BWW Reviews: Stellar Performances and Skillful Direction Highlight OLIVER! at Boiler Room Theatre

If there is a Nashville actress who has had a more career-defining year than Corrie Miller, I'd love to know who she is. In 2011, the multi-talenTed Miller has shown off her versatility and her estimable range by taking on three of the theater's most iconic female leads: Annie Oakley in Annie Get Your Gun, Blanche DuBois in A Streetcar Named Desire and now she completes that trifecta with Nancy in Oliver!, the Lionel Bart musical now given a lovely holiday season revival at Boiler Room Theatre.

Surrounded by some of the best actors in the region, Miller has been given the opportunity to shine and shine she has done-remarkably-by delivering three critically acclaimed performances that are as different as they could  possibly be and, in so doing, she has proven herself a force to be reckoned with in Nashville theater. Adding to those sterling resume entries-and to cap off her stellar year-she was one of the "sexy phantoms" in BRT's record-setting Rocky Horror Show and she claimed the spotlight in the 2011 First Night Honors' opening number of "Another Op'nin', Another Show," which is perhaps a harbinger of a future role in yet another musical theater classic.

But it is Miller's "Nancy" that now claims our attention, along with the collective admiration of Oliver! audiences: It's a startling performance that blends Miller's musical abilities perfectly with her acting chops, elevating what could be simply another production of Bart's timeless musical into something greater and certainly more noteworthy. Her "As Long As He Needs Me" (easily my favorite song from the score) is worth the price of a ticket, which begins almost as a heart-wrenching and emotionally draining torch song (Nancy lies prostrate on the floor, slowly recovering from the harsh beating of the dastardly Bill Sykes) that transforms into a movingly sung paean to the man she loves.

Director Sondra Morton's staging of the number is at once horrifyingly upsetting, yet it somehow morphs into something more, for the lack of a better word, inspiring and heartfelt. That Miller and Morton are able to walk that fine line and to show us the dual natures of Nancy's personality, as well as the contrast of comedy and pathos in the whole of Oliver! is nothing short of remarkable.

Under the sure-handed direction of Morton, who has brought together an impressive cast of adult actors with two different casts of youngsters, the whole of Oliver! is remarkable, a thoroughly delightful evening of theater that allows those older thespians to show off their talents while showcasing the budding talents of her younger charges, who display stage presence and focus throughout the tune-filled musical. In fact, it is Morton's skilled and practiced eye in regards to casting that really sets this Oliver! apart from any of the others we've seen. Frankly, the woman  knows what she's doing.

Clearly, the standout among the younger actors is Matthew Dyra (who alternates with Hayden Gill in the title role), whose thorough commitment is essential to the show's success. Dyra's British accent is believable and consistent and his portrayal of the beleaguered young orphan is top-notch, but it is his singing that really proves him an Oliver Twist to remember, particularly his joyous performance of "Who Will Buy," (which might possibly be my second favorite song from the show's lustrous score) and his lovely and plaintive "Where is Love?"-he's a name to remember.

While Miller and Dyra lead the cast with aplomb, they are rather lucky to be surrounded by a cast of gifted performers, each of whom is well-cast and most of whom play a variety of roles in the process. By making Oliver! more of an intimate production, Morton uses the confines of the Boiler Room Theatre to great effect, drawing the audiences deeper into the sometimes shocking realities of the world originally created by Charles Dickens in his Oliver Twist, then musicalized by Lionel Bart. The world into which young Oliver is born is a harsh world of deprivation and depravity, the inequities of the British social class structure ever apparent. From the seedy tenement inhabited by Fagin (Don Hillaker in his BRT debut) and his band of young pickpockets to the far more genteel, upper crust home of MR. Brownlow (Dan McGeachy), the story is told with clearcut honesty, leavened with some humor and an unbridled sense of whimsy.

Hillaker is well-cast as Fagin, the benevolent despot who rules his band of ragamuffins with an unsettling paternal presence, and he delivers his character's songs-particularly "Pick A Pocket Or Two" and "Reviewing the Situation"-barely disguised glee that underscores Fagin's greed and avarice. As the demonic Bill Sykes, Jeremy Maxwell cuts a foreboding figure, unafraid to draw upon the darker elements of Sykes' nature to create a palpably frightening character. Will Lasley's The Artful Dodger is crafty and colorful, and he plays well off of Hillaker's Fagin and he shows tremendous heart in his scenes with both Miller and Dyra.

Among the ensemble, McGeachy's avuncular MR. Brownlow allows him to show his sweet-natured self, while his Mr. Sowerberry gives him a chance to shine musically in "That's Your Funeral." Brad Oxnam is delightfully droll as Mr. Bumble and ostentatiously, if unwittingly, dim as Dr. Grimwig.

Vickie White takes on the roles of Widow Corney and Mrs. Bedwin with equal grace, showing off her perfect comic timing as the Widow as effortlessly as she shows off her exquisite voice. Obviously, the Widow Corney was written with some other actress in mind, but it could easily have been written for White.

Laura Crockarell is impressive as Mrs. Sowerberry and Old Sally, as are both Kacie Phillips (as Bet) and Paige Brouillette (as Charlotte). Crockarell, Phillips, Brouillette shine in "Who Will Buy"-along with Maxwell and Dyra-which elevates Act Two beyond the amazing efforts on display in Act One.

With the "red cast orphans" taking to the stage-their show-opening "Food, Glorious Food" is just as good as you would expect-at the performance reviewed, Morton's experience with younger actors is evident. As a result, the audience is treated to exceptional performances from all of the orphans, who include Tyler Worden, Joshua Cleveland, Harry Westbrook, Charlie Hilly, Cate Tucker, Collier Bickel, Lydia Crider and Jackson Harris. Harris, who very nearly stole the show from the rest of the cast in BRT's Nine, and Bickel, who proves himself a fine young actor, are particularly noteworthy among the seasoned cast of youthful thespians onstage-giving as good as they get from their more experienced colleagues.

Lauri Gregoire's choreography is engaging and created to capture the zestful energy that permeates the piece. Music director Mark Beall's five-person ensemble perform Bart's musical score with expressive intensity. Beall, who conducts and plays keyboards for the production, is joined by Tom McGinley on woodwinds, Doug Bright on bass guitar, Rick Malkin on drums/percussin and Charis McKrell on violin.

Corbin Green's set design provides the company with a good backdrop for the various scenes in the musical, while Katie Delaney's costumes clothe the actors in Victorian era-inspired fashion.

- Oliver! Music, lyrics and book by Lionel Bart. Directed by Sondra Morton. Musical direction by Mark Beall. Choreography by Lauri Gregoire. Presented by Boiler Room Theatre, Franklin, through December 23. For details, go to www.boilerroomtheatre.com or call (615) 794-7744.

 

 

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