The lyrics “consider yourself one of the family” have perhaps never been so apt than in this summer’s Saskatoon Summer Players (SSP) musical production.
The community theatre company’s newest show is none other than the hit musical Oliver!, a musical adaptation of Charles Dickens’ Oliver Twist that follows the titular, lovable orphan on his journey to a family and a better life.
It just so happens that SSP’s production brings the show to life with a cast and crew full of family members, including siblings, parents and children and married couples—some of whom are also playing married couples on stage.
“It’s a really great experience,” said Kristie Elliott, the director of Oliver!. “This has brought back people who have been away to start a family, and now they’re coming back to be part of shows again with their kids.”
In a show full of young performers, Elliott said it’s been a delight to see the amount of effort and energy that children bring to the musical stage.
“I wanted to do something that had kids involved,” she said. “I thought it was time to get another big group of kids together … they have so much joy, and they run and play and it’s so fun to watch them on stage.”
Because there are so many children in the show, as well as children in leading roles, Elliott said the decision was made to double-cast the leads in the show.
Elliott said the double-casting has led to creating strong rapport between all the different cast members, as well as two powerful groups of leads. She lauded the young double-cast actors for the amount of work they put in, adding that the process didn’t make her job more challenging at all.
“They’ve really created one version of the show, and in rehearsal they effortlessly move in and out of performing,” she said. “We wanted to make sure the kids playing double each other had similar skills… it is really well-balanced.”
While Oliver! is one of the better-known musicals out there, with songs like “Consider Yourself” and “Food, Glorious Food” as some of the most famous and recognized, Elliott said there were things they wanted to do differently to emphasize the complex characters that filled out the cast.
She emphasized that she didn’t want to shy away from some of the darker subject matter that arises in Oliver!, including the topic of intimate partner violence.
“Saskatchewan has the highest rate of intimate partner violence in Canada. We’re digging into these characters and what trauma they’ve experienced that has helped make them who they are, and how that’s different from characters like Oliver who are so innocent,” she said.
This isn’t the first time SSP has taken on Oliver! — in fact, it’s the fourth — with the last production taking place 25 years ago in 2001.
As Elliott puts it, it’s a show with staying power: great music, incredible characters, fun dances, and a lot of heart. And just because it’s an older show, doesn’t mean it can’t still resonate with an audience.
“It’s an incredible show. I really do hope people get something new out of it, even if they’ve already seen it 500 times,” Elliott said.
SSP’s production of Oliver! runs from June 19 to 28 at the Remai Arts Centre. Tickets can be found online at saskatoonsummerplayers.ca.
