Aaron Sidwell is relishing the new approach which lies behind Cameron Mackintosh’s new production of Oliver! at Chichester Festival Theatre this summer (until Saturday, September 7).
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00:00Good afternoon, my name is Phil Hewitt, Group Arts Editor at Six Newspapers. Fantastic this
00:06afternoon to speak to Bill Sykes, Aaron Sidwell, who is in the production at Chichester Festival
00:12Theatre of Oliver. Now, you've opened to, oh goodness, fantastic word of mouth, really
00:17looking forward to seeing it. You must be really buoyed by the response that you've
00:21had so far.
00:22Yeah, it's been fantastic. It's been really, really lovely. Audiences seem very connected,
00:29with the show and the journey that we go on. And that kind of presents itself at the
00:34end of the show, just to this, you know, wonderful full house kind of standing ovation night
00:40after night. It's been, it's been really lovely.
00:43Absolutely. And the complexity of the characters is going to be so fascinating, isn't it? Because
00:47I think you can think of Fagin and Sykes and you are Sykes as being very black and white.
00:52But it sounds like your production is going to show us that there's something in the middle,
00:55in the shades of grey, because your Sykes is rather more complex than we would imagine, isn't it?
01:02Yeah, definitely. I think it was kind of our MO coming into the job to find this nuance
01:09to them. And I think that the journey that we take people on in this production of Oliver
01:18is unique to the show. I also think that, you know, Dickens was an incredible storyteller
01:30and created these worlds, really, this idea of London at that time. And he really kind
01:37of gave you the detail of the, you know, the separation between, you know, this class and
01:45I think what we have found is more understanding of how somebody within that class of, you know,
01:53within London could be that kind of person and feel okay about it and just feel like, well...
01:59Well, you were so fascinating me with Bill. The question is, if you are the most menacing
02:03and the most scary, that enhances your chances of survival, doesn't it?
02:06Absolutely. Yeah. I think it all comes down to survival amongst the characters of Bill and Nancy
02:13and Fagan. And it's just, yeah, it's all about survival.
02:16And as Bill, inevitably, obviously, you are called upon to do this horrific thing,
02:21aren't you? Which must be tough for you psychologically.
02:26Yeah, yeah, it can be. It's kind of putting your mind and your body into a place that is,
02:35it's not a nice one to go to eight times a week. But it's very necessary for the work
02:43and we, you know, have worked very closely with an intimacy director on this show just to
02:51give us processes of check-in and check-out with, you know, one another, myself and Sinead,
02:57who plays Nancy, and finding a way of, you know, kind of releasing yourself of that
03:04prior to going home is crucial.
03:08Absolutely. And crucially, you have a fantastic relationship with her.
03:12Yeah, no, it's been a wonderful collaboration. Genuinely one of the best of my career. And
03:23Sinead is just such a wonderful actress. I think audiences will come and be, you know,
03:29so wowed by her voice. But she is this stunning actress that brings a rendition of
03:38As Long As He Needs Me that I just have never seen, really. It's just beautiful.
03:45Her performance from start to finish is a thing of wonder, really.
03:51Well, it sounds like it's going to be an amazing evening, thought-provoking and brilliant too.
03:55Really great to speak to you, Aaron. Thank you so much for your time.