Can a girl play the Artful Dodger?

[gavrochegirl]

Posted: 11/2/05 at 7:19pm

Just wondering because I would like to play the character before I outgrow it.

How old is Dodger, anyway?

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 11/2/05 at 7:20pm

I've seen it done. But she pretended to be a boy -- the sex of the character wasn't changed. The girl I saw play it was about 12 at the time, but I'd say she looked a year or two older.

[theatrebabe]

Posted: 11/2/05 at 7:20pm

I was wondering about this the other day. I would also love to play it. I think he's about 12 or so.

[442namffug]

Posted: 11/2/05 at 7:21pm

I've seen a girl play the part in local theatre before. They aren't fooling anybody that it's a girl and not a boy. I think it's hilarious that some people do that.


It's like when 16 year old kids try to draw wrinkles on their face to look "old". As if it makes it more believable...


"Look at me! I'm so old! Look at my wrinkles! Look at my grey hair! I'm old!"

However, the Artful Dodger works either way. So...go for it!
Updated On: 11/2/05 at 07:21 PM

[DiamondGirl]

Posted: 11/2/05 at 8:04pm

I'm a girl and in high school, I've played...

A gambler in "Guys & Dolls"
Sir Edward Ramsay in "The King and I"
Willard Hewitt in "Footloose"
and Snoopy in "You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown"

Then, my senior year, we did "Seussical." The director told me I could pick my part, and he was shocked that I wanted to play Gertrude over the Cat or Jojo! (I was a darn good girl bird, by the way!)

eta: I've also done the "old" (well, older) routine. When I was 17, I played a 40-something Jewish hussy with a cast of 40-somethings playing 40-somethings. Everyone else dressed in and out of the dressing rooms, while it took an hour and a half to get me ready for my one ten-minute scene, so I could blend in. Updated On: 11/2/05 at 08:04 PM

[rose&lark]

Posted: 11/2/05 at 8:20pm

Diamond Girl, that is fabulous! I recently played a boy (man?) in a show, and it was quite interesting to sink my teeth into playing something so different than what I usually do.

Back on topic, yes I think the Artful Dodger could be played by a girl! I've seen it done, and it didn't bother me in the least bit. If you can really get into the character, I think it's not a problem. Go for it if you have the opportunity!

[Mythus]

Posted: 11/2/05 at 9:24pm

Dodger was played by a girl in the production of Oliver! I was in last year. And when I saw a production of it a few years ago, Dodger was played by a girl. So yes, it can be done.

[DramaDork925]

Posted: 11/2/05 at 9:46pm

I don't see why not... I have played everything from a man to a girl my own age to a middle aged woman to an elderly woman...

[thespian geek]

Posted: 11/2/05 at 9:50pm

I nearly got cast as the Artful Dodger my sophomore year in high school. My teacher even asked if I was willing to cut my hair if she cast me, but I didn't end up getting it. Instead, I was Charlie Bates! So I still ended up playing a guy. But it was loads of fun.

[Michael Bennett]

Posted: 11/2/05 at 9:53pm

I've seen the role played by a girl and it was fine.

[roquat]

Posted: 11/2/05 at 11:14pm

I've seen Dodger played twice by a girl. The second time Oliver and several of the orphans/pickpockets were also girls. Unfortunately Oliver was starting to "show" and that--combined with "his" hideous wig--kind of made "him" resemble a young Anne Heche.

[OtherDaryl]

Posted: 11/3/05 at 10:52am

If girls can play Hamlet, Pseudolus and that wierd little guy in the The Year of Living Dangerously, methinks the Artful Dodger wouldn't be a problem.

[best12bars]

Posted: 11/3/05 at 11:13am

I was musical director of a production of "Oliver!" and we used a 14 year old girl as Dodger. She was terrific all around.

Yes, she played it "as a boy." She didn't come out in a dress, with long hair, etc. She wore a traditional Dodger-like costume.

Changing the actual sex of the character in that setting wouldn't work very well. Girls were treated far differently than boys of the era. They behaved differently too. Just look at Nancy and Bet.

Updated On: 11/3/05 at 11:13 AM

[lildogs]

Posted: 11/3/05 at 11:17am

That little weird guy in TYOLD was Oscar winner Linda Hunt...

I think a girl CAN play Dodger, but I think it kinda changes the dynamic of the show, unless she's an exceptional little actress and nobody can tell. It's been my experience that most of the time, they aren't fooling anybody. And Fagin uses boys for a reason. Just my not-so-humble opinion. I think a female Cat in the Hat is different, as it's almost a neutral character.

[best12bars]

Posted: 11/3/05 at 11:44am

As long as an audience is willing to suspend their disbelief, then it works.

I don't think anyone watching our production BELIEVED she really was a boy. But they were willing to "buy it" for the evening. The reason? She kicked ass in the part.

She was no "Linda Hunt" but when she got all dressed up and came out on stage, she looked AND acted the part of a boy VERY convincingly. That's what counts in theatre. "Make me believe."

EDIT: Do you think anyone really bought Julie Andrews in VICTOR/VICTORIA as a "woman pretending to be a man pretending to be a woman?" No. But the movie (first) was great, and Julie was fantastic and scored an Oscar nomination for her work. (Not because people BELIEVED she really was a man, or convinced others that she was. We bought into it, because it was a strong film and performance.)

Updated On: 11/3/05 at 11:44 AM

[lildogs]

Posted: 11/3/05 at 12:07pm

That was kinda my point, best...

"unless she's an exceptional little actress"

And V/V is to my thinking, a cinematic fantasy in the style of Ernst Lubitsch, where reality is greatly suspended whereas Oliver! has a much grittier and realistic feel. V/V lets the audience in on the joke, unlike The Crying Game, for example. V/V is more about (to me) shaking up sexual stereotypes and setting the conventional world on its ear, much like Some Like It Hot.

But I agree with you, it's all about suspending that disbelief and committing to the role.

[Mamie]

Posted: 11/3/05 at 12:11pm

I think it would be a terrific part for a girl. But only if she plays it as a girl - otherwise it'll probably look a little silly to the audience. In fact, it'll only work really well if Fagan's 'gang' is made up of girls and boys.

[CaroleeFan]

Posted: 11/3/05 at 12:14pm

I've seen it played by a girl many times. I've also seen Oliver played by a girl as well. But I've never seen the part played AS a girl. The girls have always played it as a boy. It works, especially for high schools that can't get a guy who can sing that high.

[peach]

Posted: 11/3/05 at 12:16pm

i think it can absolutely be played by a girl. like others have said, it should be played "as a boy" or at least sort of androgynous, but it can certainly work.

case in point - i played lola in damn yankees in one production, and in another production i was one of the baseball players...talk about switching gears!


Updated On: 11/3/05 at 12:16 PM

[best12bars]

Posted: 11/3/05 at 12:57pm

If you're going for any kind of historic realism in "Oliver!" then Dodger can't be played "as a girl." Girls were treated very differently and behaved very differently than boys in that era.

"Miss Dodger" would most likely have been a pick-pocket theif and a prostitute if she was an 11-13 year old girl then. She couldn't cohabitate with any of the boys in Fagan's gang for fear of physical and sexual abuse by all.

Girls (and women as well) were a different class of citizen back then.

Sad, but true.

Updated On: 11/3/05 at 12:57 PM

[OtherDaryl]

Posted: 11/3/05 at 1:12pm

That weird little guy in The Year of Living Dangerously was Billy Kwan. That actress who played him so well was Linda Hunt.

[inlovewithjerryherman]

Posted: 11/3/05 at 1:20pm

never seen a girl dodger, but quite a few female Olivers and JoJos (who were aged at about 16 years old and very short). Both tried to play a boy rather than a girl.

[joeybiltmore1]

Posted: 11/3/05 at 1:56pm

I suppose a girl could play Dodger, but it certainly wouldn't be particularly authentic to the times or story. As for Oliver, I understand the neccessity of casting a little girl to meet the vocal demands when the talent pool doesn't allow for any boy sopranos, but if that's truly the case then the school or group shouldn't be doing "Oliver" to begin with.

Personally, I don't want to see a little girl play "Oliver" any more than I want to see a little boy play "Annie".