Oliver Twist

American Premiere (adaptation). Inspired by the vivid world of Victorian music-hall, Neil Bartlett’s staging of Oliver Twist uses the original language of Dickens’s novel to dramatize one of the most deeply felt stories about childhood ever written. A cast of unforgettable characters brings the underworld of nineteenth-century London back to thrilling life—a city teeming with images of danger and fear—all seen through the eyes of an astonished child. By turns comic and tragic, musical and dramatic, Neil’s adaptation of Oliver Twist was a runaway success in London. We’re thrilled to welcome him back to the A.R.T., together with designer Rae Smith, to recreate this sensational production for our audience.

SYNOPSIS

OIiver Twist is a young orphan who never knew his father. After his mother dies, he is raised in a harsh juvenile home, then at a workhouse,where he runs foul of the authorities by asking for more food. As punishment Oliver is apprenticed to an undertaker, but he escapes and makes his way to London, where he meets the Artful Dodger, a young pickpocket. Dodger introduces Oliver to a band of criminals led by Fagin and the murderous Bill Sikes, who train him in the art of picking pockets. Oliver’s new life of crime leads him through a series of extraordinary adventures, culminating in a terrifying chase across the rooftops of London —and a chance encounter with a man who holds the secret of the boy’s true identity.

Produced in association with Theatre for a New Audience and Berkeley Repertory Theatre.

Major Production Sponsors
Philip and Hilary Burling
Hod and Cassandra Irvine