The orchestra is already in practice for Evanston Township High School’s production of “Oliver!” in celebration of Charles Dickens’ bicentenary year.
The musical is an adaptation of Dickens’ classic novel “Oliver Twist.” The show will run April 20, 21, 27, and 28 in the school’s auditorium, 1600 Dodge Ave.
Curtain is at 7:30 p.m. each night.
A story of a young orphan who escapes the horrors of the workhouse to take up with a band of young pickpockets in rough-and-tumble London, the Broadway hit musical and subsequent movie has captured the hearts of viewers through its memorable songs and well-etched characters ever since it premiered in London’s West End in 1960.
ETHS’s production features a talented high-school cast as well as several 5th-8th-grade “orphans” from Evanston’s elementary schools.
Lead actors include Matthew Chappelle as Oliver Twist, Jacob Bond (Artful Dodger), Katie Greenberg (Nancy), Aaron Hellman (Fagin), and Kai Drozd (Bill Sykes).
Tom Sollers directs, supported by chorus director Mary Theresa Reed, orchestra director Charles Abplanalp, and technical director Aaron Carney.
Reserved-seat tickets at $10 are available through the ETHS Fine Arts Hotline, 847-424-7848.
The auditorium, at the south end of the campus, is handicapped accessible. Parking is best in the large lot on Dodge Avenue directly across from the auditorium entrance.