The first images of Birmingham Hippodrome and Leicester Curve’s production of Tony Award-winning Broadway production The Color Purple have been released, with T’Shan Williams set to take the role of Celie. This brand new production comes to Birmingham Hippodrome from 16th – 20th July 2019.
T’Shan Williams joins the cast as heroine Celie. T’Shan’s previous credits include Heather Duke in Heathers The Musical (Theatre Royal, Haymarket & The Other Palace); Caroline, or Change (Hampstead Theatre) and Queen in The Life (Southwark Playhouse) for which she won the Off-West End award for Best Female in a Musical.
She joins the previously announced cast including Joanna Francis as Shug Avery, Ako Mitchell as Mister, Simon-Anthony Rhoden as Mister’s son Harpo, Karen Mavundukure as his wife Sophia, Danielle Fiamanya as Celie’s sister Nettie and Delroy Brown as Pa.
The cast is completed by Geoff Aymer, Owen Chaponda, Perola Congo, KM Drew Boateng, Danielle Kassaraté, Anelisa Lamola, Rosemary Annabella Nkrumah, Jochebel Ohene MacCarthy, Landi Oshinowo and Jo Servi.
Directed by Tinuke Craig, The Color Purple is filled with a soul-raising musical score of jazz, ragtime, gospel and blues. The landmark musical, from Alice Walker’s Pulitzer prize-winning novel, classic hit film and Tony Award-winning production on Broadway, follows heroine Celie as she discovers her own identity and power over the course of 40 years in 19th century southern America.
The Color Purple comes to Birmingham Hippodrome from 16th – 20th July 2019. To book visit birminghamhippodrome.com or call 0844 338 5000 (4.5p per minute plus your phone company’s access charge).
Creative Team
Director Tinuke Craig Set & Costume Designer Alex Lowde Musical Supervisor and Musical Director Alex Parker Orchestrator Martin Higgins Choreographer Mark Smith Lighting Designer Joshua Pharo Sound Designer Tom Marshall Hair & Make-up Designer Cynthia De La Rosa Casting Director Kay Magson CDG Co-producers Birmingham Hippodrome and Curve
Much Ado About Nothing, Shakespeare’s comedy about love and treachery, has been reimagined by Northern Broadsides in conjunction with the New Vic Theatre. Currently playing in York as part of its UK tour, ending next week in Harrogate, before opening the Shakespeare Festival in Germany in June.
Set in 1945 after six long years of fighting, World War Two is finally over. Set in Messina, servicemen in British RAF uniforms are returning from the battlefields, land girls working in the fields, and in the air, is hope, optimism, and much needed laughter. Two young dreamers, Hero and Claudio, fall head over heels, whilst Benedick and Beatrice have a love hate relationship, who are then tricked into declaring love for one another. Yet amid all this hope, treachery is afoot, a vengeful brother plotting the downfall of the Prince, Don Pedro. How will it all end, can true love overcome, or will gossip and rumour win out?
Sarah Kemeela Impey as Hero and Linford Johnson as Claudio are sweet as the young, innocent couple, before heartbreak descends. Robin Simpson as Benedick and Isobel Middleton as Beatrice are the complete opposite. Their relationship is hilarious and you just know what will happen after their distaste for each over. They had great chemistry together when they were at loggerheads, and the scenes when they were both set up gave the audience laughs aplenty. I must say that the star of the show was Simpson, his acting was brilliant and he showed great comic timing. His interaction with the audience had us all laughing and even had the rest of the cast couldn’t help themselves. Brilliant.
The production is interspersed with music, the cast breaking into song and a band of musicians popping up playing various instruments. By no means is this production a musical, but the music is certainly a key element in the story telling. It showcased the multi-talented cast in how adaptable they were.
The staging and props were very simple, in fact the staging didn’t alter at all, just the props, a few chairs, newspapers and buckets and not much else to be honest, but that is all that was needed.
I have seen a few of Shakespeare’s plays now and I have a bit of a love, hate relationship with them. I have come to the conclusion that I’m not so keen on the more serious wordy plays, but I enjoy the comedies. I have never read the play or seen it in theatre or even in film and had no idea of the story beforehand, so was unsure of what to expect. At just short of three hours long I did not hold up much hope, I honestly thought I would flag, how wrong I was, it was a superb show. At times I was crying with laughter. Could it have been shorter? Maybe, but the time flew by and I was thoroughly captivated by the whole tale.
This production is a great introduction to Shakespeare, with great comic relief but with a darker element. Catch it whilst you can and be captivated just as I was.
Applications open today for first of two major new theatre commissioning programmes from HOME, Manchester
HOME has announced that it will be working with Trafalgar Entertainment Group on a major new commissioning opportunity for theatre-makers wanting to expand their practice.
The HOME 2020 Commission provides a rare opportunity for theatre makers who have been working in smaller spaces to make a step change in their careers. Through an open call out to any artist who has been producing work at a small scale for at least three years, HOME and TEG will provide a full commission and comprehensive development opportunities.
Following a bespoke residency and intensive periods of R&D, HOME will then commit to premiering the new production in its 500 seat theatre.
The first HOME 2020 Commission is specifically for theatre-makers who make musicals or plays with music. There will be a further HOME 2020 Commission announced later in the year, which will be delivered in partnership with English Touring Theatre.
HOME’s Director & CEO Dave Moutrey said:
“All too frequently some of the most pioneering artists can find themselves ghettoised in terms of scale and budget. The larger stages in our institutions often feel like the domain of a limited number of practitioners. With the HOME 2020 Commission we want to provide a critical step-change in practice for theatre-makers to create on a bigger scale, and make work for a larger audience.”
The HOME 2020 Commission is just part of a new artistic approach which will see HOME provide opportunities for artists to take a step-up in scale. This will include a new show by acclaimed cabaret artists Bourgois and Maurice, which will form part of the programme next year. Moutrey believes presenting this as an “open call” to artists is critical:
“Speaking to artists from across the country, its not just the lack of opportunities to develop their practice that cause frustration – but that they only feel available for closed networks. We want to be clear that the HOME 2020 Commission is an open call to artists from across the country to make a show on our T1 stage. We want to meet new people, and discover new talent. Talent is everywhere, but opportunity is not.”
Sir Howard Panter, Joint CEO and Creative Director for Trafalgar Entertainment, said; “We’re delighted to be supporting the HOME 2020 Commission in discovering and developing home grown productions in Manchester, a city already bursting with creativity as a result of its incredible cultural heritage. We are huge admirers of the work HOME has been doing to unearth and nurture new talent and are very excited about the projects we expect to emerge. We share HOME’s commitment to helping artists make the difficult jump to the next stage in their careers and hope, ultimately, that both projects and artists involved in the initiative will soon be playing on our stages in London’s Trafalgar Studios and further afield as well.”
This spirit of open opportunity for artists is also a key feature of all HOME’s artistic opportunities. Earlier this month HOME launched a new round of Made at HOME funds, open applications for artists to access funding and support to explore and develop ideas and platform them at HOME.
Applications open today, Monday 13 May until Monday 10th June. Commissions will be announced in July.
DANCE UMBRELLA ANNOUNCES FINAL SHOWS IN LINE-UP FOR FESTIVAL 2019 INCLUDING A CUNNINGHAM CENTENARY TRIPLE BILL, MORE OUT OF THE SYSTEM EVENTS, A DU DEBUT FROM LUCY GUERIN AND THE FULL DU:FAIRFIELD TAKEOVER PROGRAMME
Artistic Director and Chief Executive Emma Gladstone said ‘Dance Umbrella today announces the final third of its 2019 programme. Sixteen of the eighteen artists this year are making their DU debuts and in his centenary year we are proud to present works by Merce Cunningham at the Linbury Theatre. Our pan-London festival is taking place in thirteen different boroughs spanning zones 1 to 5; so charge your oysters and prepare to come on a journey that crosses continents and reveals what dance is and can be. Come and join us.’
DU: THE FUTURE BURSTS IN Amala Dianor (Fr/Senegal) Somewhere in the Middle of Infinity – UK Premiere CCN – Ballet De Lorraine (France) For Four Walls UK premiere CCN – Ballet de Lorraine Sounddance by Merce Cunningham (USA) Linbury Theatre, Royal Opera House: Thursday 24 – Saturday 26 October 7.45pm Matinee Sat 26 October 2pm Opening this celebratory evening is a radiant trio by Senegal-born Amala Dianor, replete with fluid, looping gestures exploring human bonds, Somewhere in the Middle of Infinity seduces with serene yet powerful encounters derived from a 21st-century meeting of African, hip-hop and contemporary styles. In the second half, CCN – Ballet de Lorraine’s connection with Cunningham is reflected in a re-reading of a once-lost 1944 work. Retaining John Cage’s piano score, For Four Walls sets 24 dancers in motion to new choreography by Petter Jacobsson and Thomas Caley inside a mirrored space. To end, the unpredictability and riotous dynamism of Cunningham’s 1975 classic,Sounddance – provides a perfect salute to his Centennial.
PANEL DISCUSSION: MERCE IN THE UK Siobhan Davies Studio: Wednesday 23 October 7.30pm Chaired by Jeremy Millar, panellists Richard Alston, Gavin Bryars, Julie Cunningham and Siobhan Davies will talk about the lasting legacy and influence of Merce Cunningham.
FREDDIE OPOKU-ADDAIE – OUT OF THE SYSTEM In the third and final year of DU’s Out of the System initiative, choreographer, performer and educator Freddie Opoku-Addaie’s curational acumen reaches for the glitter ball in the sky with this timely and FUN-tastic vogue ball, which runs alongside a tantalising quadruple bill of UK talent; Freddie has also programmed an afternoon of Sunday Cinema as previously announced.
OUT OF THE SYSTEM – THE BIG PINK VOGUE BALL Jay Jay Revlon & Cai Revlon (UK) Shoreditch Town Hall: Saturday 12 October 8.30pm (Doors 8pm) – LATE Anyone who came to CRXSS PLATFXRM last year will have a sense of how DU and Freddie embrace dance as a social, shareable and (optionally) participatory activity and with the recent storming success of TV show Pose, everyone is going to want to get in on this act! The Big Pink Vogue Ball will be a spectacle with a party atmosphere to end all party atmospheres. Get on down and strike a pose!
OUT OF THE SYSTEM – MIXED BILL Becky Namgauds (UK) – Exhibit F THĒO INARTS(UK) – FIM (Fragility In Man) Part 1 Ffion Campbell-Davies and tyroneisaacstuart (UK) – Beyond Words Jonzi D (UK) – Aeroplane Man Bernie Grant Arts Centre: Tuesday 22 – Wednesday 23 October, 7.30pm Becky Namgaud’s Exhibit F is a creature of the night; half bold, free and sensual, half weak, suppressed and controlled. Veering between victim and predator, testing measures of power and submission in equal magnitude; we encounter the female form under a new gaze. The male form is the intimate focus of THĒO INART’s solo Fragility in Man, alive with telling symbolism and visual storytelling. Collaborating in Beyond Words, Ffion Campbell-Davies and tyroneisaacstuart call on their exploration of dance, music and authenticity to question how humans converse. Inspired by the experience of working-class racism and continual reminders from white England that ‘you ain’t really from here…’ Aeroplane Man is Jonzi D’s now iconic, true story of a young black man’s global quest to find his spiritual homeland. A unique fusion of rhyme and lyrically motivated movement, this critically acclaimed ‘choreo-poem’ is delivered with Jonzi’s trademark wit and closes the evening.
OUT OF THE SYSTEM – PANEL DISCUSSION Tick Box / Break Glass / Look Pretty Young Vic: Saturday 12 October 5.15pm Examining the changes and opportunities in the arts for women of colour, this discussion explores how we can carve new and enduring pathways in and outside of the current system. Facilitated by Dawn Estefan (psychotherapist, writer, trainer & speaker) panellists including: Julia Cheng (dancer, choreographer & Artistic Director of House of Absolute), Nike Jonah (Visiting Research Fellow, Central School of Speech and Drama), Tracy Gentles (Co-Director,The Sick of the Fringe).
SPLIT Lucy Guerin (Australia) – UK Premiere The Place: Saturday 12 – Sunday 13 October 7.30pm With one dancer clothed, one naked, two fearless female performers dance in flawless unison; their movements first poised, then animalistic. Moving impeccably through their compelling duet, they navigate the terrain of a stark and diminishing set to a shamanistic, looping drum score by British electronic composer Scanner with increasing tension and an undercurrent of conflict.
DU: FAIRFIELD TAKEOVER Boy Blue (UK) – REDD The Urban Playground Team (UK/France) To Fly Before We Fall – UK premiere Mythili Prakash – Here and Now – UK premiere Philippe Saire – Hocus Pocus – London premiere (DU Orbital Tour) Fairfield Halls, Croydon: Friday 18 – Saturday 19 October
Filling and spilling out of Fairfield Halls’ beautifully redeveloped spaces, this weekend Takeoverfeatures a mix of international dance, pop-up events, performance-parkour thrills, homegrown talent, workshops and mayhem for all ages to the heart of Croydon. Joining previously announced artists Mythili Prackash and Philippe Saire, The Urban Playground Team is known for its authentic fusion of free running and streetwise dance. Superstar hip-hop company Boy Blue performs its latest large-scale production, wrapping up the weekend with the final Takeover performance.
There are so many more ways to get involved, including your chance to become a DIY choreographer – see www.danceumbrella.co.uk for the full programme.
GALA NIGHT IN AID OF THE ALBERT KENNEDY TRUST 24 JULY
Tyrone Huntley will star as Wes in the European premiere of new LGBTQ+ musical THE VIEW UPSTAIRS, which runs from 18 July to 24 August at Soho Theatre, with a press night on Tuesday 23 July and a special gala night in aid of the Albert Kennedy Trust (AKT) on 24 July.
He joins the previously announced Andy Mientus, Declan Bennett, Victoria Hamilton-Barritt, Cedric Neal and John Partridge who will play Patrick, Dale, Inez, Willie and Buddy respectively. Completing the cast are Carly Mercedes Dyer as Henri, Gary Lee as Freddy, Joseph Prouse as Richard and Derek Hagen as Cops/Realtor.
Tyrone Huntley was recently shortlisted for an Ian Charleson Award for his portrayal of Lysander in A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Watermill, Newbury). He received the Evening Standard Emerging Talent Award and an Olivier Award nomination for the role of Judas in Jesus Christ Superstar (Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre) and Broadway World Award nominations for Gator in Memphis (Shaftesbury Theatre) and Doctor in The Book of Mormon (Prince of Wales). Some of his more recent theatre work includes Obi in Leave to Remain (Lyric, Hammersmith), Justin Laboy in Lin-Manuel Miranda’s 21 Chump Street (The Courtyard Theatre) and C.C. White in Dreamgirls (Savoy Theatre). This year Tyrone made his directorial debut with Ain’t Misbehavin’ which received rave reviews at both The Mercury Theatre, Colchester and Southwark Playhouse.
A special gala night in aid of AKT will take place on 24 July with all proceeds from ticket sales going to the AKT, the national LGBTQ+ youth homelessness charity, providing safe homes and better futures for people aged 16-25.
AKT supports young LGBTQ+ people facing homelessness or living in a hostile environment, most of who have experienced rejection or abuse from their families and communities. AKT operates service centres in London, Manchester and Newcastle and operates across the UK with an online service, so that no young person has to choose between a safe home and being who they are.
The musical opens in present day when Wes, a young fashion designer buys an abandoned space, not realising this had been the UpStairs Lounge, a vibrant ’70s gay bar in the French Quarter of New Orleans, which, in 1973, was burned down in an arson attack, killing 32 people, and making it the worst attack on the LGBTQ+ community until the 2016 shooting at The Pulse nightclub in Orlando. THE VIEW UPSTAIRS brings to life this forgotten community and takes the audience on an exhilarating journey of seduction and self-exploration, celebrating the lives of those forgotten, while featuring a soulful, rock and jazz score.
THE VIEW UPSTAIRS opened to rave reviews Off-Broadway in 2017, where Entertainment Weekly described it as “a moving homage to LGBT culture, past and present”, and the musical gained support from some of the LGBTQ+ community’s biggest advocates, including RuPaul. There is an original cast recording available on Broadway Records.
The London production of the musical is one of ten that have been and are being mounted around the world between 2017 and 2019. As well as a triumphant run Off-Broadway, THE VIEW UPSTAIRS has enjoyed multiple regional US productions and a recent Australian premiere.
The musical is written by young up-and-coming artist Max Vernon and will be directed in London by Jonathan O’Boyle (Aspects of Love, Pippin, Hair), with choreography by Fabian Aloise (Evita at Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre in 2019, The Rink, Our House, Working). The show will have set and costume design by Lee Newby, lighting design by Nic Farman, sound design by Adam Fisher, with casting by Will Burton CDG.
THE VIEW UPSTAIRS is produced in London by Jack Maple & Brian Zeilinger for Take Two Theatricals and Ken Fakler, with Creative House Productions and Associate Producers Ben Lockwood and Sue Marks.
LISTINGS INFORMATION
18 July – 24 August
21 Dean St,
Soho,
London W1D 3NE
Performance Times:
Monday – Saturday at 7.15pm
Thursday and Saturday at 2.30pm
Tickets: from £10 (standing) and £19.50 (£18.50 concessions) seated. Please note, £1 restoration levy on all tickets.
Wise Children’s adaptation of Enid Blyton’s Malory Towers, co-produced by York Theatre Royal in association with Bristol Old Vic, will star Rebecca Collingwood as Gwendoline Lacey, Mirabelle Gremaud as Irene Bartlett, Vinnie Heaven as Bill Robinson, Izuka Hoyle as Darrell Rivers, Renee Lamb as Alicia Johns, Francesca Mills as Sally Hope and Rose Shalloo as Mary Lou Atkinson. Adapted and directed by Emma Rice, the musical opens on 25 July 2019 at The Passenger Shed in the company’s home city of Bristol, before embarking on a national tour to Cambridge, York, Exeter, Manchester and Oxford.
Rebecca Collingwood has previously appeared in Much Ado About Nothing and Love’s Labour’s Lost for the RSC at Chichester Festival Theatre and Theatre Royal Haymarket. Mirabelle Gremaud has worked for dance-theatre and circus companies in Switzerland and England and was cast in Emma Rice’s first production of her new company, as Young Nora in Wise Children (Old Vic and UK Tour). Vinnie Heaven is a non-binary trans performer. They are an associate artist of Strike A Light who produced She’s A Good Boy, written and performed by Vinnie,which toured nationally in 2019. Vinnie’s recent performance credits include Pingu in Cuckoo at Soho Theatre and Imaginary Friend in the national tour of Half The World Away. Vinnie is also the co-artistic director of Raised Eyebrows Theatre, which is touring Charmane, a family show written by Vinnie, autumn 2019 to spring 2020. Izuka Hoyle has previously played Emily Davison in Sylvia (Old Vic), The Boy in The Selfish Giant (Royal & Derngate / Vaudeville), Catherine Parr in Six (Arts Theatre) and Selina in Working (Southwark Playhouse), as well as Mary Seton in the Working Title film Mary Queen of Scots. Renee Lamb has previously played Armelia in Ain’t Misbehavin’ (Southwark Playhouse, Mercury Colchester), Chiffon in Little Shop of Horrors (Regent’s Park Open Theatre) and Catherine of Aragon in Six (Arts Theatre).
Francesca Mills has appeared most recently in The American Clock (Old Vic), A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Sheffield Crucible), Pity (Royal Court), The Two Noble Kinsmen (Shakespeare’s Globe), A Tale Of Two Cities (Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre), and she was nominated for the 2017 Ian Charleston Award for her performance in The Government Inspector (Birmingham Rep). Her television work includes seasons two and three of Harlots (ITV) and film work includes Zoolander 2.
Rose Shalloo has previously played Little Boy in The Selfish Giant (Vaudeville Theatre, Royal & Derngate), Margalit in To Paint the Earth (Southwark Playhouse), Chava in Fiddler on the Roof (Chichester Festival Theatre) and Shannon in A Pacifist’s Guide to the War on Cancer (National Theatre). Her television roles include Ellen Maccoubrie in Holby City (BBC), Tasha in The Five (Sky), Hannah Commander in The Scandalous Lady W (BBC) and June Colter in Call the Midwife (BBC) and her film credits include Hannah in Emma (Working Title).
The windows shone. A green creeper climbed almost to the roof. It looked like an old-time castle.My school! thought Darrell, and a little warm feeling came into her heart. How lucky I am to be going to Malory Towers!
Nostalgic, naughty and perfect for now, Malory Towers is the original ‘Girl Power’ story, filled with high jinks, high drama and high spirits, all set to sensational live music and breathtaking animation.
Darrell Rivers is starting school with an eager mind and fierce heart. Unfortunately she also has a quick temper! Can she learn to tolerate the infuriating Gwendoline Lacey, or value the kind-hearted Sally Hope? Can she save the school play and rescue terrified Mary Lou from the grip of a raging storm? If she can do these things anywhere, she will do them at Malory Towers!
Adapted and directed by Emma Rice, this is a show for girls, boys, and all us grown up children who still dream of midnight feasts and Cornish clifftops. With set and costume design by Lez Brotherston, lighting by Malcolm Rippeth, sound and video by Simon Baker and original music by Ian Ross.
This production is generously supported by Bristol City Council Culture Team and Sherborne Girls School.
The show is officially licensed by Enid Blyton Entertainment, a division of Hachette Children’s Group (HCG). Karen Lawler, Head of Licensed Content at HCG, says, “Enid Blyton created incredible female characters at Malory Towers: strong, capable and always, always kind. ‘Women the world can lean on,’ in Enid’s own words. We share Emma’s passion for these characters and we couldn’t be more excited to see Emma’s vision of Malory Towers come to life.”
Emma Rice on Malory Towers…
I’ve always been drawn to the years that followed the Second World War. It’s a time that feels close enough to touch, as I vividly remember my grandparents and how the war affected their lives. My Mum’s parents – poor and largely uneducated – decided that their children would have access to all the things that they hadn’t. I don’t know how they managed it on a railway worker’s pay, but my mother was sent to a remote grammar school in Dorset: Lord Digby’s School for Girls.
Whilst not a boarding school, Lord Digby’s was an extraordinary place of learning that changed my mother’s, and by extension my own, life. The tendrils of passion and education that Lord Digby’s stood for reach out across 60 years and more. They reached out over my inner city comprehensive education and have shaped my own beliefs and choices to this day.
My adaptation of Malory Towers is dedicated to the generation of women who taught in schools in that period. With lives shaped by the savagery of two wars, these teachers devoted themselves to the education and nurture of other women. It is also for the two generations of men that died in those same wars, leaving us with the freedom to lead meaningful, safe and empowered lives. And it is for Clement Attlee and his Labour government of 1945 who looked into the face of evil and chose to do what was right. These people changed the political landscape in their focus on care, compassion and the common good.
Malory Towers was written at the heart of this political revolution, and embodies a kindness, hope and love of life that knocks my socks off. ‘Long live our appetites and may our shadows never grow less!’ the girls cry.
My mother wrote to her teachers at Lord Digby’s until they died and is still friends with many of the girls she met there. And when I see my Mum, born into the poorest of rural backgrounds, enjoying Dickens and Almodovar and speaking French to her childhood pen-friend, I am stopped in my tracks. She went on to dedicate her life to the NHS and the helping of others whilst never losing her appetite for life, culture and hope. I salute her, and I cheer the education that threw this mind and soul into the air and said, “be a woman that the world can lean on”.
So that’s why I am making Malory Towers, with gratitude, hope and sheer pleasure! I call it my ‘Happy Lord of the Flies’ and it is joyfully radical to its bones. Imagine a world where (left to their own devices), people choose kindness. Imagine a world where difference is respected and arguments resolved with thought and care. Imagine a world that chooses community, friendship and fun. Now that’s a world I want to live in and, at Malory Towers, you can!
Tour Listings
The Passenger Shed – Station Approach, Bristol BS1 6QH
WINNER OF FOUR OLIVIER AWARDS INCLUDING BEST NEW MUSICAL
EXTENDS ITS RUN IN THE WEST END UNTIL FEBRUARY 2020
Hit musical Come From Away will extend its run in the West End until 15 February 2020. Telling the remarkable true story of 7,000 stranded air passengers during the wake of 9/11, and the small town in Newfoundland that welcomed them, the critically acclaimed production recently earned great success at the Olivier Awards, winning “Best New Musical”, “Best Theatre Choreographer”, “Best Sound Design” and “Outstanding Achievement in Music”.
This joyous new musical recounts the incredible true story of how the residents of Gander, Newfoundland welcomed the passengers of planes from around the world. Cultures clashed, and nerves ran high, but as uneasiness turned into trust, music soared into the night and gratitude grew into enduring friendships.
On 11 September 2001 the world stopped. On 12 September, their stories moved us all.
The multi award-winning musical continues sold-out, record-breaking engagements on Broadway, in Canada and on a 60-city North American Tour. An Australian production is confirmed to open this summer, and a feature film adaptation is in the works.
The cast of Come From Away in the West End includes Jenna Boyd (Beulah and others),Nathanael Campbell (Bob and others), Clive Carter (Claude and others), Mary Doherty(Bonnie and others), Robert Hands (Nick, Doug and others), Helen Hobson (Diane and others), Jonathan Andrew Hume (Kevin J, Ali and others), Harry Morrison (Oz and others),Emma Salvo (Janice and others), David Shannon (Kevin T, Garth and others), Cat Simmons(Hannah and others) and Rachel Tucker (Beverley, Annette and others) with Chiara Baronti,Mark Dugdale, Bob Harms, Kirsty Malpass, Tania Mathurin, Alexander McMorran,Brandon Lee Sears and Jennifer Tierney.
Under the Musical Direction of Alan Berry (Keyboard/Accordion/Harmonium), the band includesMatt Bashford (Whistles/Irish Flute/Uilleann Pipes), Aoife Ní Bhriain (Fiddle), Dan Day(Drums/Percussion), Ray Fean (Bodhrán/Percussion), Joey Grant (Electric Bass/Acoustic Bass),Justin Quinn (Acoustic Guitar/Mandolins/Bazouki) and Mark Wraith (Electric, Acoustic and Nylon Guitars).
Come From Away features a book, music and lyrics by Irene Sankoff and David Hein and is directed by Christopher Ashley, with musical staging by Kelly Devine, music supervision and arrangements by Ian Eisendrath, scenic design by Beowulf Boritt, costume design by Toni-Leslie James, lighting design by Howell Binkley, sound design by Gareth Owen, hair design by David Brian Brown, orchestrations by August Eriksmoen, and casting by Pippa Ailion CDG and Natalie Gallacher CDG.
In addition to winning 4 Olivier Awards (London) including “Best New Musical”, Come From Away has scooped multiple awards all across North America: the Tony Award for “Best Direction of a Musical”, 5 Outer Critics Circle Awards (NYC) including “Outstanding New Broadway Musical”, 3 Drama Desk Awards (NYC) including “Outstanding Musical”, 4 Helen Hayes Awards (Washington DC) including “Outstanding Production of a Musical”, 4 Los Angeles Drama Critics’ Circle Awards, 4 Gypsy Rose Lee Awards (Seattle) including “Excellence in Production of a Musical”, 6 San Diego Critics Circle Awards including “Outstanding New Musical”, 3 Toronto Theatre Critics Awards including “Best New Musical”, 3 Dora Awards (Toronto) including “Outstanding New Musical/Opera” and “Outstanding Production”, and the 2017 Jon Kaplan Audience Choice Award (Toronto).
Come From Away was originally co-produced in 2015 by La Jolla Playhouse and Seattle Repertory Theatre, and presented in 2016 by Ford’s Theatre in Washington DC and Mirvish Productions at the Royal Alexandra Theatre in Toronto, Canada, all in partnership with Junkyard Dog Productions. Come From Away (NAMT Festival 2013) was originally developed at the Canadian Music Theatre Project, Michael Rubinoff Producer, Sheridan College in Oakville, Ontario, Canada, and was further developed at Goodspeed Musicals’ Festival of New Artists, in East Haddam CT. The Canada Council for the Arts, the Ontario Arts Council and the 5th Avenue Theatre in Seattle WA also provided development support.
Come From Away is produced in the UK by Junkyard Dog Productions and Smith & Brant Theatricals. The European premiere of Come From Away was co-produced with the Abbey Theatre, Ireland’s National Theatre.
THE SPIEGELTENT UNDERBELLY, SOUTH BANK FESTIVAL UNTIL -16th MAY 2019
Reviewed by Serena Norgren
4****
Dominic Cooke’s Olivier award winning revival of Follies, a wry, classy American musical by Stephen Sondheim wowed audiences and critics alike. Glitz, glamour, a wonderful score – an ensemble piece performed by a truly talented bunch – it had everything. Unfortunately, it closed at the National last weekend. The end of something really special.
It would appear that the cast also felt like this which is a great tribute to both the show and each other. And from this, On Reflection was devised. It is essentially a series of behind the scene tales told individually by members of the cast about their lives and careers with each performer talking about themselves, sharing a photograph and performing a song of their choice. Sometimes hilarious, often extremely moving with profound life stories being shared in a deeply personal environment.
It could have been cheesy, indulgent, narcissistic but it wasn’t: led by Janie Dee (who played Phyllis) it was a very special experience. Gemma Sutton (Young Sally) opened proceedings recounting her hilarious story of getting into drama school and singing Taking a Chance on Love. She was followed equally brilliantly by Caroline Fitzgerald who replicated her drama school audition piece in a wonderfully bonkers way, The Girl in 14G.
The mood changed to a moving tale of Harry Hepple (Young Buddy)‘s relationship with his dad and a lovely duet with Ian McLarnon (Ensemble). Christine Tucker (Young Phyllis) talked about resilience and her paraplegic brother teaching himself to walk with the takeaway motto “stick to your guns, know your worth”. Alyn Hawke (US Young Buddy) did a wonderful Fred Astaire medley; Lindsay Atherton (Young Carlotta) performed Rise Up by Andrew Day “because this song terrifies me”. Vanessa Fisher (Young Stella) talked about how tough the industry is and we ended with the marvellous Janie Dee singing an unused song from the Follies score. All directed and accompanied on the piano by Stefan Bednarczyk. Blimey, they are a talented lot.
The love in the room was palpable: a small audience with lots of cast family and friends present made for a wonderfully intimate experience, almost to the point of voyeuristic. It was a true privilege to be part of it and a rare insight into the roller coaster that is the performing arts business. A little rough round the edges and it certainly didn’t feel over rehearsed but this somehow added to the intimacy.
If you are a Follies fan, it is mandatory, if you are an aspiring performer it is a masterclass and if you are simply a musical theatre fan it is just plain fabulous.
Filmed live for the cinema screen at York Theatre Royal in March 2019, multi-award-winning director Emma Rice brings her unique, exuberantly impish vision to Angela Carter’s great last novel in this brand-new play. A big, bawdy tangle of theatrical joy and heartbreak, Wise Children is a celebration of show business, family, forgiveness and hope, with a generous dash of Shakespeare, scandal and mischief. Performed by a spectacular ensemble cast, this colourful all-singing and dancing show takes the audience on a rollercoaster ride of emotion.
Emma Rice said today, “We’ve had a glorious adventure with our company so far, and the cinema release of our inaugural production, Wise Children, is a wonderful conclusion to the tour. I’m absolutely delighted that a wider audience will get to an opportunity to see our work and revel in the joyful world of Angela Carter’s novel.”
The cast is Sam Archer (Young Peregrine), Ankur Bahl (Young Melchior), Stu Barker (The Band), Omari Douglas (Showgirl Nora), Mirabelle Gremaud (Young Nora), Alex Heane (TheBand), Paul Hunter (Melchior Hazard), Melissa James (Showgirl Dora), Bettrys Jones (Young Dora), Patrycja Kujawska (Lady Atalanta/Wheelchair), Etta Murfitt (Nora Chance), Katy Owen (Grandma Chance), Ian Ross (Band Leader), Gareth Snook (Dora Chance)and Mike Shepherd (Peregrine Hazard).
Emma Rice is the proud and excited Artistic Director of her new company, Wise Children. Following her adaptation of Angela Carter’s Wise Children, this year the company will present the UK tour of Enid Blyton’sMalory Towers, adapted and directed by Rice. As Artistic Director of Shakespeare’s Globe (2016/18), she directed Romantics Anonymous, Twelfth Night, A Midsummer Night’s Dream and The Little Matchgirl(and Other Happier Tales). For the previous 20 years, she worked for Kneehigh as an actor, director and Artistic Director. Her productions for Kneehigh include: The Flying Lovers of Vitebsk, Tristan & Yseult, 946: The Amazing Story of Adolphus Tips, The Wild Bride, The Red Shoes, The Wooden Frock, The Bacchae, Cymbeline (in association with RSC), A Matter of Life and Death (in association with National Theatre), Rapunzel (in association with Battersea Arts Centre); Brief Encounter (in association with David Pugh and Dafydd Rogers Productions); Don John (in association with the RSC and Bristol Old Vic); Wah! Wah! Girls (in association with Sadler’s Wells and Theatre Royal Stratford East for World Stages); and Steptoe and Son. Other work includes: the West End production of The Umbrellas of Cherbourg, Oedipussy (Spymonkey); The Empress (RSC); and An Audience with Meow Meow (Berkeley Repertory Theatre). Brief Encounter was revived last year at the Empire Cinema Haymarket.
For more information or to find a cinema screening Wise Children please visit: www.wisechildrencinema.com
WILL BE CELEBRATING PRIDE MONTH WITH THE NEXT LONDON CAST ALBUM KARAOKE NIGHT ON 26 JUNE
The next Waitress LondonCast Album KaraokeNight has been confirmed for Wednesday 26 June – in partnership with Gay Times. Audience members who want to take part just need to sign up before that evening’s show for the chance to sing one minute of any song from Waitress – live on stage at the Adelphi and accompanied by the show’s musical director Katharine Woolley. Hosts and further details about the event will be announced in due course.
Waitress celebrated its official opening night on 7 March and the Tony-nominated musical by Sara Bareilles is now booking to 19 October.
London’s brand-new smash hit musical comedy Waitresstells the story of Jenna, a waitress and expert pie-maker who dreams her way out of a loveless marriage. When a hot new doctor arrives in town, life gets complicated. With the support of her workmates Becky and Dawn, Jenna overcomes the challenges she faces and finds that laughter, love and friendship can provide the perfect recipe for happiness.
Gay Times is Europe’s longest-running LGBTQ publication. Later this year, Gay Times will release its 500th issue, a first for any queer publication in Europe.
Brought to life by a ground breaking, female-led creative team, the hit show features an original score by 7-time Grammy® nominee Sara Bareilles (Love Song, Brave), a book by acclaimed screenwriterJessie Nelson (I Am Sam) and direction by Tony Award® winner Diane Paulus (Pippin, Finding Neverland) and choreography by Lorin Latarro. The production is currently touring the US and has also announced it will have its Australian premiere in 2020 at the Sydney Lyric Theatre.
Alongside Katharine McPhee as Jenna, Waitress stars Jack McBrayer as Ogie, Marisha Wallace as Becky, Laura Baldwin as Dawn, Peter Hannah as Earl, David Hunter as Dr. Pomatter and Shaun Prendergast as Old Joe.
The full company includes Kelly Agbowu, Laura Baldwin, Piers Bate, Nicole Raquel Dennis, Michael Hamway, Peter Hannah, David Hunter, Stephen Leask, Jack McBrayer, Chris McGuigan, Katharine McPhee, Olivia Moore, Nathaniel Morrison, Sarah O’Connor, Leanne Pinder, Shaun Prendergast, Charlotte Riby, Marisha Wallace and Mark Willshire.
On its Broadway opening, Waitress was nominated for four Outer Critics’ Circle Awards, including Outstanding New Broadway Musical; two Drama League Award Nominations, including Outstanding Production of a Broadway or Off-Broadway Musical; six Drama Desk Nominations, including Outstanding Musical; and four Tony Award Nominations, including Best Musical.
