Month: March 2018

Grand Opera House York Thursday 15th March 2018. Reviewed by Michelle Richardson

5*****

After 10 years at the Edinburgh Fringe, a radio series, a West End run and an Oliver award under their belt, the Showstopper company bought their fantastic improvised show to the Grand Opera house on Thursday night. A new musical is promised each night, with the performers making it all up on the spot, so no two performances will ever be the same.

We, the audience, were encouraged to throw some ideas around after the narrator, Sean McCann, receives a phone call from “Cameron”. With arms up in the air, the audience comes out with locality suggestions ranging from The Vatican to a little bar in the West Midlands. The ancient city of Pompeii is ultimately chosen after receiving the biggest cheer. Other ideas, scenarios and musical styles are then thrown about, then we waited to see what happens.

After naming the new musical I Wish I’d Left Earlier, Andrea’s suggestion, the group of 5 actors, accompanied by 3 musicians, took to the stage, with McCann keeping the show on track and prompting new ideas, bring our musical to life. So, we were treated to “funk”, “falsetto”, “Rogers & Hammerstein”, “Cats”, “Rigoletto”, “Rocky Horror Show” (my personal favourite), plus several other influences, all in the one musical.

This was the story of Pompeii, telling you the story in a different way. What ensued was an hilarious story of Fred, the Collector of Sticks, Maximus, with his writings of Wine and Olives, 1, 2 and 3, Tiberius, Jacinta and her father, the 97 year old cleaner of sticks. With Mount Vesuvius and that little pub somewhere in the West Midlands thrown in, it made for a bizarre and fascinating tale.

The whole performance was slick and so very clever, with the cast, from actors, musicians and McCann, superb from the get go. No matter what was thrown at them they delivered, and their knowledge of musical theatre and musical styles was vast, and those brummie accents and Brew XI were the icing on the cake. There was never a dull moment with such talent on stage, improvising as they went along, never missing a beat, they all looked like they were having a blast.

It was bonkers, hilarious, so very funny and I would love to see another one, to find out where that journey would take me. Definitely not to be missed.

A CHILLER OF A THRILLER COMING TO DARLINGTON HIPPODROME

Middle Ground Theatre Company is to present a world premier stage adaptation at Darlington Hippodrome from Tuesday 27 to Saturday 31 March.

Gallowglass – a chilling thriller from the pen of Ruth Rendell (writing as Barbara Vine) – is coming to Darlington Hippodrome with a cast of familiar faces including Paul Opacic (Bad Girls, Emmerdale, Hollyoaks), Richard Walsh (London’s Burning) and Karen Drury (Brookside).

When Sandor snatches Joe from the path of a London tube train, he is quick to make clear the terms of the rescue. “I saved your life”, he told the homeless youngster, “so your life belongs to me now”.

Sandor begins to tell him a fairy tale: an ageing prince, a kidnapped princess, a missed rendezvous… But what does this mysterious story have to do with Sandor? Joe only understands his own role – he is a Gallowglass, the servant of a chief.

Gallowglass runs at Darlington Hippodrome from Tuesday 27 to Saturday 31 March.

For more information or to book contact the box office on 01325 405405 or visit www.darlingtonhippodrome.co.uk

FULL CASTING ANNOUNCED FOR

MERCURY THEATRE COLCHESTER AND TBO PRODUCTIONS’

BRAND NEW MUSICAL PIECES OF STRING

 

Developed by Perfect Pitch

Co-produced by the Mercury Theatre Colchester and TBO Productions

PIECES OF STRING

Book, Music & Lyrics by Gus Gowland

 

Directed by Ryan McBryde; Designed by Fin Redshaw; Musical Direction by Paul Herbert

Lighting Designed by Ben Cracknell; Movement Direction by Ellen Kane

20 April – 5 May

 

A Made in Colchester production

 

Mercury Theatre Colchester and TBO Productions today announce full casting for the world première of their brand-new musical – Pieces of String, with book, music and lyrics by Gus Gowland. Ryan McBryde directs Carol Starks (Jane), Andy Coxon (Ed), Marilyn Cutts (Rose), Ella Dunlop (Gemma), Lauren Hall (Anna), Joel Harper-Jackson (Tom), Craig Mather (Edward) and Gary Wood (Harry). Open auditions were held in Colchester to cast Young Rose, and the part will be alternated by three young people local to the theatre. Pieces of String, designed by 2017 Linbury Prize Finalist Fin Redshaw, opens on 27 April at the Mercury, with previews from 20 April and runs until 5 May.

 

When Jane returns from her father’s funeral to start clearing the house she grew up in – packing away the family photographs, closing a chapter – she isn’t prepared for the untold story she’s about to discover threaded through her past, a story that threatens to unravel her relationship with her own children and shake her understanding of who she is.

 

A new musical set simultaneously in the 1940s and in the present day, Pieces Of String tells how Jane’s father, Edward, came back from the Second World War with a secret that would change his life forever – a secret that he would carry until the day he died.

 

With hauntingly beautiful music and a heart-rending human story, Pieces Of String is a tender, funny, emotionally-charged exploration of how three generations of one family learn to deal with a story that nobody’s been brave enough to tell until today. Times may have changed but some battles still need to be fought.

 

Carol Starks plays Jane. Her theatre credits include Roundabout (Park Theatre/59E59 Theatre NYC), Before the Party (UK tour), Dirty Dancing (Aldwych Theatre), Hedda Gabler (Donmar Warehouse – Ian Charleson award commendation), The Robbers and Aurelie, My Sister (Gate Theatre), Sweeney Todd and The Crucible (National Theatre). Her television credits include Wallander, Shameless, Blue Murder, Family Affairs, William & Mary, Redcap, Peak Practice, Reckless, Keeping Mum, Family Money, Trust Me, Lipstick On Your Collar, The Guilty, May To December, Vincent Van Gogh and The Ginger Tree.

 

Andy Coxon plays Ed. His theatre credits include Hair (The Vaults), Yank! (Charing Cross Theatre), The Last Five Years (Kulturhaus, Frankfurt), Sister Act (Kilworth House Theatre), 20th Century Boy – The Marc Bolan Musical(UK tour), Another Way (Cockpit Theatre), Les Misérables (Queen’s Theatre), The Rocky Horror Show and Evita(European tour); and for film, Les Misérables and The Agency.

Marilyn Cutts plays Rose. Her theatre work includes Funny Girl (Menier Chocolate Factory and Savoy Theatre),The Mystery of Edwin Drood, Never Forget (Savoy Theatre), Wicked (Apollo Victoria), The Rose Tattoo, Oklahoma! (National Theatre), La Traviata (Donmar Warehouse) and Show Boat (London Palladium). For film, her work includes Les Miserables.

Ella Dunlop plays Gemma. Her theatre credits include The Passing of The Third Floor Back (Finborough Theatre), The Comedy of Errors (Northcott Theatre, Exeter) and Conscience (Leicester Square Theatre).

Lauren Hall plays Anna. Her theatre credits includes Mrs Henderson Presents (Royal Alexander Theatre Toronto), Annie Get Your Gun (Sheffield Crucible Theatre), Annie (UK tour), Gypsy (The Savoy Theatre), Singin’ in The Rain (UK tour and Tokyu Theatre Orb Japan), Loserville (Garrick Theatre and West Yorkshire Playhouse), Jersey Boys (Prince Edward Theatre), 42nd Street (Chichester Festival Theatre), High School Musical 2 (UK tour) and The Showgirl Within (Garrick Theatre).

Joel Harper-Jackson plays Tom. His theatre credits include Myth: The Rise and Fall of Orpheus (The Other Palace), The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time (UK tour), Jesus Christ Superstar (Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre), Beautiful – The Carole King Musical (Aldwych Theatre) and Picture Perfect (St James Theatre).

Craig Mather plays Edward. For theatre his credits include The Wind in the Willows (London Palladium), Les Misérables (Queen’s Theatre), Sweeney Todd (Harrington’s Pie Shop/West End), Tonight’s the Night (UK tour) andSpring Awakening (English Theatre Frankfurt). His television credits include Pompidou; and for film, Alice Through the Looking Glass and Cinderella.

 

Gary Wood plays Harry. His theatre credits include A Pacifist’s Guide to the War on Cancer (National

Theatre and national tour), The House of In Between, The Infidel – The Musical (Theatre Royal Stratford East), Our Country’s Good, Dara (National Theatre), A Chorus Line (London Palladium) and Wicked (Apollo Victoria); and for film, World War Z and Walking on Sunshine.

Gus Gowland most recently wrote a short musical, Sick!, performed at LOST Theatre as part of Accidents & Emergencies, while his short play Clocks & Teapots was performed at RADA Studios and the London Transport Museum as part of London Omnibus. He co-wrote and directed Barren, Love Love Love (Canadian Fringe Tour), wrote and performed in Tell Me on A Thursday at the Camden Fringe and wrote two songs for Copyright Christmas, for Olivier Award-winning theatre collective Duckie at the Barbican. He has produced and directed a season of Miniscule Musicals at the Royal Vauxhall Tavern, one of which was performed at the Duckie 10th anniversary birthday party at South Bank Centre; he also co-wrote the song Home, with Alistair Brammer for the MAD Trust album – The West End Goes MAD for Christmas. Gowland was shortlisted for the inaugural Perfect Pitch award in 2013 and his songs Take Me Back and Turning Stones have been shortlisted for the Stiles & Drewe Best New Song Prize. In addition, he was also one of 5 music industry experts to form the UK jury for the Eurovision Song Contest in 2014.

Ryan McBryde directs. His credits include The Invisible Man (Queens Theatre, Hornchurch), Before the Party,Faust I, 1984, Spring Awakening,The Crucible (Schauspielbühnen, Stuttgart), Angus, Thongs and Even More Snogging (West Yorkshire Playhouse), Hamlet – The Musical (Royal & Derngate, Northampton and Richmond Playhouse), Saturday Night Fever (Theatre Royal Bath and UK tour), The House of Mirrors and Hearts, The Jabberwocky (Arcola Theatre), A Day at the Racists (Finborough Theatre), The RSC’s 50th Anniversary Gala, On the 20th Century (Union Theatre), The Life, The Ruling Class, Sweet Charity, Spring Awakening – The Musical, The Who’s Tommy, The Full Monty, Hysteria, Hair, Deathtrap and The Fox (The English Theatre, Frankfurt).

Production supported by the Linbury Trust

Listings Information

Pieces of String

20 April – 5 May

 

Performance times vary

Tickets £12 – £27 & discounts

www.mercurytheatre.co.uk

01206 573948

The Bunker’s Summer Season 2018 and Breaking Out
Winners Announced
May – August 2018
The Bunker, 53A Southwark Street London SE1 1RU

The Bunker’s Summer 2018 season celebrates exciting work from both emerging and established companies. A highlight of this season is Breaking Out – a new initiative introduced by Artistic Director Joshua McTaggart – which champions the most ambitious and innovative theatre companies who are embarking on their theatrical journey

The season opens with On The Buttons’ Don’t Panic! It’s Challenge Anneka. Inspired by real life stories, this rollercoaster one-woman show presents a frank, funny and open exploration of a topic that too often remains taboo: the challenge of overcoming anxiety

Following Don’t Panic! is the much-anticipated Breaking Out. Chosen from over 45 entries, the selected shows are: Poke in the Eye’s Libby’s Eyes – an experimental production about a young woman navigating a world she can’t see; Sleepless’ Nine Foot Nine – a fully accessible show that explores a world in which every self-identifying women suddenly grows to nine foot nine inches; This Noise’s No One is Coming to Save You which uses the nineties classic children’s movie Matilda as a lens into a tragic event of a young woman; Paper Creatures explore the life of a young man who is sectioned in Section 2; Second Circle Theatre will create an interactive date night with a difference in their production Kiss Chase, and leoe&hyde bring an electronic musical exploring the intricacies of Grindr and gay dating in Manchester

Following Breaking Out, The Bunker plays host to both the National Youth Theatre’s Playing Up project and Drama Studio London’s end of year showcase

The season concludes with Athenaeum Productions’ Breathe – the latest play by George Jaques. Directed by Hannah Hauer-King (from The Bunker’s resident company Damsel Productions), Breathe is a bold production exploring six young people impacted by teenage suicide. It is presented in partnership with ChildLine

Director Joshua McTaggart comments, I am thrilled that The Bunker’s Summer Season champions and celebrates ‘The Company’. From established ensembles to emerging artists, summer at The Bunker will see an incredible range of performances, styles, and ideas all presented by groups who collaborate and create their work together. At the centre of this programming are the six winners of our Breaking Out project, chosen from an incredible application pool of 45 companies. These six companies are just at the beginning of their journeys, but the work they are planning to create is sharp, contemporary, and ambitious, and I know our audiences are going to be fascinated by the stories these young artists have to tell

The Bunker’s Summer Season 2018 is as follows:

Don’t Panic! It’s Challenge Anneka (On The Button Theatre)
Tuesday 29th May – Saturday 9th June, 7pm (Saturday and Sunday, 3pm matinees)
Bum-bag? Check. Luminescent shell suit? Check. Positive attitude in the face of seemingly insurmountable challenges? Hell yeah! Inspired by real life stories, award-winning company on the button presents a frank, funny and open exploration of a topic that too often remains taboo: the challenge of overcoming anxiety. Starring Sophie Winter, this roller-coaster of a one-woman show channels the spirit of someone for whom no challenge is too big: Don’t Panic! It’s Challenge Anneka

Breaking Out – Monday 11th June – Saturday 7th July

Libby’s Eyes (Poke in the Eye)
Every Monday and Thursday – 7pm
Press Night: Thursday 14th June, 7pm
Libby is blind. But she works. And she’s a generally functioning adult. Inspirational. For being a functioning adult. And blind. Her life suddenly changes when she is forced to rely on Cortana – a government-issued robot. Cortana is constructed by a well-meaning engineer to describe things without bias and effectively be Libby’s eyes but when Libby starts to suspect that Cortana is
defective, she has an internal and external battle. Does she try and fix the defect to fit a society that is trying to ‘fix’ her? Written by disabled playwright Amy Bethan Evans and starring award nominated comedian and actor Georgie Morrell, Libby’s Eyes examines what it is to be disabled in today’s society and the problems of viewing it through the non-disabled gaze

Nine Foot Nine (Sleepless)
Every Monday and Thursday – 8:30pm
Press Night: Thursday 14th June, 8:30pm
Cara and Nate are a hard-working young couple looking to start a family. Together they’re bumbling through the daunting world of pregnancy tests, maternity clothes and flat pack cot building. That is, until suddenly a vast proportion of all the women in the world start to grow – centimetre by
centimetre, foot by foot, with science powerless to stop them. The awareness that women are now physically more powerful than men sends shockwaves through society, fracturing age-old assumptions and prejudices. How do political regimes react? What will happen to industry, media, families, sex? And, more importantly, what comes next? Brought to life by Sleepless Theatre Company, this innovative new play examines the changing labels of ‘masculine’ and ‘feminine’ and a world where the gender balance is forever altered

No One is Coming to Save You (This Noise)
Every Tuesday and Friday – 7pm
Press Night: Friday 15th June, 7pm
Two voices, two stories: an insomniac is watching TV in a language he doesn’t understand and a woman is stood in a garden stretching her arms to the sky. The whole world is asleep and something terrible is just around the corner. Lyrical, eerie and hypnotic, No One is Coming to Save You is the story of the wait for dawn in a suburban garden – a slow-build gasp from two lives lived in social,
political and economic fear. Supported by Arts Council England, This Noise makes theatre about the politics of the here and now, by, with and for young people

Section 2 (Paper Creatures)
Every Tuesday and Friday – 8:30pm
Press Night: Friday 15th June, 8:30pm
Following their highly successful debut show Flood, Paper Creatures Theatre return with this hardhitting drama by emerging playwright Peter Imms. Directed by Georgie Staight (Into The Numbers, Finborough Theatre) and with an original score composed by Benjamin Winter, this part verbatim drama is drawn from Imms’ personal experiences and hones in on an aspect of mental health that is
rarely addressed in theatre – sectioning. This bold new play shines a light on the desperate and determined measures taken to reconnect with someone on the road to recovery

Kiss Chase (Second Circle Theatre)
Every Wednesday and Saturday – 7pm
Press Night: Saturday 16th June, 7pm
Inspired by interviews with lovers across the UK, Second Circle Theatre’s Kiss Chase holds tales of first love, broken hearts, no sex before marriage, the walk of shame, holding hands and standing alone when the lights go up. Expect whispered secrets, dad dancing and relentless foreplay. Set far in the depths of the digital generation, this thrilling production follows Second Circle Theatre’s debut show Meeting at 33 which had a highly successful sell-out run at The Pleasance

GUY: A New Musical (leoe&hyde)
Every Wednesday and Saturday – 8:30pm
Press Night: Saturday 16th June, 8:30pm
From the creators of multi-award-winning The Marriage of Kim K, leoe&hyde return with an uplifting new musical about modern masculinity, body image, and the hook-ups and downs of dating in the 21st century. Sometimes sexy and always real, GUY is a game-changing gay rom-com for the 2010s. With nakedly honest characters, this is a thought-provoking glimpse behind the veil of modern masculinity, male beauty standards, and unspoken prejudices within marginal communities. Tied together with a pioneering and infectiously catchy electronic score, GUY channels floor-filling EDM anthems, indie electronica, queer hip-hop, and PC Music with the lyrical charm of Sondheim, and the earworm melodies of Schwartz

Breathe
Tuesday 31st July – Saturday 5th August – 7:30pm
Press Night: Wednesday 1st August, 7:30pm
‘Just breathe’. Often this is the best advice we have to offer anyone when the pressures of life get too much. But what about when these two words just aren’t enough? In our relentless pursuit for perfection – to look perfect, to act perfect, to be perfect – the overwhelming pressure cannot always be remedied by these two worn out words. Breathe, the latest play by George Jaques, explores the
anxieties of everyday life and how that manifests into three adolescent couples who are radically different but ultimately united by their shared burden. Directed by Hannah Hauer-King, this powerful production is presented in partnership with ChildLine

 

FULL CAST ANNOUNCED FOR WORLD STAGE PREMIÈRE OF MIKE BARTLETT’S NOT TALKING

 

Defibrillator and the Arcola Theatre present

The world stage première of

NOT TALKING

by Mike Bartlett

Director: James Hillier; Designer: Amy Cook; Lights: Zoe Spurr; Composer/Sound: Simon Slater Movement: Jack Murphy; Assistant Director: Sara Amini; Associate Producer: Epsilon Productions

 

Arcola Theatre

Wednesday 25 April – 2 June 2018

Defibrillator and Arcola Theatre, today announces cast for world stage première of Mike Bartlett’s, Not Talking. Artistic Director of Defibrillator James Hillier directs David Horovitch (James), Gemma Lawrence (Amanda), Kika Markham (Lucy) and Lawrence Walker (Mark). The production opens at the Arcola Theatre on 1 May, with previews from the 25 April, and runs until 2 June.

“If I don’t want to tell anyone, it’s up to me, right?”

Lucy knows James has avoided the battle. Mark knows Amanda has fought for her life. But speaking the truth could bring everything crashing down.

What happens if we live a life of not talking?

In his gripping and lyrical first play Olivier Award-winning, Mike Bartlett, unlocks a culture of silence, and gives voice to the human casualties when things are easier done than said.

Not Talking was first broadcast as a radio play on BBC Radio3 in 2007 and went on to win the Imison and Tinniswood Awards.

Mike Bartlett’s Olivier Award-winning plays for the theatre include King Charles III, Bull and Cock. His other credits include Albion (Almeida Theatre), Wild (Hampstead Theatre), Game (Almeida Theatre), King Charles III (Almeida Theatre/Wyndham’s Theatre/Music Box Theatre, New York), An Intervention (Paines Plough/Watford), Bull (Sheffield Theatres/Off-Broadway/Young Vic), Medea (Headlong/Glasgow Citizens/Watford Palace Theatre/Warwick Arts Centre), Chariots of Fire (Hampstead Theatre/Gielgud Theatre), 13 (National Theatre), Decade (co-writer Headlong), Earthquakes in London (Headlong, National Theatre), Love, Love, Love (Paines Plough/Plymouth Theatre Royal/Royal Court Theatre/Roundabout Theatre Company, New York), Cock, Contractions, My Child (Royal Court Theatre), Artefacts (Bush Theatre/nabokov). Plays for the radio: King Charles III, Cock, Heart, The Core, Family Man, Love Contract (BBC Radio 4) and The Steps.

David Horovitch plays James. His theatre credits include Absurd Person Singular, When We Are Married (Garrick Theatre), Losing Louis (Trafalgar Studios), Taking Sides and Collaboration (Duchess Theatre), Bedroom Farce (Duke of York’s Theatre), Mary Stuart, Life is a Dream (Donmar Warehose), Cymbeline, Much Ado About Nothing, Love’s Labour’s Lost (RSC), Spinning into Butter, Seven Jewish Children (Royal Court Theatre), Hysteria (Hampstead Theatre), The Tempest, Major Barbara (Manchester Royal Exchange) and Grief (National Theatre). For television he is perhaps most well known for his role as Inspector Slack in Miss Marple and further television credits include Piece of Cake, Great Expectations, Bognor, Hold the Back Page, Piece of Cake, Love Hurts, Westbeach, Just William and Ivanhoe; and for film, Mr Turner, Solomon and Gaenor, Cassandra’s Dream and The Infiltrator.

Gemma Lawrence plays Amanda. Her theatre credits include Wasted (Orange Tree Theatre), All My Sons (Hong Kong Arts Festival), The Tempest (Southwark Playhouse), As You Like It, Children Of The Sun (National Theatre), Much Ado About Nothing (Shakespeare’s Globe), Gaslight (Salisbury Playhouse), Lee Harvey Oswald (Finborough Theatre), Les Liaisons Dangereuses (Redgrave Theatre), The Wild Party (Bristol Tobacco Factory) and Rough Cuts: The Lion’s Mouth (Royal Court Theatre). For television her credits include Luther, Misfits, Stir It Up, All About George and Ahead Of The Class. Her film credits include Frail, A Bunch of Amateurs and Enlightenment.

Kika Markham plays Lucy. Her recent theatre credits include Escaped Alone and Tribes (Royal Court Theatre), The Last Yankee (The Print Room), On The Record (Arcola Theatre), Bloody Wimmin, Handbagged and You, Me And Wii (Tricycle Theatre), Bufonidae (Bush Theatre), Homebody/Kabul (Young Vic Theatre), The Vagina Monologues (Ambassadors Theatre), A Wedding Story (Soho Theatre and UK Tour) and Song At Twilight (Kings Head Theatre). For television her credits include Fearless, Mr Selfridge, New Tricks, Spooks and Born and Bred;and for film, Franklyn, Paint It Yellow, The Fever, Esther Khan, Killing Me Softly and Wonderland.

Lawrence Walker plays Mark. His theatre credits include Othello, My Mother Medea, The Owl Who Was Afraid othe Dark (Unicorn Theatre), Romeo and Juliet (West Yorkshire Playhouse), Wendy and Peter Pan (RSC) and Back Down (Birmingham Rep). Television credits include Our Girl and Find Me in Paris; and for film his credits include Alfie.

James Hillier is Artistic Director of Defibrillator. His directing credits include, A Lie of The Mind by Sam Shepard (Southwark Playhouse), Terry Johnson’s Insignificance at Langham Place, New York; the première production of Tennessee Williams’ The Hotel Plays at the Grange Hotel in 2012 and The Langham, London in 2014; The Armour (also The Langham, winner of an award at Le Miami Rebels), and Hard Feelings (Finborough Theatre).  Hillier has directed a number of short films, including How To Make A Good First Impression Part 1 which went on to win awards at Tribecca Film Festival and Cannes.  As an actor, he has worked at the Royal Court Theatre, National Theatre, Almeida Theatre, Bush Theatre, Manchester Royal Exchange and the Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh. He has worked extensively as an actor in theatre, film and television and currently can be seen in series one and two of The Crown.

twitter.com/arcolatheatre

NOT TALKING

Listings

Arcola Theatre Studio 1

24 Ashwin St, Dalston, London E8 3DL

Box Office: 020 7503 1646 / www.arcolatheatre.com

25 April – 2 June 2018

Monday-Saturday at 7.30pm

Saturday matinees at 3pm

Wednesday matinee on 30 May at 3pm

Tickets:

£12/£15/£22/£26

Previews: £12/£15/£19/ £22

Tuesday evenings are Pay What You Can – limited availability

Howard Panter for Trafalgar Entertainment Group,

GWB Entertainment, BookMyShow, Tokyu Theatre Orb,

Tulchin/Bartner and David Lazar

in association with KHAM Inc.

proudly present

The Lincoln Center Theater

production of

RODGERS & HAMMERSTEIN’S

DEAN JOHN-WILSON (WEST END STAR OF ALADDIN)

& NA-YOUNG JEON, CAST AS ‘THE YOUNG LOVERS’

IN WEST END PRODUCTION OF THE KING AND I,

AS LONDON PALLADIUM ENGAGEMENT IS

EXTENDED FOR THREE FINAL WEEKS TO 29 SEPTEMBER

& FIVE EXTRA MIDWEEK MATINEES ADDED

DUE TO EXTRAORDINARY TICKET DEMAND

 

TICKETS FOR NEW BOOKING PERIOD ON SALE FRIDAY 16 MARCH AT 10AM

 

Dean John-Wilson (who starred in the title role of Disney’s original West End production of Aladdin) and Na-Young Jeon (Fantine in Les Misérables in the West End and Gigi in Miss Saigon on world tour) join the West End cast of THE KING AND I as the young lovers, Lun Tha and Tuptim. They will join Tony Award winner and “Broadway musical’s undisputed Queen” (Sunday Times) Kelli O’Hara as Anna, Tony and Oscar nominee Ken Watanabe as The King and Tony award-winning Ruthie Ann Miles as Lady Thiang.  Rodgers & Hammerstein’s multi-award winning musical transfers from Broadway to the London Palladium on 21 June.

 

THE KING AND I also today announces that the London Palladium engagement will extend for a final three weeks until Saturday 29 September.  This is the very last opportunity West End audiences will have to see the Broadway stars reprise their original roles on the London stage, as Kelli O’Hara will return to Broadway to star in Kiss Me Kate and Ken Watanabe has filming commitments.

 

Five extra matinees on Thursdays (30 August, 6, 13, 20 and 27 September) have been added to the London Palladium performance schedule.  This follows continued unprecedented demand for tickets, with early performances already sold out.  Much like it’s acclaimed 16 month run at New York’s Lincoln Center Theater and record-breaking sold out USA tour, The King & I is tipped to be London’s must-see musical of 2018.  

 

 

 

Dean John-Wilson played the title role in Aladdin at the Prince Edward Theatre and was a semi-finalist on Britain’s Got Talent in 2008.  His other theatre credits include:  Miss Atomic Bomb and Songs For a New World at The St James’ Theatre, Aquino in Here Lies Love at the National Theatre, Tim Rice’s From Here to Eternity at the Shaftesbury Theatre and Sister Act: The Musical UK Tour.

 

Netherlands born Na-Young Jeon played Gigi in the international tour of Miss Saigon and Fantine in Les Misérables in South Korea and in the West End.  Other theatre work includes Esmerelda in Notre Dame de Paris in South Korea and Bianca in Kiss Me Kate in Amsterdam.  On TV she played the lead in Conny and Clydeand Bo in Van Hier Tot Tokio and her films include The Calling and Hitomi.

 

Acclaimed Tony Award-winning Bartlett Sher will direct the production, hot on the heels of his work on The Lincoln Center Theater’s World Premiere of J.T. Rogers’ smash hit play Oslo, which opened on Broadway and then transferred via the National Theatre to London’s Harold Pinter Theatre in October last year to rave reviews.  He, along with the celebrated creative team behind the award-winning production of South Pacific and the Lincoln Center Theater production of My Fair Lady which began previews this week, will reunite to bring this majestic production to life at the London Palladium.  

 

With music by Richard Rodgers, book and lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II, this masterpiece – one of their finest works – boasts a score featuring such beloved classics as Getting To Know You, Hello Young Lovers, Shall We Dance, I Have Dreamed, and Something Wonderful.   Set in 1860s Bangkok, the musical tells the story of the unconventional and tempestuous relationship that develops between the King of Siam and Anna Leonowens, a British schoolteacher, whom the imperious King brings to Siam to tutor his many wives and children.

 

WHAT THE USA PRESS HAVE SAID ABOUT THE LINCOLN CENTER THEATER

BROADWAY PRODUCTION OF THE KING AND I

 

“I’ll doubt I’ll ever see a better production in my lifetime.”

THE WALL STREET JOURNAL

 

“Something wonderful indeed. Breathtaking. Exquisite. Remarkable.”

NEW YORK TIMES

 

“Five stars. Grand and glorious.”

TIME OUT NEW YORK

“A landmark production and a shot of purest rapture. I never wanted it to end.”

THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER

“Too beautiful to miss! An astonishing achievement.”

NEW YORK MAGAZINE

“Absolutely stunning. Kelli O’Hara is ravishing. Ken Watanabe is powerfully seductive. Chalk up another triumph for Lincoln Center Theater.”

VARIETY

“Magnificent. A sweepingly romantic production. How good to be getting to know the show all over again.”

NEWSDAY

 

 

“Simply divine. You can’t overstate how stunningly beautiful, how achingly well sung this new revival is.”

NEW YORK POST

 

“This splendid revival emerges as majestic and intimate simultaneously. Grandeur and grace fill each scene and song. O’Hara and Watanabe share warm chemistry.”

DAILY NEWS

“Splendid! This just may be, in fact, the finest staging of a Rodgers and Hammerstein musical in my experience.”

THE WASHINGTON POST

 

 

LISTINGS  INFORMATION

LONDON PALLADIUM

Previews: From 21 June

Tickets: £15 – £82.50, Premium Seating available

Box Office: 020 7087 7755

 

Performances: Monday – Saturday at 7pm, Wednesdays and Saturdays at 2pm and 7pm

Extra matinee performances on Thursdays at 2pm: 30 August, 6, 13, 20 and 27 September

No performance on 28 August, 4, 11, 18 and 25 September

 

Website: KingandIMusical.co.uk

Twitter: @KingandIWestEnd

Facebook: @KingandIWestEnd

Instagram: @KingandIWestEnd

Palace Theatre, Watford – until 24 March 2018.  Reviewed by Sharon Hines Kennedy

5*****

The set and stage design for this production was simple but very clever. The stage rotated between scenes it was built to look like a glass block which contained a solo cellist (more about that later).

This play, one of Arthur Miller’s later plays was written in 1994. It is well known having been made into a film in 1996 and a BBC television production in 1997. Miller wrote this play as a reaction to the nationalism, war and sub-sequent genocide that took place in the former Yugoslavia. The genocide taking place in Rwanda was not lost on him either.

The play itself is set in New York in 1938 just as America and Europe look like they may be drawn into a Second World War. The characters are drawn from a Jewish community. The main character Sylvia (Amy Marston) has become paralysed in her legs. Her doctor (Michael Higgs) believes this has been caused by psychological problems rather than physical as he can find nothing medically wrong with her.

Sylvia is an intelligent woman. She is also the only one who appears to be concerned about what Hitler and his Nazis are doing to Jewish people in Ger-many. She reads the newspapers and listens to radio reports avidly. The rest of her community including her husband Philip (Michael Matus) do not see what’s happening as their problem. The Jews of Germany far from New York and are not personally known to them. They are unwilling to acknowledge the antisemitism around them in New York.

As mentioned earlier, each scene change was accompanied by the soloist on the cello, the music was key to setting the mood in the next scene.

This was a wonderful interpretation of this important play that is relevant to-day as when it was written in 1994 and the World events taking place at that time. And as it was in the time period that Miller wrote and set the play originally.

 

Shoreditch Town Hall, London – until 28 March 2018.  Reviewed by Brian Gordon

5*****

Immersive Theatre taken to another level….This “show” for want of a better term delivers a powerful and resonant message from the second you walk into the building to the moment you collect your coat. Written by The Company and Max Barton this artistic delivery takes the audience through the tragic and normality of the history of care in the UK.

Researched and connected via the story of Mabel Cooper, a resident, patient, service user of a throw back archaic care system, in which the patients of St Lawrence, the Madhouse tell their side of the system. Paradise Fields is the new wave of “no patronising face to face care” web-based future of care systems. However, the sales pitch delivered by Sandra, Sue and Sally is rudely interrupted by the service users’ perspective. David Munns as the escapist breaks into the dynamic and gives some truths.

The space and the set indulge and encourage the interaction in the production. Guided by patient 36 and through clever use of technology and basically a great performance by every member of the cast the show flows through stages and performances. Grabbing your emotional and physical senses in each phase. The use of the space and the development of the atmosphere is genius and tests your every sense.

From the Mental Deficiency Act 1913 in which those with learning disabilities were labelled as idiots, imbecilic, feeble minded or having moral defects and being tied to a post as “therapy” though to the financial driven and emotional disconnected systems of the now this show tells an important message. It does it with humour, humility and a fantastic delivery based in good research and a genuinely amazing use of technology and space. I’ve never fed a pea to person I don’t know before and Dayo Koleosho as The Eater made this a pleasant experience from the other side of the glass. The thought of the morality of isolation through giving money rather than time or thought is created by the clever use of perspectives and expanding centres of gravity around the metaphors. Think carefully about that next Waitrose charity token.

The choreography and development of the metaphor throughout the story is testament to the performances of many, but of particular note must be DJ Hassan as the bird and Imogen Roberts as the goddess. Both of which created poignancy through their performance. Cian Binchy gave a staunch delivery of the baby…. Never has a baby had such insight into the simplicity of finance and tax, nor pulled of the most phallic of props. You will be laughing, engaging, dancing and most importantly thinking during this performance. Beware the feast you are promised, but most of all, be an active citizen and get to see this show.

Alankar, Manchester – 14 March 2018.  Reviewed by Marcus Richardson

4****

Handlooms asks the questions that needs to be asked but society is too afraid to talk or address them. What can we do about refugees, is men in woman’s clothing ok, is history more important that the present, what does it mean to have heritage? This piece of site-specific theatre, which is set in a sari shop, give us an insight into a relationship between a mother and son, we see the trials the sari industry faces and how modernisation takes away culture and heritage.

They play is performed in an actual sari shop, this immersion adds to the naturalistic quality and really makes you feel like you’re part of the action, Rajesh Sharma played by Ashraf Ejjbair is the leading force in keeping the traditional sari business alive, the actor gave the character a lot of depth and layers we learn throughout the play, the acting here was incredibly good, with great attention to detail and how he presents himself in different scenes. His mother Asha Patel played Riana Duce, I loved her character she was sweet and very maternal. Before the show properly began we were welcomed into the shop by her, this relaxed the audience-actor relationship and instantly calmed and made the audience feel at home, we were offered to look around and feel the saris. Her acting was amazing and she had a believable and kind aura. The acting and the story of this show is the main aspect why this this show stays in my mind, it proves that theatre is a great way to send a message across to make people aware of issues.

The show is short only lasting about sixty minutes, but we are given enough of a story arc. The sari shop is in the heart of the curry mile in Manchester, it’s amazing that so much thought had been put into the show. I loved watching the show and I walked away learning things that change the way I think about society and how we treat different cultures and people. The venue is very small, so the audience per show is limited. I would highly recommend to anyone to go and see this show.

Shrapnel Theatre and Iris Theatre present
H.R.Haitch
A right royal musical comedy!
Union Theatre, 204 Union Street, London SE1 0LX
Wednesday 9th May – Saturday 2nd June 2018

Following a highly successful concert version as part of Iris Theatre’s Workin Process scheme, H.R.Haitch opens at the Union Theatre as a freshly re-imagined full-length production. Featuring original music composed by Luke Bateman (Mr. Poppers Penguins) and lyrics written by children’s author and Carnegie Medal nominee Maz Evans, H.R.Haitch is a hilarious and charming new musical for princesses and paupers alike.

Starring Tori Allen-Martin (Hair, UK Tour; Wretch, VAULT Festival; Muted, The Bunker), H.R.Haitch is a 21st century British satirical production about class, celebrity, patriotism, politics, race and a dash of social values. Set in an East London pub under the threat of closure, H.R.Haitch follows the family of the Dog & Duck as they are thrust into the limelight when their love-struck daughter Chelsea discovers a sudden unexpected connection to the Royal Family.
First written in 2015, this show began as a piece of pure fiction but it now pertinently reflects the current excitement surrounding the royal family and this year’s royal wedding.

It’s 2011 and feisty east ender Chelsea’s future is bright. She has a new man and there’s a new progressive Prime Minister to light the days ahead. The media can stick their obsession with the identity of Prince Albert – the secret royal who’s been in hiding for 20 years. However, Bertie has something big to tell Chelsea. He’s down on one knee, but it’s not a ring he has in store… it’s a crown. And Chelsea will soon discover that travelling from Barking to Buckingham Palace takes more than a topped-up Oyster Card…

Director Daniel Winder comments, H.R.Haitch is a real culmination of all the new musical theatre development we do at Iris Theatre which often flies under the radar. We first introduced Luke and Maz to one another as part of the Workin Process scheme and ended up commissioning them to write the show after they won three awards at our competitions. To be able to bring that musical forward from the 2015 showcase to a full production is so exciting – especially now in the light of current affairs!

The full cast for this exciting new musical will be announced in April