Chapter 13
28
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Circle & Star Presents
Hampstead
A night of
Songs
Storytelling
Sketches
Three nights only · December dates now on sale
Dates & Tickets
Circle & Star, Hampstead
Back by popular demand · December 2026
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What They're Saying
“Steve Furst's FAGIN is an extraordinary and unique piece of quality theatre. It's said the theatre should educate and entertain. Fagin does both in spades. Glorious.”
Gary Wilmot
Testimony
“You can take it from me and the family that Lionel would have really loved Steve’s interpretation of Bart’s Fagin and his reading of the songs.”
Sam Berglitter — Lionel Bart’s nephewTestimony
“FAGIN is such a brilliant, thoughtful show — full of insights, nuance and humour. The depth of research and scholarship grounded the whole performance, and yet all the knowledge was carried with a deft light touch.”
Jacqueline NichollsTestimony
“The best thing I have seen on stage — unforgettable and inspiring storytelling.”
Susie PearlTestimony
“Truly unexpected in format. Filled with humour, insight and song. Don’t miss it!”
@technokittenTestimony
“A masterclass in characterisation and metamorphosis. It was a brilliant demonstration of how an actor can analyse, construct and fully inhabit a multi-dimensional character.”
Meredith ReyTestimony
“Beautiful writing and a fantastic performance.”
Tomi PaukTestimony
“Was an amazing show this evening.”
@ursaminormonsterTestimony
“Furst proves why he remains such a respected performer. Not quite a traditional musical, not quite a play, but definitely an engaging theatrical experience led by a consummate entertainer.”
Roland SaundersTestimony
“We had the great pleasure of seeing Fagin last night. Tour de force seems an understatement! What a magnificent performance and what a beautifully constructed show.”
Alastair FalkTestimony
“It was a joy to witness his forensic examination of Fagin last night… Steve fleshes out the archetype until Fagin becomes fully human, allowing him to interrogate the character’s treatment across literature, theatre and film with wit, intelligence and remarkable generosity.”
David McAlmontTestimony
“What a treat to see the excellent Steve Furst in Fagin tonight. Really fabulous evening, brilliantly executed.”
Jenny AugenThe Inheritance
Dracula·
Hamlet·
Frankenstein·
Fagin
Fagin joins the pantheon — and has done so for nearly two centuries.
HeroorVillain
Lionel Bart's Fagin is a mother hen. Tough love, but love. Food on the table, songs round the fire, kids who'd rather be in his hideout than the workhouse.
"I feeds the boys, I plays with them, I keeps em safe."
At the end, Bart sends him off into the night — alive, ambiguous, ours to decide. A loveable rogue. King of his domain. A pied piper.
Dickens called him the Jew two hundred and sixty-nine times. He drew Fagin by the fire, holding a toasting fork — devil's pitchfork, in case you missed it.
Cruikshank's etchings did the rest: hooked nose, hunched shoulders, the medieval bogeyman fully formed. The Jew of Malta. Shylock. Barabbas. Fagin grew from a tradition that ran for centuries.
"This is the tradition into which I, Fagin, was born."
You decide
Those Who Have Played Him
Lon Chaney·
Irving Pichel·
Alec Guinness·
Ron Moody·
Clive Revill·
Barry Humphries·
Ben Kingsley·
Rowan Atkinson·
Russ Abbot·
Christopher Eccleston·
Steve Furst
A who's who of character actors. The cap and the fingerless gloves keep finding new hands.
The Numbers
269
mentions of "the Jew" across the novel
Chapter 19
55
Chapter 26
48
From the Stage
Circle & Star Theatre, Hampstead · the sold-out run
He lives to fight another day. Stripped of his armour. Alone. As he disappears into the night we ask ourselves — what next?
Sold out in Hampstead. Taken out to Hastings. Back for three nights this December.
See the December dates →
Step in. Come up. Be part of the story.
The Room
Circle & Star Theatre, Hampstead
28 Heath Street, London NW3 6TE · Hampstead Station, Northern Line
