From Jan. 9-12, Midcoast Youth Theater’s production of the musical “Oliver!” at the Crooker Theater in Brunswick showcased the talents of young actors from the area.
Charlie O’Brien as Oliver, left, and Estella Wigg as the Artful Dodger sing “Consider Yourself” during a Midcoast Youth Theater production of “Oliver!” at the Crooker Theater in Brunswick on Jan. 12. “It’s really fun. I don’t want it to be over!” Wigg said about performing in the show. (Bisi Cameron Yee photo)
Cast members of Midcoast Youth Theater’s “Oliver!” warm up their voices just prior to the final show at Brunswick High School’s Crooker Theater on Jan. 12. Courtney Babbidge, the show’s musical director, worked with the cast on vocal performance and led the nine-piece orchestra that brought the musical to life. (Bisi Cameron Yee photo)
Noah Peltzer begins the makeup application process to perform as one of the workhouse kids in Midcoast Youth Theater’s “Oliver!” at the Crooker Theater in Brunswick on Jan. 12. Liberal applications of dark shadows and blushes helped the performers mimic the dirt-streaked faces of 19th-century orphans and street kids. (Bisi Cameron Yee photo)
Charlie O’Brien as Oliver and Rich Ellis as Mr. Bumble perform the song “Boy for Sale” during Midcoast Youth Theater’s “Oliver!” at the Crooker Theater in Brunswick on Jan. 12. Costume designer Maddy Merrill’s focus on contrast between the secondhand clothes of the orphans and the ostentatious finery of characters like Mr. Bumble underscored the inequity of 19th-century England that is a through line in Charles Dickens’ novels. (Bisi Cameron Yee photo)
“Oliver!” cast member Maggie Moore, who plays Nancy, receives a gift of farm-fresh organic eggs from Po Salko, 7, one of the orphans in the workhouse scenes, and mom Danielle Magno at the Crooker Theater in Brunswick on Jan. 12. The close-knit cast has been rehearsing for the production since mid-November. (Bisi Cameron Yee photo)
Eddie Hatrick as Fagin, center, teaches his gang the ins and outs of pickpocketing during Midcoast Youth Theater’s last performance of “Oliver!” at the Crooker Theater in Brunswick on Jan. 12. Estella Wigg, far left, as the Artful Dodger, drapes a friendly arm over Charlie O’Brien’s Oliver, the newest and most naive recruit to the gang, while Nyla Keenan, as a gang member, attempts to pull a handkerchief from Fagin’s pocket. (Bisi Cameron Yee photo)
Members of Fagin’s gang vie for attention during a performance of the song “You’ve Got to Pick a Pocket or Two” at the Crooker Theater in Brunswick on Jan. 12. Despite being a thief and a bad influence on the children in his care, “Fagin is a cool character,” said 9-year-old Holden Wigmore (not pictured), who played one of the workhouse orphans. (Bisi Cameron Yee photo)
Josy Hollenbach as Bet, a former member of Fagin’s gang, dances on a table during the reprise of “It’s a Fine Life” in Act II of “Oliver!” at the Crooker Theater in Brunswick on Jan. 12. Midcoast Youth Theater set designer Maggie Moore and set builder Clair Siggins made use of large wooden tables and empty liquor bottles to suggest the seedy London pub where the action of the scene takes place. (Bisi Cameron Yee photo)
Charlie O’Brien as the title character prepares to ask, “Please, sir, may I have some more?” during the opening number of Midcoast Youth Theater’s production of “Oliver!” at the Crooker Theater in Brunswick on Jan. 12. Several of the younger actors said they have felt encouraged to delve further into the works of Charles Dickens as a result of being cast in the show. (Bisi Cameron Yee photo)
Alison Baker-Higgins, left, applies makeup to simulate dirt on Egan Dawson’s face before the two perform as members of the workhouse, an orphanage that takes advantage of abandoned youth, in Midcoast Youth Theater’s production of “Oliver!” at the Crooker Theater in Brunswick on Jan. 12. (Bisi Cameron Yee photo)
Camille Morris, as the rose seller, offers flowers to passing Londoners during a performance of “Who Will Buy,” part of Midcoast Youth Theater’s production of “Oliver!” at the Crooker Theater in Brunswick on Jan. 12. The song, by the composer Lionel Bart, is an ode to London’s street vendors. (Bisi Cameron Yee photo)
“Oliver!” set builder and cast member Clair Siggins, right, who plays the villainous Bill Sikes, receives a thank-you card as Crystal Peltzer, left, applauds during a preshow rally at Brunswick High School on Jan. 12. The kids in the cast wrote thank-you cards to the members of the production team who helped make the show possible. (Bisi Cameron Yee photo)
Maggie Moore as Nancy, center, and Eddie Hatrick as Fagin, right, react to the threatening shadow of Clair Siggins as Bill Sikes during a production of “Oliver!” at the Crooker Theater in Brunswick on Jan. 12. Nancy is murdered by Sikes at the end of the play. (Bisi Cameron Yee photo)
Emilia Feldman holds a congratulatory bouquet of flowers after her final performance as one of the workhouse children in Midcoast Youth Theater’s “Oliver!” at the Crooker Theater in Brunswick on Jan. 12. Next up for the theater company is Roald Dahl’s “Willy Wonka,” with auditions starting in February. (Bisi Cameron Yee photo)
Crystal Peltzer studies her script in the Brunswick High School cafeteria as she prepares to take the stage as the kindly Mrs. Bedwin in Midcoast Youth Theater’s “Oliver!” at the school’s Crooker Theater on Jan. 12. Based on the 1838 novel “Oliver Twist” by Charles Dickens, “Oliver!” addresses the author’s recurring themes of poverty and violence with a more lighthearted approach that has been a crowd-pleaser since it premiered in 1960. (Bisi Cameron Yee photo)
Viola Coffin reaches out while performing a musical number in Midcoast Youth Theater’s “Oliver!” at the Crooker Theater in Brunswick on Jan. 12. The dance numbers were designed by Christine Longstreeth, who has choreographed and performed with theater companies across the state. (Bisi Cameron Yee photo)
The cast receives a standing ovation during the curtain call after Midcoast Youth Theater’s final performance of “Oliver!” at the Crooker Theater in Brunswick on Jan. 12. The performance marked the end of a successful five-show run. (Bisi Cameron Yee photo)
Estella Wigg poses with flowers after her final performance as the Artful Dodger in Midcoast Youth Theater’s “Oliver!” at the Crooker Theater in Brunswick on Jan. 12. Wigg, of Harpswell, has been performing in local shows for about a year and a half. “I just love being Dodger,” she said of her most recent role. (Bisi Cameron Yee photo)
Cast and crew form a circle to celebrate their accomplishment before taking the stage for the last show of Midcoast Youth Theater’s run of “Oliver!” at the Crooker Theater in Brunswick on Jan. 12. Since 2003, Midcoast Youth Theater has been “dedicated to providing opportunities for all children and young at heart to perform in full-length musicals without regard to past experience or financial resources.” (Bisi Cameron Yee photo)
