Oliver at the Regal- Anyone?

I mostly enjoyed this production. There were some definate stand outs: Cassandra Charlick as Nancy (powerful and moving especially in her song As Long As He Needs Me), Troye Mellet as Oliver was exquisite to listen to and portrayed Oliver with a little cheekiness as well an innocence. The Artful Dodger was also fantastic and sang Consider Yourself with energy. I didn't like the direction by John Milson. I thought it was a little lazy and lacked attention to detail. There were moments where the ensemble seemed to be filling in time while waiting for the next bit of action to take place. Pick-a-Pocket wasn't staged with much imagination, which was a real shame as the boy chorus were strong. I wish the ensemble were picked up better with microphones. The Street Sellers scene was lost over the orchestra compared to the excellent sound of the principals, again a shame as it is a lovely piece. I just thought the magic of this production wasn't there this time. Milson was obviously trying to keep to the tried and true stagings but it ended up looking lazy and unimaginative. But a good choice for a fundraiser, and the audience were definately enjoying themselves!