New Book of Mormon Cast

The new cast for The Book of Mormon opened at the Prince of Wales Theatre last night.   They are  K J Hippensteel as Elder Price, Steven Webb/Moroni/Elder McKinley, Cody Jamison Strand/Elder Cunningham, Dean Maynard/ Price's Dad/Joseph Smith/Mission President, Stephen Rolley/Cunningham's Dad, - Ngozi Ugoh/Mrs Brown, Sackie Osokonor & Rodney Vubya/Guards, Richard Lloyd-King/Mafala Hatimbi, Alexandra Ncube/ Nabalungi, Michael Moulton/ General and Nicholas McLean as the doctor.

With ensemble members Chanice Alexander-Burnett, Philip Catchpole, Nicholas Collier, Brendan Cull, Joshua Da Costa, Nicole Dennis, Nicholas McLean, Sackie Osokonor, Stephen Rolley, Scott Sutcliffe, Ngozi Ugoh, Anna van Ruiten, Rodney Vubya, Tommy Wade-Smith, Harry Wright and swings Kelly Agbowu, Christopher Copeland, Joseph Davenport, Jonathan Dudley, Myles Hart, Alex Lodge, Joshua Lovell (Asst. Dance Captain) , Rhianne-Louise McCaulsky, and David McMullan (Danca Captain).

Casting for My Land's Shore

Full casting and creatives have been announced for All Star Productions’ world premiere of the historical Welsh musical My Land’s Shore which ased on the true story of the tragic hero of the Merthyr Rising of 1831, when iron workers and coal miners were involved in bloody clashes with soldiers drafted in to protect industrialists. It will plY London’s Ye Olde Rose and Crown Theatre from 7th-26th February (press night  10th February).

Aidan Banyard will lead the cast as the man described as the first Welsh martyr Richard Lewis. He will be joined by Rebecca Gilliland, Aled Powys Williams, Emma Hickey, Michael Rees, Kira Morsley, Caitlin Jane Williams, Aaron Bannister Davies, Samuel Bailey, Taite-Elliot Drew, Raymond Walsh, Lucy Elson, Richard Dawes, Hollie Evans, Andrew Truluck, Caitlin McKee, Ifan Gwilym-Jones and Hywel Dowsell.

 My Land’s Shore will be directed by Brendan Matthew with musical direction by Aaron Clingham With a book and lyrics by Robert Gould and music and lyrics by Christopher J Orton,

The creative team includes choreographer Charlotte Tooth, set designer Joana Dias, costume designer Celestine Healy, lighting designer Sky Bembury, production manager Randy Smartnick, production assistant Angie Lawrence, producer Andrew Yon and casting director Benjamin Newsome.

Tickets for My Land's Shore

Casting for Sondheim's The Frogs

The Frogs is  loosely based on a comedy written in 405 BC by Aristophanes, freely adapted for today by Burt Shevelove and Nathan Lane, with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim. It is being produced by House on the Hill Productions in association with Jermyn Street Theatre and directed by Grace Wessels, at Jermyn Street Theatre from Tuesday 14th March - Saturday 8th  April. Press nights are Thursday 16th & Friday 17th  March at 7.30pm

Michael Matus & George Rae are starring in the show  playing  Dionysos and Xanthias in the UK premiere of the latest Broadway version of the rarely performed musical. The will be joined by : Bernadette Bangura (Ragtime, Charing Cross Theatre), Martin Dickinson (Promises Promises, Southwark Playhouse), Chris McGuigan (Through the Mill, London Theatre Workshop), Li-Tong Hsu (Here Lies Love, National Theatre), Nigel Pilkington (The Showstoppers), Emma Ralston (Little Red Riding Hood in Into the Woods), Jonathan Wadey (previously at Jermyn Street Theatre in House on the Hill’s UK premiere of Natural Affection).

Michael Matus has just played Mrs Bumbrake in the UK premiere of Peter and the Starcatcher. He has featured in seven shows for the Royal Shakespeare Company. His many West End and major roles include Monsieur Firmin in The Phantom of the Opera, Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown, Lend Me a Tenor, Yes Prime Minister, Imagine This, Martin Guerre and The Sound of Music at Regent’s Park.

George Rae was nominated for three Best Actor awards as Otto Kringelei in Grand Hotel at Southwark Theatre (Best Male Performance in the Off West End Theatre Awards, Best Featured Actor in a New Production of a Musical, Broadway World UK West End Awards and Best Actor in The West End Wilma Awards). Last month, he was named by Mark Shenton as one of The Best Leading Men in UK Musical Theatre in The Stage. His other roles include Patsy in Spamalot (Frankfurt), Benjamin in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Schlomo in Fame, Rick in A Slice of Saturday Night, Mr Two in Adding Machine, Timon in The Lion King and TJ in Sister Act.

The Frogs was originally performed in 1974 in Yale University’s gymnasium’s swimming pool, featuring members of the Yale swimming team. Meryl Streep and Sigourney Weaver were among its ensemble.This latest version, which opened on Broadway in 2004, includes seven additional Stephen Sondheim songs.

From the same writers behind A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum, The Frogs, playfully explores the great challenges of human existence: confronting our fears, understanding life and death, and challenging the distractions that can prevent us from achieving our goals. This boisterously hilarious yet poignant musical follows Dionysos, Greek god of wine and drama, and his slave Xanthias on a journey to Hades to collect renowned critic and playwright George Bernard Shaw so that he may enlighten the easily misled and coerced masses of Earth. Along this journey, Dionysos and Xanthias meet Herakles, Charon, Pluto, and of course, the chorus of frogs. Then, Shakespeare shows up and starts declaiming his greatest hits; and before long he engages in a battle of words with Mr. Shaw. Who will win the honor of becoming reincarnated: The Bard or Bernard? The Frogs stays true to its heritage, mixing Aristophanic pratfall satire with a Sondheim score that swings from witty to pretty to rambunctious, but it also mirrors the Greek original for the serious issue of the role of the arts in a world beset by war and folly.

Director Grace Wessels Musical Director: Tim Sutton Designer: Gregor Donnelly Lighting Designer: Tim Mascall Movement: Tim McArthur

Tickets for the Frogs

More casting announced for The Wind in the Willows at the Palladium this summer

The cast has just been revealed for The Wind in the Willows which will open at the London Palladium on 29th June (previews from 17th June). It will run for a limited season and is currently booking until 9th September. Based on Kenneth Grahame's much-loved classic the book of the new musical is by Downton Abbey creator Julian Fellowes with music and lyrics by  Olivier Award-winning songwriting team George Stiles and Anthony Drewe

As already announced, comedian, actor and presenter Rufus Hound will continue to star as Toad in the London production Neil McDermott as Chief Weasel. They will be joined by Jenna Boyd, Abigail Brodie, Jorell Coiffic-Kamall, Nicole Deon, James Gant, Evan James, Michael Larcombe,
Bethany Linsdell, Ryan Pidgen, Adam Vaughan and Georgie Westall, with further casting to be announced shortly.

Details of 2017 Olivier Awards

The Olivier Awards with Mastercard,  have just  announced plans for 2017, as they make their debut at the Royal Albert Hall on Sunday 9 April.

In the UK, ITV and Magic Radio will be the official broadcast partners. Internationally, the show will be broadcast on-line. Full broadcast details and timings will be announced nearer the date of the awards.

For the first time ever, there will be a new broadcast show of the red carpet which will be carried live across the world. With the support of Facebook, people will be able to follow all the action from the red carpet at the Royal Albert Hall with interviews and exclusive content. Red carpet coverage will begin at 16:30 (GMT).

Nominations for the Olivier Awards 2017 with Mastercard will be broadcast widely via a variety of online channels and partners on Monday 6 March at 12:00 (GMT).

Katherine Kingsley to star in New Dusty Springfield Musical directed by Maria Friedman

Updated 17th February: News has just broken that Katherine Kingsley will portray the acclaimed singer. Kingsley stressed that her portrayal will not be an impersonation saying : ‘My mum loved her, so from a very young age I heard Dusty’s songs, Harvey’s script is really raw and really authentic. It’s a play with songs, rather than a jukebox musical, and starts in the Sixties, after Springfield had gone solo.

It follows her to America, where she recorded Dusty In Memphis: an album she often derided but which has since been hailed as one of the seminal records of the era. I hope to capture an essence of who Dusty was. There will be a few iconic Dusty moments.
 

Harvey’s text and Maria Friedman’s direction will show the singer’s flaws. She did go to a dark place. But it’s not all doom and gloom — she had some laughs, too. Dusty paved the way for people like Amy Winehouse and Adele. She was legendary. It’s a no‑brainer for me to do it.The show’s song list is still being decided, but it’s likely to include  around a dozen numbers, including You Don’t Have To Say You Love Me and Son Of A Preacher Man.

‘You can’t have them all Kingsley commented,  otherwise it will sound like a catalogue show .Friedman and producer Eleanor Lloyd will do a workshop of Dusty in April, with the plan for the show to open in the West End in 2018

Kingsley is currently appearing in She Loves Me the Menier Chocolate Factory.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The musical about the late, great Dusty Springfield is back on the cards again. Sandi Toksvig had been hired by producer David Ian to write the book, but both are no longer involved.

New producer Eleanor Lloyd has now commissioned Jonathan Harvey to write Dusty, based on interviews with the star’s friend and manager Vicki Wickham, and her friends Tris Penna and Pat Rhodes.

Director Maria Friedman will hold a workshop in April, with the show due to open some time in 2018.

Cast for on The Life starring Sharon D Clarke and Cornell S John

The powerhouse and Olivier award-winning actress Sharon D Clarke, is currently  rehearsing the musical The Life which is about  New York street-walkers and pimps written by Cy Coleman and Ira Gasman. She is playing  Sonja who has the big show-stopping number The Oldest Profession

The Life is being directed by Michael Blakemore, who directed the original production on Broadway two decades ago. It will run at the Southwark Playhouse with previews from  29th March to 29th April 20 with previews from 25th  March. as Memphis at Southwark Playhouse from  

The company includes Cornelj S John (Porgy and Bess) as Memphis, John Addison (Jojo), David Albury (Fleetwood), Jalisa Andrews (Chichi), Matthew Caputo (Oddjob), Lawrence Carmichael (Snickers), Omari Douglas (Slick), Aisha Jawando (Carmen), Thomas-Lee Kidd (Bobby), Charlotte Reavey (April), Jo Servi (Lacy), Lucinda Shaw (Tracy), Johnathan Tweedie (Theodore), T’Shan Williams (Queen) and Joanna Woodward (Mary).

Buy Tickets for The Life 

Elton John writing new musical based on The Devil Wears Prada

News has just broken that Sir Elton John  has teamed up with Hollywood writer Paul Rudnick for a new musical of The Devil Wears Prada. The  new production will be based on the 2003 book by  Lauren Weisberger and the 2006 film which starred Meryl Streep as fierce magazine editor Miranda Priestly and Anne Hathaway as her long suffering assistant Andrea Sachs 

Sir Elon said he can't wait to "sink his musical teeth" into the project and that  Re-imagining The Devil Wears Prada for the musical theatre is super exciting.I'm a huge fan of both the book and the feature film, and a huge aficionado of the fashion world.

Elton has extensive experience in  musical theatre having written Toy Award  winning The Lion King in 1997 and Billy Elliot: The Musical in 2008.

Casting details and an idea of the date of  the musical's Broadway opening are yet to be confirmed.

First casting news for Hamilton the Musical

Hamilton the Musical  has  rehearsals  scheduled to begin in September 2017 with previews from November 21st, and an official opening on December 7th.An initial 150,000 tickets went on presale last week and sold within hours. Another 150,000 will be made available from noon on Monday. They will be sold in a paperless system in a bid to thwart touts.

The first casting news for this production has just broken with Rachelle Ann Go/Eliza Hamilton, Rachel John/Angelica Schuyler Eliza's  sister, Christine Allanda/ Eliza’s sister, Peggy, and Maria Reynolds, Hamilton’s mistressTarinn Callender/soldier Hercules Mulligan and politician James Madison., Giles Terera/Aaron Burr who fought a duel with Hamilton, Obioma Ugoala/George Washington, Cleve September/soldier statesman John Laurens and Hamilton’s son, Philip, Christine Allado/Peggy Schuyler/Maria Reynolds and Jason Pennycooke as Marquis de Lafayette/Thomas Jefferson one of Hamilton's bitter rivals. The title role which Miranda wrote for himself and that of and King George III have yet to be cast. Miranda is  in London filming Mary Poppins Returns, won’t be available until some time in 2018 should he want to appear.

Rachelle Ann Go  made her musical debut in 2011 portraying Ariel in Disney's The Little Mermaid, for which she was awarded a Best Actress award from Broadway World Philippine Awards. She was nominated a second time in 2013 for her portrayal of Jane Porter in Tarzan. Her  West End career includes the 2014 hit revival of Miss Saigon, portraying Gigi Van Tranh and the 30th anniversary staging of "Les Miserables" in the role of the ill-fated Fantine. She is scheduled to appear in the new Broadway production of the show.

Rachel John has been in  international tours of The Lion King, Rent, and We Will Rock You. She has appeared in  West End in Sister Act the Musical and and as "Meat" in We Will Rock You.

Christine Allado's has  starred in productions such as "The Phantom of the Opera: Revue" as Christine Daea, "Hairspray" as Amber Von Tussle and "Joseph the Dreamer" in the Philippines. Her international work includes appearances in Hong Kong's "High School Musical" and "The Golden Mickeys" She has been seen on the West End in a featured role and as an understudy in Sir Tim Rice's new musical "From Here to Eternity"

Giles Terera was nominated for Best Supporting Actor in a Musical for his appearance in Jailhouse Rock and for Best Takeover in a Role in a theatrical production of The Rat Pack as Sammy Davis, Jr. and Best Ensemble Performance in Avenue Q. In 2007 he became the first Black actor to play Christy in Dublins Abbey Theatre production of Playboy of the Western World. In 2011 Terera played Caliban in Trevor Nunn's production of The Tempest opposite Ralph Fiennes at Haymarket Theatre. In addition to his numerous stage appearances Terera has made occasional appearances in film and television.

Obioma Ugoala appeared as as Smokey Robinson in the West End production of Berry Gordy's Motown. Ugoala has also been seen in Royal Shakespeare Company's "King and Country" which ran at the Brooklyn Academy Of Music. Past theatre credits for Cleve September include the West End production of another Lin-Manuel Miranda musical, "In the Heights". 

Tarinn Callender is new  to the West End, and is a graduate of Arts Educational Schools London.

Jason Pennycooke is from the West End production of Motown where he played   Bobby Dupree. Other stage credits include  the Menier Chocolate Factory production of, La Cage Aux Folles, Trevor Nunn's  production  Kiss Me, Kate at Chichester Festival Theatre, Stomp, The Big Life, and Rent.

Full cast announced for tour of Grease the Musical

The full cast has just been announced for the tour of Grease the Musical, 

As previously announced Tom Parker from the boy band The Wanted is to play Danny Zuko with Darren Day as Teen Angel as some venues.  Danielle Hope is playing Sandy and Louisa Lytton is Rizzo. 

Completing the cast are Tom Senior as Kenickie, Michael Cortez as Sonny, Oliver Jacobson as Roger, Ryan Heenan as Doody, Callum Evans as Eugene, Lauren Atkins as Marty, Rosanna Harris as Jan, Rhiannon Chesterman as Frenchy, Gabriella Williams as Patty and Ailsa Davidson as Lynch. The ensemble includes Charlotte Coggin, Anthony Hughes, Alessia McDermott, Natasha Mould, Anna Murray, George Olney, Rory Phelan and Grant Thresh.

Cynthia Erivo announces intimate London Concert

The fabulous Cynthia Erivo has been wowing audiences in The Color Purple on Broadway for the last eighteen months receiving  a Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical for her performance as Celie. She is about to head for Hollywood to start filming new Lynda La Plante movie Widows, but has just announced that she is returning to London later this month for a one off concert accompanied by solo piano titled Hey, It's Been Some Time  on 29th January in candlelit  Shoreditch Town Hall.  Tickets go on sale at 09:00 today and booking will  end on January 29th at 9:30 pm. Her last concert in September 2015 sold out very quickly so move fast if you want to go!

 

Casting announced for The Whisper House new musical by composer of Spring Awakening and American Psycho

Casting has just been announced. It includes:
Simon Bailey (Tommy DeVito in Jersey Boys, Enjolras in Les Miserables (21st Anniversary Cast), Parade (Southwark Playhouse) and Passion (Donmar).  Simon is a founder member of ‘Theatreland’s first supergroup’ Teatro(: Nicholas Goh (Breakfast At Tiffany’s (Theatre Royal Haymarket), The King And I (Leicester Curve).  Nicholas also played Dr Henry Chen in Eastenders): Simon Lipkin (Honeymoon in Vegas (Concert at the Palladium), Nathan Detroit in Guys and Dolls (Phoenix), the Lorax in The Lorax (Old Vic) and Assassins (Menier Chocolate Factory) : Niamh Perry (Fleck in the original cast of Love Never Dies (Adelphi), Sophie in Mamma Mia (International Tour) and Taboo (Brixton). On TV she is best known as a finalist in I’d Do Anything (BBC): Dianne Pilkington (Glinda in Wicked (Apollo Victoria), Master Class (Vaudeville), Donna Sheridan in Mamma Mia (Novello), She Loves Me (Chichester) and Belle in Beauty and the Beast (UK Tour).

The Whisper House is new musical ghost story with music and lyrics by Duncan Sheik (Spring Awakening, American Psycho), book and lyrics by Obie award-winning Kyle Jarrow (A Very Merry Unauthorized Children’s Scientology Pageant) and conceived with Keith Powell. It is playing  for a strictly limited season at The Other Palace from 6th April-27th May 2017.

Whisper House combines a thrillingly original rock score with an unforgettable tale about learning to embrace the unknown.  Featuring spellbinding illusions and an on-stage ghostly band! 

Conceived with Keith Powell, Produced by Flora Q Johnstone, Whisper House combines a thrillingly original rock score with an unforgettable tale about learning to embrace the unknown. 

An eerie lighthouse stands on the remote East Coast of America at the height of World War II.  When Christopher’s father’s plane is shot down, he is sent to live there with an Aunt he has never met and her mysterious Japanese housekeeper.  Soon, he begins to hear strange music seeping through the walls.  Is his imagination getting the better of him, or are the ghosts warning of real danger?  Soon the whispers become something louder…

Tickets for The Whisper House

Lynn Paul, Dean Chisnall and Simon Lipkin head West End cast in Smile Charity Gala

Lyn Paul (The New Seekers, Blood Brothers) is headlining the Smile Concert which features a  leading West End performers from West End shows including Mamma Mia, Wicked, Shrek, Blood Brothers, We Will Rock You and  Matilda accompanied by a  42 piece orchestra! at the Orchard Theatre in Dartford on Sunday 12th Feb at 7:30pm

The concert is in aid of Nathan Box - a 7 year old boy who suffers from a rare brain tumour called Hypothalamic Harmartoma which causes him to have 25+ seizures daily and is effecting his development and communication. His condition is curable but unfortunately the NHS cannot fund it, the only option to cure him is in Texas.The treatment alone costs £100,000, which the family is glad to say they have managed to raise. However they still need to raise another £50,000 to cover the cost of travel, accommodation, travel insurance, added tests, MRI scans and any additional treatment Nathan may need when in Texas. Your ticket is worth twice as much thanks to a very generous anonymous donor, who has agreed to fundmatch money raised, up to £20,000!

If you want to help but can't make it you can always sponsor a seat the proceeds of which are being donated to Ellenor Hospice to allow a child in their care a night out to the theatre for free!

CAST SO FAR:

LYN PAUL- New Seekers, Blood Brothers, Taboo, Cabaret

SIMON LIPKIN- West End Productions of Avenue Q, Rock of Ages , Guys and Dolls along side Rebel Wilson, Spamalot, Assassins, Disaster Musical as well as many more!

DEAN CHISNALL- Shrek in Shrek- The Musical ( Theatre Royal Drury Lane West End & UK and Ireland Tour), Love Never Dies (Adelphi), La Cage aux Folles (Playhouse), Never Forget (Savoy and tour), Evita (Adelphi), The Women in White (Palace)

JOE SLEIGHT- Wicked (WestEnd) 'Cover Boq', Midsummer Nights Dream (Middle Temple Hall London) 'Puck', Blood Brothers (UK Tour) 'Perkins' & 'Peter Pan in Peter Pan at the Wycombe Swan'

JENNA LEE JAMES- Scaramouche, Meatloaf and KillerQueen in 'We Will Rock You', of whom she is the ONLY person in world to have played all 3 female leads. Narrator in 'Joseph', Mary in 'Tonight's The Night' & Alternate Donna in 'Mamma Mia'

PAUL WILKINS- Marius in Les Miserables (West End, Asia, Manila, Singapore & Dubai)

MICHELLE PENTECOST- Grace Farrell – Annie, Vava - Paraside Moscow, Elphaba – Wicked, & Eva Peron - Evita

NANCY HILL- Grease (West End), Tracy in Hairspray, Sweeney Todd (ENO) with Emma Thompson

LAURA HARRISON- Lucille Frank in the Hope Mill Theatres production of ‘Parade', Donna Marie/Miss Jones Cover Mrs Lyons in 'Blood Brothers', Tiger Lily in 'Peter Pan', Audrey in 'Little Shop of Horrors’

JODIE BETH MEYER- Understudy for Jodie Prenger in Tell Me on a Sunday, Petra in A Little Night Music, High School Musical (UK Tour), Aspects of Love (UK Tour), Pirates of Penzance, Svetlana in Chess and Eponine in Les Miserables (Channel Island tours)

Tickets for SMILE

Tracie Bennett to star in new musical Concert The Sorcerer's Apprentice

The Sorcerer's Apprentice which is inspired by the poem by Goethe is now a  new musical by Ben Frost and Richard Hough. It will be performed in two concerts  directed by Ryan McBryde with musical direction by Seann Alderking. The cast includes Tracie Bennett, Blair Gibson, Neil McDermott, Naomi Petersen, Nigel Richards and Jos Slovick with narration by Jan Ravens.

The writers have put their own spin on the story for this new musical, which reimagines the apprentice as the rebellious daughter of a master magician. Their new version explores this relationship between a father and daughter, and whether magic can help them repair it.

The first concert is on Tuesday 7th  February at 7:00 pm  being the opening event for the newly renovated Broadway Theatre in Letchworth, and the second is  on Wednesday 8th  February at 7.30pm at  the Ambassadors Theatre in London's West End.

Natalie Casey joins cast of Stepping Out at Vaudeville

Natalie Casey is to  join the cast of Stepping Out when it comes to the Vaudeville Theatre on 14th March. She is best known for her roles as Carol Groves in Hollyoaks and Donna in Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps. Her stage credits include Fame, Legally Blonde and Abigail's Party.

Richard Harris' play is directed by Maria Friedman and designed by Robert Jones with choreography by Tim Jackson.The cast also includes Amanda Holden, Tracy-Ann Oberman, Tamzin Outhwaite and Nicola Stephenson.

Tickets for Stepping Out

Gary Barlow's The Girls offering free Dress Rehearsal tickets to NHS nurses.

NHS nurses can get two free tickets  to watch the dress rehearsal of new musical The Girls, by Gary Barlow and Tim Firth, at 2:30 pm on Saturday, January 28th. Producer David Pugh said he wanted to do something for nurses, who he feels  are underappreciated

They have to show their NHS ID card to pick up tickets in person at the Phoenix Theatre box office when it opens at 10:00 am prior to the musical’s first preview that night.

Pinocchio to play National over Christmas

Baz has revealed in today's Mail that the National Theatre are producing  the world premiere of Pinocchio this Christmas in the Lyttelton. It will  feature songs from the classic Disney 1940's animated film including  I’ve Got No Strings, Give A Little Whistle, When You Wish Upon A Star and Hi Diddle Dee Dee; plus tunes from the Disney back catalogue (particularly the studio’s Italian Alpine repertoire). Pinocchio will be played by an actor with some parts performed by puppets.

It is  a huge coup for the NT to be directed by John Tiffany, whose stage hits include Harry Potter And The Cursed Child and although based partly on the 1940 Disney picture and  it will be adapted in a brand new way by writer Dennis Kelly, who wrote the book for Matilda the Musical. (Kelly has replaced Enda Walsh who withdrew because of his heavy workload.)

Rufus Norris, director of the National said  that the National was not receiving ‘one cent’ from Disney who have granted the rights to songs and story.

Tiffany is working with frequent collaborators Bob Crowley, who’s doing sets, costumes and co-designing puppets. Steven Hoggatt will do the choreography. Toby Olie, the other puppet co-designer, will direct the puppet sequences.It will be essentially set in a puppetry workshop staying true to the original  Collodi story. Martin Lowe is overseeing the music. He and Tiffany were allowed unfettered access to songs by Thomas Schumacher — president of Disney Theatricals.

Tickets are expected to go on sale in the summer. 

Jodie Prenger to star in tour of Fat Friends musical

Joshua Andrews and Adam Spiegel have just announced the premiere of the  British musical Fat Friends which is based on the TV drama and  has been adapted for the stage by writer Kay Mellor  with original music by Nicholas Lloyd Webber. Mellor will also direct the show and  said: The musical is funny and sad with a big story and some meaty and memorable songs. I’m blessed to have the opportunity to work with Nick Lloyd Webber, who absolutely gets my characters and world.

It will open at Leeds Grand Theatre (tickets on general sale  from 25th January) from  7th  November to 2nd December 2017 followed by an extensive UK tour in 2018: full dates and venues to be announced shortly.

Designed by Bretta Gerecke with musical supervision, orchestrations and arrangements from Simon Lee. Jodie Prenger will lead a star company in the role of Kelly Stevenson with further casting to be announced.

This brand new stage show reunites dieting  friends in an original musical full of hopes, humour and heart. Watch the  group of loveable characters  put through their Zumba paces at their local branch of Super Slimmer's by the lovelorn Lauren whilst Kelly fantasises about fitting into the wedding dress of her dreams.

The TV drama was nominated for multiple awards including the BAFTA for Best Drama Series and followed the lives of a group of overweight friends as they struggle with the absurdities of modern dieting. Running from 2000 for five years on ITV, the show starred Alison Steadman, Sheridan Smith and Lisa Riley and launched the careers of James Corden and Ruth Jones.

Tour of Sunset Boulevard

With Glenn Close and  some of her London co-stars (Michael Xavier, Siobhan Dillon and Fred Johanson) currently rehearsing the ENO production of Sunset Boulevard on Broadway  to  open at the Palace Theatre on February 9, 2017 playing a limited run for 16 weeks 

It has now been announced that Ria Jones will star in a new production of Sunset Boulevard as part of Leicester Curve's new season followed by a UK tour. Ria Jones understudied and stepped in for Glenn Close to great critical acclaim when she was taken ill during the show's run at the London Coliseum.

Curve artistic director Nikolai Foster will direct the show which runs September 16-30, 2017 at the Curve .

Foster told the the Leicester Mercury: "Sunset Boulevard is an astonishingly intelligent, complex score, probably Lloyd Webber's most sophisticated piece, but he's always wanted a Hollywood legend to play the role. Ria is a phenomenal leading lady in her own right, but when she took over from Glenn Close at the Coliseum he realised we had the right ingredients to make something really special. Norma is a monstrous, vulnerable, tragic character and the show is truly theatrical - big, ballsy, epic and a visceral experience. I can't wait."
works.

Further casting news and tour dates to follow.

Cast for next tour of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat

As previously announced  X Factor favourite JOE McELDERRY will once again wear the world’s most famous coat in the UK’s longest running musical, as the 2017 national tour of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat kicks off at GLive, Guildford on 24th January.

Britain's Got Talent  Lucy Kay will return as the Narrator with  Benjamin James-Ellis who was a semi-finalist on the hit TV show Any Dream Will Do as Pharoah. Since then Ben has starred in a European tour of Dirty Dancing, and as Link Larkin in the West End run of Hairspray for two years. The cast is completed by Henry Metcalfe/Jacob/Potiphar, Sallie-Beth Lawless/Mrs Potiphar/Handmaiden, Matt Jolly/Brother (Frenchman), Darren Charles/Brother (Calypso) , Lloyd Green/Brother (u/s Pharaoh), Matthew McCabe/Brother (One More Angel) , George Knapper/Brother (Benjamin), Michael Lapham/Brother (u/s Benjamin), Michael Colbourne/Brother (u/s Joseph) , Lewis Asquith/Brother (Butler) , Richard J Hunt/Brother (Baker) and Amana Jones/Handmaiden (u/s Narrator) with Will Breckin, Kevin Grogan and Gemma Pipe.

Sheridan Smith to star in Clean Break ITV Drama Series

Sheridan Smith who is shortly reprising her role as Fanny Brice for a National UK tour of the hit musical FUNNY GIRL, is to star as a strong and complicated female lead character in CLEAN BREAK new six-part ITV drama series titled  which will follow "an ordinary working class woman who is caught between two worlds - the everyday life of a devoted and loving mother and the darker, dangerous world of insider trading."

Smith will portray office cleaner Sam, described as one of an invisible army of CLEANERS on a zero-hours contract who clean in the early hours.   With her husband threatening to take custody of their two daughters, 14-years-old Alice and 8-years-old Lily, Sam is being backed into a corner and needs to come out fighting. Set in the contrasting worlds of shiny Canary Wharf and the realities of modern suburbia, Clean Break, explores how far Sam will go to survive, claw back some self-respect and get her life back on track.

Getting back to black is going to be tough and Sam is about to stake everything on the unpredictable world of the Stock Market.  With her trusted band of cleaners gleaning information while the rest of the world sleeps, and in the knowledge insider trading is against the law will Sam tread this dangerous line? Smart, and witty, can Sam overcome her addictive personality?

The series will be directed by Lewis Arnold from a script by Mark Marlow.Commissioned for ITV by Head of Drama Polly Hill, Clean Break will be filmed in the London area during the autumn of 2017.

The Barricade Boys London concert with guests Hadley Fraser, Louise Dearman & Rob Houchen

The Barricade Boys have just announced a London concert at the Charing Cross Theatre at 7:00 pm on Sunday 5th February where they made their debut in 2015.

Featuring Scott Garnham, Simon Schofield, Andy Coxon and Kieran Brown with special guests Louise Dearman, Rob Houchen and  Hadley Fraser the Barricade Boys showcase some of the world’s finest male voices from the West End, Broadway, International Tour and Hollywood movie of the world’s longest running musical - Les Misèrables.

They perform some of the world’s greatest show tunes and  also celebrate music from some of the most iconic names in the music industry, from powerful ballads and beautiful operatic arias to some of the best pop, rock and swing numbers of all time. 

The Barricade Boys have played major leading roles in musical theatre and have being guests on many primetime TV shows including, The Paul O’Grady Show,  the Palladium Show, Children In Need, Ant and Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway and most recently Best Time Ever with Neil Patrick Harris.

Tickets for The Barricade Boys

Cast for the new 10th Anniversary Tour of Dreamboats & Petticoats

The the new 10th Anniversary tour of Dreamboats & Petticoats starts at Windsor Theatre Royal on 25th January.

The cast has just been announced with Jimmy Johnston as Phil/Older Bobby: Alistair Higgins as Bobby: Alistair Hill as Norman: Elizabeth Carter as Laura: Laura Darton as Sue: Gracie Johnson as Donna;:David Luke as Ray: Henry Alexander as Colin: Jay Osborne as Richard: Rob Gathercole as Jeremy: Lauren Chinery as Babs: Josh Tye as Derek: Sheridan Lloyd as Andy: Billy Stookes as Barry: Mike Lloyd as Frank/Slugger: Chloe Edwards-Woods as Daisy/Brenda: Alan Howell as Eric and Stephanie Hackett as ASM/Swing

Open auditions for Aladdin

The West End production of Aladdin at the Prince Edward Theatre  has just announced open auditions for both ensemble and featured roles to be held at Pineapple Studios in London on Monday 16 January 2017

MALE & FEMALE DANCERS & SINGERS/MALE & FEMALE CALLS
Registrations from 09:15 (last registration at 14:00)

Applicants must be 18 years old or above and eligible to work in the UK.Contract type is one year fixed term from 5th June 2017, plus 6 weeks rehearsal time prior to this date (with a possible option to extend); SOLT/Equity rates apply to salary. Location of Aladdin.

Further information can be found here.

Cast announced for tour of Funny Girl

The cast has just been announced for the tour of Funny Girl which kicks off at in Manchester on 20th February.

Playing opposite Sheridan Smith on her dates is Chris Peluso (Miss Saigon, Showboat) as Nick Arnstein (in Manchester, Milton Keynes, Liverpool, Bristol, Edinburgh, Birmingham, Newcastle, Southampton, Bradford, Southend, Cardiff and Dublin.) The show will extend for a further two weeks, returning to Manchester from 7th-19th August to complete its run with Smith and Peluso playing the final dates.

Natasha J Barnes and Darius Campbell will play Fanny Brice and Nick Arnstein in Stoke, Aberdeen, Woking, Canterbury, Glasgow, Nottingham, Norwich, Llandudno, Wolverhampton and Plymouth. They played these roles in the West End with Barnes covering for Smith when she was indisposed. She is currently playing  the title role in Cinderella at the Palladium.

They are joined by Nigel Barber (Florenz Ziegfeld), Zoë Ann Bown (Mrs. Meeker), Martin Callaghan (Mr. Keeney), Jennifer Harding (Emma), Rachel Izen (Mrs Brice), Joshua Lay (Eddie) and Myra Sands (Mrs. Strakosh); with Rhianne Alleyne, Kit Benjamin, Lloyd Davies, Flora Dawson, Joseph Dockree, Abigayle Honeywill, Brontë Lavine, David Mcintosh, Peter Nash, Gillian Parkhouse, Tom Partridge, Nova Skipp, Alexandra Waite-Roberts, Sam Wingfield and Alexandra Wright.

Cast announced for tour of Ghost the Musical

It has just been announced that Carolyn Maitland is to play Molly in the touring production of Ghost the Musical which begins the 2017 leg of its tour at  Dartford Orchard on 17th January She stars alongside Andy Moss who continues in the role as Sam which he played last year opposite Sarah Harding from Girls Aloud. Maitland's musical theatre credits include Miss Saigon, Groundhog Day, From Here to Eternity and Kiss Me Kate.

The rest of the cast includes Jacqui Dubois as Oda Mae Brown, Sam Ferriday as Carl, Leo Sene as Willie, James Earl Adair as Hospital Ghost, Gary Lee Netley as Subway Ghost, Tarisha Rommick as Louise and Simbi Akande as Clara with  Lori Baker, Ethan Bradshaw, Lauren Drew, Matthew Vinetot, Mike Ward and Kelly Hampson.

Casting for revival of Sondheim's Anyone Can Whistle at the Union

Updated 11th February.  The cast has just been announced for this production:  FELICITY DUNCAN plays the unscrupulous mayoress. Her musical theatre roles include Liza Minnelli in Bill Kenwright’s tour of the new Richard Harris comedy Liza, Liza, Liza, Rosie in the International tour of Mamma Mia and Anya in Fiddler on the Roof at the London Palladium with Topol.

OLIVER STANLEY plays quirky psychiatrist Hapgood. He played  Lord Marlborough in Phil Willmott’s new musical Princess Caraboo at the Finborough Theatre and is a regular soloist with The Musical Theatre Orchestra

RACHEL DELOOSE plays rebellious psychiatric nurse Fay Apple. She played Sonia in the Toyah Wilcox musical of Crime and Punishment  - which she will reprise later this year in the forthcoming film.

Playing townsfolk and asylum inmates are  James Horne (Schub) Richard Foster King  (Detmold), Mark Garfield  (Cooley), Christopher Laishley (Magruder) with Alessandro Lubrano, Joe Miller, Michel Larcombe, Abbey Adams, Isabel Wro Wright, Kate Hurley, Natalie Thorn, Mitchel Laithbury, Joey Warne, Laura Pick Tom Mussell and Victoria-Louise Currie.

Anyone Can Whistle is a musical comedy about a town that’s gone bankrupt because its only industry is manufacturing something that never wears out.In order to revive her town Mayoress Cora Hoover Hooper and her town council fake a miracle – water flowing from a rock – to attract tourists. When patients at the local mental hospital escape and mix with the townspeople and tourists, chaos ensues while J. Bowden Hapgood, a fake psychiatrist falls in love with Fay Apple, a nurse at the asylum who has disguised herself as a miracle verifier sent from Lourdes. 

The show features classic Sondheim numbers including ‘Me and My Town’, ‘Anyone Can Whistle’, ‘There Won’t be Trumpets’, ‘Everybody Says Don’t’ and ‘With So Little to Be Sure Of’.

One of Sondheim’s least-performed works – Anyone Can Whistle lasted only nine performances on Broadway in 1964. The original cast featured Angela Lansbury and Lee Remick. The Phil Willmott Company’s revival will be the first UK production in six years and follows the director’s sell-out, critically-acclaimed Union Theatre production of Sondheim’s Road Show last year.

Also among the creative team are  costume designer Penn O’Gara, Musical director Richard Baker, choreographer Holly Hughes and casting director Adam Braham.

www.uniontheatre.biz

Latest news on tickets for Hamilton the Musical

Producers of Broadway smash hit musical Hamilton have come up with a revolutionary way of selling seats to thwart touts. A ticketless venture will be launched on January 16th, when the 110,000 people pre-registered on the priority list will get first access to seats for the show, which begins performances at the Victoria Palace in mid-November. Tickets will go on general sale on January 30th.

Nick Allott, MD of Cameron Mackintosh Limited, said  the paperless ticketing scheme is an experiment, as far as the West End is concerned. Essentially, you don’t get a physical ticket until you get to the theatre, where we will dispense the ticket very quickly, with new technology. When customers go online to purchase seats, they’ll find an explanation of how it all works — and how they can collect tickets on the night. Once the seat has been purchased, people will get an email with instructions. They’ll know where they are sitting, and everything is confirmed.   You can’t put anything online to sell, if you haven’t got a physical piece of paper to sell  he reasoned

A variation of the system is sometimes used at rock concerts. The point is to try to cut out the that is the secondary ticketing market, where touts  buy up seats in bulk and then sell them on at obscenely inflated prices. It is anticipated that the system  should stop at least 50% of online scalping.

With rehearsals due to start around early to mid-September Cameron Mackintosh and his team have attended several casting sessions saying the London production would feature ‘probably the most diverse company yet’.

Casting news on Barnum Movie starring Hugh Jackman

The film musical The Greatest Showman, about the life of P T Barnum is  shooting in and around Brooklyn. As already announced Hugh Jackman who is also producing the film is to play Barnum founder of the circus that became the famous traveling Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus. with Michelle Williams playing his wife Charity Barnum.

The movie, also stars Rebecca Ferguson as Jenny Lind and Zac Efron as Phillip,  is being directed by Michael Gracey; and features several songs written by the team of Benj Pasek and Justin Paul.

The movie has a US release date of 29th December 2017 with UK details still to b released.

Casting announced for the Braille Legacy directed by Thom Southerland starring Jerome Pradon

Updated 8th March: Joining previously announced Olivier Award nominated Jérôme Pradon (West End credits include the UK premiere of the musical “Women On The Verge of a Nervous Breakdown”, Guillaume in “Martin Guerre”, Chris in “Miss Saigon”, Javert in “Les Miserables”, and Judas in the Emmy-winning video of “Jesus Christ Superstar”) are:

Jason Broderick (“Godspell” UK tour, “Anna Nicole - The Opera” Royal Opera House); Tate-Eliot Drew (“My Lands Shore” Ye Olde Rose N Crown Theatre); Will Haswell (“Jersey Boys” West End, Pinocchio in ‘Shrek the Musical” UK tour); Lottie Henshall (“Doctors” BBC1); Sarah-Marie Maxwell (“She Loves Me” Menier Chocolate Factory, “Top Hat” UK tour); Matthew McDonald (“Death Takes a Holiday” Charing Cross Theatre, “Allegro” Southwark Playhouse); Kate Milner-Evans (“Showboat” West End, Carlotta in “The Phantom of the Opera”); Janet Mooney (West End includes “Les Miserables” and “Love Never Dies”); Ceili O’Connor (“Grand Hotel” Southwark Playhouse, “Evita” UK tour); Michael Remick (West End includes “Dirty Dancing” and “The Sound of Music”); Ashley Stillburn (Corrado in “Death Takes A Holiday” Charing Cross Theatre, “The Phantom of the Opera” and “Les Miserables” West End); Jack Wolfe (is making his professional stage debut as Louis Braille); and a child cast featuring Guillermo Bedward, Thomas Brown, Tallulah Byrne, Beau Cripps, Ilan Galkoff, Honey Harrison-Maw, Eliz Hassan, Megan Haynes, Zachary Loonie, Mimi Slinger, Ophir Fifi Tal, William Thompson.


Thom Southerland (Ragtime, Titanic, Grey Gardens) is to direct the world première of a major new musical, The Braille Legacy which will run at Charing Cross Theatre from Monday 10th April to Saturday 24th  June. (Press night  Monday 24th April at 7.30pm).

Starring Jerome Pradon “The Braille Legacy” tells the thrilling, true, inspirational and epic story of Louis Braille, a young blind boy who wanted the same chance in life as those who see and ended up improving the lives of millions of blind people around the world. The Braille Legacy has an original French Book and Lyrics by Sébastien Lancrenon, Music by Jean-Baptiste Saudray, with an English translation by Ranjit Bolt. Music Supervision and Orchestrations are by Simon Lee who has worked closely with Andrew Lloyd Webber on musicals including "Jesus Christ Superstar" and the film, "The Phantom of the Opera".

Olivier Award nominated Jérôme Pradon's West End credits include the UK premiere of the musical “Women On The Verge Of A Nervous Breakdown”, Guillaume in “Martin Guerre”, The Man in “Whistle Down the Wind”, Aragorn in “The Lord of the Rings” musical, Chris in “Miss Saigon” and Javert in “Les Misérables” in London and Marius in Paris, as well as Judas in the Emmy-winning video of Jesus Christ Superstar.

Tickets for The Braille Legacy

Starlight Express 35th Anniversary Production?

Arlene Phillips has revealed Lord Andrew Lloyd Webber wants to revamp Starlight Express for the musical's 35th anniversary in 2018. They worked together on the original roller skating stage show in 1984 - have been in discussions about rebooting the musical in celebration of its 35th anniversary.

Arlene said: "We've been friends for a long, long time and I love to see him. Starlight Express is coming up to its 35th birthday in 2018 and there's talk of a massive revamp of the show."

Casting for My Fair Ladies

Casting has been announced for My Fair Ladies which runs at Live at Zedel from 15th-18th January 2017. It will star  Laura-Jane Matthewson (Dogfight) Lisa-Anne Wood (Phantom of the Opera) and Maeve Byrne (Ghost).
 

With musical direction from Niall Bailey, the  evening celebrates the music of some of Broadway's best loved divas including Ethel Merman, Liza Minnelli, Barbra Streisand and  Bernadette Peters and will feature classics like Everything's Coming Up Roses,  Don't Rain On My Parade,  Time Heals Everything and  Something Wonderful.
 

Tickets for My Fair Ladies

Audra McDonald announces London Concerts

Record-breaking six time Tony Award winner Audra McDonald is returning to London in April for four concerts produced by Mark Cortale at Leicester Square Theatre at 8.45pm on April 12, 13, 14 & 15, where she completely sold out  last year. Press night is Wednesday April 12 at 8.45pm.

She will be joined on stage by host & pianist Seth Rudetsky, who last month starred in the London premiere of his Broadway musical “Disaster!” with a special guest appearance by her  husband, Will Swenson ( Tony nominated star of “Hair” and “Priscilla, Queen of the Desert”)

Audra McDonald in Concert is a spontaneous evening of fun  and show-stopping songs offering a  mix of intimate behind-the-scenes stories from one of Broadway’s biggest stars – prompted by Rudetsky’s probing, funny, revealing questions – and Audra singing some of the biggest hits from her musical theatre repertoire.

Audra McDonald’s last series of Leicester Square Theatre concerts were this week named one of  2016’s “Best Gigs of the Year” by reviewer Clive Davis of The Times and were among LiveTheatreUK’s Top 10 West End Musicals of the year. “Audra MacDonald’s Leicester Square Theatre concert was not really a musical, but it certainly counted as one of the greatest nights of musical theatre in the year. McDonald was a complete superstar, effortlessly telling deeply affecting stories through song, connecting intuitively with her audience and singing with a ferocity, a gentle touch, a supremely confident and peerlessly matched tone that simply took one’s breath away. Time after time.”

Audra McDonald holds the record for more Tony Best Performance wins than any other actor in history, and is the only person to win all four acting categories. She married Will Swenson in 2012 and this past October they became new parents to a baby girl.

Producer Mark Cortale previously presented the acclaimed Patti LuPone in concert with Seth Rudetsky in the same concert format at Leicester Square Theatre in 2013.

Tickets for Audra McDonald in Concert

Cameron Mackintosh from A to Z interview on BBC Radio 2 later today

As part of his 70th birthday celebrations,  Cameron Mackintosh will be interviewed by  Graham Norton on BBC Radio2 today at 5:00pm for  two hours   

He will be talking about his life and work, featuring music from his hit show including Les Miserables, Half-a-Sixpence, Cats, Anything Goes, Abbacadabra, Martin Guerre and Mary Poppins

School of Rock breaks London and Broadway box office records

Andrew Lloyd Webber’s School of Rock the Musical West End  production has broken the box office record previously held by War Horse at the New London Theatre, while over on Broadway the show has smashed its own record at the Winter Garden Theatre taking  more than $1.5 million at the box office over the festive period. It also expected to break its own records again in the US and UK  this week.

On hearing the news, Lloyd Webber tweeted: “Congrats to the School of Rock teams for smashing box office records on both sides of the Atlantic. Keep sticking it to the man!”

The world premiere Broadway production opened in November 2015 and is currently booking until 5th February 2017. A national company will launch a US tour in the autumn of next year.