Fagin's "care in the community with a misguided twist!" - Oliver! in Chichester - video Dailymotion

As Simon Lipkin says, Fagin is “undoubtedly a wrong ‘un” and he knows it.

Transcript

00:00Good afternoon, my name is Phil Hewitt, Group Arts Editor for Sussex Newspapers. Lovely

00:06this afternoon to speak to Fagin from Oliver at Chichester Festival Theatre this summer.

00:12Now Simon, Simon Lipkin, you are Fagin, and he's such a fascinating character, isn't he?

00:17Because I suppose, is it tempting to think, oh, he's just evil, he's just bad, he's an

00:20absolutely wrong one? But there's so much more, isn't there? There is something inside

00:25him that does potentially redeem?

00:28100%. He is, I mean, he is a bad. He's got a line in the show that says, I'm a bad and

00:34a bad and I shall stay. Like, he is a deeply flawed character, which are the most fun characters

00:42to play. But he, Fagin is, he is also as flawed as he is, and as, as, as crooked as he is

00:52and all of those things. He's full of heart. He cares about building a family environment

00:59for these kids who have nowhere to go. He cares about the safety of people. He cares

01:04about people being happy and safe and loved.

01:07His mind is looking after the children, and he actually really is, isn't he?

01:11Yeah, I mean, look, it's still a win-win for him. He still gets to make a lot of money

01:15and run his business and do all of that. But it's, call it a Dickensian care in the community

01:21programme. Like, he's, he's, he is doing his best to earn a bob from wherever awful

01:30background that he came from as an immigrant to London, just trying to fight and make his way

01:36and, and trying to not let anybody else suffer like he suffers. Along the way, there's also,

01:43you know, people die, things get stolen, you know, you can't win them all.

01:47And with a lot of self-awareness, as the song reveals.

01:49A lot of self-awareness.

01:50That's a crucial song, isn't it?

01:52Oh, 100%. When we get to review the situation, it's a huge reflection on his entire life.

01:58And those things that I think we all think is something's really beautiful about the

02:01Ocean I Do This, maybe this is a better idea. And actually, what you realise at the end of the day

02:06is, I am who I am, but maybe, and I can't change that. So in Fagin's case, he realises,

02:13I'm a crook. This is what I want.

02:17So it comes around to self-acceptance.

02:19But it's self-acceptance as well. The choices you make along the way

02:23are what's important. So maybe I'm a crook, but never again will I put anyone in harm's way,

02:29or have anyone do anything that I wouldn't do. So there is a there is,

02:33I think it's a beautiful message that you can realise, don't fight who you are,

02:38but you can fight some of the choices you decide to make along the way.

02:41And you can keep those principles.

02:43Exactly.

02:44Yeah. Oh, it sounds fantastic. Really looking forward to seeing it. Lovely to speak to you.

02:49Thank you for your time.

02:49Nice to speak to you.

02:51Thank you.