Cast announced for Moby Dick the Musical at Southwark

Updated 22nd August: the cast has just been announced and will include  X Factor finalist Anton Stephans (Porgy &Bess) leading the cast and playing  Headmistress/Ahab.He will be joined by Brenda Edwards (Chicago, Carmen Jones, Hairspray and We Will Rock You) playing Esta.

The cast also includes Laura Mansell as Starbuck,  Sam Barrett as Coffin, Pérola Congo as Queeqeeg  and Aimee Hodnett as Stubb with  Rachel Anne Rayham, Rebekah Lowings , Glen Facey,  and Grant McConvey.

Last seen in 1992, the saucy cult hit Moby Dick! The Musical is back and will be revived at the Union Theatre in Southwark from Wednesday 12th October – Saturday 12th November 2016

The last time it was in the West End it was  produced by Cameron Mackintosh, with a book by Robert Longden and music and lyrics by Longden and Hereward Kaye.

Cameron Mackintosh said: When I first put on Robert Longdon and Hereward Kaye’s irrepressible version of ‘Moby Dick! The Musical’ 25 years ago, London had virtually no Off West End theatres and the outrageous joy of shows like ‘The Producers’ and ‘The Book of Mormon’ were still decades away. An unlikely alliance between Melville’s great novel and the immortal St Trinian’s girls, ‘Moby Dick!’ is truly a whale of a tale. I’m really delighted that Andrew Wright saw the show as a student in Oxford and has taken up his harpoon to bring Moby roaring back to the New Union Theatre with a wonderful diverse young cast of school ‘girls’ to holler ‘Thar She Blows’!

It tells the tale of anarchic and nubile girls of St. Godley’s Academy for Young Ladies who are in trouble! Money for the school has run out and it’s threatened with closure. Determined to save their school from bankruptcy, the  girls, and their headmistress come up with a plan to it afloat. Using whatever they can find, the girls mount an original production a musical version of Herman Melville’s classic novel Moby Dick as a fundraiser – featuring their  headmistress as Captain Ahab.

This brand new production, staged for the show’s 25th Anniversary, is directed and choreographed by double Olivier Award nominee Andrew Wright who  is reunited with Producer Amy Anzel after their 2014 UK tour of Happy Days – A New Musical, which featured on Channel 4’s The Sound of Musicals.  He said  I am very excited to bring ‘Moby Dick! The Musical’ back to London after 25 years. I saw the original production at the Oxford Fire Station in 1991 and fell in love with its anarchic charm and sheer exuberance. The New Union Theatre is the perfect venue to unleash the girls of St Godley’s version of this classic tale. 25 years on, the piece feels more relevant than ever and after waiting all that time it will hopefully be the dick you’ve been waiting for!

This show is all about having fun and getting involved. Audience members who come in school uniform will get front row onstage seats and play a part in St Godley’s version of Moby Dick.


Tickets for Moby Dick

Moby Dick to Rise Again?

When Sir Cameron Mackintosh was talking to Graham Norton on his BBC Radio 2 Show on Saturday morning he mentioned a possible revival of his 1992 Moby Dick musical by Robert Longden and  Hereward Kaye.

It was blasted by critics and closed after only four months at the Piccadilly Theatre. I saw it a couple times and have to say I found it all a bit of fun.

Mackintosh says there are now two revivals in the works: “A production that’s going to open in London in a pub theatre and there’s one being eyed up for Broadway in the next two years.”

It was due to be revived at the Landor Theatre over a year ago but was cancelled because of funding issues with the cast into their third week of rehearsals.

Moby Dick Musical at Landor cancelled

As tweeted by me a few days ago, the revival of  the comedy musical Moby Dick  which was due to run at the Landor Theatre from 27th April to 28th May has been cancelled because of funding issues.

The cast were in their third week of rehearsals when they were told that the show’s main backer had pulled out and there was no money to pay them for the remaining rehearsal period and five-week run. The cast and creative team rallied round and launched a  major Twitter campaign which managed to raise £10,000 – but it was not enough to cover the shortfall.

The show’s director and choreographer Andrew Wright, co-producer Danielle Tarento with the support of  rights holder Cameron Mackintosh, are “adamant” that the production will take place eventually and they hope to remount it with new backers in six months’ time.

Cast Announced for Moby Dick at Landor

I last saw the musical Moby Dick: A Whale of a Tale! when it was produced by Cameron Mackintosh at the Piccadilly Theatre in 1992 and have to say I loved it.

The cult musical with book by Robert Longden, and music and lyrics by Longden and Hereward Kaye is now about to play a five-week season at the Landor Theatre,  which is located on the first floor of The Landor Pub in Clapham, from Wednesday 27th April - Saturday 28th May.

Moby Dick is a mixture of high camp, music hall-style smut and outrageous double entendres. It is about the girls of St. Godley's Academy for Young Ladies and their headmistress who try to save their school from bankruptcy by staging Herman Melville's classic novel in the school's swimming pool.

Casting is now complete and includes "Dancing on Ice" contestant and "Loose Women" panelist Denise Welch as the first of five celebrities voicing the Whale.

The strong cast features Tony Timberlake in the twin roles of Headmistress and Captain Ahab. His  West End roles include Wilbur in "Hairspray", Sir Belvedere in "Spamalot", Harold in "The Full Monty" and Thenadier in "Les Miserables".

He is joined by Sarah Lark, who understudied Nancy and played the role many times in "Oliver!" after being a finalist on BBC1's "I'd Do Anything",  Her other West?End roles include Lucy in the 21st anniversary production of "Snoopy!", "The Witches of Eastwick", "Beautiful & Damned" and "Mamma Mia".  Debbie Kurup (Sister Act, Chicago, Tonight’s the Night and Rent), Michelle Bishop (Company at Southwark Playhouse, Jersey Boys,  Fame The Musical, Footloose, The Wedding Singer, Saturday Night Fever and Grease). 

Tickets at: www.landortheatre.co.uk