Director Bruce Ebner discusses 'Oliver!'

Director Bruce Ebner tells us what it's like to bring "Oliver!" to the stage.

At Wheaton Drama, it is not so much about the show for me, but the place.

I am excited about directing "Oliver!," a popular show with beautiful and familiar music, but on a personal level, it is really more about the honor my peers have given me by trusting me with this responsibility. When I was first told I had been selected to direct "Oliver!," it was both thrilling and frightening. I was one of only five people selected to direct a show at Playhouse 111 in the 2009-10 season. I was excited about the show but frightened by the magnitude of the task.

This cast is 38 people strong, 17 of whom are under the age of 16. There are members of six families in the cast, with one family having four actors in the show. There is also an amazing production staff of 21. That number represents just the production heads; there are more than 40 additional names listed in the program.

For some, this is their first show; for others, they have been so involved in theater that they don't want to tell me how many shows they've done! Whatever their theater experience, I have been trying to make everyone feel as if they are part of our "Oliver!" community. To give these people tasks to make "Oliver!" come alive is a labor of love. To watch the creativity that they apply to these tasks and know the many hours they have spent to make this production work is inspiring and humbling.

"Oliver!" is a well-known show and several in our cast have been in productions of it at other theaters. Most people know the story of Oliver Twist. They know he is an orphan who escapes from a workhouse and goes on to live a happy life with his loving grandfather. People know its songs - "Food, Glorious Food," "Consider Yourself," and "As Long As He Needs Me" to name a few. We are working to please the people who have an idea of what they expect to see, plus we are striving to present our own vision of the story. We also need to fulfill Wheaton Drama's mission of bringing high-quality, affordable live theater to the Chicago area.

I believe we are achieving these goals. The best judge of our success will be the reactions of the "Oliver!" audiences. I hope many people will give us a try. They will see a dedicated cast and crew at work on this show.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank every person involved with this production and every member of the Wheaton Drama Membership. Without them, our production of "Oliver!" could never have happened.