Consider Yourself Entertained with YAT’s Production of ‘Oliver!’

Ten years ago, Spring Valley’s was just a little upstart trying to make it in a region filled with larger, more established youth theater programs. Perhaps because YAT had so much in common with another plucky little upstart, Charles Dickens’ fictional character Oliver Twist, they chose the musical version of his story to be their first production.

To celebrate a decade filled with musicals, dramas and comedies, and watching nascent child actors grow into talented, self-sufficient young adults, YAT has once again brought “Oliver!” to the stage. The results could not be a bigger compliment to the company.

The show runs now through Sunday, Nov. 20. You can purchase tickets by visiting the YAT website.

Blending the theater’s senior and junior divisions, “Oliver!” features the best of both worlds—adorable kids showing enormous promise performing alongside their seasoned elders, some of whom are undeniable stars-in-the-making. Two actors (one from each division) particularly stood out.

Brandon Hurst, playing the Artful Dodger, had to not only nail a Victorian British accent and lead several of the musical’s catchy songs, but make the character of a juvenile delinquent street criminal somehow loveable. Anyone who has actually been robbed would probably agree that it doesn’t matter what the motivation, stealing is a deep, personal violation. And yet Dodger’s charm, wit and determination to make petty theft not just a survival tool, but an actual art, endears him to the audience as he takes young Oliver under his wing.

Just the fact that he would reach out to a struggling young orphan, and thus put his reputation and safety on the line, speaks volumes for the character. Hurst’s portrayal of him was engaging, the accent spot-on, and his stage presence hinted that the YAT is only the beginning to a long, fruitful career in the acting industry, if that is indeed the path he chooses.

Also exuding star quality almost too bright for the stage was Nicola Barrett, a Kate Middleton lookalike who sparkled in “Ragtime” earlier this year and brought the same effortless charisma to “Oliver!” as the spunky, yet doomed Nancy.

Aside from a practically perfect cockney accent, Barrett commanded a lovely set of pipes that needed no microphone, expertly portraying two opposing emotional takes on “It’s A Fine Life,” while channeling a lifetime of struggle and insecurity in her rendition of “As Long As He Needs Me.” It is not hard to imagine that 10 years in the future, footage of Barrett’s performances with YAT will be played on late night talk shows as she promotes her latest movie or Broadway role.

Other notable performances included Brandon Hitson as the delightfully crusty Fagin, a crook to the core, but still possessing a soft spot for the street urchins he rescues from starvation and neglect. Dylan Strohl and Michelle Montrose, as Mr. and Mrs. Sowerberry, the undertakers who bought Oliver from the workhouse, were impressively grim, especially during their morbid duet “That’s Your Funeral.”

Scott Williams as Mr. Bumble, the oily workhouse master who revels in squashing the orphans’ spirits with gruel, also delivered, nailing the musical’s most famous line—“MORE?”—with wall-shaking zeal.

And of course, young Oliver himself, played by Robbie Squier with a mix of wide-eyed wonder and deep longing as he was shuttled about throughout the play, changing hands faster than a shiny new penny (or pence, as it were).

As always, the live orchestra provided a rich background for the harmonies emanating from the stage, and the minimalist stage decoration believably represented several different venues.

While YAT’s resources have certainly grown in the last 10 years, allowing for such vivid production details as the orphans’ wooden bowls or the luxe velvet suit Oliver wears as a ward of Mr. Brownlow, so has the enthusiasm displayed by both performers and staff. It is interesting to wonder how much further the theater will progress in the next decade, and how many future stars it will help create.