Oliver!, the hit musical based on Charles Dickens’s novel Oliver Twist, will only consider itself at home at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane until early 2011.
The show, which currently stars Russ Abbot as Fagin and Kerry Ellis as Nancy, is to close on 8 January after two years at the historic London venue.
The much-loved musical, famous for its street urchins, cockney knees-ups and unforgettable characters, was revived in 2008 following BBC series I’d Do Anything. The Saturday night series was an Andrew Lloyd-Webber fronted search for a new West End star to portray Nancy, and unearthed new talent Jodie Prenger who, having finished her run in Oliver!, is currently starring as the Lady of the Lake in the touring production of Monty Python’s Spamalot.
First staged in 1960, Oliver! tells the tale of a young orphan, who makes his way from the workhouse to the streets of London where he meets Fagin and his motley crew of underage pickpockets, the hideously uncaring Bill Sykes and the kind-hearted Nancy.
As a celebration of the show’s 50th birthday, a special performance will be held next Wednesday, 30 June, which will feature a guest appearance by Ron Moody who played Fagin in the show’s original production and in the famous film adaptation.
No announcement about which show might follow Oliver! at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane has been made.
MA