UPSTAGE Centre Youth Theatre in York are to stage Oliver!…with a twist.

"Most people have their own memory of Lionel Bart’s musical interpretation of the Charles Dickens classic, Oliver Twist," says musical director Joshua Goodman. "Whether this is listening to Food Glorious Food being sung in a school hall or being thrown into a flat cap to be part of Fagin’s gang, it is well known, much loved, but possibly lacking in colour – or so think Upstage Centre Youth Theatre."

Bart's Oliver! will be staged at 41 Monkgate next month with "re-imagined songs, a blend of different dance styles, a Brechtian aesthetic and a focus on the darker side of the original novel.

"Our annual winter musical has built a reputation for being imaginative, ambitious, energetic and full of theatrical ingenuity. This is will be no different for Oliver!," says Joshua. "Our production aims to fuel a new love for Dickens's timeless tale. We've used the music to explore the hopes, dreams and desires of each character and we've devised a fresh approach to performing the songs.

"As well as telling the story in a different and more dramatic way, this will hopefully give a new listening experience to audiences who may have heard the numbers more times than they can count!”

Director Matt Harper says: “The success of our winter musical is always due to the vibrancy brought to the production by our young cast. It was important that we gave space and flexibility to our cast to be creative and to put their own stamp on this version of Oliver!. I feel we've definitely done that.”

Oliver! will run from December 9 to 12 at 7.30pm nightly plus a 2.30pm Saturday matinee. Tickets cost £10 or £12 at upstagecentre.org.uk