
DODGER:	It's clear we're
BOTH:	Going to get along.
DODGER:	Consider yourself...
OLIVER:	Well in?
DODGER:	Consider yourself...
OLIVER:	Part of the furniture?
BOTH:	There isn't a lot to spare! Who cares? Whatever we got we share.
DODGER:	Nobody tries to be lah-di-dah and uppity. There a cup o'tea for all. Only it's wise to be handy wiv' a rolling pin When the landlord comes to call!
BOTH:	Consider yourself Our mate. We don't want to have no fuss, For after some consideration we can state Consider yourself One of us!
COMPANY:	Consider yourself at home. We've taken to you so strong. Consider yourself well in. There isn't a lot to spare If it should chance to be We should see Some harder days -- Empty-larder days -- Why grouse? Always a chance we'll meet Somebody to foot the bill -- Then the drinks are on the house! Consider yourself our mate. We don't want to have no fuss, For after some consideration, we can state Consider yourself One of us! Consider yourself at home. Consider yourself  one of the family. We've taken to you so strong, It's clear we're going to get along. Consider yourself well in, Consider yourself part of the furniture. There isn't a lot to spare. Who cares? Whatever we got we share! If it should chance to be We should see Some harder days, Empty-larder days, Why grouse? Always a chance we'll meet Somebody to foot the bill, Then the drinks are on the house! Consider yourself our mate. We don't want to have no fuss, For after some consideration, we can state Consider yourself One of us!

YOU'VE GOT TO PICK A POCKET OR TWO

Dodger takes Oliver to meet Fagin.  Oliver notices all the handkerchiefs hanging up and wonders if Fagin runs a laundry.  Fagin says his line of business pays a little better. With the help of his boys, Fagin demonstrates.

The boys hand over the day's takings to Fagin.  Fagin tries to teach Oliver the art of picking a pocket and rewards him with sixpence.  Oliver's now got sixpence, a home and a profession.

The next morning while the boys are all asleep, Fagin takes a box from a trapdoor in the floor; this is his miser's hoard, which he gloats over.  His little pleasure:  "a cup of coffee and a quick count-up".  Oliver wakes up and sees him, to Fagin's displeasure; he sends Oliver off for a wash while he hides his treasure again.

Click here for a 30-second soundbyte from the original Broadway cast album.

In the opening night review in the HERALD TRIBUNE, Walter Kerr wrote:  "Clive Revill starts . . . off rather interesting with fastidious speed, taking snuff and strutting with a cane in a jaunty cock-of-the-walk rhythm. . . "

FAGIN:	Let's show Oliver how to do it, my dears. You see, Oliver, In this life, one thing counts: In the bank, large amounts! I'm afraid these don't grow on trees, You've got to pick a pocket or two. You've got to pick a pocket or two, boys, You've got to pick a pocket or two.
BOYS:	Large amounts don't grow on trees. You've got to pick a pocket or two.
FAGIN:	Why should we break our backs Stupidly paying tax? Better get some untaxed income: Better pick a pocket or two. You've got to pick a pocket or two, boys, You've got to pick a pocket or two. Sing, boys!
BOYS :	Why should we all break our backs? Better pick a pocket or two.
FAGIN :	Charlie, take your hat off while you're in class! Robin Hood, what a crook: Gave away all he took. Charity's fine, subscribe to mine. Get out and pick a pocket or two. You've got to pick a pocket or two, boys, You've got to pick a pocket or two.
BOYS:	Robin Hood was far too good. Get out and pick a pocket or two.
FAGIN:	Watch the beat, boys! Take a tip from Bill Sikes: He can whip what he likes. I recall, he started small; He had to pick a pocket or two. You've got to pick a pocket or two, boys, You've got to pick a pocket or two.
BOYS:	We can be like old Bill Sikes If we pick a pocket or two.
FAGIN:	Pay attention! Dear old gent passing by, Something nice takes his eye. Everything's clear, attack the rear! Get in and pick a pocket or two. You've got to pick a pocket or two, boys, You've got to pick a pocket or two.
BOYS:	Have no fear, attack the rear. Get in and pick a pocket or two.
FAGIN:	When I see someone rich, Both my thumbs start to itch. Only to find some peace of mind I have to pick a pocket or two. You've got to pick a pocket or two, boys, You've got to pick a pocket or two.
BOYS:	Just to find some peace of mind
FAGIN AND BOYS:	You have to pick a pocket or two!

IT'S A FINE LIFE

Click here for a 30-second sound byte.  Nancy and Bet arrive; Nancy swigs gin, which she calls a small pleasure.  

NANCY:	Small pleasures, small pleasures, Who would deny us these? Gin toddies -- large measures -- No skimping if you please! I rough it.  I love it. Life is a game of chance. I'll never tire of it -- Leading this merry dance. If you don't mind having to go without things, It's a fine life!
ALL :	Fine life!
NANCY :	And though it ain't all jolly old pleasure outings, It's a fine life!
ALL:	Fine life!
NANCY:	When you've got someone to love, You forget your cares and strife. Let the prudes look down on us. Let the wide world frown on us. It's a fine, fine life!
BET and NANCY:	Who cares if straightlaces Sneer at us in the street? Fine airs and fine graces
NANCY:	Don't have to sin to eat.
BET and NANCY:	We wander through London Who knows what we many find? There's pockets left undone On many a behind.
NANCY:	If you don't mind taking it like it turns out, It's a fine life!
ALL:	Fine life!
NANCY:	And keep the candle burning until it burns out. It's a fine life!
ALL:	Fine life!
NANCY:	Though you sometimes do come by The occasional black eye, You can always cover one While he blacks the other one, But you don't dare cry.
BET:	No flounces, no feathers, No frills and furbelows. All winds and all weathers Ain't good for fancy clothes.
NANCY:	These trappings,
BET:	These tatters,
BET and NANCY:	These we can just afford.
NANCY:	What future?
BET:	What matters:
BET and NANCY:	We've got our bed and board.
NANCY:	If you don't mind having to deal with Fagin, It's a fine life!
ALL:	Fine life!
NANCY:	And though diseased rats threaten to bring the plague in, It's a fine life!
ALL:	Fine life!
NANCY:	But the grass is green and dense On the right side of the fence. And we take good care of it That we get our share of it
ALL:	And we don't mean pence!
BET and NANCY:	If you don't mind having to like or lump it, It's a fine life!
ALL:	Fine life!
NANCY:	Though there's no tea-sippin' and eatin' crumpet, It's a fine life!
ALL:	Fine life!
NANCY:	Not for me, the happy home: Happy husband, happy wife. Though it sometimes touches me, For the likes of such as me, Mine's a fine.
ALL:	Fine life!

 I'D DO ANYTHING

Nancy and Bet are introduced to Oliver.  Nancy says no one knows how a gentleman of quality acts, "except Dodge."  Click here for a 30-second soundbyte from the original Broadway cast album.

NANCY:	Oliver, you do everything you saw 'im do, and I'll tell you all the words you don't know, alright?
OLIVER:	I'd do anything
NANCY:	For you, dear,
OLIVER:	For you, dear, anything
NANCY:	For you mean
OLIVER:	For you mean everything to me. I know that I'd go anywhere, For your smile, anywhere, For your smile ev'rywhere I'd see
BET:	Would you lace my shoe?
OLIVER:	Anything!
BET:	Paint your face bright blue?
OLIVER:	Anything!
BET:	Catch a kangaroo?
OLIVER:	Anything!
BET:	Go to Timbuctoo?
OLIVER:	And back again! I'd risk ev'rything For one kiss -- ev'rything -- Yes, I'd do anything
BET:	Anything?
OLIVER:	Anything for you!
DODGER:	Come on, Fagin!
FAGIN:	Would you rob a shop?
ALL:	Anything!
FAGIN:	Would you risk the "drop"?
ALL:	Anything!
FAGIN:	Though your eyes go pop
ALL:	Anything!
FAGIN:	When you come down plop?
ALL:	Hang ev'rything! We'd risk life and limb To keep you in the swim. Yes, we'd do anything!
FAGIN:	Anything?
ALL:	Anything for you.

BE BACK SOON

Fagin sends the boys out to pick pockets, with Oliver under the Dodger's watchful tutelage.  Click here for a 30-second soundbyte from the original Broadway cast album.

OOM-PAH-PAH

Click here for a 30-second sound byte.  At the Three Cripples public house that evening, as the customers drink and have a raucous good time, the landlord calls upon Nancy to sing the "old school song".  

NANCY:	All right!  All right!  'Ere we go then! There's a little ditty They're singin' in the city, Especially when they've been On the gin or the beer. If you've got the patience, Your own imaginations 'll tell you just exactly what you want to hear:
ALL:	Oom-pah-pah! Oom-pah-pah! That's how it goes, Oom-pah-pah! Oom-pah-pah! Ev'ryone knows:
NANCY:	They all suppose what they want to suppose When they hear oom-pah-pah! Mister Percy Snodgrass Would often have the odd glass -- But never when he thought anybody could see. Secretly he'd buy it, And drink it on the quiet, And dream he was an Earl Wiv' a girl on each knee!
ALL:	Oom-pah-pah! Oom-pah-pah! That's how it goes. Oom-pah-pah! Oom-pah-pah! Ev'ryone knows:
NANCY:	What is the cause of his red shiny nose? Could it be oom-pah-pah? Pretty little Sally Goes walkin' down the alley, Displays a pretty ankle to all of the men. They could see her garters, But not for free and gratis -- An inch or two, and then She knows when to say when!
ALL:	Oom-pah-pah! Oom-pah-pah! That's how it goes. Oom-pah-pah! Oom-pah-pah! Ev'ryone knows:
NANCY:	Whether it's hidden, or whether it shows -- It's the same, oom-pah-pah! She was from the country, But now she's up a gum-tree -- She let a feller feed 'er, and lead 'er along. What's the use o' cryin'? She's made a bed to lie in. She's glad to bring a coin in, And join in this song!
ALL:	Oom-pah-pah! Oom-pah-pah! That's how it goes! Oom-pah-pah! Oom-pah-pah! Ev'ryone knows:
NANCY:	She is no longer the same blushin' rose Ever since oom-pah-pah! There's a little ditty They're singing in the city Especially when they've been On the gin or the beer. If you've got the patience, Your own imaginations 'll tell you just exactly what you want to hear:
ALL:	Oom-pah-pah! Oom-pah-pah! That's how it goes, Oom-pah-pah! Oom-pah-pah! Ev'ryone knows: They all suppose what they want to suppose When they hear oom-pah-pah!

MY NAME

Click here for a 30-second sound byte.  At the end of Nancy's song, Bill Sikes, her boyfriend enters.  The place grows quiet, as he carries with him a strong air of menace.  

Strong men tremble when they hear it!
They've got cause enough to fear it!
It's much blacker than they smear it!
Nobody mentions my name!

Rich men hold their five-pound notes out;
Saves me emptying their coats out.
They know I could tear their throats out
Just to live up to my name!

Wiv' me jimmy in me hand,
Let me see the man who dares
Stop me taking what I may;
He can start to say his prayers!

Biceps like an iron girder,
Fit for doing of a murder,
If I just so much as heard a
Bloke even whisper my name!

Bill Sikes!

Strong men tremble when they hear it!
They've got cause enough to fear it!
It's much blacker than they smear it!
Nobody mentions my name!

Some gent, slumming wiv' his valet,
Bumped into me in an alley.
Now is eyes'll never tally;
He'd never heard of my name!

One bloke used to boast a claim
He could take my name in vain.
Poor bloke, shame 'e was so green;
Never was 'e seen again!

Once bad -- what's the good of turning?
In hell, I'll be there a-burning;
Meanwhile, think of what I'm earning
All on account of my name!

What is it? What is it? What is it?  My name!

AS LONG AS HE NEEDS ME

Dodger and the boys rush into the pub to explain how Oliver was nicked but absolved in court and taken to the Bloomsbury home of the gentleman whose pocket was picked.  Fagin and Sikes are worried that Oliver might talk, Sikes threatens Nancy until she agrees to retrieve Oliver.  Click here for a 30-second soundbyte from the original Broadway cast album.

NANCY:

As long as he needs me -
Oh, yes, he does need me -
In spite of what you see,
I'm sure that he needs me.

Who else would love him still
When they've been used so ill?
He knows I always will
As long as he needs me.

I miss him so much
When he is gone,
But when he's near me
I don't let on

The way I feel inside,
The love I've got to hide.
The hell!  I've got my pride
As long as he needs me.

He doesn't say the things he should.
He acts the way he thinks he should.
But all the same, I'll play
This game his way.

As long as he needs me,
I know where I must be;
I'll cling on steadfastly
As long as he needs me.

As long as life is long,
I'll love him right or wrong,
And somehow, I'll be strong
As long as he needs me.

If you've been lonely
Then you will know
When someone needs you,
You love them so.

I won't betray his trust
Though people say I must.
I've got to stay true just
As long as he needs me.

WHO WILL BUY?

At Mr. Brownlow's house, Oliver, cleaned up amid unaccustomed luxury, looks out of the window to see street sellers.  Click here for a 30-second soundbyte from the original Broadway cast album.

STRAWBERRY-SELLER	MILKMAID:	ROSE-SELLER:	KNIFE GRINDER:
Ripe strawberries, ripe!	Any milk today, mistress?	Who will buy my sweet red roses?	Knives, knives to grind! Any knives to grind? Knives, knives to grind! Any knives to grind? Who will buy?

STRAWBERRY-SELLER: Who will buy? MILKMAID:   Who will buy? ROSE-SELLER:   Who will buy? OLIVER: Who will buy this wonderful morning? Such a sky you never did see! ROSE-SELLER:   Who will buy my sweet red roses? OLIVER: Who will tie it up with a ribbon And put it in a box for me? STRAWBERRY-SELLER:   Ripe strawberries, ripe! OLIVER: So I could see it at my leisure, Whenever things go wrong, And I would keep it as a treasure To last my whole life long. MILKMAID:   Any milk today? OLIVER:   Who will buy this wonderful feeling? I'm so high I swear I could fly. KNIFE GRINDER:   Knives! Knives to grind! STRAWBERRY-SELLER:   Ripe strawberries, ripe! OLIVER: Me, oh my!  I don't want to lose it So what am I to do To keep the sky so blue? There must be someone who will buy... LONG SONG SELLER:   Who will buy? KNIFE GRINDER:   Who will buy? MILKMAID:   Who will buy? ROSE-SELLER:   Who will buy? ALL: Who will buy this wonderful morning? Such a sky you never did see! Who will tie it up with a ribbon And put it in a box for me? There'll never be a day so sunny, It could not happen twice. Where is the man with all the money? It's cheap at half the price! Who will buy this wonderful feeling? I'm so high I swear I could fly. Me, oh my!  I don't want to lose it So what am I to do To keep the sky so blue? OLIVER:   There must be someone who will buy ROSE-SELLER:   Who will buy my sweet red roses? Two blooms for a penny!

Brownlow has noticed a likeness between Oliver and his daughter Agnes.  Brownlow has some books to be returned to a bookseller and decides to send Oliver on this errand.  When Oliver emerges from the house, Nancy pretends he's her little brother.  Oliver doesn't want to go with her, but Sikes appears, grabs him and takes him back to Fagin's.

REVIEWING THE SITUATION

Click here for a 30-second sound byte.  Continuing Walter Kerr's description of Clive Revill in the opening night review in the HERALD TRIBUNE:  "He springs to his hiding place, clutches his treasures, and measures his pearls like so many yards of muslin, a jeweler's glass in his eye."  

Things don't seem to be going well, with Nancy finally standing up to Bill, and the threat that Oliver might have told Brownlow where Fagin and his pickpocket gang live.  Fagin stops to take stock.  

A man's got a heart, hasn't he?
Joking apart -- hasn't he?
And though I'd be the first one to say that I wasn't a saint,
I'm finding it hard to be really as black as they paint.

I'm reviewing the situation:
Can a fellow be a villain all his life?
All the trials and tribulation!
Better settle down and get meself a wife.
And a wife would cook and sew for me,
And come for me, and go for me,
And go for me and nag at me,
The fingers she will wag at me.
The money she will take from me.
A misery, she'll make from me...
I think I'd better think it out again!

A wife you can keep, anyway;
I'd rather sleep, anyway.
Left without anyone in the world,
And I'm starting from now,
So how to win friends and to influence people?
So how?

I'm reviewing the situation:
I must quickly look up ev'ryone I know:
Titled people -- with a station --
Who can help me make a real impressive show!
I will own a suite at Claridges,
And run a fleet of carriages,
And wave at all the duchesses
With friendliness, as much as is
Befitting of my new estate...
"Good morning to you, magistrate!" (beat)
I think I'd better think it out again.

So where shall I go -- somebody?
Who do I know? Nobody!
All my dearest companions
Have always been villains and thieves.
So at my time of life I should start
Turning over new leaves?

I'm reviewing the situation:
If you want to eat -- you've got to earn a bob!
Is it such a humiliation
For a robber to perform an honest job?
So a job I'm getting, possibly,
I wonder who the boss'll be?
I wonder if he'll take to me?
What bonuses he'll make to me?
I'll start at eight and finish late,
At normal rate, and all, but wait!
I think I'd better think it out again.

What happens when I'm seventy?
Must come a time, seventy.
When you're old, and it's cold
And who cares if you live or you die?
The one consolation's the money
You may have put by.

I'm reviewing the situation:
I'm a bad 'un and a bad 'un I shall stay!
You'll be seeing no transformation,
But it's wrong to be a rogue in ev'ry way.

I don't want nobody hurt for me,
Or made to do the dirt for me.
This rotten life is not for me.
It's getting far too hot for me.
Don't want no one to rob for me.
But who will find a job for me.
There is no in between for me,
But who will change the scene for me?
I think I'd better think it out again!

At the end of this wonderful comic/poignant number, when Fagin sings "but who will change the scene for me", the terrific Sean Kenny stage begins to revolve into the setting for the next scene.

Widow Corney has married Mr. Bumble to his everlasting regret.  Old Sally wishes to make a dying confession to the workhouse Matron.  Sally admits she robbed Oliver's mother on her deathbed of a golden locket.  Learning that Oliver comes from a rich family, the Bumbles set out to find him.  Bumble winds up at the home of Mr. Brownlow who has advertised for Oliver's return; Bumble gives him the locket which turns out to be a likeness of Brownlow's daughter, Agnes.

Nancy shows up at Brownlow's and confesses her part in kidnapping Oliver, letting slip she had taken him to Fagin's.  Brownlow promises not to have Nancy watched or followed and she promises to bring Oliver to him that night at midnight on London Bridge.

AS LONG AS HE NEEDS ME (REPRISE)

Click here for a 30-second sound byte.

NANCY:

He doesn't act as though he cares,
But deep inside I know he cares,
And that is why I'm tied
Right by his side.

As long as he needs me
I know where I must be
But, will he never see
That someone else needs me?

As long as life is long,
I'll love him - right or wrong,
But he's so big and strong
And someone else needs me:

A child with no one to take his part.
I'll take his part, Bill,
But cross my heart
I won't betray your trust
Though people say I must.
My heart will stay true just
As long as Bill needs me.

That night Nancy sets out with Oliver but runs into Sikes  He kills her (discreetly out of view of the audience; beating her to death with his truncheon) and her body falls from London Bridge.  Brownlow appears in time to see Sikes disappearing with Oliver.  He discovers Nancy's body and calls for help.  Sikes takes Oliver to Fagin's just as Brownlow is describing him to the police, who identify him as Bill Sikes.  Someone in the crowd spots Bill's dog and, angry at the death of the popular Nancy, they set off after it.  Sikes appears on the roof with Oliver bound in a rope, threatening to kill the boy.  A policeman shoots Sikes, who falls.  Oliver is rescued and taken to Mr. Brownlow.  The police nab Dodger, who loudly protests.  Another policeman carts off Fagin's loot.

REVIEWING THE SITUATION (REPRISE)

Click here for a 30-second soundbyte from the original Broadway cast album.  Penniless and homeless, Fagin emerges from under the bridge and sings:

Can somebody change?
It's possible.
Maybe it's strange,
But it's possible.

All my bosom companions and treasures --
I've left them behind.
I'll turn a leaf over, and who can tell what I may find?

The curtain comes down on Act II to raise again for the Finale, which is a reprise of FOOD, GLORIOUS FOOD.  At the end of this, Mr. Brownlow, Bet and Oliver come out with a huge hamper of food.  Oliver says, "Help yourself, lads!" as the boys all cheer.

FINALE

There follows a reprise of CONSIDER YOURSELF and I'D DO ANYTHING.  Click here for a 30-second sound byte.

Commentary by Judy Harris

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