W.L. Seaton Secondary School's 27th Street Theatre Company is about to pick a pocket or two in the new year, but it will be worth it for fans of a certain musical.
Theatre students are currently in rehearsal to stage Oliver!, Jan. 5 to 14, and tickets to the show are already selling quickly, said Seaton drama teacher Lana O'Brien, who is directing the production.
"Minimal seats are available for each show, so get them while you can," she said.
With spirited and timeless songs such as As Long as He Needs Me, Food, Glorious Food, I'd Do Anything, Consider Yourself, Where is Love, Oliver! is a musical classic.
Based on Charles Dickens beloved novel, Oliver Twist, Lionel Bart's musical takes audiences on a wild adventure through Victorian England.
The story follows young orphan Oliver Twist (played here by Nina Ogasawara) as he is forced into child labour at the charge of Mr. Bumble (Jax Dolman) and the Widow Corney (Taliesan Orosz), the heartless and greedy caretakers of the workhouse.
After he is sold and made an undertakers' apprentice, he runs away, and has to navigate London's underworld of theft and violence, all the while searching for a home, a family, and most importantly, love.
On the way, he meets street urchin the Artful Dodger (Shaughnessy O'Brien) who introduces Oliver to a gang of child pickpockets, led by the conniving, but charismatic Fagin (Jace Toews).
When Oliver is falsely accused of a theft he didn't commit, he is rescued by a kind and wealthy gentleman, to the dismay of Fagin's violent sidekick Bill Sykes (R.J. Liebelt). Caught in the middle is the warm-hearted Nancy (Zaiah Ingram), who is trapped under Bill's thumb, but desperate to help Oliver, with tragic results.
Oliver! runs evenings at 7:30 p.m. Jan. 5 to 14 at 7:30 p.m., with matinees Saturday, Jan. 7 and 14 at 2 p.m. All seats are $15, available at the W.L. Seaton Secondary School office, or call 250-542-3361 (ext. 2227) to reserve.