Author: FairyPoweredProductions

THE ORIGINAL CALENDAR GIRLS

HAVE NOW RAISED OVER £5MILLION FOR BLOODWISE

GARY BARLOW AND TIM FIRTH’S AWARD-WINNING MUSICAL

CALENDAR GIRLS

RETURNS THIS AUTUMN, AS IT CONTINUES TO BREAK BOX OFFICE RECORDS

AND WELCOMES BACK

RUTH MADOC

Gary Barlow and Tim Firth are delighted to be able to welcome back Ruth Madoc, who returns to play the role of Jessie in the autumn tour of CALENDAR GIRLS The Musical. Ruth has made a full recovery following an injury earlier this year: “I’m a fighter and I’m back in this wonderful show and I can’t think of anywhere else I’d rather be.”

Following a summer break, CALENDAR GIRLS The Musical, based on the true story, the film and the award-winning play, will open at Bournemouth Pavilion on 17 September, with the tour ending on 23 November at Chichester Festival Theatre.

Ruth Madoc is perhaps best known for playing Gladys Pugh in the 1980s BBC television comedy Hi-de-Hi! & Dafydd’s Mum in Little Britain (also BBC).  Her other notable TV appearances includeBev in Casualty (BBC One), Mayor Mary Meyer in Stella (Sky One),Florence in Mount Pleasant (Sky One) and Rhiannon in Benidorm (ITV). Ruth’s theatre credits include Grandma Rose in The Wedding Singer (UK Tour), Matron in Be My Baby (UK Tour), Marie in Calendar Girls (UK Tour), Miss Hannigan in Annie (UK Tour), The Vagina Monologues (UK Tour), Dorothy Brook in 42nd Street (UK Tour) and Mama Rose in Gypsy (Newpalm Productions).

Ruth joins current cast members Sarah Jane Buckley (Blood Brothers and Kathy Barnes in Hollyoaks) as Annie, Sue Devaney (Years and Years on BBC 1, Jane in Dinnerladies, Liz Harker in Casualty, Debbie Webster in Coronation Street and Rosie in the musical Mamma Mia!) as Cora, Julia Hills (Doctor Kemp in Broadchurch, Annabelle Shrivener in The Archers) as Ruth, Judy Holt (Cold Feet, Scott & Bailey) as Marie, Lisa Maxwell (panellist on Loose Women, Tracey Donovan in Hollyoaks, Samantha Nixon in The Bill and various roles in The Les Dennis Laughter Show and The Russ Abbot Show) as Celia and Rebecca Storm (discovered by Willy Russell and cast as Mrs Johnstone in Blood Brothers, and her handprints are part of the Dublin’s Gaiety Theatre Walk of Fame) as Chris.

Also in the cast are Claudia Bradley as Miss Wilson, Phil Corbitt as John, Ian Mercer as Rod, Sebastian Abineri as Colin, Alan Stocks as Denis, Derek Elroy as Lawrence, Pauline Daniels as Lady Cravenshire, Ellie Leah as Miss Wilson, Danny Howker as Danny, Isabel Caswell as Jenny and Tyler Dobbs as Tommo.

The critically acclaimed and award-winning production played a six-month London season at the Phoenix Theatre in 2017, and, before that, this musical comedy played sold-out seasons in Leeds and Manchester.   

Gary Barlow and Tim Firth grew up in the same village in the North of England and have been friends for 25 years.  With Take That, Gary has written and co-written 14 number one singles, has sold over 50 million records worldwide and is a six times Ivor Novello Award winner.  Tim has won the Olivier Award and UK Theatre Award for Best New Musical, and the British Comedy Awards Best Comedy Film for Calendar Girls.

CALENDAR GIRLS THE MUSICAL is inspired by the true story of a group of ladies, who decide to appear nude for a Women’s Institute calendar in order to raise funds to buy a settee for their local hospital, in memory of one of their husbands, and have to date raised almost £5million for Bloodwise. This musical comedy shows life in their Yorkshire village, how it happened, the effect on husbands, sons and daughters, and how a group of ordinary ladies achieved something extraordinary. 

Bloodwise, the UK’s specialist blood cancer charity, will continue to receive monies from this production.

CALENDAR GIRLS The Musical is directed by Matt Ryan and designed by Robert Jones, with comedy staging by Jos Houben, movement by Lucy Hind and casting by Sarah Bird.

Website: www.calendargirlsthemusical.com

Facebook: @thegirlsmusical

Twitter: @thegirlsmusical

2019 TOUR SCHEDULE

17 – 21 September                 Bournemouth Pavilion                                                0844 576 3000         

                                               www.bournemouthpavilion.co.uk

24 – 28 September                 Wolverhampton Grand                                               01902 42 92 12

                                               www.grandtheatre.co.uk

1 – 5 October                         New Wimbledon Theatre                                             0844 871 7646

                                               www.atgtickets.com/new-wimbledon-theatre

8 – 12 October                       Royal & Derngate Northampton                                  01604 624811

                                               www.royalandderngate.co.uk

15 – 19 October                     Blackpool Opera House                                             0844 856 1111

                                               www.wintergardensblackpool.co.uk

22 – 26 October                     Ipswich Regent Theatre                                              01473 433100

                                               www.ipswichregent.com                                            

29 October – 2 November       Chester Storyhouse                                                   01244 409113          

                                                www.storyhouse.com

5 – 9 November                      Theatre Royal Bath                                                    01225 448844

                                                www.theatreroyal.org.uk

13 – 23 November                  Chichester Festival Theatre                                         01243 781312

                                                 www.cft.org.uk                                                         On sale 14 September

CASTING ANNOUNCED FOR GHOST QUARTET AT THE BOULEVARD THEATRE

• THE CAST WILL BE CARLY BAWDEN, NICCOLÒ CURRADI, MAIMUNA MEMON AND ZUBIN VARLA
   
• THE LONDON PREMIERE OF GHOST QUARTET, THE INAUGURAL SHOW OF THE BOULEVARD THEATRE, RUNS FROM 24 OCTOBER TO 4 JANUARY

The Boulevard Theatre today announces casting for its opening production Ghost Quartet. The cast will include Carly Bawden (Romantics Anonymous, Sam Wanamaker Playhouse), Niccolò Curradi (Hotel for Criminals, New Wimbledon Studio), Maimuna Memon (Jesus Christ Superstar, Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre) and Zubin Varla (Fun Home, Young Vic). 

London’s newest theatre, led by Fawn James Director of Soho Estates and Artistic Director Rachel Edwards, will open its doors to the public for the first time on 24 October as previews for Ghost Quartet begin.  The production will run alongside a packed roster of late-night and Sunday performances of cabaret, improv, jazz, comedy, classical music and poetry.  For more details see here boulevardtheatre.co.uk.

Ghost Quartet, is written by the Tony Award-nominated writer of Broadway smash-hit Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812 Dave Malloy. Bill Buckhurst directs and reunites the creative team behind his sell-out production of Stephen Sondheim’s Sweeney Todd, which transferred from a pie shop in Tooting, to the West End, and eventually to a sell-out New York run, with musical direction and supervision by Benjamin Cox, design by Simon Kenny, movement direction by Georgina Lamb, lighting by Emma Chapman, sound design by David Gregory and casting by Will Burton CDG.

Ghost Quartet is an intoxicating musical of love, loss and spirits – of both the spectral and alcoholic kind.   Wildly inventive, Malloy’s piece draws inspiration from a rich tapestry of work from Arabian Nights and Edgar Allan Poe to Stephen King, Grimms’ fairy-tales, Stephen Sondheim and Frozen, woven together by jazz, gospel, honky-tonk, folk ballads, electro-pop and jazz. This haunting song cycle is a story about stories themselves; how we tell them, how we hear them, and how they evolve, intertwine and draw us in.

Located in the heart of Soho in Walker’s Court, the brand new Boulevard Theatre is situated in the exact location where Fawn James’ grandfather Paul Raymond opened the original Boulevard Theatre which became home to Peter Richardson’s Comic Strip in the 1980s.  Architects SODA studio, in collaboration with theatre specialists Charcoalblue, have designed an innovative new flexible space which features Europe’s most advanced revolving theatre and a two-floor glass bridge leading to a restaurant and bar area.

Open 8am to 1am daily, the Boulevard’s restaurant and bar will cater to all tastes and budgets, from lunchtime light bites and grazing boards, to indulgent à la carte dining. Vibrant, sensory and un-fussy: the menus, created by head chef Greg Hillier, will focus on quality ingredients treated well with a conscious lean towards plant-based cookery. Audiences will be able to enhance their evening with a pre-show fixed price menu that will draw inspiration from the current production onstage, whilst enjoying a carefully curated range of drinks promoting top-quality local suppliers and artisan producers. 

LISTINGS

GHOST QUARTET
Music, Lyrics and Text by Dave Malloy
Directed by Bill Buckhurst

Boulevard Theatre
6 Walker’s Court
Soho
W1F 0BT

First Performance: 24 October 2019
Final Performance: 4 January 2020
Opening Night: 31 October 2019

Monday – Saturday at 7.30pm, Thursday and Saturday matinees at 2.30pm

https://www.boulevardtheatre.co.uk/whats-on/ghost-quartet/

OPERA FOR TODDLERS… Jill Murphy’s much-loved children’s picture book, PEACE AT LAST, is adapted into a musical adventure for young audiences

egg theatre, Saturday 21 & Sunday 22 September

Olivier Award winners OperaUpClose make their egg theatre debut this month with PEACE AT LAST, a musical story for ages 3 -5, based on the picture book by Jill Murphy.

Mr Bear can’t sleep. Mrs Bear is snoring. So he goes to sleep in Baby Bear’s room. But Baby Bear is pretending to be an aeroplane. So he goes to sleep in the living room…

OperaUpClose have teamed up with Gallions Primary School in Newham to create this new opera based on the much-loved picture book, which has been delighting families for generations. This perfect introduction to opera and musical theatre for early years children is performed by three singers, accompanied by harp and woodwind.

Peace At Last premiered at the Gallions Festival in July, taking opera to a large primary school in the heart of East London. The show now visits the egg theatre as part of a national tour which will include performances to over 6000 school children across the country. OperaUpClose are in their tenth year of producing innovatively staged, unintimidating, affordable and high quality English chamber re-imaginings of well-known works, and premieres of new operas. Their chamber production of the epic La Boheme won the 2011 Olivier Award for Best Opera Production.

PEACE AT LAST is at the egg theatre on Saturday 21 & Sunday 22 September.

Please note, Sunday 11.30am is SOLD OUT – availability is very limited at all other performances.

Tickets are on sale from the egg reception on 01225 823409, the Theatre Royal Box Office on 01225 448844 and online at www.theatreroyal.org.uk

BELFAST ENSEMBLE AND OUTBURST ARTS PRESENT

ABOMINATION

A DUP OPERA

The Belfast Ensemble is back with an incendiary new opera from acclaimed composer Conor Mitchell to open Belfast’s Outburst Queer Arts Festival on 8^th November 2019.  Abomination, A DUP Opera sets the former DUP MP Iris Robinson’s infamous 2008 live BBC Radio Ulster interview (in which she condemns homosexuality as “an abomination”) to live orchestral music. The interview was given just days after a gay man was physically assaulted in Northern Ireland because of his sexuality.

In a major new co-production by The Belfast Ensemble and Outburst Arts, this fully staged, full length opera will open the 2019 Outburst Queer Arts Festival (now in its thirteenth year) on 8^th November. Short excerpts of Abomination were first performed in concert form in 2018.

The show opens a week after the Brexit deadline on October 31^st and just two weeks after the Westminster-approved date for same sex marriage to be introduced in Northern Ireland. Should that remain unchallenged by a Northern Ireland Assembly, which, to date, is still in hiatus after its collapse in January 2017, making this work even more timely.

Fusing opera performance with drag, cabaret and political satire, Abomination composer Conor Mitchell amplifies his fresh, bold vision for contemporary classical music to explore attitudes to LGBTQ people in Northern Ireland, cited as the most homophobic place in Western Europe.  The piece’s libretto features historical and recent comments by DUP members on gay rights, trans lives, marriage equality, ‘poofs’ and ‘perverts’ alongside Iris Robinson’s words from her infamous BBC interview.

Featuring a chamber orchestra and a quartet of opera singers, the cast will also include Irish actor and drag queen Matthew Cavan and Canadian soprano Rebecca Caine who both performed in the concert performances in 2018.

Composer and Belfast Ensemble Director Conor Mitchell said:

“Opera has a long tradition of tackling contemporary, charged subjects, no matter time in history. Verdi, Britten, Brecht and Weill, they all did that. This is what makes opera such a great medium: it can handle ‘the epic’ and the currents of social change. That’s what excites me. I think opera as a form is treading water right now and this work is my antidote to that! It’s a chance to bring that vital, relevant, dangerous edge back to what I feel opera has always been about. It’s a challenge to the establishment in both operatic and social terms and bringing that sensibility and energy to a 21^st century audience. That is what my work is always about.” 

 Artistic Director of Outburst Arts Ruth McCarthy added:

“A big part of Outburst’s mission is to support ambitious, risk-taking new work from the best artists working in Northern Ireland. We are delighted to work with Conor and The Belfast Ensemble on realising Outburst’s first major co-commission supported through our Paul Hamlyn Foundation Breakthrough Award. Not only is Abomination stunning, cutting edge work in artistic terms, it’s also a vital examination of the violent impact that words have on all those who are treated as less-than in terms of human rights and “other” in terms of full social inclusion.”

Abomination is a timely reminder that legislative change is not the only change needed. At a time when freedom of speech is under threat globally yet frequently invoked to legitimise hate speech, Abomination explores and examines the power of words, and challenges the audience to create a new narrative beyond the bluster and bruising of politicians and the media.

Abomination, A DUP Opera is produced by The Belfast Ensemble and Outburst Arts with the support of Paul Hamlyn Foundation, the Arts Council of Northern Ireland and British Council.

The showopens at the Lyric Theatre Belfast on Friday 8^th November at 7.30pm to launch the 13^th annual Outburst Queer Arts Festival, with a preview performance on Thursday 7^th and additional performances on Saturday 9^th and Sunday 10^th November.

Further details and tickets from www.lyrictheatre.co.uk

T I N A – T H E   T I N A   T U R N E R   M U S I C A L

NEW TICKETS RELEASED

NOW BOOKING IN WEST END TO JUNE 2020

NEW CHILDREN’S CAST ANNOUNCED

Over 200,000 new tickets are released for sale today (9 September 2019) for TINA – THE TINA TURNER MUSICAL based on the life of legendary artist Tina Turner which is now booking at the Aldwych Theatre in the West End to 27 June 2020.

The children’s cast (from 20 September 2019) comprises Miah Hasselbaink twelve years old from Surrey, Athea Andi eleven years old from Surrey and Ayani Lingibe-Ajavon ten years old from Hertfordshire share the role of Young Anna Mae; Mimi Etete-Edge twelve years old from Brighton, Perola Da Cunha eleven years old from Hackney and Jasmine Djazel nine years old from Wandsworth share the role of Young Alline; and Cameron Mukasa-Brown seven years old from Waltham Forest, Theo Lee nine years old from Hounslow and Romell Barrocks-Bedeau nine years old from Lambeth share the role Young Craig.

From humble beginnings in Nutbush, Tennessee, to her transformation into the global Queen of Rock ‘n’ Roll, Tina Turner didn’t just break the rules, she rewrote them. This new stage musical, presented in association with Tina Turner herself, reveals the untold story of a woman who dared to defy the bounds of her age, gender and race. 

In the West End, the current cast comprises Nkeki Obi-Melekwe and Ashley Zhangazha who continue as Tina and Ike Turner with Aisha Jawando playing the role of Tina at some performances each week,  Madeline Appiah playing the role of Tina’s mother Zelma, Irene Myrtle Forrester as Tina’s Grandmother GG, Howard Gossington as Record Producer Phil Spector and Lyricist Terry Britten, Francesca Jackson as Ike and Tina’s manager Rhonda Graam, Ava Brennan as Tina’s sister Alline Bullock, Jammy Kasongo as Tina’s father Richard Bullock and Tina’s first love Raymond Hill, Edward Bourne as record company Marketing Manager Erwin Bach and Oscar Batterham as Tina’s Manager Roger Davies.

Ensemble members are Daniella Bowen, Chloe Chambers, Joelle Dyson, Lejaun Sheppard, Joseph Richardson, Kibong Tanji, Jayme-Lee Zanoncelli, Cameron Bernard Jones who also plays Tina’s son Craig and Ashlee Irish who plays Tina’s son Ronnie, and swings Gavin Alex, Derek Aidoo, Joshua Da Costa, Amandla Elynah, Hannah Jay-Allan, Angela Marie Hurst, Leisha Mollyneaux and Samuel J. Weir. 

From 23 September 2019 Aisha Jawando will play the title role, with Tsemaye Bob-Egbe playing the role of Tina at some performances each week.  Nkeki Obi-Melekwe will join the Broadway company later this year to play Tina at certain performances.  Adrienne Warren, who originated the role here in the West End, will lead the Broadway cast with performances beginning 12 October 2019.  In Hamburg, Kristina Love continues to play Tina Turner in the German production.

Directed by Phyllida Lloyd and written by Katori Hall with Frank Ketelaar and Kees Prins, TINA – THE TINA TURNER MUSICAL is choreographed by Anthony van Laast, with set and costume designs by Mark Thompson, musical supervision by Nicholas Skilbeck, lighting by Bruno Poet,sound by Nevin Steinberg, projection design by Jeff Sugg and orchestrations by Ethan Popp. 

The critically acclaimed production received its world premiere in April 2018 in London and subsequently has broken all Box Office records at the Aldwych Theatre.  Earlier this year the German premiere of TINA – THE TINA TURNER MUSICAL began performances at the Stage Operettenhaus in Hamburg and the musical will begin Broadway performances at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre from 12 October 2019.

TINA – THE TINA TURNER MUSICAL is produced in the West End by Stage Entertainment, Joop van den Ende and Tali Pelman, in association with Tina Turner.

LISTINGS INFORMATION

Theatre:                    Aldwych Theatre, Aldwych, London WC2B 4DF

Dates:                       now booking to 27 June 2020

Performances:        new performance schedule from 13 January 2020:

Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday at 7.30pm

                                Tuesday at 7pm

Thursdays and Saturdays at 2.30pm

Box Office:                0845 200 7981

Website:                   www.tinathemusical.com

Facebook:                 TinaTheMusical

Twitter:                    TinaTheMusical

Instagram:                TinaTheMusical

FAUSTUS: THAT DAMNED WOMAN

A Headlong and Lyric Hammersmith Theatre co-production,
 in association with Birmingham Repertory Theatre

Headlong and the Lyric Hammersmith Theatre in association with Birmingham Repertory Theatre today announced Faustus: That Damned Woman a new play from award-winning playwright and theatre maker Chris Bush (Standing at the Sky’s Edge) which will premiere at the Lyric Hammersmith Theatre in January 2020 and at Birmingham Repertory Theatre in February 2020 before touring the UK.

Drawing on the works of Marlowe, Goethe, and other versions of the Faustus myth, Chris’s urgent reimagining asks what we must sacrifice to achieve greatness and the legacy that we leave behind.

“My name is Johanna Faustus. I was born almost four hundred years ago.
I gave my soul to achieve the impossible.
I watched this city grow sick and I swore to heal it.
I might be damned, but I would save the world to spite the Devil.”

Faustus: That Damned Woman is the first work to be commissioned as part of Headlong and the Lyric Hammersmith Theatre’s long-term commitment to commissioning and producing work of scale by women playwrights.

Caroline Byrne directs this radical new work in which the iconic character of Faustus is reimagined as a woman who makes the ultimate sacrifice to traverse centuries and change the course of history. The creative team are set designer Ana Inés Jabares-Pita, costume designer Line Bech, lighting designer Richard Howell, sound and composition designer Giles Thomas, video and projection designer Ian William Galloway and casting director Annelie Powell CDG.

The piece will have its world premiere at the Lyric Hammersmith Theatre on 22 January 2020, before playing at Birmingham Repertory Theatre from 26 February. The production will then tour throughout the Spring visiting Bristol Old Vic, Leeds Playhouse and Northern Stage from March and April 2020.

Chris Bush is an award-winning playwright, lyricist and theatre maker. Her writing credits include Standing at the Sky’s Edge, a collaboration with musician Richard Hawley, Steel (both Sheffield Crucible Theatre), The Assassination of Katie Hopkins (Theatr Clwyd), Pericles (NT) and The Changing Room (NT Connections).

Caroline Byrne is known for her distinctive and innovative direction. Her theatre credits include Spring Awakening (Young Vic), All’s Well That Ends Well (Sam Wanamaker Theatre), Katie Roche (Abbey Theatre, Dublin) Oliver Twist (Regents Park) and Taming of the Shrew (Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre). Her upcoming work includes Portia Coughlan starring Ruth Negga (Young Vic).

LISTINGS

FAUSTUS: THAT DAMNED WOMAN

Lyric Hammersmith Theatre
Lyric Square, King St, Hammersmith, London W6 0QL
22 January – 22 February 2020
https://lyric.co.uk/ 
Studio Talk: Faustus: That Damned Woman – I’d sell my soul for…
Tuesday 18 February, 6pm
Panel to include Fiona Mountford (host) and Chris Bush.

Studio Talk is a new programme of pre-show events hosted by Fiona Mountford, each inspired by the Lyric’s Main House productions, as part of Rachel O’Riordan’s first season as Artistic Director. 

Free First Night (Wednesday 22 January): The Lyric is proud to call Hammersmith their home. In 2016 they celebrated the 20th anniversary of their Free First Night scheme, part of their long term partnership with the London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham, through which they give free tickets to people who live or work locally.

Birmingham Repertory Theatre
Centenary Square, Birmingham B1 2EP
26 February – 7 March, 2020
https://www.birmingham-rep.co.uk/

AMBASSADOR THEATRE GROUP PRODUCTIONS

PAULA WAGNER

NICE PRODUCTIONS AND LPO

PRESENT THE SMASH HIT

AT THE PICCADILLY THEATRE

FOR A STRICTLY LIMITED ENGAGEMENT OF 46 WEEKS

PREVIEWS BEGIN ON VALENTINE’S DAY 2020

MUSIC AND LYRICS

BY

BRYAN ADAMS AND JIM VALLANCE

BOOK BY GARRY MARSHALL AND J.F. LAWTON

DIRECTED AND CHOREOGRAPHED BY JERRY MITCHELL

ALL TICKETS FOR THE ENTIRE RUN

ON SALE 13 SEPTEMBER 2019

PrettyWomanTheMusical.com

Ambassador Theatre Group Productions, Paula Wagner, Nice Productions and LPO announced today that the smash hit PRETTY WOMAN: THE MUSICAL will preview from Valentine’s Day 2020 at the Piccadilly Theatre where it will play for a strictly limited engagement of 46 weeks. Tickets on sale 13 September 2019. PrettyWomanTheMusical.com Casting to be announced soon.

Featuring original music and lyrics by Grammy Award winner Bryan Adams and Jim Vallance, a book by Garry Marshall and the film’s screenwriter J.F. Lawton, it is directed and choreographed by the two-time Tony Award winner Jerry Mitchell.

Adam Speers, Ambassador Theatre Group Productions said today “The West End loves a big night out and none come bigger than this new production re-telling the iconic and much loved movie. The UK has rocked to the legendary work of Bryan Adams and Jim Vallance for decades and we cannot wait to welcome audiences to the show”.

Paula Wagner said “It is really wonderful that UK audiences will get to experience Pretty Woman: The Musical at the Piccadilly Theatre next year. Bryan and Jim’s original score for the show brings an electric new dimension to Garry Marshall and J.F. Lawton’s beloved film. We were so fortunate to have Garry working with J.F. on the book of the show. They really captured the essence of Pretty Woman, and along with Jerry’s skillful direction and choreography, this classic love story really has become a great night out at the theatre. 2020 also marks 30 years since the release of the film, and I can’t think of a better place than the Piccadilly Theatre to celebrate!”.

Featured in the musical is Roy Orbison and Bill Dee’s international smash hit song ‘Oh, Pretty Woman’ which inspired one of the most beloved romantic comedy films of all time. PRETTY WOMAN the film (produced by Arnon Milchan – New Regency Productions) was an international smash hit when it was released in 1990 becoming the third highest-grossing film worldwide that year. The film still holds the highest number of tickets in the US for a romantic comedy.

Atlantic Records’ PRETTY WOMAN: THE MUSICAL (ORIGINAL BROADWAY CAST RECORDING) is produced by Bryan Adams and Jim Vallance and is now available on all DSP’s.

PRETTY WOMAN: THE MUSICAL has scenic design by David Rockwell, costume design by Gregg Barnes, lighting design by Kenneth Posner and Philip S. Rosenberg, sound design by John Shivers, hair design by Josh Marquette, and music supervision, arrangements and orchestrations by Will Van Dyke. 101 Productions, Ltd. is theUS General Manager.

PRETTY WOMAN: THE MUSICAL had its world premiere at Chicago’s Oriental Theatre in March 2018 before transferring to Broadway where it ran at the Nederlander Theatre until August this year. The German production will open in Hamburg at the Stage Theater an der Elbe on 29 September and the US tour will begin in September 2020. During its Broadway run, the show broke the box office record a total of four times and won three Audience Choice Awards. Critics and audiences alike have hailed the show ‘A Must See Show’ (Entertainment Tonight), ‘If you love the movie, you’ll love the musical’ (BuzzFeed News) and ‘A musical hit. A joyous production’ (Daily Telegraph).

LISTINGS

PRETTY WOMAN: THE MUSICAL

Piccadilly Theatre, Denman Street, London W1

PrettyWomanTheMusical.com

Facebook & Twitter follow us @PRETTYWOMANUK

Instagram PRETTYWOMANMUSICALUK

0844 871 7615

Priority access for the next 4 days via Encoretickets.co.uk now open

Performances from 14 February 2020

Monday – Saturday at 7.30pm

Matinees – Wednesday and Saturday at 2.30pm

The Turbine Theatre – until 13 October 2019

Reviewed by Claire Roderick

4****

The Turbine Theatre opens with an assured revival of Harvey Fierstein’s Torch Song. This is the revised 2017 version, packing the original trilogy of plays into just over 2 ½ hours.

Matthew Needham shines as Arnold Beckoff, a drag queen first seen preparing to perform as Virginia Ham. The play begins with International Stud, a series of monologues to the audience with little or no physical interaction between the cast, introducing Arnold in all his glorious bitchiness as he categorises and criticises men but still hopes to find a lasting love, and Ed (Dino Fetscher) a bisexual teacher who picks up Arnold. The men’s relationship is hampered by Ed’s secrecy, and Arnold eventually discovers that Ed is dating a woman. Fugue in a Nursery sees Ed married to Laurel (Daisy Boulton) and Arnold in a new relationship with younger man Alan (Rish Shah) as the two couples spend time together at Ed’s house. This is staged imaginatively and sparingly on a large bed, condensing a weekend into a series of short, snappy scenes. After the interval, Widows and Children First! has a more linear sitcom feel to it, with Arnold’s mother’s (Bernice Stegers) visit a source of stress for Arnold and amusement for Ed and teenager David (Jay Lycurgo).

Director Drew McOnie keeps things tight without losing the freewheeling fell of the first two plays, and James Whiteside’s efficient design means that scene changes don’t detract from the performance or slow down the plot. Needham is stunning as Arnold, rising to the challenge of Fierstein’s meaty role and nailing both the caustic wit and vulnerability. His monologues were the highlight of the show for me. Fetscher is impressive as Ed, making most of the audience want to slap him for being so selfish and indecisive. Jay Lycurgo’s performance as 15-year-old David is full of mischievous warmth, making his scenes where he proves himself the most mature person in the room more poignant. The darker moments are played beautifully, never overshadowing the life-affirming joy that leaps from the stage as Arnold and Ed both search for a family and acceptance.

An emotional and uplifting production that opens this new theatre in spectacular style.

The Other Palace – until 23 November 2019

Reviewed by Claire Roderick

4****

27 years after its Broadway debut, Falsettos finally arrives in London. William Finn and James Lapine’s energetic musical tells the story of an unconventional Jewish family in 1980s New York. The controversy around a production about Jews having no Jewish creatives involved hasn’t died down, but Marvin (Daniel Boys) has left his wife Trina (Laura Pitt-Pullford) for his best friend Whizzer (Oliver Savile) and suggests that Trina visit his psychiatrist Mendel (Joel Montague). Mendel falls in love with Trina while Marvin and Trina’s 12-year-old son Jason watches and tries to make sense of the situation. The first act is crammed with songs that bounce along with joyfully bitchy lyrics that are a lot of fun, but a few could be cut without damaging the plot. Laura Pitt- Pullford gleefully steals the show with her big number I’m Breaking Down, hamming it up with a wine bottle and various kitchen implements. It’s a blast – the cast showcasing their talent and creating many laughs.

The second act is a little more coherent and darker, with the parents getting worked up planning Jason’s bar mitzvah. Marvin’s lesbian neighbours are introduced – chef Cordelia (Natasha J Barnes) and doctor Charlotte (Gemma Knight-Jones). They don’t really have much to do apart from add to the glorious harmonies, but Charlotte’s anxiety about the mysterious disease striking down homosexual men signals the descent into tragedy for the gay couple. The inevitable ending is staged beautifully, with the acceptance that the group are a real family and surrounded by love leaving a lump in your throat.

The cast are all on top form, nailing the tricky lyrics and melodies, George Kennedy played Jason on the night I saw the show, and he was cute and confident, holding his own amongst the talented adults. Director/choreographer Tara Overfield-Wilkinson’s routines and pacing are slick and sassy. PJ McEvoy’s set design – a chess board floor and picture frames that initially show projected images of ideal family portraits and change to various primary colours as the décor of each location is projected on them – is bold but slightly cartoony.

This show will not be to everybody’s taste, but I loved it – a fast and furious score and an animated cast in outstanding voice, Grab a ticket while you can.

Jack Studio Theatre – until 28 September 2019

Reviewed by Claire Roderick

5*****

Arrows & Traps’ track record adapting classics is second to none, and with this new production Ross McGregor has created something startlingly modern and original that still embraces its Victorian origins. The entitled cruelty and hypocrisy of Victorian society echoes down the years by transplanting Henry Jekyll into the world of modern US politics, where optics and soundbites are everything and political heroes harbour dark secrets. Most of the characters in the original novel apart from the titular duo aren’t that interesting, serving as narrators or reacting to the horror, but McGregor has written multi-layered and fascinating roles that tell this familiar story with both immediacy and fatalism.

Reporter Gabrielle Utterson’s investigations into an attack on a child sets her on the trail of the mysterious Edward Hyde. Helped by sexworker Imogen Poole, who witnessed the aftermath of Hyde’s brutality, she follows the trail to Indiana mayor Henry Jekyll. Following Trump’s impeachment, Jekyll is running for president and his liberal ideas convince Utterson to work on his campaign. But Hyde still lurks in the background. There are jumps between the present and four years earlier to the time when Jekyll first met Hyde and the relationship they developed. Hyde is a Republican school teacher, openly gay, but Jekyll’s political ambitions keep him closeted. This Hyde is a completely different animal to the Hyde in the present, and it’s a slow burn following a trail of clues that lead to the final revelation of the mechanics of Jekyll’s scientific experiment. Jekyll’s reasons are much less detached and scientific than the original, but come from a place of grief, rage and helplessness that are completely understandable and more human.

In this political play, school shootings, gun control, Black Lives Matter and many more issues that cause division and anger are tackled by Jekyll in his public and private speeches, and he is already adept at hiding his true self from public view before the darkness of Hyde looms large. Utterson’s devastating backstory involving her senator father’s depraved private life makes her fascination with and urge to help Jekyll poignant and pathetic.

Will Pinchin is charismatic and charming as Jekyll, making his gradual loss of control all the more shocking as Pinchin deforms before your eyes, physically and vocally in a masterful performance. Christopher Tester is effortlessly evil as Hyde, with a silky voice and a malevolent stillness that is hypnotic and horrifying. Lucy Ioannou gives an astonishing performance – as Utterson she is nearly vibrating with tormented energy, world weary and damaged, but wearing her pain like armour. Gabrielle Nellis-Pain impresses as Imogen Poole, providing a warm, empathetic anchor for Utterson, and the whole play, and Charlie Ryall nails the tragi-comic social awkwardness of razor-sharp scientist Hayley Lanyon. Most of the cast have worked with director Ross McGregor many times, so the meticulous attention to detail, where every move and glance is meaningful and almost poetic appears effortless. The sound and lighting (by Alistair Lax and Anna Reddyhoff) are as beautiful and instinctive as you’d expect from Arrows & Traps, and the use of projections and sheer panels in Charlotte Cooke’s set design is inspired, creating atmospheric transformations that nod to the spiritualist tricks of the Victorian era. The total theatrical package – another stunner from Arrows & Traps.