Charles Dickens’ classic Oliver Twist comes to life this month at Byrne Creek Secondary School.
The school’s theatre company, now in its 10th year, will be staging the musical from Dec 10 to 13. But this particular rendition is a bit different than what most are used to.
“It’s quite grim. I didn’t want to make this version shiny and happy,” said director Damon Jang. “I wanted to highlight the dark and scary moments within the Industrial Revolution that Dickens played with, everything from class structure to balance of power.”
From an artistic point of view, he said content from other sources of the story has been injected into his version, music has been either cut or added, and storylines have been moved around.
“It all ties together, but we did that to make sure everyone had a solo moment. I make sure that regardless if you’re a lead or in the background, you have a featured moment,” he said.
When asked about how staff decided on Oliver Twist, Jang told the NOW it was a matter of seeing which story fit with the cast.
“It’s been an interesting last couple of months because a lot of students are new to this, never have been in a choir or play, but this was the one that made sense.”
Caleb Lagayn, who plays Oliver, is no rookie to acting. The 17-year-old student has taken a drama class every year since Grade 8. His dream involves pursuing a diploma in musical theatre, followed by a bachelor’s degree in performing arts.
“I would love to do it full-time. My mom was in musical theatre, and my dad is a singer and composer,” he said. “So you could say it runs in the family.”
Jang said even though the theatre company is a credit for older high school students, the talent this year was so phenomenal that a few Grade 9 students were given roles.
The impact theatre has had on students is priceless, said Jang, crediting much of their love for the subject to Jack Trovato, the head of the visual and performing arts department.
“Jack has this amazing ability to inspire kids to the point of even though you may not go on to have a career in theatre, while you’re in it, it’s going to be the best time of your life,” Jang said. “Theatre really teaches you a lot of life skills.”
Lagayn couldn’t agree more.
“It made me who I am today. I’m able to take criticism, I can handle stressful situations, and I can manage time,” he said, adding it also helped him get his current job at Metrotown mall. “I got hired on the spot because of my confidence, of how I spoke to them.”
With a cast of 32 actors, Jang is confident the musical will go off without a hitch, despite a late start to the year caused by the teachers’ strike.
“Both Jack and I looked at each other and said, ‘I don’t know if it’s going to happen,’ but in the end, it started coming together.”
This is Jang’s first stint as a director, something he said he has fully embraced.
“I decided to add something new to the program. I treated the class like it was a non-profit company. We held meetings and fundraisers. I taught the kids how to stay within a budget,” he said.
Jang explained the mentorship aspect of the class allowed the students to see a lot of the behind-the-scenes work.
“Often times, they don’t realize how much time and effort goes into a production like this.”
Tickets for the show cost $8 for students, $10 for district staff and $12 for adults. You can pick them up at the school or by calling 604-664-8299.
