Reason for Cancellation of Louise Dearman Solo Tour

Musical theatre performers including John Owen Jones, Gareth Gates and Louise Dearman are owed thousands of pounds for An Evening of Movies and Musicals which they performed at the Apollo Victoria Theatre last December.

Producer Matthew Hampson has yet to pay the performers for this concert. He was also due to  produce Louise Dearman’s first solo UK tour which was cancelled last month when her management withdrew because of the financial situation with the concert.

Hampson told the Stage that he had not yet been able to pay performers for the production in London because of financial difficulties. He said the show had been successful in the regions but that his “error was being naive with going into London too soon” saying "I didn’t anticipate how much money I would need to put into the show to make it successful and it was only over a period of time that that became apparent. It’s a show that has been really popular on a regional basis, so I went with my heart rather than with my head and I agreed to take it in [to London].My errors came from not being prepared for what was to come. The show lost a lot of money. It was not for any other reason than that. I have not been in this position before and I think the managers concerned know that."

He is speaking to the performers’ managers to rectify the issue with agreements being put in place to make the payments in stages.