OF A NEW ONLINE VERSION OF THE CULT WEST END MUSICAL
EUROBEAT
The Pride of Europe
BOOK, MUSIC AND LYRICS BY CRAIG CHRISTIE
HOSTED BY DAVID O’REILLY’S “ORLA BOARD”
WITH
JOANNE CLIFTON, TIA KOFI
HARRIET THORPE AND TOM READ WILSON
FILMED AT THE CLAPHAM GRAND
AND STREAMED GLOBALLY ON STREAM.THEATRE
FROM 30 APRIL – 10 MAY 2021
Fourth Wall Live are delighted to announce the world premiere of a new online version of the cult West End Musical EUROBEAT – The Pride of Europe. This irreverent, hilarious homage and celebration of the world’s best loved song contest will be filmed at The Clapham Grand and streamed globally from 30 April – 10 May 2021 on Stream.Theatre. Viewers will be asked to vote online after watching the show (Your vote really counts!) and The Results Show will be streamed from 14 – 18 May 2021. www.eurobeatpride.com
The show will be hosted by David O’Reilly’s “Orla Board” as Marlene Cabana the glamorous mistress of ceremonies, with a cast led by Joanne Clifton (BBC’s Strictly Come Dancing, The Rocky Horror Show, Flashdance), Tia Kofi (BBC Three’s RuPaul’s Drag Race UK Series 2), Harriet Thorpe (BBC’s The Brittas Empire, Cabaret) and Tom Read Wilson (C4’s Celebs Go Dating, BBC’s Celebrity Best Home Cook), the show will also star West End and musical theatre stars Christine Allado (Hamilton, The Prince of Egypt), Matt Croke (ITV’s The Voice, Disney’s Aladdin), Scott Garnham (Les Miserables, Billy Elliot, The Barricade Boys), Aisha Jawando (Tina in Tina, The Tina Turner Musical), Scott Paige (Cinderella, Nativity!),Claudia Kariuki, (Priscilla Queen of the Desert, School of Rock), David Ribi (Milkshake, Channel 5), comedian Sooz Kempner, Annell Odartey (WhatsonStage Awards), George Olney (Saturday Night Fever, Fiddler on the Roof), Alexzandra Sarimiento (Hamilton, Strictly Ballroom) and Jaime Tait (Motown, Beautiful).
Now featuring additional new songs and material EUROBEAT – The Pride of Europe has been delighting audiences since its 2008 West End run, this is the latest iteration to join the Eurobeat canon, which (much like its real-life counterpart) is continuously evolving, adapting and reflecting current times. After Moldova and Bosnia & Herzegovina, it is now Liechtenstein’s turn to crown this year’s Eurobeat champion. Take a trip to this tiny Alpine nation for some hilarious new songs, and some old favourites.
This loving send-up is bound to delight any fan of Europe’s largest television event! A live stream of power ballads galore, outrageous dance routines, key-changes, drag queens, a sprinkle of politics and the drama of crowning a winner! Eurobeat: The Pride of Europe is a celebration of an ever more diverse continent that sure loves to party. A song contest which reflects quirky, colourful and camp Europe, where even the smallest can come out and make it big!
EUROBEAT – The Pride of Europe has a book, music and lyrics by Craig Christie, is directed by Max Bex Roberts, choreographed by Callum Tempest and the musical supervisor is Adrian Kirk.
Fourth Wall Live is an exciting new collaboration between boutique concert producer Club 11 London and theatrical producers DLAP Entertainment. Having previously successfully produced Chita Rivera at Cadogan Hall together, the teams have now combined to bring audiences a plethora of international artists in concert at leading venues.
stream.theatre is a joint venture between ROYO and BROADWAY ON DEMAND to combine expertise in streaming technology, theatre producing and rights licensing to create the world’s first digital venue. stream.theatre provides theatres, producers and artists all of the tools they need to deliver streamed productions to their audiences and generate revenues. It provides the STAGE with an integrated video player, specifically conditioned for streaming arts programming, the BOX OFFICE with a secure payment system, the CUSTOMER SERVICE with a live chat facility to an experienced team, integrated CAPTIONING to make performances more accessible, GEO-FENCING and TICKET CAPACITY LIMITS to protect authors, and VIDEO CAPTURE with a 4k capture solution as well as live vision mixing, live streaming technology and all equipment necessary for a multiple camera shoot.
stream.theatre makes streaming possible for productions of any scale and has hosted, captured and partnered on over 600 events since launching in September 2020. From West End and Broadway musicals to high profile awards ceremonies, intimate concerts to Off-West-End fringe productions – streaming is now accessible for everybody.
Akram Khan Company and Leicester’s Curve Theatre are pleased to announce that AKRAM KHAN’S JUNGLE BOOK REIMAGINED, the choreographer’s brand-new work – a deeply personal interpretation based on the original story by Rudyard Kipling with an original score, will have its world premiere at Curve from 2 – 9 April 2022. Tickets will go on sale in the coming months.
A stellar creative team will be working on this reimagining of Jungle Book directed and choreographed by Akram Khan. Written by Tariq Jordan, with dramaturgy by Sharon Clark, and a music contribution by Anoushka Shankhar, this new work will be performed by an ensemble of ten dancers. With lighting by Michael Hulls, visual stage design by Tom Scutt, animation by Naaman Azhari, projection by Yeast Culture, and with the insight of film director Andy Serkis, the visual technology will turn the stage into a magical world that dives into the myths of today.
At 10 years of age, Akram Khan played Mowgli in Akademi’s Indian dance production The Adventures of Mowgli. Decades after this pivotal moment, Khan wants to reunite with this well-known and familiar story from another perspective, and to embrace it with a new sense of urgency, through the lens of today’s children – those who will inherit our world and become our future storytellers.
Embedded in the roots of Jungle Book is the deep threat that mankind poses towards nature. Khan and his team reimagine the journey of Mowgli through the eyes of a refugee caught in a world devastated by the impact of climate change. They will tell the story of how this child will help us to listen again, not to our voices but to the voices of the natural world that we, the modern world, try to silence. JUNGLE BOOK REIMAGINED will speak to all generations as a step to remind, to relearn, to reimagine a new world together.
Akram Khan said, “The Jungle Book’s story has always been close to me. Not only because I had inhabited the role of Mowgli in an Indian dance production as a young boy, but more because of the three deep lessons it held within it, that I have since carried with me all my life – the lessons of commonality between species, the binding interdependence between humans, animals and nature and, finally, a sense of family and our need to belong.
We are now living in unprecedented and uncertain times, not only for our species but for all species on this planet. And the root cause of this conundrum is because we have forgotten our connection to our home, our planet. We all inhabit it, we all take from it, and we all build on it, but we have forgotten to return our respect for it. So I believe that we must make changes from the grass roots up if we are to see a brighter future. And so I feel compelled to share the story – lovingly known as The Jungle Book – with children and adults from all cultures, in order to re-learn what we, as a species, have so conveniently forgotten. And I believe that the strongest and deepest way to tell this story is through the magic of dance, music and theatre.”
Curve’s Chief Executive Chris Stafford and Artistic Director Nikolai Foster said:
“It is always a joy to welcome Curve Associate Artist Akram Khan back to Leicester. Over the years, Akram and his company have created unforgettable and truly life enriching theatre, which stirs the souls of all who have experienced it.
“Akram’s interpretation of The Jungle Book comes at a vitally important time for humanity, when we can no longer ignore our relationship to our natural environment. Taking Kipling’s iconic story, Akram will create a new work which is visually arresting, proudly moving and invite us all to think about our planet in a different way.
“Akram has assembled a stunning team – with songs from Anoushka Shankhar and a script by Tariq Jordan – this promises to be a remarkable theatrical event. We are intensely proud to be co-producing Akram Khan’s Jungle Book Reimagined and working alongside such an astonishingly accomplished group of world-class artists.”
Internationally acclaimed Steinway Artist announces live shows in London
DOMINIC FERRIS: PIANO PLAYER TO THE STARS
Monday 31st May and Tuesday 8th June 2021
The internationally acclaimed pianist Dominic Ferris will give his first post-lockdown live performances at London’s Crazy Coqs on Monday 31st May and Tuesday 8th June 2021 at 7pm. Dominic’s show, Piano Player To The Stars will feature a wide variety of his musical influences including George Gershwin, Billy Joel and Elton John, with some surprises along the way. Dominic’s return to Crazy Coqs will also feature music and stories from recent recording projects including his collaboration last year with Dame Shirley Bassey.
Tickets are on sale from the Box Office, with standard admission £25. Book online: www.brasseriezedel.com, by phone: 020 7734 4888 or in person (booking fees may apply). Running time: 60 minutes (no interval).
Dominic studied piano performance at the Royal College of Music and he has since built an international reputation as a live performer and regular recording artist. He has performed on and provided orchestrations for eight UK top ten albums since 2015. Recent recording collaborations include Dame Shirley Bassey, Michael Ball, Alfie Boe, Jonathan Antoine and the symphonic albums of Elvis Presley, Roy Orbison and The Beach Boys with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, recorded at Abbey Road Studios and selling over 3 million albums worldwide. Dominic joined the Royal Philharmonic Concert Orchestra as assistant musical director and pianist for the Elvis Presley: If I Can Dream UK arena tour and Memphis Symphony Orchestra for the USA anniversary tour, with a performance at Graceland with Priscilla Presley for the Elvis 40th Anniversary Celebrations.
Dominic is one half of the internationally acclaimed piano duo The Piano Brothers who have become recognised as one of today’s most adventurous, cutting edge duos. In 2019 they appeared as special guests with the BBC Concert Orchestra on BBC Radio 2’s Friday Night Is Music Night.
Dominic is also one half of musical theatre double act Ferris & Milnes. The duo have become known for their mashup medleys including 33 Sondheim Numbers in 5 Minutes, which they premiered at Theatre Royal, Drury Lane in Stephen Sondheim’s 85th Birthday Gala. They performed their debut West End show at Ambassadors Theatre and premiered 30 Gershwin Numbers in Under 6 Minutes, at the Lincoln Center in New York.
Last year, Dominic collaborated with Martin Milnes and BBC Radio 2 producer Anthony Cherry to produce We’ll Meet Again 2020 – featuring the late Dame Vera Lynn and stars of the West End including Alfie Boe, Maria Friedman and Sharon D Clarke – as a morale-boosting music video in honour of the theatre industry.
LISTINGS
Performance: Dominic Ferris: Piano Player to the Stars
Venue: Live at Zédel, 20 Sherwood St, Soho, London W1F 7ED (nearest underground: Piccadilly Circus)
Dates: Monday 31st May and Tuesday 8th June 2021
Time: 7pm
Running time: 60 minutes (no interval). Late-comers will be admitted at a suitable point during the performance.
Ticket price: £25 standard admission
Box Office: www.brasseriezedel.com, phone: 020 7734 4888 or in person (booking fees may apply).
West End Stage Summer School returns this August to celebrate its 15th anniversary
West End Stage, the ultimate week-long theatre summer school for 8 – 21 year olds, is delighted to reopen their doors in time to celebrate the 15th anniversary this year, following last year’s postponement due to Covid regulations.
Based in the heart of London, West End Stage brings together young people from far and wide through their shared love of performing. All tutors are West End performers who lead an exciting mix of drama, singing and dance classes, grouped according to age and ability. Young performers are challenged, supported and encouraged, with the highlight of the week being their very own West End debut. There are also masterclasses with industry professionals teaching skills such as stage combat, makeup and acting for television. Students also head into London’s West End’s bright lights as they enjoy one of its exciting productions, followed by a cast Q&A. Students build their confidence, learn new skills, make friends for life and have fun!
Course Principle, Mark Puddle, said: “Following the Government’s announcement that all restrictions are due to be lifted by the end of June, we are delighted to confirm that West End Stage will be back, bigger and better than ever this summer. As a thank you to everyone that books a place on the summer school before Wednesday 31 March, we will be providing a full day of FREE online musical theatre masterclasses this Easter! Since the company was founded, over 14,000 students aged 8 – 21 have attended our summer schools. Throughout the pandemic, we are proud to say West End Stage managed to remain partially open continuing to provide student experiences, engaging content and over 40 free masterclasses via online platforms and virtual rehearsal rooms. But there is nothing like the excitement of the first day of one of our summer schools and I can’t wait to hear the buzz of our students and welcome back our brilliant team of over 60 freelance artists, tutors and chaperones.”
West End Stage takes place at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, one of the world’s top drama schools with state-of-the-art studios, theatres and concert halls. The one-week summer school runs from 9 – 15, 16 – 22 and 23 – 29 August 2021, with the option for students to book chaperoned accommodation. All necessary Covid precautions and government guidelines will be in place to ensure that activities are as safe as possible. If government measures force the cancellation of the summer school, bookers will have the option to transfer their place to August 2022 or receive a full refund.
Paul Taylor-Mills presents the highly celebrated annual festival of new musical theatre, MTFestUK 2021, running from 17-29 May at The Turbine Theatre in Battersea before embarking on a ‘digital’ tour from the 31 May – 4 July. The full list of venues and touring dates are as follows:
The Turbine Theatre, Battersea (Monday 17 May – Saturday 29 May)
Norwich Theatre Royal, The Belgrade Theatre, Coventry and Birmingham Hippodrome (Monday 31 May – Sunday 6 June)
Mayflower Theatre, Southampton and the Mercury Theatre, Colchester (Monday 7 June – Sunday 13 June)
Curve Theatre, Leicester and Dundee Repertory Theatre (Monday 14 June – Sunday 20 June)
New Wolsey Theatre & Theatre Clwyd (Mon 21 June – Sunday 27 June)
Royal & Derngate, Northampton, Sheffield Theatres and The Lowry, Salford (Monday 28 June – Sunday 4 July)
Paul Taylor-Mills, Artistic Director, Turbine Theatre said “It goes without saying that the last year has brought immense challenges. At The Turbine Theatre we’ve tried our best to be resilient and to try and use this time to redefine the way we work. This has involved exploring how we can extend our reach and bolster our commitment to developing new work.
This will be the third time we’ve had to reschedule this year’sMTFestUK. It was important that when we came back, we came back with an even louder bang. With this in mind, I’m so thrilled to share that MTFestUK will be going on a digital tour after its two-week run at The Turbine. Simply put, all 8 musicals will be filmed at The Turbine and will then live on digitally at 11 of the UK’s leading regional venues.
The Digital Tour will be unique in a numberof ways and I’m thrilled with the openness and support I’ve received from our fellow theatre makers around the country. Each venue will have bespoke social content that will support the 8 musicals. This will include special interviews with writers and actors on the creative process and how musicals are developed or indeed refined.
It highlights our commitment to ensure that the heartbeat of The Turbine Theatre is heard beyond our Battersea Power Station base. We have a truly international ensemble of actors that reflect the diversity of stories across the festival and we’re looking forward to sharing them with you in the near future.”
The Festivalsets out to promote quality artistry, showcasing new musicals to UK audiences with a view to elevating them to full production, and giving audiences an insight into the process of creating new work and the art of collaboration. Paul Taylor-Mills launched the inaugural MTFestUK season at The Other Palace in 2019, followed by a 2020 season in February last year, at The Turbine Theatre.
The 2021 festival line-up includes an exciting and diverse selection of eight new musicals: Far From Heaven, #50days, The Man In the Ceiling, Millennials, HouseFire, Cake, Daisy and Tony! (The Tony Blair Rock Opera)
A huge mix of exciting creative talent is involved in this year’s festival including: Tasha Taylor-Johnson, Morgan Lloyd Malcolm, Jack McManus, Drew McConie, Caroline Kay, Matt White, Thabo Stuck, Scott Frankel and Poppy Burton Morgan.
Casting will be announced in due course for all productions.
MTFESTUK 2021 ONLINE MUSICAL PRODUCTIONS
FAR FROM HEAVEN
Book by Richard Greenberg
Music by Scott Frankel
Lyrics by Michael Korie
Directed by Matthew White
Musical Direction by Alex Parker
Based on the Focus Features/Vulcan Productions motion picture written & directed by Todd Haynes.
Cathy Whitaker seems to be the picture-perfect wife and mother in 1957 suburban Connecticut. But roiling beneath the surface, secret longings and forbidden desires cause her world to unravel, with incendiary consequences.
With a score that is both jazz-inflected and hauntingly lyrical, Far From Heaven is a powerful story of romance, betrayal, and intolerance, as a woman grapples with her identity in a society on the verge of upheaval.
Richard Greenberg is an American playwright and television writer known for his subversively humorous depictions of middle-class American life. He has had more than 25 plays premiere on and off-Broadway and eight at the South Coast Repertory Theater. He is perhaps best known for his 2003 Tony Award winning play Take Me Out. The play premiered in London and also ran in New York.
Scott Frankel worked as a music director, conductor and pianist on and off-Broadway. He then became a musical theatre composer, notably through collaborations with lyricist/librettist Michael Korie. Their musical Grey Gardens premiered Off Broadway in 2006 before transferring to Broadway. Frankel received a Tony Award nomination as well as the ASCAP Richard Rodgers New Horizons Award and The Frederick Loewe Award for Dramatic Composition.
Michael Korie is an America librettist and lyricist whose writing for musical theatre and opera includes the musicals Grey Gardens and Far From Heaven, and the operas Harvey Milk and The Grapes of Wrath. His works have been produced on Broadway, Off Broadway and internationally. His lyrics have been nominated for the Tony Award and the Drama Desk Award, and won the Outer Critics Circle Award.
#50DAYS
Created and Written by Thabo Stuck
Musical Supervisor Amiir Salem
Directed by Ajjaz Awad
#50days is a Grime Musical which tells the story of the period when the very foundations of England were shattered. It is December 1641 and King Charles is about to be formally challenged by a handful of MPs and radical commoners, who share the belief that ALL men are born equal. Many in England, now a Protestant country, are enraged by the notion that the French-born Catholic Queen Henrietta and King Charles are ruling over them. One of these critics is John Pym, a Member of Parliament and prominent opponent of Kingship, who issues a challenge to the King’s power. In a world ruled by men, who are the women in this story? What are they fighting for? Through propaganda and shrewd political manoeuvring, the nation is about to be plunged head first into a conflict that pitted neighbour against neighbour and shattered the very core of our constitution.
#50days creator Thabo Stuck, challenges the notion of how history is discoursed.
“This is an interpretation of British history told through the eyes of underrepresented Brits today.”
#50days is Thabo Stuck’s debut musical. Thabo is an historian, a history teacher at The BRIT School, currently the Lambeth Baylis Trustee at The Old Vic Theatre and a Grime/UK Hip-Hop enthusiast. A lifelong Lambeth resident, Thabo has watched Grime grow from the underground into the mainstream. A big believer in multi-sensory storytelling, #50days is Thabo Stuck’s vision of how events from the past can be discoursed in the now.
Ajjaz Awad-Ibrahim trained as an actor at RADA and ALRA and during her training she was awarded The Laurence Olivier Award Bursary. Since graduating, her recent theatre credits include: Zorro: The Musical (The Hope Mill Theatre), How Not To Drown (Traverse Theatre) and Another Star to Steer by (Brighton Dome). She has also recently appeared as Sian Evans in Holby City and various characters in Big Finish Productionsof Dr Who. In recent years she has turned her hand to writing and directing, having just completed The Tamasha’s Playwrights Group and The Royal Court’s Playwrights Group, she had her first scratch of a play at The Soho Theatre: Mixed Feelings, which has recently been longlisted for The ETPEP Award. As a director, she was the Assistant on Parallel:Yerma at The Young Vic and was the recipient of The RTYDS Award for the production of Good Dog with Tiata Fahodzi. Her most recent directorial role was for the production of Race Today at The Bernie Grant Arts Centre and Crossing Wires at Theatre503.
THE MAN IN THE CEILING
Music and Lyrics by Andrew Lippa Book by Jules Feiffer
Directed by Annabel Mutale Reed
Musical Director Richard Beadle
12-year old Jimmy Jibbett would rather be a successful cartoonist than be in 7th grade. His father disapproves. His mother is busy. His uncle tries to understand but is too wrapped up trying to write a love song for his next flop musical. Where can Jimmy turn for inspiration and hope? Maybe THE MAN IN THE CEILING can lead him to his true destiny…If only Jimmy would look up!
A collaboration between Jules Feiffer, the Pulitzer-Prize-winning cartoonist and celebrated author, and Tony-nominated composer-lyricist Andrew Lippa, The Main In The Ceiling is an uplifting tale about following your creative passion against all odds.
Andrew Lippa is a composer, lyricist, singer, actor, conductor, and record producer. His “Unbreakable” had its world premiere with The San Francisco Gay Men’s Chorus in June 2018 with 300 artists on stage, including himself. In May of 2018, he conducted the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in a new production of his and Brian Crawley’s A Little Princess in concert at the Royal Festival Hall to a sold-out crowd of nearly 3,000 people. His hit song “Evil Like Me” appears in Disney’s Descendants. Written for Kristin Chenoweth, the soundtrack hit #1 on the “Billboard 200” album chart, #1 on the iTunes and Billboard soundtrack charts and “Evil Like Me” was certified gold in 2017. He has conducted celebrated pianist Lang Lang and the Guangzhou Symphony Orchestra in the world premiere of a commissioned symphonic work for piano, soprano, tenor, children’s chorus, and orchestra. His epic oratorio for men’s chorus, orchestra and soloists, has seen over 30 productions including Disney Hall and Lincoln Center. Lippa’s newest musical, The Man in the Ceiling, based on Jules Feiffer’s book (and co-written with Feiffer) released a world premiere studio album in May of 2019. His obsession with Netflix’s Tiger King yielded two songs/videos in April, 2020 and, for a while, got his mind off the pandemic.
Broadway credits include: music and lyrics for Big Fish; the Tony®-nominated music and lyrics for the Broadway musical The Addams Family directed by Jerry Zaks, as well as the music for Aaron Sorkin’s Broadway play The Farnsworth Invention directed by Des McAnuff.
Other musicals include the Drama Desk award-winning musical The Wild Party (book/music/lyrics); John & Jen (music/book); Asphalt Beach (music and lyrics); Life of the Party (a compendium of Lippa’s works/Menier Chocolate Factory); and You’re A Good Man, Charlie Brown (additional music/lyrics and arrangements).
Awards include Tony® and Grammy® nominations; shared Emmy for Nickelodeon’s The Wonder Pets; SFGMC Vanguard Award; The Drama Desk Award; The Outer Critics Circle Award. A graduate of the University of Michigan, Lippa serves as president of the board of The Dramatists Guild Foundation www.dgf.org
MILLENNIALS
Music, Book and Lyrics by Elliot Clay
Directed by Luke Sheppard
Musical Director Katy Richardson
MILLENNIALS turns up the microphone on the lives, the losses and the frustrations of young people in the modern world. A generation that is so often defined by tabloid headlines, tweets and of course, avocados, pick up the mic and transport us inside their extraordinarily ordinary lives. Written and composed by Elliot Clay, this powerful and uplifting collection of songs runs the gamut of modern pop-music and sends musical theatre hurtling into the 21st Century.
Elliot Clay is an award-nominated composer, lyricist and actor for musicals, plays and film. He wrote and starred in his debut musical ‘The State of Things‘ (Jack Studio Theatre) and has performed on the West End and UK/International Tours (Million Dollar Quartet, Peter Pan, Oliver!, The Wizard of OZ).
HOUSEFIRE
Book & Lyrics/Directed by P Burton-Morgan
Music by Felix Hagan
An Eco Rock Musical
“I want you to act as you would in a crisis. I want you to act as if our house is on fire. Because it is.” – Greta Thunberg 2019
A trio of endangered animals form a rock band to protest against the climate crisis. Leo, the snow leopard lead singer, rages against the annihilation of their world, Ginger the Orangutan, on keys, has her own tale to tell about the traumas of deforestation, while Alan the elephant is keeping time on the drums. But their newly rebranded group ‘HouseFire’ is under threat from their corporate manager getting them to pander to the very capitalist system they want to destabilize. Entering Britain’s Got Talent is a great way to reach more people with their message, but it puts a strain on their already fractious relationships, and is it all just too little too late… Fierce, frenetic and fun – this gig-theatre musical will set your world on fire.
P Burton-Morgan is a Writer and Director working across musical theatre, plays and opera. Musical Theatre writing credits include Cold Front (MT Fest 2020), In The Willows (Exeter Northcott and UK tour) for which they won the WGGB award for musical theatre book writing 2020, Little Mermaid (Theatre By the Lake & UK tour) and Blown Away (Exeter Northcott and UK tour). Other musicals in development include Great Expectations (National Theatre Studio), and The Rhythmics (The Other Palace). Their plays include Wondr (Edinburgh Festival) and Jungle Book (Windsor Theatre Royal, UK & International tour). They have directed over 40 productions to date including Mouthful (Trafalgar Studios), Cosi fan tutte (New Theatre, Oxford), Arab Nights (Soho Theatre and UK tour), Comedy of Errors (Exeter Northcott), As You Like It (Wirksworth Festival) and Gotcha (Riverside Studios). They are the founder and Artistic Director of the mid-scale touring company Metta Theatre, established in 2005.
CAKE
Music and Lyrics by Jack McManus & Tasha Taylor-Johnson
Book and Lyric by Morgan Lloyd Malcolm
Directed by Drew McOnie
Cake* combines rap and RnB with 18th century France to retell a story that sparked a revolution. When Marie Antoinette married King Louis, her reputation was already tarnished by gossip. But when she is implicated in a crime to defraud the crown jewellers of a diamond necklace, it is not just her reputation at stake, but the monarchy and France itself.
Morgan Lloyd Malcolm was commissioned by The Globe to write Emilia which became a sell out in summer 2018 and transferred to the West End at the Vaudeville theatre in 2019. It
won three Olivier awards in 2020 including for Best Comedy or Entertainment. Previous theatre includes Belongings and The Wasp and she has current theatre commissions with Headlong, Lyric Hammersmith, Royal Court and Cleanbreak. She is also adapting her play The Wasp into a screenplay for Paradise City Films.
Jack McManus is a multi-instrumentalist songwriter and producer. Once signed to Polydor as an artist, Jack evolved into a sought after writer showing his versatility by penning hits across all Pop, M.O.R. and Dance domains. He has had success with a wide variety of artists including The Chainsmokers, Afrojack, Boyzone, The Wanted, The Shires, Shirley Bassey, Martine McCutcheon and more recently Michael Ball & Alfie Boe (including a song on their latest number one album). Jack is thoroughly enjoying his journey writing for Musical Theatre and it is something he is hugely passionate about and hopes to do a lot more of in the future.
Tasha Taylor-Johnson is a composer, lyricist, writer & performer. She’s been tipped as ‘one to watch’, Sunday Times, and her work has been described as ‘different, fresh and original’ by Richard Thomas (Jerry Springer the Opera).
She was awarded the prestigious Cameron Mackintosh Resident Composer position at Leicester Curve in 2017 & continues as an Associate Artist there.
Recent theatre credits include Spring Awakening’ (The Young Vic), ‘Giraffes Can’t Dance’, (Curve) ’Cat in the Hat’ (UK tour/ Curve),‘The Wheel’ (Guildhall),’Cotton Fingers’ (National Theatre Wales), ‘Woman & Scarecrow’ (RADA), ’Memoirs of an Asian Casual’ (Curve), The Crucible’ (Curve), ’George’ s Marvellous Medicine’ (Curve), ‘To You’ (National Youth Ballet & Drew McOnie). For TV & film her credits include Dance with Me’ (The Old Vic) ’Rinderland’ (Channel 4), & ’Clean as You Like’, (Amazon) and Wearing Thin’ (Short – 2021.)
Her collaborations with the McOnie Company include: ‘Good Morning Midnight’ (Jermyn Street Theatre), ’A Ballet, with Love’(The Royal Albert Hall) & ‘Shine’ (Sadlers Wells).
She releases her own electronic music under the alias Siren Red.
* Cake was commissioned by Paul Taylor-Mills whilst he was Artistic Director of The Other Palace where it appeared under its former title; Killer Queen.
DAISY
Book, Music and Lyrics by Caroline Kay
Directed by Séimí Campbell
Musical Director Sarah Travis
This story explores several forms of loss, challenges the resilience of a family, and celebrates the healing-power of storytelling. After waking from a coma with no memory of life before her accident, a young woman must try to move on knowing little more than her name: Daisy.
Her enduring passion for writing finds her escaping into the world of stories she creates in her notebook, but this coping mechanism still leaves Daisy feeling as though she can only move forward if she regains memories from her past. She never considers that perhaps some of the memories she’s so desperate to unlock might be even more difficult to accept than her new life without them. What begins as a story of personal struggle soon becomes a family’s shared experience of hardship, loss, and love.
Caroline Kay is a Dublin-born singer-songwriter who graduated with a Masters in Musical Theatre Performance from Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts. She has performed in musicals, concerts, studio album recordings, workshops, and is also passionate about creating her own work. Caroline’s first original EP, Notes, went straight to #1 in the Irish iTunes Album Charts upon release in 2017, and her second EP, tricks , followed suit in 2019. After producing her own solo gig, Notes & Other Stuff, in Dublin, Cork, London and New York City, she went on to do a number of other solo gigs in London in places like Live at Zedel and The Other Palace.
During the Covid-19 lockdown, Caroline paired up (virtually) with West End Star, David Hunter, and together they wrote, recorded, and produced a Musical Short, The Space Between, which is available to watch on YouTube, and available as an EP on all music platforms to download or stream
Caroline hopes to see her original musical, Daisy, fully staged in London in the near future, and her long-term goal for the show it to have it on a Dublin stage where the show is set.
Séimí Campbell is an Irish theatre director, based in London. Graduating from Trinity College Dublin and the Royal Irish Academy of Music, he then studied in the Kodály Institute of the Liszt Ferenc Academy, Hungary, and Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts, London. Séimí most recently directed Jason Robert Brown’s SONGS FOR A NEW WORLD at The London Palladium – which transfers to the Vaudeville Theatre in February ‘21.
Other recent directing credits include; Stephen Schwartz’s MY SON PINOCCHIO (Southwark Playhouse), MOZART (Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts), OLIVER! (An Grianan Theatre). Recent assisting credits include COME FROM AWAY (Phoenix Theatre), JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR (Barbican), AMOUR (Charing Cross), and the upcoming BREAKFAST ON PLUTO (Associate Director; Donmar Warehouse). He is Artistic Director of Irish Youth Musical Theatre (IYMT), and musical theatre coordinator at the Royal Irish Academy of Music.
TONY! (THE TONY BLAIR ROCK OPERA)
Book and Lyrics by Harry Hill and Steve Brown
Music by Steve Brown
Director Peter Rowe
Musical Director Sarah Travis
A reckless reappraisal of the life of former Bad Rumours front man and Britain’s first pop Prime MinisterTony Blair.
The story of how one man went from peace loving, long haired hippy and would-be pop star to warmongering multimillionaire in just a couple of decades.
An hilarious tragedy of political intrigue, religion, power and romance that plays fast and loose with the facts, owing as much to Citizen Kane as it does to The Marx Brothers – Karl and Groucho.
Throw in a cast of larger-than-life characters – Cherie Blair, Princess Diana, John Prescott, Peter Mandelson, Alistair Campbell, Osama Bin Laden, George W Bush, Saddam Hussein, Gordon Brown and of course that dodgy dossier.
All set to rockin’ tunes.
Harry Hill has won numerous awards for his stand-up comedy and TV Shows, including 3 BAFTAs in a career that has spanned almost 30 years. He also wrote ‘I Can’t Sing!’ The X Factor Musical with his friend Steve Brown.
Steve Brown is acomposer, lyricist, arranger & record producer who has worked with some of the biggest names in British TV, radio and theatre for over 35 years.
His theatre credits include Spend, Spend, Spend!, It’s A Wonderful Life, I Can’t Sing and Magic Goes Wrong, television credits include The Goes Wrong Show, This Time With Alan Partridge (BBC), Spitting Image, SM;TV, Dead Ringers, New Tricks, My Parents Are Aliens, Not Going Out and countless others.
The records he has produced include Seasons of my Soul by Rumer for Atlantic, MOBO winner LAURA MVULA and Sing to the Moon for RCA.
Steve has had a long-term working friendship with Harry Hill completing several UK tours and providing all music on ITV Burp, The All New Harry Hill Show (ITV), Alien Fun Capsule and Teatime for SKY. He also composed the songs/score on Harry Hill The Movie.
First Major New UK Live Theatre Production Following Lockdown
Cast Includes: Ben Allen, Francesca Annis, Steven Berkoff, Emmanuella Cole, Llinos Daniel,Alis Wyn Davies, Ashley D Gayle, Nick Howard-Brown, Jonathan Hyde, Asif Khan, Lee Knight, Missy Malek, Ian McKellen, Jenny Seagrove
Directed by Sean Mathias
Tickets go on general sale tomorrow (Saturday 20 March 2021) and priority sale today at 11am for the Theatre Royal’s inaugural Summer Season opening with Shakespeare’s Hamlet. The first major new production to be staged following lockdown, directed by Sean Mathias and starring Ian McKellen in an age-blind interpretation of the young Prince with integrated casting, will open at the Theatre Royal Windsor on 21 June 2021.
Produced by Bill Kenwright, Hamlet heralds Sean Mathias’ inaugural season at Theatre Royal Windsor and will be followed by Martin Sherman’s adaptation of Anton Chekov’s The Cherry Orchard, with McKellen as Firs the elderly manservant.
This will be one of the first major new productions to open to hopefully non-restricted seating since theatres went dark just over a year ago, in accordance with government guidelines to stem the spread of COVID-19.
The production actually went into rehearsal eight months ago but could not proceed when new restrictions were put in place due to the UK’s second wave of COVID-19. Rehearsals will start again next week, with strict measures remaining in place to ensure the safety of the company.
Sean Mathias said: “The return of British theatre from the long dark night of COVID 19 has rightly been one of our biggest cultural conversations of the last year. Now, as more rays of hope begin to appear, everyone in the industry is determined to help our precious artform explode back into life. We trust that by bringing together this exceptional ensemble to present two of the greatest plays of all time we will play our part in this revival, and on a personal note I can’t think of a more invigorating way to mark my first season as artistic director of the Theatre Royal Windsor Season.”
Ian McKellen said: “I’ve acted in both these masterpieces before – and seen them scores of times. They are in that select group of classic plays which bear, even demand, a regular look, even reappraisal, by actors, directors, producers – and audiences. How can Hamlet be played by an 80 year old? I hope theatre-starved audiences will want to find out!”
Bill Kenwright said: “Sean, Ian and I started this journey, during the first lockdown last summer. At that time it was not to be, but while we will continue to work in steadfast accordance with government and scientific guidelines, and the safety of all our priority, we are hugely optimistic that our rehearsals will lead us to a pretty historic opening on June 21st at 7:30pm.”
The beloved Tony, Grammy and Olivier Award-winning smash hit musical JERSEY BOYS returns to London’s West End, opening at the new multi-million pound reinstated Trafalgar Theatre, with performances from 28 July and an opening night of 10 August 2021. Performances through Christmas 2021 are on sale and JERSEY BOYS is now booking until 2 January 2022.
JERSEY BOYS is written byMarshall Brickman & Rick Elice, with music by Bob Gaudio and lyrics by Bob Crewe.
Casting is to be announced.
Jersey Boys
Go behind the music and inside the story of Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons in the Tony and Olivier Award-winning, true-life phenomenon, JERSEY BOYS. They were just four guys from New Jersey, until they sang their very first note. They had a sound nobody had ever heard… and the radio just couldn’t get enough of. But while their harmonies were perfect onstage, off stage it was a very different story—a story that has made them an international sensation all over again. From the streets of New Jersey to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, this is the musical that’s too good to be true. The show is packed with their hits, including Beggin’, Sherry, Walk Like A Man, December, 1963 (Oh What a Night), Big Girls Don’t Cry, My Eyes Adored You, Let’s Hang On (To What We’ve Got), Bye Bye Baby, Can’t Take My Eyes Off You, Working My Way Back to You, Fallen Angel, Rag Doll and Who Loves You.
Recipient of Broadway’s Tony, London’s Olivier and Australia’s Helpmann Awards for Best New Musical, JERSEY BOYS is the winner of 65 major awards and has been seen by over 27 million people worldwide.
JERSEY BOYS originally opened in New York on 6 November 2005 and, by the time it closed over 11 years later on 15 January 2017, it was the 12th longest running show in Broadway history. It first ran in London’s West End from 18 March 2008 to 26 March 2017 – nine amazing years – and, at the time, was the sixth longest musical running in the West End. JERSEY BOYS played two record-breaking UK and Ireland Tours from 2014 to 2016 and from 2017 to 2019.
JERSEY BOYS returned to New York with a new production in November 2017. The JERSEY BOYS US National Tour is still breaking house records in cities across North America.
Jersey Boys
JERSEY BOYS at the Trafalgar Theatre will be staged by the entire original Broadway creative team, led by the Tony Award-winning team of director Des McAnuff and choreographer Sergio Trujillo, with scenic design by Klara Zieglerova, costume design by Jess Goldstein, lighting by Howell Binkley, sound by Steve Canyon Kennedy and projections design by Michael Clark. The orchestrations are by Steve Orich and the music supervision and vocal arrangements by Ron Melrose.
JERSEY BOYS is produced in London by the Dodgers and Trafalgar Theatre Productions Ltd.
LISTINGS INFORMATION
Trafalgar Theatre
14 Whitehall
London SW1A 2DY
Performances:
Between 28 July – 11 September:
Monday – Saturday 7.30pm
Thursday & Saturday 2.30pm*
*no matinee 29 July & 5 August
13 September onwards:
Monday – Saturday 7.30pm with no performance on Tuesday evening
Thursday and Saturday 2.30pm
Sunday 4pm
Christmas 2021/22 Schedule
Monday 20 December 2021 7.30pm
Tuesday 21 December 2021 7.30pm
Wednesday 22 December 2021 7.30pm
Thursday 23 December 2021 2.30pm & 7.30pm
Friday 24 December 2021 NO PERFORMANCE
Saturday 25 December 2021 NO PERFORMANCE
Sunday 26 December 2021 4pm
Monday 27 December 2021 2.30pm & 7.30pm
Tuesday 28 December 2021 7.30pm
Wednesday 29 December 2021 2.30pm & 7.30pm
Thursday 30 December 2021 2.30pm & 7.30pm
Friday 31 December 2021 NO PERFORMANCE
Saturday 1 January 2022 2.30pm & 7.30pm
Sunday 2 January 2022 4pm
Tickets: from £19.50
Box Office: 0844 871 7632
Current booking period: 28 July 2021 to 2 January 2022
Trafalgar Theatre, when it opens, will comply with COVID-19 Secure guidelines, with robust risk mitigation in place. In addition to hand sanitation, face coverings and track and trace, other measures will include contactless tickets, temperature testing and the deep clean and sanitation of the theatre.
Pitlochry Festival Theatre to reopen with exciting outdoor Summer Season.
Pitlochry Festival Theatre to welcome audiences again with outdoor Summer Season of stage premieres, concerts, new adaptations, and family entertainment
2021 will be the 70th anniversary Summer Season at Pitlochry Festival Theatre
Season to be performed in newly built 80-seater outdoor amphitheatre in the grounds of Pitlochry Festival Theatre
Season to feature Stage premiere of David Greig’s new play Adventures with the Painted People
New works from leading Scottish playwrights including a new adaptation of Jekyll and Hyde by Hannah Lavery and Jo Clifford and Lesley Orr’s new promenade production Requiem which will see the two celebrated playwrights devise a ceremony which will mourn and celebrate the lives of those lost during the pandemic and support the process of our collective grief
An exciting new adaptation for all the family of Kenneth Grahame’s classic children’s tale Wind in the Willows by Mark Powell which will be performed on the spectacular setting of the riverbanks of the River Tummel
Various new short plays from the Pitlochry Festival Theatre’s acclaimed Shades of Tay Series, which was originally produced online last year
Pitlochry Festival TheatreSummer Seasonto run from June-September
Pitlochry Festival Theatre is delighted to announce that this Summer it will reopen with an exciting season of outdoor performances.
Performed from June till September in the theatre’s newly built 80-seater amphitheatre and riverside bandstand, the Summer season will include the stage première of David Greig’s Adventures with the Painted People (10 June-4 July), which was originally commissioned by Pitlochry Festival Theatre as part of their 2020 Season, and subsequently became an acclaimed BBC Radio 3 play later in the year. Adventures with the Painted People is a compelling new drama about love, culture, and identity, set on the River Tay, 2000 years ago, as a Roman poet and a Pictish witch escape together downriver. Other highlights in the new season include Hannah Lavery’s new, one-person, adaptation of Robert Louis Stevenson’s classic, gothic tale Jekyll and Hyde (18 August – 8 September) and Jo Clifford and Lesley Orr’s new promenade production Requiem (September) which will see Clifford and Orr devise a ceremony that will mourn and celebrate the lives of those lost during the pandemic and support the process of our collective grief.
The new Summer Season will also see the premiere of A Night by the River Tay (various dates between14 July – 3 September), a series of short plays from the theatre’s acclaimed digital collection, Shades of Tay, written by an incredible line up of great Scottish Talent; and Storytelling and Music as part of the Theatre’s exciting project, The Tay’s Gaelic Memoir with Comann nam Parant Obar Pheallaidh, Fèis Thatha and Perth and Kinross Council. All these great new works celebrating Perthshire and beyond will be performed alongside new adaptations of Fyodor Dostoevsky’s White Nights: A Sentimental Diary of a Dreamer (7-10 July) and Anton Chekov’s Smoking is Bad for You (19 and 22 August).
The season will also feature a fantastic line up of entertainment for all the family. As well as an exciting new adaptation performed on the riverbanks of the River Tummel of Kenneth Grahame’s much-loved children’s tale, Wind in the Willows (2 July-12 September), from July,family audiences can explore the theatre’s beautiful garden in an exciting promenade experience of Alice in Wonderland. Inspired by Lewis Carroll’s fun and adventurous story, Alice in WonderlandWorld, promises to be an excitingnew sound installation and visual extravaganza produced in both Gaelic and English for people of all ages to enjoy!
Throughout the new Season, Pitlochry Festival Theatre will also celebrate live music by hosting a series of special evening events, which will feature music from the great operas and musicals, as well as an evening dedicated to the work of Mozart and the great Agatha Christie.
Elizabeth Newman, Pitlochry Festival Theatre’s Artistic Director said:
“It has been a challenging year for everyone in Scotland. People have experienced awful loss and great hardship. During this last year, we tried to stay in contact every day with audiences through LIGHTHOPEJOY. We’ve also done many, many online events, performances, creative partnerships and, of course, been keeping in touch with lots of people through our Telephone Club. However, we know our amazing audiences have missed being in-person and experiencing live theatre ‘in-the-flesh’. We have said, as soon as possible, we would be back in person and, although we couldn’t produce the Summer Season as previously planned, I feel extraordinarily excited to share this Outdoor Summer Season with audiences, especially for our Big Birthday. I hope it channels the same unstoppable spirit that first made Pitlochry Festival Theatre extraordinary 70 years ago when John Stewart first put up the Theatre-tent.
I am excited to share the programme as it’s filled with lots of Scottish dramas, classics, joyful entertainment, music, and family fun. We can’t wait to bring people together to celebrate our beautiful Perthshire landscape, celebrate Scottish Talent, art, and theatre, and of course a sense of coming together after such a long period of being apart. Also, I’ve spoken before about how PFT will be a Theatre that works across three platforms, inside, outside, and online, so after a year of being extremely focused online it feels brilliant to be focusing on outside! This Summer Season gives us the opportunity to really enjoy our 11-acres at PFT. And it also gives us the opportunity to introduce some new performance spaces to our fantastic audiences, like our 80-seat amphitheatre, Riverbank Bandstand and Theatre-Ship! What is at the forefront of our minds is keeping everyone safe as we welcome them back. We want to assure everyone, everything we do will follow Government Guidelines and Recommendations.
We pride ourselves on being a Scottish Theatre in the heart of Scotland and we can’t wait to welcome people back. I believe everyone knows how passionate we are about being a Theatre for All and a Theatre for a Lifetime, so we really look forward to opening our 70th Summer Season to continue this important mission.”
Throughout the season Pitlochry Festival Theatre will implement numerous procedures to ensure the audience’s safety throughout their experience. The theatre’s priority is the safety and welfare of their visitors and colleagues and will be following all current government guidelines and regulations to keep everyone safe during their visit. These will include hygiene sanitiser stations and a reduced capacity with physical distancing throughout. To support social distancing and reduce contact, Pitlochry Festival Theatre will be asking their audiences to purchase their tickets in advance.
Pitlochry Festival Theatre’s Artistic Programme for the summer season and during the pandemic has generously been supported by various donors, trusts, and foundations including Creative Scotland, the Holy Trinity Scottish Episcopal Church (part of the Highland Linked Charge) and the Theatre Reopening Fund from the Theatres Trust. Tay’s Gaelic Memoir is grateful for funding from SSE and Bòrd na Gàidhlig.
Further information about the Summer Season will be announced in the coming weeks.
Tickets for the Summer Season will go on sale to existing Pitlochry Festival Theatre’s members the Tuesday 13 April and on general sale from Tuesday 27 April at www.pitlochryfestivaltheatre.com
New musical adaptation of acclaimed novel The Ghost and Mrs. Muir in development
The acclaimed romantic-fantasy novel The Ghost and Mrs. Muir by R.A Dick will be adapted for the stage as a new musical. Under the direction of Kenneth Hoyt (The Blue Hour of Natalie Barney, Arcola; The Sea Plays, Old Vic Tunnels) this exciting project comes to fruition after a 26- year struggle to acquire the stage rights to the much beloved novel.
Best known for the charming 1947 film adaptation directed by Hollywood legend Joseph Mankiewicz (All About Eve; Cleopatra) and starring Gene Tierney and Rex Harrison, The Ghost and Mrs. Muir is a timeless ghost-infused romance between a new widower, Lucy Muir, and the ghost of Daniel Gregg, a sea captain. Through this uncommon companionship, Mrs. Muir learns to find liberation from her grief and loneliness, showcasing the boundless nature of true love, and its ability to transcend this life and beyond.
The exciting project has been taking shape for some time. Director Kenneth Hoyt comments, I have known all these years that there is a lush and sweeping musical lurking in the pages of the novel. It is a period piece yes, and I do think it holds a sort of classicism in its DNA, but at its heart it is a love story, albeit a haunted one. I have never understood the idea of an “old fashioned” romance. Romance doesn’t go out of style. I’m excited and very thankful to be part of any adaptation based on this lovely novel. It has an illustrious history and a stage version seems a natural fit.
The team for The Ghost and Mrs. Muir is currently being assembled and further creatives will be announced in due course at www.theghostandmrsmuirmusical.com.
