Thursday, September 21

Cast announced for the new UK tour of Hamilton the musical


Producers Jeffrey Seller and Cameron Mackintosh are delighted to announce casting for the first ever UK and Ireland Tour of the award-winning HAMILTON which is led by Shaq Taylor as Alexander Hamilton, Sam Oladeinde as Aaron Burr, Gabriela Benedetti as Peggy Schuyler/Maria Reynolds,  KM Drew Boateng as Hercules Mulligan/James Madison, Daniel Boys as King George, Maya Britto as Eliza Hamilton, Aisha Jawando as Angelica Schuyler, DeAngelo Jones as John Laurens/Philip Hamilton, Billy Nevers as Marquis de Lafayette/Thomas Jefferson and Charles Simmons as George Washington.

 They are joined by Simeon Beckett, Taylor Bradshaw, Cletus Chan, Kyerron Dixon-Bassey, Kyeirah D’marni, Yesy Garcia, Jonathan Hermosa-Lopez, Levi Tyrell Johnson, Honey Joseph, Akmed Junior Khemalai, Richard Logun, Buna McCreery-Njie, Mia Mullarkey, Antoine Murray-Straughan, Kiran Patel, Izzy Read, Alice Readie, Harry Robinson, Phoebe Samuel-Gray, Jasmine Jia Yung Shen, Samantha Shuma, Michael James Stewart, Rhys West, Jack Whitehead and Sian Yeo.

 Shaq Taylor’s West End credits include playing Beast in Beauty and the Beast at the London Palladium, as well as on the production’s National Tour, Joe Scott in Girl from The North Country at the Gielgud Theatre, and Javert in Les Misérables at the Queen’s Theatre. His other credits include Herod in Jesus Christ Superstar at Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre, Sweet Charity at the Donmar Warehouse, Hadestown at the National Theatre, and A House Music Opera at The Young Vic. On screen he can be seen in Netflix’s Bodkin, and The Guernsey Literary Potato Peel Pie Society.

Sam Oladeinde has most recently appeared in Assassins at Chichester Festival Theatre. His West End credits Come From Away at the Phoenix Theatre, A Christmas Carol at the Dominion Theatre, The Prince of Egypt at the Dominion Theatre, The Book of Mormon at the Prince of Wales Theatre and the original West End Cast of Hamilton at the Victoria Palace Theatre. On television he has appeared in the BBC’s Casualty and Doctors and in the short film, Diary Room.

Gabriela Benedetti most recently appeared in Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club and Legally Blonde at Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre, having graduated from Urdang Academy in 2021.

KM Drew Boateng has appeared in Scroogelicious at Theatre Peckham, Five Guys Named Moe at Upstairs at the Gatehouse, The Color Purple at Curve, Leicester and via streaming platforms, Motown The Musical at the Shaftesbury Theatre, Hotel at the National Theatre, Blues in the Night at Hackney Empire, The Warriors at Barbican and Breakin’ Convention at Sadler’s Wells. On film he can be seen in Walking On Sunshine.

Daniel Boys’s West End credits include Falsettos at The Other Palace, The Boys in the Band at the Vaudeville Theatre, Spamalot at the Playhouse Theatre, Avenue Q at the Noel Coward Theatre and RENT at the Prince of Wales Theatre. He has appeared in the national and European tours of The War of the Worlds, Nativity! The Musical, Grease and West Side Story. In concert he has appeared in Treason at Theatre Royal Drury Lane, The Pirate Queen at the London Coliseum, Tommy at the Prince Edward Theatre and Disney’s Enchanted Evening at Hyde Park. On television he has appeared in Netflix’s Obsession, ITV’s Unforgotten and Endeavor and the BBC’s Life After Life, EastEnders, Holby City and Any Dream Will Do.

Maya Britto most recently appeared in Hamilton at the Victoria Palace Theatre, making her West End Debut. Her previous credits include The Magician’s Elephant with the Royal Shakespeare Company, the UK Tour of Tokyo Rose and workshops of Beyond The Circle and Becoming Angela at the National Theatre.

Aisha Jawando’s West End credits include starring as Tina in Tina – The Musical at the Aldwych Theatre, Martha Reece in Motown The Musical at the Shaftesbury Theatre, Beautiful a the Aldwych Theatre, The Book of Mormon at the Prince of Wales Theatre and The Lion King at the Lyceum Theatre. Her other theatre credits include Jack and the Beanstalk at the Alhambra Theatre, Bradford, Cinderella at Hackney Empire, The Life at Southwark Playhouse and the Original London cast of Fela at the National Theatre. On screen she will be seen in Universal Pictures’ Wicked and Netflix’s Sex Education.

DeAngelo Jones has most recently appeared in the ensemble of Hamilton at the Victoria Palace Theatre, as well as appearing in the Vienna production of The Bodyguard and Kiss Me, Kate at the London Coliseum with Opera North.

Billy Nevers’ London credits include Fred in Groundhog Day at the Old Vic, Francois in &Juliet at the Shaftesbury Theatre, Legally Blonde at Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre and Jesus Christ Superstar at the Barbican and Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre. He has appeared in the concerts I Could Use A Drink in Concert at the Garrick Theatre, Roles We’ll Never Play at the Vaudeville Theatre and Apollo Theatre, and An Intimate Evening with Kristin Chenoweth at the London Palladium. On television he has appeared in NBC’s The Grinch Live,

Charles Simmons’ theatre credits include playing George Washington in the German production of Hamilton, and Ike Turner in Tina: The Tina Turner Musical in Hamburg. On television he has appeared on The Voice Germany, as a juror on Germany’s All Together Now and a vocal coach on X-Factor Germany.

Wednesday, September 13

The Devil Wears Prada Musical to open in London next October

The Devil Wears Prada Musical based on the 2006 film and original novel is to open London's Dominion Theatre on 24th October 2024. With a score by Elton John, lyrics by Shaina Taub (Suffs), a book by Kate Wetherhead, and direction and choreography by Tony Award winner Jerry Mitchell (Kinky BootsLegally BlondeHairspray)who has worked through  John’s original demos, with new aspects of the work coming to the UK version. The UK iteration is billed as “a brand-new reimagined production of The Devil Wears Prada… following a developmental run in Chicago in 2022.”

Set design is by Tim Hatley (Life of Pi, Back to the Future), costume design by Gregg Barnes (Some Like It Hot, Legally Blonde), with lighting design by Bruno Poet (Tina – The Tina Turner Musical, Frankenstein), sound design by Gareth Owen (Come From Away, & Juliet) with  casting by Jill Green CDG

The Devil Wears Prada follows aspiring fashion journalist Andy Sachs (played by Anne Hathaway in the film)who is is hired as assistant to Miranda Priestly (played by Meryl Streep) cutthroat editor-in-chief of the fictional Runway Magazine, she discovers that breaking into the industry requires more than she expected. 

The Devil Wears Prada is presented by special arrangement with Buena Vista Theatrical.  The new musical will have an exclusive preview engagement at Theatre Royal Plymouth  from 9 July 2024, prior to opening at the Dominion.


Monday, September 11

Aston Merrygold and The Vivienne to star in The Wizard of Oz at Liverpool


 

First casting news has just been announced for the first six-week stop of the touring version of the Palladium hit The Wizard of Oz which  will open  at Liverpool Empire from 13th December 2023 to 7th January 2024, ahead of the tour

Thursday, September 7

Full cast announced for new tour of Wicked


 

The tour of Wicked, the musical is due to fly back into Birmingham Hippodrome from Tuesday 5th March. 

 

The Producers have today announced the new touring cast Laura Pick (Elphaba), Sarah O’Connor (Glinda), Carl Man (Fiyero), Donna Berlin (Madame Morrible), Simeon Truby (The Wizard and Doctor Dillamond), Jed Berry (Boq), Megan Gardiner (Nessarose), Casey Al-Shaqsy (Standby for Elphaba), Thomas Charles, Julie Cloke, Charlotte Coggin, Freddie Conway, Áine Curran, Jade Davies, Kamau Davis, Russell Dickson, Maddison Firth, Lydia Gerrard, James Gower-Smith, Shoko Ito, Holly Lawrence, Nick Len, Stephanie Lindo, Will Lucas, Will Luckett, Rozz Mbwembwe, Georgia McElwee, Conor O’Hara, Shereen Osman, Stuart Rouse, Christina Shand, Adam Stickler, and Frazer Woolcott.Sarah O’Connor (Glinda), Donna Berlin (Madame Morrible), Jed Berry (Boq), Megan Gardiner (Nessarose), and Casey Al-Shaqsy (Standby for Elphaba) will join the previously announced Laura Pick (Elphaba), Carl Man (Fiyero), and Simeon Truby (The Wizard and Doctor Dillamond).

 

(Laura Pick Carl Man  Simeon Truby , Nick Len, and Will Lucas have all previously appeared in the West End production of the show)

 


 


New cast announced for Moulin Rouge


Global Creatures, Producers of Moulin Rouge! The Musical, are delighted to welcome a new cast of bohemians and aristocrats as the hit show enters its third year at the Piccadilly Theatre in London.

From 16 October 2023, Tanisha Spring (Groundhog Day) will play Satine (having previously alternated the role) and Dom Simpson (The Book of Mormon) joins the cast as Christian.

“It is so exciting to announce today that Tanisha Spring and Dom Simpson will lead our company of Moulin Rouge! The Musical in London into its third year” says Director Alex Timbers. “Dom is a superb musical theatre performer, and I know he will bring tremendous wit, warmth, and great depths of emotion to his portrayal of Christian. And I am delighted to welcome Tanisha back to the show, having been such a memorable part of our original West End company. Her talent is boundless, and her star wattage is blinding. We are blessed to have her returning to play Satine.”

Continuing in their roles, Matt Rixon (Hairspray UK Tour) will play Harold Zidler, Ian Carlyle (Disney’s The Lion King, Porgy and Bess) will play Toulouse-Lautrec and Ben Richards (Emmerdale) will play The Duke. Joining them will be Ivan De Freitas (& Juliet) as Santiago and Charlotte Gooch (Dirty Dancing) as Nini, with Anthony Cragg (Starlight Express) who continues with the cast and steps into the role of Baby Doll, Hannah Jay-Allan (Beautiful – The Carole King Musical) as Arabia, Rochelle Sherona (Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat) who also remains with the cast as Arabia (maternity cover), Bernadette Bangura (My Fair Lady) as La Chocolat, and Angela Marie Hurst (TINA: The Tina Turner Musical) who will play Alternate Satine.

The full cast will also include Oliver Adam-Reynolds, Erin Bell, Emily Bolland, Ross Chisari, James Chisholm, Katie Deacon, Fletcher Dobinson, Serenar Douch, Rola Elliott, Davide Fienauri, Zack Guest, Natorii Illidge, David King-Yombo, Jasmine Leung, Kira McPherson, Melissa Nettleford, Chris Otim, Joshua Robinson, Callum Rose, Ben Rutter, Gavin Ryan, Craig Ryder, Jamie Shields, Catrin Thomas, Matt Trevorrow, Charley Warburton, Sasha Woodward, and Luke Fraser Yates.

 

Wednesday, September 6

Darren Day and Harriet Payne to join Tour of Everybody's Talking About Jamie for certain dates


More casting has been confirmed for the new UK tour of Everybody’s Talking About Jamie, which kicks off in Salford tomorrow night

The cast is led initially by Ivano Turco (Cinderella) as Jamie New, with Rebecca McKinnis (Dear Evan Hansen) as Margaret New, Shobna Gulati (The Rise and Fall of Little Voice) as Ray, John Partridge (A Chorus Line) as Hugo/Loco Chanelle, Hayley Tamaddon (Chicago) as Miss Hedge, and Talia Palamathanan (Everybody’s Talking About Jamie tour and film) as Pritti.

Darren Day (Godspell, Grease), will join the show as Hugo / Loco Chanelle for the show’s performances at Blackpool Winter Gardens, Venue Cymru in Llandudno, and for the three week Christmas season at Oxford New Theatre.

Harriet Payne, who originated the role of Bex in the show, will return to play Miss Hedge in Llandudno and Oxford – after covering the role in the West End and Los Angeles.

Full cast announced for Elf The Musical


Following its successful return to the Dominion Theatre last year, Elf The Musical is to  play a second consecutive season from 15th  November 2023 through to 6th  January 2024.

Casting news is that Emmerdale‘s Matthew Wolfenden (who plays David Metcalfe) will take on the role of Buddy, alongside Tom Chambers (Father Brown), who reprises his role as Walter Hobbs from the 2022 run. also reprising their roles from the 2022 run will be  Georgina Castle (Dirty Dancing, ALW Cibderella, Mamma Mia!) as Jovie, Rebecca Lock (The Phantom of the Opera, Avenue Q) as Emily Hobbs, Nicholas Pound (Cats, The Rocky Horror Show) as Santa, Kim Ismay (Wicked, Saturday Night Fever) as Debs and Dermot Canavan (Hairspray, Oklahoma!) as Store Manager. Ben Lancaster (Police Cops: The Musical) will alternate the role of Buddy at certain scheduled performances

Completing the company are Rhys Batten (The SpongeBob Musical), Evonnee Bentley-Holder (Aint Too Proud), Marie Finlayson (Tina – The Tina Turner Musical), Aimée Fisher (Groundhog Day), Farirayi Garaba (The SpongeBob Musical), Alex Given (The Book of Mormon), Morgan Gregory (Newsies), Samuel John-Humphreys (Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat), Keir Hylands (Frozen), Dominic Lamb (Legally Blonde), Ellis Linford-Pill (We Will Rock You), Theo Reece (The SpongeBob Musical), Chloe Saunders (Grease), Heather Scott-Martin (Singin’ in the Rain), Jessica Spalis (Mamma Mia! The Party), Katie Warsop (Annie) and Natalie Woods (Wind in the Willows), with Jude Farrant (Matilda the Musical), Daniel Lee (Glory Ride), Oliver Ravelini (Winnie the Pooh) and Austin Riley (The Osmonds) alternating the role of Michael Hobbs.

Six the Musical cast change in London from next month


Set to appear in Six the Musical in London from 17 October 2023 will be Nikki Bentley (Wicked) as Catherine of Aragon, Thao Therese Nguyen (Miss Saigon) as Anne Boleyn, Kayleigh McKnight (Heathers the Musical) as Jane Seymour, Reca Oakley (Six) as Anna of Cleves, Inez Budd (Heathers the Musical) as Katherine Howard and Janiq Charles (The Lion King) as Catherine Parr.

They will be joined by Gabriella Stylianou (The Great British Bake Off Musical) as Alternate Aragon/Seymour and Dance Captain, Naomi Alade (Beautiful – The Carole King Musical) as Alternate Boleyn/Cleves, Hannah Lowther (The SpongeBob Musical) as Alternate Howard/Parr, Meg Dixon-Brasil (Six) as Super Swing and Natalie Pilkington (Six) as UK Super Swing.

Monday, September 4

Casting announced for new tour of Aladdin the Musical


Disney Theatrical Productions Broadway and West End musical Aladdin is to tour the UK and Ireland for the first time opening in Edinburgh in October 2023. Casting for the tour includes Yeukayi Ushe (Disney’s The Lion King, A Strange Loop, Kinky Boots and Motown The Musical) as Genie and introduce Gavin Adams as Aladdin. A recent graduate of the Royal Academy of Music, Gavin will be making his professional debut in the title role. Also a graduate of the Royal Academy of Music, Desmonda Cathabel (Miss Saigon, From Here to Eternity) will play Jasmine when the show opens in Edinburgh, with casting for the role in future venues to be announced in due course.

They will be joined by Adam Strong (Rock of Ages, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat) as Jafar, Jo Servi (Dreamgirls, The Color Purple)as Sultan, Angelo Paragoso (The Reporter, Miss Saigon) as Iago, Nay-Nay (Once On This Island) as Babkak, Adam Taylor (Cabaret, Everybody’s Talking About Jamie) as Omar, and Nelson Bettencourt (Disney’s Beauty and the Beast, Les Misérables) as Kassim.

The full cast will also include Hannah Amin, Dammi Aregbeshola, Rico Bakker, Daisy Barnett, Sarah Benbelaid, Erin Gisele Chapman, Tau-En Chien, Zac Frieze, Juan Jackson, James Lim, Harriet Millier, Aaron Elijah Patel, Abbie Platts, Joseph Poulton, Olivier Scheers, Kerry Spark, Ricardo Spriggs, Damien Winchester, Niko Wirachman.

Friday, September 1

Mamma Mia London October cast change


Ahead of its 25th anniversary on 6 April 2024 the new cast has been announced for Mamma Mia! at the Novello Theatre

From 9th  October 2023 the  London company will continue to star Mazz Murray as Donna, Christopher Dickins as Harry, Stephen Beckett as Bill, Meg Hateley as Sophie and Miles Henderson as Sky, with Jennifer Adab continuing as Donna at certain performances. Jessie Odeleye moves from ensemble to play the role of Ali.

They will be joined by returning cast member Kate Graham (Come From Away) as Tanya, Nicola-Dawn Brook (Cirque du Soleil’s Saltimbanco) as Rosie, Haydn Oakley (Anything Goes) as Sam, Olivia Brookes (Glory Ride) as Lisa, Chay Wills (The Cher Show) as Eddie and Arcangelo Ciulla (Newsies) as Pepper.

Also continuing in the cast are Sinéad Courtney and Lawrence Guntert.  They will be joined by Aaron Archer, Amy Barker, Matthew Barrow, John-Paul Birss, Daniel J Brian, Izzy Cross, Ellis Dackombe, Lauren Dawes, Léa Desjacques, Samantha Ivey, Jennie Jacobs, Luke Jasztal, Nicole Lupino, Flyn Mullins, Hayley-Jo Murphy, Bradley Perret, Jacob Ritzema and Ella Tweed.

The show has extended its booking period to Saturday 28 September 2024  with tickets on sale at 10 am today

Monday, August 14

Full cast joining Nicole Scherzinger in Sunset Boulevard

In the  new Jamie Lloyd  production of Sunset Boulevard at the Savoy Theatre , Nicole Scherzinger will lead the company as Norma Desmond, while Rachel Tucker will guest star in the role on Thursday 12 October matinee, and all Monday performances from 16 October 2023 to 6 January 2024.

They will be joined by Tom Francis (& Juliet, What’s New Pussycat, Rent) as Joe Gillis), Grace Hodgett Young (The Little Mermaid, Bare, Made in Dagenham) as Betty Schaefer and David Thaxton (Les Misérables, The Phantom Of The Opera) as Max Von Mayerling).

Completing the cast are Carl Au (Myron / Jones), Georgia Bradshaw (Lisa / Masseur), Hannah Yun Chamberlain (Patsy / Beautician), Tyler Davis (Sheldrake), Kamilla Fernandes (Dorothy / Astrologer), Ahmed Hamad (Artie), Laura Harrison (Catherine / Doctor), Charlotte Jaconelli (Joanna / Masseur), Olivia-Faith Kamau (Nancy / Beautician), Luke Latchman (John / Guard), Emma Lloyd (Mary / Heather / Analyst), Mireia Mambo (Jean / Beautician / Dance Captain), Gregor Milne (Sammy), Kody Mortimer (Finance Man / Frank), Jon Tsouras (Finance Man / Cecil B De Mille) and Charlie Waddell (Morino / Hog-Eye), with Lara Denning (Standby Norma), Jordan Cork and Shayna McPherson (Camera Operators), and Catherine Cornwall, Michael Lin (assistant dance captain), with Jon Reynolds, Kirsty Anne Shaw, Harrison Wilde and Lillie-Pearl Wildman as swings.

Thursday, August 10

Sister Act more tour dates and cast changes


Producers have announced a new Deloris Van Cartier for the Sister Act tour, with more performances  through October 2024.

Landi Oshinowo (Matilda the Musical) will take over the role of Deloris van Cartier from 8th September. Lesley Joseph continues as Mother Superior to 25 November 2023, with future casting for the role of Mother Superior to be revealed at a later date. 

The Sister Act cast includes Lizzie Bea as Sister Mary Robert, Alfie Parker as Eddie Souther, and Ian Gareth-Jones as Curtis Jackson, alongside Isabel Canning, Jackie Pulford, Phillip Arran, Lori Hayley Fox, Wendy-Lee Purdy, Bradley Judge, Damian Buhagiar, Callum Martin, Castell Parker, Esme Laudat, Amber Kennedy, Joseph Connor, Ceris Hine, Eloise Runnette, Sheri Lineham, and Michael Ward.