Home

NATHANIEL PARKER, SIMON CHANDLER, AND GYURI SAROSSY

LEAD CAST FOR UK PREMIÈRE OF OPERATION EPSILON

ALAN BRODY’S AWARD-WINNING PLAY

DIRECTED BY ANDY SANDBERG

AT SOUTHWARK PLAYHOUSE ELEPHANT

Full casting is announced today for Alan Brody’s award-winning play Operation Epsilon at Southwark Playhouse Elephant, which opens on 20 September, with previews from 15 September and runs until 21 October 2023.

Andy Sandberg directs an ensemble cast of eleven that includes Nicholas Armfield (Horst Korsching), Jamie Bogyo (Carl Friederich von Weizsäcker), Simon Bubb (Major T.H. Rittner), Simon Chandler (Max von Laue), Matthew Duckett (Erich Bagge), Jake Mann (Karl Wirtz), Olivier Award winner Nathaniel Parker (Otto Hahn), Peter Prentice (Paul Harteck), Leighton Pugh (Walter Gerlach), Simon Rhodes (Kurt Diebner), and Gyuri Sarossy (Werner Heisenberg). Operation Epsilon is produced by Ellen Berman.

Inspired by actual transcripts that were secretly recorded and then held classified for many decades, Operation Epsilon tells the true story of Germany’s ten foremost nuclear scientists who were rounded up and held captive in England by the British and American forces toward the end of World War II, as the Manhattan Project forged ahead in America.

This thought-provoking play makes its UK première at Southwark Playhouse Elephant, celebrating the 10^th anniversary of the critically acclaimed US production. Operation Epsilon shines a light on the ethical complexity of scientific discovery…and its potential for catastrophic consequences.

Ellen Berman & Operation Epsilon Limited present

The UK première of

OPERATION EPSILON

BY ALAN BRODY

DIRECTED BY ANDY SANDBERG

Cast: Nicholas Armfield, Jamie Bogyo, Simon Bubb, Simon Chandler, Matthew Duckett, Jake Mann, Nathaniel Parker, Peter Prentice, Leighton Pugh, Simon Rhodes, Gyuri Sarossy

Set Designer: Janie Howland; Costume Designer: Beth Colley; Lighting Designer: Clancy Flynn; Sound Designer: Chris Drohan;Original Music: Dewey Dellay;Casting Director: Lucy Casson CDG

15 September – 21 October 2023

It’s the close of World War II – the dawn of the atomic age. The Allies have captured Germany’s ten foremost nuclear scientists and sequestered them deep in the English countryside to ascertain the answer to a life-or-death question: how close are the Nazis to making an atomic bomb? The world stands on the precipice of creation and destruction, bound by the gravity of their decisions which hold the power to change the course of history.

Based on actual transcripts of secretly recorded conversations and telling the other side of the Oppenheimer story – Alan Brody’s gripping play delves into the darkest corners of human ingenuity, exploring the intimate conflict within the hearts and minds of luminaries with unimaginable power. A once-classified true story buried in the archives amidst an epic war, Operation Epsilon is a poignant, thrilling exploration of the ties that bind us to our actions, our decisions, and one another.

Nicholas Armfield plays Dr. Horst Korsching. His theatre credits include The Misandrist (Arcola Theatre), Richard III (Royal Shakespeare Company), Imperium Parts I and II RSC/West End), Pilgrims (Orange Tree Theatre), A Rabbit Climbed a Ladder to the Moon (The Place), and Artist Descending a Staircase (King’s Head Theatre).His television work includes Doctors; and for film, Phaedra.

Jamie Bogyo plays Professor Carl Friederich Von Weizsäcker. He most recently starred as Alex in Aspects of Love (Lyric Theatre) and originated the role of Christian in the West End production of Moulin Rouge (Piccadilly Theatre). Additional theatre credits include The Travels (New York Musical Theatre Festival), and Dust Can’t Kill Me (New York Fringe Festival).

Simon Bubb plays Major T.H. Rittner. Histheatre credits include War Horse (National Theatre; West End), Saint Joan, The Habit of Art and People (National Theatre), Romeo and Juliet, Much Ado About Nothing, King John (Royal Shakespeare Company), The Philanthropist (Donmar Warehouse), Much Ado About Nothing (Shakespeare’s Globe), Frost/Nixon (Sheffield Crucible), Hay Fever (Royal Exchange Theatre), and Far From The Madding Crowd (The Watermill Theatre). His television work includes W1A, Ghosts, Unforgotten, Silent Witness, Human, Grantchester, The Madame Blanc Mysteries, Father Brown, Life, Four Lives, The Rook, Flack, and Obsession; and for film, Possum, Nosepicker and Waiting for Dawn.

Simon Chandler plays Professor Max Von Laue. His theatre credits include Ravens: Spassky vs. Fischer and Porfiry Semyonovich Glagolyev (Hampstead Theatre), Cock, The Stepmother and For Service Rendered (Chichester Festival Theatre), Red Velvet (Tricycle Theatre/Garrick Theatre/St Ann’s Warehouse, New York), The Letter of Last Resort (Traverse), Cause Célèbre (The Old Vic), Women, Power and Politics Season (Tricycle Theatre), One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, Democracy (West End), King Lear (RSC), The Power of the Dog, The Double Dealer (Orange Tree Theatre), Invisible Friends (National Theatre), Man of the Moment (Shakespeare’s Globe), George and Margaret (Cambridge Theatre), Hamlet (Royal Court Theatre),and Romeo and Juliet, Charley’s Aunt, /Importance of Being (Young Vic). His television credits include House of the Dragon, The Diplomat, The Gold, Silent Witness, Doc Martin, Revisited, Call the Midwife, Confessional, Foyle’s War, Gentleman’s Relish, Inspector Lynley Mysteries, Judge John Deed, Just William, Land Girls, Middlemarch, Mr Selfridge, My Family, Silent Witness, Silk, Teachers, The Bletchley Circle, The Crown, The Singing Detective, The Thick of It, The Voysey Inheritance, The Wimbledon Poisoner, Vera, and Wallander; and for film, Victor/Victoria, A Bridge Too Far, The Bounty, Incognito, The Man Who Knew Too Little, Milk, Vera Drake, Perfume, Penelope, War Hero, Fast Girls, Mr Turner, The Corrupted, 55 Steps, The Theory of Everything, The Iron Lady and The King’s Speech.

Matthew Duckett plays Dr. Erich Bagge. He most recently co-starred as Crutchie in the UK première production of Disney’s Newsies. His theatre credits include Richard III and All´s Well That Ends Well (Royal Shakespeare Company), Tartuffe (National Theatre), and My Left/Right Foot – The Musical (National Theatre Scotland). His television work includes Lady Chatterley’s Lover and Confession.

Jake Mann plays Dr. Karl Wirtz. His theatre work includes Cymbeline, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Richard II (RSC), King Lear (Duke of York’s Theatre/Chichester Festival Theatre), Titus Andronicus (Shakespeare’s Globe), and Seagull Cinema (Theatre503). His television credits include Gold, Smothered, Britannia, Ripper Street, Young Doctor’s Notebook and Quick Cuts; and for film, American Assassin, Hunter Killer, and Benjamin Britten: Peace & Conflict.

Nathaniel Parker plays Professor Otto Hahn. Parker is best known for playing the detective Thomas Lynley in the television series The Inspector Lynley Mysteries. His theatre credits includeThe Mirror and the Light (Gielgud Theatre); An Ideal Husband (Vaudeville Theatre); This House (Chichester/West End); The Audience (Gielgud Theatre); Speed the Plow (West End), and Wolf Hall (RSC – Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role and Tony Award nomination). Television credits include Bleak House, Hotel Babylon, Land Girls, Merlin, Grantchester, and History of a Pleasure Seeker; and for film, The Last Duel, Swimming with Men, Swords and Sceptres, The Chronicles of Narnia, The Perfect Host, and St. Trinian’s.

Peter Prentice plays Professor Paul Harteck. His theatre credits include Bodies (Southwark Playhouse), The Best Man (West End), My Fair Lady (Theatre Royal, Drury Lane), Afterlife, Les Parents Terribles, Sweeney Todd (National Theatre), The Magic Flute (Donmar Warehouse), The Sound of Music, Enjoy (West Yorkshire Playhouse), and Aspects of Love (Wolsey Theatre). His television work includes The Capture, Silent Witness, Close to the Enemy, and Berkeley Square; and for film, How to Get Ahead, Outside, Jake the Exorcist and The Magic Key.

Leighton Pugh plays Professor Walter Gerlach. His theatre work includes The Lehman Trilogy (UK tour), Rocket to the Moon, A Woman Killed with Kindness (National Theatre), The Birthday Party (Harold Pinter Theatre), and There (Royal Court Theatre). His television credits include 50 Ways to Kill Your Lover, Grandpa in My Pocket and Fingersmith.

Simon Rhodes plays Dr. Kurt Diebner. His theatre credits include Posh (UK Tour), No Man’s Land (Wyndham’s Theatre and UK Tour), Cornelius (Finborough Theatre/ 59E59 Theater, New York), Dear Brutus (Southwark Playhouse), Just To Get Married and Laburnum Grove (Finborough Theatre), Billy Chickens is a Psychopath Superstar (Theatre503 at the Latitude Festival), Accomplice (Menier Chocolate Factory), Blue On Blue and Trolls (Theatre503), Peace, The Bacchae, The Persians (various amphitheatres, Cyprus), The Plebeians Rehearse The Uprising (Arcola Theatre), and Julius Caesar (Barbican). His film credits include The World We Knew, The Sky in Bloom and Screwed.

Gyuri Sarossy plays Professor Werner Heisenberg. His theatre credits includeMeasure for Measure (Shakespeare’s Globe), Ravens: Spassky vs. Fischer (Hampstead Theatre), Sadness and Joy in the Life of Giraffes, The Widowing of Mrs Holroyd (Orange Tree Theatre), Wendy and Peter (Lyceum Edinburgh), Chinglish (Park Theatre), The Seven Acts of Mercy, The Rover, Two Noble Kinsmen and Romeo and Juliet (RSC), Creditors (Young Vic), The Absence of War, The Seagull (Headlong), Tonight at 8:30 (Nuffield/ETT), ‘Tis Pity She’s a Whore (Cheek by Jowl), Earthquakes in London, Luther (National Theatre), As You Like It (Royal Exchange Theatre), The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists (Liverpool Everyman/Chichester Festival Theatre), The Hypochondriac (Almeida Theatre), Macbeth, Coriolanus (Tobacco Factory/Barbican), Rope (The Watermill Theatre), Uncle Vanya and Twelfth Night (Donmar Warehouse), Man and Superman, Don Juan, Galileo’s Daughter (Peter Hall Company), and The Promise (Tricycle Theatre). His television credits includeFBI International, The Outlaws, Father Brown, Press, The Coroner, Foyle’s War, Einstein and Eddington, Tchaikovsky, The Bill, Egypt, Casualty, Judge John Deed, Eastenders, Doctors, Blue Dove, Up Rising and Belfry Witches; and for film, Mercenaries, Another Life and Until Death.

Alan Brody’s Operation Epsilon received its world première production at Central Square Theater (Cambridge, MA) with the Nora Theater Company in 2013 and received the distinguished IRNE Awards for Best New Play, Best Director (Andy Sandberg), Best Ensemble, and Best Scenic Design (Janie Howland). Named a Critics’ Pick by The Boston Globe, Operation Epsilon also received a 2013 Elliot Norton Award nomination for Best New Play and won the Norton Award for Best Leading Actor. Brody’s other works include The Housewives of Mannheim (a co-production between Off-Broadway’s 59E59 Theatre in NYC and NJ Repertory Theatre), Five Scenes from Life, Greytop in Love, One-on-One, The Midvale High School Fiftieth Reunion, and Reckoning Time: A Song of Walt Whitman. His play Invention for Fathers and Sons was awarded the first annual Rosenthal Award at the Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park in 1989. He also received the 1990 Eisner Award from the Streisand Center for Jewish Culture in Los Angeles for Company of Angels, which had its world premiere at New Repertory Theater in 1993.

Andy Sandberg is a New York-based director, writer, and Tony Award-winning producer. He is also currently Artistic Director and CEO of the Hermitage Artist Retreat in Florida. He directed the UK première of Jeannette Bayardelle’s Shida, which opened to rave reviews and earned 2019 Off West End Award nominations for Best Musical, Best Director, Best Lead Actress (also Off-Broadway at Ars Nova – four AUDELCO Nominations, including Best Director, Best Musical). Additional world premières as director include Straight (Off-Broadway – Critics’ Pick in The New York Times, which he is now adapting into a feature film); Application Pending, a comedy about kindergarten admissions (also co-author; BroadwayWorld Award: Best Off-Broadway Play, Drama Desk nom: Outstanding Solo Show, Winner: Book Pipeline Prize); Operation Epsilon (Four IRNE Awards, including Best Play, Best Director); Craving for Travel (also co-author); and the Off-Broadway musicals The Last Smoker in America and Neurosis, among others. Select regional directing credits in the U.S. include How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, City of Angels, Into the Woods, and A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum. He has written the feature-length screenplays for Five More Minutes and Haul Out the Holly. In his role as Artistic Director of the Hermitage, Sandberg has established the organization as one of the leading national arts incubators in the United States. Education: Yale University

OPERATION EPSILON

LISTINGS

Southwark Playhouse, Elephant

1 Dante Place, London, SE11 4RX

OperationEpsilon.com

15 September – 21 October 2023

Performances

Mon – Sat: 7.45pm

Thu & Sat: 2.30pm

Ticket prices: previews £16, full price £32, concessions £25.50

Why Am I So Single?
New musical by Toby Marlow & Lucy Moss
to have ticketed workshop at Sadlers Wells
Wednesday 6th – Sunday 10th September 2023
Lilian Baylis Studio Theatre, Sadlers Wells, 183 Rosebery Avenue, London, EC1R 4TJ

Toby Marlow & Lucy Moss’s new musical Why Am I So Single? will have a ticketed workshop at the Lilian Baylis Studio Theatre at Sadlers Wells, from Wednesday 6th – Sunday 10 th September 2023. Why Am I So Single? is a new musical about two perpetually single best friends who can’t figure out why they are so single, and who (on a completely unrelated note) are deciding what to write their next musical about.

The ticketed workshop presentation of Why Am I So Single? at Sadlers Wells will allow audiences a rare chance to be part of a musical’s development process. The authors Toby Marlow and Lucy Moss have teamed up with producers Kenny Wax, George Stiles and Ameena Hamid. They are interested in putting this new musical in front of an audience early in its development in order to hear their thoughts and feedback.

The workshop creative team consists of Director Lucy Moss, Choreographer Ellen Kane;
Orchestrator, Vocal Arranger and Musical Supervisor Joe Beighton; and Sound Designer Paul Gatehouse. Will Burton is the Casting Director; Sara Aniqah Malik is the Associate Director; Michael Naylor is the Associate Choreographer; Charlie Smith is the Associate Sound Designer; and Yutong Zhang is the Musical Director.

The cast comprise Christina Bennington, Jemima Brown, Josh Butler, Joe Foster, DeAngelo
Jones, Tilly LaBelle Yengo, Owen McHugh, Millie O’Connell, Caitlin Redpath, Noah Thomas, Rhys Wilkinson and Charlotte Wilmott.

Tickets are available at £20 (£15 concessions) here

Diana: The Untold and Untrue Story embarks
on a royal autumn tour
UK Tour: September – December 2023

After playing to sold-out Edinburgh Fringe audiences across August, the People’s Princess is going back on tour this autumn. Labelled “the most unhinged piece of theatre in existence” (Broadway Baby), Diana: The Untold and Untrue Story uniquely combines drag, multimedia, audience interaction, puppetry and queer joy, highlighting Diana’s ground-breaking stances on social and queer issues and allowing her to speak her (un)truth in breaking free from the monarchy. She will be visiting the royal realms of Birmingham, Poole, Manchester, Oxford, Bristol, Glasgow, Cardiff, Dublin, Nottingham and Farnham, before delighting her subjects for one night only at London’s Clapham Grand.

Linus Karp comments, Last November we opened this show in a 70-seat venue in London. A year later I am performing at Clapham Grand, ten times the capacity. I can’t believe the journey this show has taken me on already and am so thrilled audiences across the UK are so hungry for a show full of queer joy and the magical power of Princess Diana. Let’s go girls.

Told by Diana from Heaven, Diana: The Untold and Untrue Story foregrounds this iconic royal as the powerful, independent woman she wasn’t meant to be. Writer and performer Linus Karp (how to live a jellicle life: life lessons from the 2019 hit movie musical ‘cats’) brings Diana to life supported by puppetry and voice overs from Joseph Martin (The Gunpowder Plot, Layered Reality). Geri Allen (Operation Mincemeat, Fortune Theatre) portrays The Queen and Zina Badran (Doctor Who, BBC) joins as God, both via interactive video clips. The remaining supporting cast is different every single show – due to it being played by audience members!

This tour follows a hugely successful spring 2023 tour and Edinburgh Fringe run, and will see Diana: The Untold and Untrue Story delight and surprise subjects across the land.

★★★★★ Diana is a riot from beginning to end. The audience participation is perfectly crafted, the jokes and stings consistently spot-on, and the lead performance an absolute joy – The Wee Review

★★★★★ Rowdy, unhinged, and wilfully savaging – this show is a one hit K.O of satire and
silliness – Binge Fringe

Hilarious, joyful and ridiculous to the point of sublime – Deborah Frances-White, The Guilty
Feminist

Final cast announced for the European premiere
of the multi award-winning manga stage musical
Death Note THE MUSICAL in Concert
at the Lyric Theatre Thursday 7 September – Sunday 11 September

Olivier award-winner George Maguire, Jessica Lee, Carl Man, Boaz Chad and Patrick Munday are joining the cast of Death Note THE MUSICAL in Concert at the Lyric Theatre.

George Maguire will play Ryuk.
His West End roles include Buck Barrow in ‘Bonnie & Clyde’,  Dave in ‘Sunny Afternoon’. He had the title role of The Whicker Man at The Watermill Theatre.

Jessica Lee will play Misa.
She is currently playing Kim in ‘Miss Saigon’ at Sheffield Crucible. Her West End shows include ‘Prince of Egypt’ and ‘Les Miserables’, and ‘Evita” (Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre).

Carl Man will be the Alternate L.
His West End roles include Romeo (1st cover) in  ‘& Juliet’ and Fiyero (1st cover) in ‘Wicked’. He will be playing Fiyero in the upcoming ‘Wicked’ UK & Ireland tour.

Boaz Chad and Patrick Munday will join the ensemble.

The rest of the cast continuing from the three sold out performances next week at the London Palladium includes Aimie Atkinson, Rachel Clare Chan, Christian Ray Marbella, Dean John-Wilson, Joaquin Pedro Valdes  and an ensemble featuring Charlotte Coggin, Jade Copas, Eu Jin Hwang, Yojiro Ichikawa, Deena Kapadia, David Kar-Hing Lee, Jasmine Leung, Jojo Meredith, Marcel Li-Ping, Janine Somcio.

Based on the best-selling Japanese manga series of the same name by Tsugumi Ohba and Takeshi Obata/Sheuisha, this ground breaking musical (Winner Best Musical, Korea Musical Awards) has a score by Frank Wildhorn (‘Jekyll & Hyde’, four years on Broadway, ‘Dracula’, ‘Bonnie & Clyde’) with lyrics by Jack Murphy and book by Ivan Menchell.

Light Yagami, a bright but dissatisfied high school student in Tokyo comes across a discarded notebook owned by Ryuk, a mythological god of death. Discovering he can kill anyone by just writing their names in the supernatural notebook, Light takes justice into his own hands by filling the notebook with names of the nation’s most wanted criminals. But a detective only known as “L” is soon tracking him down…

Based on the best-selling Japanese manga series of the same name by Tsugumi Ohba and Takeshi Obata, this ground breaking musical (Winner Best Musical, Korea Musical Awards) has a score by Frank Wildhorn (‘Jekyll & Hyde’, 4 years on Broadway, ‘Dracula’, ‘Bonnie & Clyde’) with lyrics by Jack Murphy and book by Ivan Menchell.

It is directed by Nick Winston and produced by Carter Dixon McGill Production (‘Chess in Concert’, ‘Kinky Boots in Concert’, ‘Treason the Musical in Concert’) Indie Theatrical and HoriPro in association with Pinnacle Productions, Greg A. DeLuca and Wild Yak Productions.

Death Note THE MUSICAL premiered in 2015 in Tokyo, Japan. A 2022 Korean production won four awards at the Korea Musical Awards after being nominated in 10 categories (“Death Note offers a glimpse at the future of musicals”, The Korea Herald). In 2017, Netflix released a TV adaptation of ‘Death Note’ starring Willem Defoe.

Frank Wildhorn said: “Death Note THE MUSICAL has been the most unique, strange, edgy, and wonderful musical journey for me. It’s been a dream of mine to bring this show from Asia to the West End of London, and here we are!”

Creative team:
Director and Choreographer Nick Winston
Associate Director and Choreographer Alexzandra Sarmiento,
Costume Designer Kimie Nakano
Musical Supervisor  Katy Richardson
Musical Director Chris Ma
Orchestrator Jason Howland
Designer Justin Williams
Lighting Designer Ben Cracknell
Sound Designer Ben Harrison
Casting Harry Blumenau
Artwork by Rebecca Pitt Creative
Producers Carter Dixon McGill Productions, Indie Theatrical, HoriPro Inc., Pinnacle Productions in association with Greg A. DeLuca, Sharon Azrieli and Wild Yak Productions

Frank Wildhorn
In 1999, Frank became the first American composer in 22 years to have three shows running simultaneously on Broadway with Jekyll & Hyde, The Scarlet Pimpernel and The Civil War. Also for Broadway: Bonnie & Clyde, Dracula, Victor/Victoria, Wonderland, and the revival of Jekyll & Hyde. West End: Bonnie & Clyde. International: Carmen, Camille Claudel, Casanova, Cyrano, Death Note, Fist of the North Star, Mata Hari, Mitsuko, Never Say Goodbye, No Longer Human, Rudolf, Tears of Heaven, The Count of Monte Cristo, The Man Who Laughs, Your Lie in April and Xcalibur. Upcoming: Song of Bernadette and Reunion. He Produced Harlem Song at the famed Apollo Theatre. The Korea Times recently proclaimed Wildhorn as “Korea’s most popular musical composer”.

Carter Dixon McGill Productions
Carter Dixon McGill Productions are an Olivier nominated production and general management company with offices in London and Glasgow. Co-founded by John-Webb Carter, Jamie Chapman Dixon & Stephen McGill, they have over 30 years of experience within the entertainment industry.  
Recent productions include: ‘Blippi the Musical ‘(Apollo Theatre & Lyric Theatre); ‘Chess the Musical in Concert’ (Drury Lane Theatre); ‘Kinky Boots the Musical in Concert’ (Drury Lane Theatre); ‘Treason the Musical in Concert’ (Drury Lane Theatre). Previous productions include: ‘Wonderville: Magic & Illusion’ (Palace Theatre, London); ‘Death Drop’ (Criterion Theatre, Garrick Theatre & UK Tour).

Indie Theatrical
Indie Theatrical was established in 2014 by Broadway veteran, Louis Hobson, and theatrical producer, Jake Groshong. In addition to serving as Frank Wildhorn’s US producer, Indie has created global partnerships and established collaborations with industry leaders, top regional theatres, festivals, film and theatre producers, both domestically & internationally, to produce a wide variety of programming.  Credits include ‘Grey House’ on Broadway, executive producer of the 2023 Grammy nominated album, ‘Some Lovers’, by Burt Bacharach and Steven Sater; Shaun Cassidy’s ‘Magic of the Midnight Sky’; and Frank Wildhorn’s, ‘The Song of Bernadette’, which will premiere in 2024 by special arrangement with Buena Vista Theatrical. Indie is also currently developing Frank Wildhorn’s new musicals ‘Reunion’, and ‘Your Lie In April’, which will both premiere in 2024.

HoriPro
Live Entertainment Division
Live Entertainment Division plan, produce and present various theatrical works including plays and musicals. Starting from the musical ‘Peter Pan’, which is presented every summer, HoriPro Stages, works produced by our company, are loved by many fans. We have brought the great works directed by the late Yukio Ninagawa, such as ‘Musashi’, ‘Shintokumaru’, and ‘Kafka On The Shore’ to other parts of the world and received fantastic reviews in London, New York, and other cities. In addition to producing our own directing version of musicals and plays such as ‘Thrill Me, ‘The Miracle Workers’, etc., we have presented the Japanese version of major musicals including ‘Billy Elliot’ and ‘Mary Poppins’ and have established a unique position in the Japanese theatrical industry. We are also the Japanese producer of ‘Harry Potter and the Cursed Child’, which is being presented in Asia for the first time. Our original musical production ‘Death Note THE MUSICAL’, which is being presented in Korea too, is the first production HoriPro had licensed to another country.

LISTINGS INFO

Carter Dixon McGill Productions, Indie
Theatrical, HoriPro Inc., Pinnacle Productions in association with Greg A. DeLuca, Sharon Azrieli and Wild Yak Productions
present

Death Note THE MUSICAL
in Concert
Music by Frank Wildhorn,
Lyrics by Jack Murphy, book by Ivan Menchell
©️Tsugumi Ohba, Takeshi Obata/SHUEISHA, HoriPro

Lyric Theatre
Shaftesbury Avenue
London W1D 7ES

Thursday 7 September –
Sunday 11 September
at 7.30pm
matinees
Saturday 10 & Sunday 11 September at 2.30pm

running time:
2hrs 20 including interval

age recommendation: 12+

Tickets from £25

Booking link:
www.nimaxtheatres.com

Website
www.deathnotethemucial.co.uk

SOCIAL MEDIA

Twitter
@DeathnoteLDN
@ CDMProds
@frankwildhorn

Facebook
@frankwildhorn

Instagram
@DeathnoteLDN
@frank.wildhorn

TikTok
@DeathnoteLDN

LONDON THEATRE WEEK RETURNS, CELEBRATING 5 YEARS OF INCREASING ACCESS TO THEATRE IN THE UK

LONDON THEATRE WEEK OFFERS AUDIENCES
A CHANCE TO SEE THE WEST END’S HOTTEST AND MOST IN-DEMAND SHOWS AT UNBEATABLE PRICES  

LONDON, 21 AUGUST 2023 — London Theatre Week, the highly anticipated performing arts celebration spotlighting dynamic musicals and award-winning plays in London’s West End, makes its return this summer. Marking its 5th-year anniversary, the campaign offers audiences the opportunity to get tickets to the best of West End theatre at accessible prices by booking between 21 August to 3 September.

Locals and tourists alike will have the chance to make the most of the final days of summer by experiencing a wide-range of productions with reasonable tickets from £15, £25, or £35. Now in its fifth year, London Theatre Week is proud to have grown to a world-renowned initiative, meaningfully increasing accessibility to the performing arts since its inception. Having started with just 37 participating shows in its inaugural year, London Theatre Week has  seen over 140 shows participate, performing across 85 local theatre venues, and has sold over 1 million tickets to its audience members. Both new shows like Back to the Future and beloved favourites like The Phantom of the Opera have taken part, bringing joy to audiences seeing high-calibre productions on offer in London’s glittering West End for a fraction of the cost.

“Theatre is a vital part of London’s DNA, and the West End boasts the greatest plays and musicals in the world,” said Stephen Crocker, General Manager of TodayTix Group. “We are thrilled to be celebrating the fifth anniversary of London Theatre Week, which has already given over a million people the opportunity to discover these magnificent shows. With over 50 brilliant titles taking part, there is a show for everyone to enjoy.”

This season’s full lineup of shows includes:  2:22 A Ghost Story, A Strange Loop, Accidental Death of an Anarchist, Ain’t Too Proud, As You Like It, Back to the Future, Barricade Boys, Bronco Billy, Crazy For You, Disney’s Frozen The Musical, Everybody’s Talking About Jamie, Faking Bad, Flowers for Mrs. Harris, Grease, Guys & Dolls, Hamnet, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, Horrible Histories: Terrible Tudors, Jersey Boys, Laurel and Chaplin: The Feud, Les Misérables, Matilda, Matthew Bourne Edward Scissorhands, Musicals By Candlelight, Noises Off, Oklahoma!, Old Friends, Operation Epsilon, Private Lives, Pygmalion, Rebecca, Rumble In The Jungle: Rematch, Showstopper, Sister Act, SpongeBob The Musical, The Book of Mormon, The Choir of Man, The Crown Jewels, The Crucible, The Effect, The Empress, The Lion King, The Little Big Things, The Mousetrap, The Ocean at the End Of The Lane, The Old Man & The Pool, The Play That Goes Wrong, The Time Traveller’s Wife, TINA – The Tina Turner Musical, Wishmas, and Witness for the Prosecution.

For more information about London Theatre Week and to purchase tickets, visit londontheatreweek.com.

The Mayflower Theatre, Southampton – until 3^rd September 223

Reviewed by Alexandra Browning

4.5****

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory the Musical was a wonderful show that left no crumb unturned. From the set design to the musical numbers, the show was an absolute delight. A confection extraordinaire. The show follows the Bucket family from a post-apocalyptic stage all the way into the marvels of the Wonka factory. During the show, you are transported to the sweet world of imagination and invention contained within the Wonka chocolate factory’s confines with creative use of prop, song and lighting.

Charlie Bucket played by Harmony Raine-Riley played the role so beautifully. You could see passion for the role of the impoverished Bucket family child. Although Harmony Raine-Riley captured the role of timid and fragile Charlie Bucket she managed to pack such a punch with her stage presence, with a massive voice that filled the whole venue with beautiful singing. It was especially memorable when Willy Wonka played by Gareth Snook sang a duet with Charlie in the glass elevator at the end of the show. 

Gareth Snook embodied the role of Wonka perfectly, the slightly crazy, very successful chocolatier, Snook managed to combine the roles of Gene Wilder and Johnny Depp to make the perfect unique stage version of the famous chocolatier. Wonka’s excitement was boosted by the remaining cast members who found the other golden tickets. 

The musical introduction to the incredibly lucky golden ticket winners was the perfect insight into the winners’ backstories with two personal favourite performances being from Augustus Gloop and Veruca Salt. Gloop’s song, “More of Him to Love”, inspired by the Swiss/Southern German yodelling tradition made for a vibrant and exciting display. Despite being in the theatre, you felt transported to the land of sausage and yodelling through the creative use of costume, accent and music. Although Gloop’s introduction was amazing Veruca always wants to be the best. The performance by Emma Robotham-Hunt as the one and only Veruca Salt was gripping and extremely convincing in the song “When Veruca Says”. You almost felt obliged to buy her anything she requested. 

The crème-de-la-crème of the show was the stage production. The show was so intricately designed from the vintage televisions showing ‘breaking news’ to the floors and walls coming to life with trees and a variety of gourmet candies. A special note has to go for the highs and lows of the performance, from Charlie’s house to the Great Glass Flying Elevator, yes you read that right, FLYING. Charlie’s house captured the bare bones of the Bucket family so perfectly- it was as if the book had quite literally jumped onto the stage. There is no way to recreate the magic and wonder generated by the audience’s reaction to the elevator.

BRONCO BILLY – THE MUSICAL

THE ALL-NEW WILD WEST-END MUSICAL

TO MAKE UK PREMIERE

STARRING WEST END FAVOURITE EMILY BENJAMIN

AT THE CHARING CROSS THEATRE IN 2024

West End favourite Emily Benjamin, currently appearing as alternate Sally Bowles in Cabaret, will star in the award-winning new Wild-West End show Bronco Billy – The Musical, which will premiere in the UK in 2024.Bronco Billy – The Musical will play at the Charing Cross Theatre from 23 January until 7 April.

Bronco Billy – The Musical is a rollicking new musical comedy based on the original Clint Eastwood motion picture.

It’s 1979 and life is tough for a group of romantic fast-drawing, trick-riding, disco-dancing Wild West roustabouts and their travelling show, but things take an unexpected turn when Bronco Billy (leader of this rag-tag troupe) meets Antoinette Lilly, a determined Manhattan heiress on the run for her life. So begins a wild, zany ride in this thrillingly upbeat musical about love, reinvention, family and living your dream.

Emily Benjamin began her career originating as ensemble/US Zahara in Bat Out Of Hell – The Musical (Manchester Opera House, London Coliseum, Ed Mirvish Theatre Toronto, Dominion). Other roles include ‘Princess Pearl’ in Zog:Live! (UK Tour), ‘Badger/US White Witch/US Mrs Beaver’ in Sally Cookson’s The Lion The Witch And The Wardrobe (Bridge). Most recently she has worked alongside Eddie Redmayne, Jessie Buckley and more as alternate Sally Bowles in Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club.

Emily Benjamin said, “I’m so excited to explore this wild world of Bronco Billy – The Musical – a show that says you can be whatever you want to be if that’s a powerful woman, a disco dancer, a poet, a performer, a cowboy – there’s somewhere out there that you can be your true self, no matter what other people tell you.” 

The new musical features a book by Dennis Hackin, music and lyrics by Chip Rosenbloom and John Torres, with additional lyrics by Michele Brourman. Bronco Billy is based on the Warner Bros. motion picture written by Dennis Hackin, by special arrangement with Warner Bros. Theatre Ventures.

Bronco Billy – The Musical had its world premiere at the Skylight Theatre Company, Los Angeles in on 18 May 2019, opening to great critical acclaim “Spectacular” (Broadway World) and “Fun…brightly enjoyable show” (Los Angeles Times).  In 2020, it won the Ovation Awards for Best Book/Original Musical and Best Lyrics and Musical/Original Musical.

Bronco Billy – The Musical will be directed by Hunter Bird. Other creatives include Amy Jane Cook for scenic design, Sarah Mercade for costume design, Alexzandra Sarmiento as choreographer, Nick Richings as lighting designer, Andrew Johnson as sound designer, John Bulleid as illusion designer, Rachel Bown-Williams and Ruth Cooper-Brown of RC-Annie Ltd as fight and intimacy directors, Amber Sinclair-Case as associate director, David O as music supervisor, Danny Hackin as associate producer, and Will Burton for casting.

Gary Grossman, Artistic Director of Skylight Theatre Company said, “Five-years ago Dennis Hackin, Chip Rosenbloom, and John Torres approached me about teaming up, to help develop a fresh approach to the 1980’s film. The result is a wonderful, madcap, crazy, love story with a whole lot of heart!”

Director Hunter Bird said, “Bronco Billy – The Musical is so much about identity. Rather than accepting the roles we’re given, we always have the ability to create our own realities, our own families, and our own identities.”

Dennis Hackin writer adds; “We’ve been on a real ride with Bronco Billy and can’t wait to continue our Journey in the UK”.

Bronco Billy – The Musical is produced by Los Angeles based Gary Grossman alongside the London based Hartshorn – Hook Productions (Amelie the Musical, Criterion, Choir of Man, Arts Theatre; The Immersive Great Gatsby, Immersive|LDN).

Tickets go on general sale Friday 18 August at 10am. Find out more at broncobillymusical.com and find us on TikTok/Facebook/Instagram: @broncobillymusical and Twitter: @broncobillyshow

Actor, Television Presenter, Pantomime Dame, Climate Activist and former Chief Scout Peter Duncan sat down with fairypowered to answer 20 questions.  Peter is just about to take his one man show A Falling Tree to The Fringe at Prestonfield, Edinburgh on Saturday 26 August.  Tickets can be purchased here

Let’s start with a few favourites

Favourite Book

The Earth Transformed by Peter Frankopan

Favourite Song 

Heart of the Country by Paul McCartney

Favourite Music 

My daughters, they are singer songwriters

Favourite Food 

It’s got to be Italian

Favourite Drink 

A good red wine to go with the Italian food

What advice would you give to 16 year old Peter  

Always be yourself

What was your first role

My first professional role was Jim Hawkins in Treasure Island

What is your favourite role

Denry Machin in The Card, a musical based on the novel by Arnold Bennett. 

Peter starred in the 1994 revival at Regents Park Open Air Theatre

If you could be someone else for the day, who would it be 

Greta Thunberg

What’s the nicest/weirdest gift you’ve been given by fans

I  was in the film, Flash Gordon and was killed by having my arm ripped off by the Stump Monster.  Blue Peter presented me with the Stump Monster and I’ve still got it.

Do you prefer acting or presenting 

Acting but I’ve enjoyed the challenges the I’ve had from presenting

How did you become Chief Scout 

I was a cub scout in my youth and they asked me to be Chief Scout after I’d done the expeditions with my family. 

Peter was  was appointed as the Scout Association’s Chief Scout, for a five-year tenure from 5 September 2004 to July 2009

Do you still have your green check suit 

Yes, but it doesn’t fit anymore

You did Blue Peter twice, were you happy to return

I did Duncan Dares and then went back into Blue Peter so I had two careers running at once.

Peter joined the Blue Peter team in September 1980, he is the only presenter to do two stints on the programme. September 1980 – June 1984. Peter returned to Blue Peter in September 1985 and stayed for a further 15 months. He also filmed a further six Duncan Dares. He has often made guest appearances on the programme including in 2007 when he was awarded a Gold Blue Peter Badge

Do you still run Marathons

I ran my last one in 2021. 

He still holds the record for the fastest run by a Blue Peter presenter at 3 hours 11 minutes and 42 seconds

How did you become a bit of an action man

I  enjoyed the thrill and was quite sporty, so I took on the challenges.  I sometimes look back on them and wonder why I did it. Apart from  cleaning the face of Big Ben, I did Flying Trapeze and took part in the Royal Marines Endurance Course.

Why did you do the travelling with your family

My mum died and wanted to celebrate her life so we went three times.

Between 1999 and 2005, Peter filmed and produced three travelogue documentary series. Each series consisted of six episodes and featured his family embarking on backpacking trips around the world. The family consists of his wife Annie, and their four children: Lucy, Katie, Georgia and Arthur. The first series, Travel Bug, charted a six-month tour of the world. Filmed in 1999 when the children were aged 7 to 13, the series was shown on children’s television on BBC1. The next series, Chinese Breakaway, charted the family’s two-month backpacking trip across China in 2002. The series was aired on Five and Sky Travel. In the third series, Arthur’s trip to India (also aired on Five), Peter’s 13-year-old son was featured as the chief presenter. A one-off additional episode (Arthur’s trip to Jordan) followed his son to the heart of the Middle East.

Do you still have your Blue Peter badge

The ones I have left I give them away to good causes

And now you are an Eco Warrior. 

As a newly appointed Ambassador for Se-ed (Sustainability and Environmental Education), I’m taking my ‘Cabinet of Curiosities’ for all ages to explore and to discover what we have lost and what we might lose in the future.  A Falling Tree overlaps what I did with Blue Peter and Scouts.  It’s all about sustainability and while we are floundering, it might give us some answers of how we can help.  It’s a family show but anyone can come along.

And what will you be up to next

I’m in the middle of moving to the countryside, to try to lead a more sustainable life and to live by example.

Peter’s plans for his current move from London to a new home in the countryside where he hopes, alongside his wife and grown-up children, to regenerate fifteen acres of land with wildflower meadows and orchards and to create a bio-diverse patch of land.

A Falling Tree at The Fringe at Prestonfield, Edinburgh, on Saturday 26 August 2023 at 12pm.

Peter will not only talk about his own global adventures and how they have fed into his take on the subject, but he will also be asking the age-old question ‘if a tree falls down in the forest and there’s no one to hear it, does it make a sound?’ There will be an audience Q & A to discuss potential answers to this dilemma, and perhaps a quick song about extinction at the end! The event is for eco-warriors of all ages.

Book now: www.fringeatprestonfield.co.uk.

TONY AND EMMY AWARD-WINNER

MANDY PATINKIN LIVE IN CONCERT

WITH ADAM BEN-DAVID ON PIANO

AT THE LYRIC THEATRE IN LONDON’S WEST END

FOR 8 PERFORMANCES ONLY

FROM TUESDAY 7 NOVEMBER 2023

TICKETS ON SALE 10:00 TODAY, FRIDAY 18 AUGUST 2023

The Dodgers and Staci Levine are delighted to produce Broadway’s master songman, Mandy Patinkin, accompanied by Adam Ben-David on piano, in Mandy Patinkin Live in Concert at the Lyric Theatre, Shaftesbury Avenue in London’s West End for strictly eight performances only from Tuesday 7 November 2023.  This is the first time Mandy has appeared on the West End stage since 2009.  Tickets go on sale from 10am today, Friday 18 August.

To some fans, he’s the Tony Award-winning revolutionary from Evita who grew into a bonafide Broadway star in Sunday in the Park with George.  To others, he’s the Emmy Award-winning Best Actor, for his portrayal of Dr. Jeffrey Geiger in Chicago Hope, or Saul Berenson of Homeland.  To some, he’s Madonna’s piano man in Dick Tracy or the scholar who made Streisand swoon in Yentl.  And to others still, he will always be the man whose name is Inigo Montoya, the swashbuckling swordsman in The Princess Bride.  But whichever role you know him for, Mandy Patinkin’s favourite is reaching out to live audiences with the power and the passion of popular song.  He belongs to the special breed of singer who doesn’t merely dramatize songs, but incorporates them into his very being.

Mandy Patinkin Live in Concert presents the acclaimed actor/singer/storyteller in his most electrifying role: concert performer.  Mandy Patinkin Live in Concert is a marriage of many of Mandy’s favourite Broadway and classic American tunes, from Rodgers and Hammerstein to Stephen Sondheim, from Harry Chapin and Randy Newman to Irving Berlin and Meredith Willson.

In his 1980 Broadway debut, Mandy won a Tony Award for his role as Che in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Evita and was nominated in 1984 for his starring role as George in the Pulitzer Prize-winning musical, Sunday in the Park with George.  Mandy’s other stage credits include Compulsion, Paradise Found, The Tempest, Enemy of the People, The Wild Party, Falsettos, The Secret Garden, The Winter’s Tale, The Knife, Leave It to Beaver is Dead, Rebel Women, Hamlet, Trelawney of the Wells, The Shadow Box, The Split, Savages and Henry IV, Part I. 

Mandy’s feature films include Before You Know It, Life Itself, Wonder, Smurfs: The Lost Village, The Queen of Spain, Ali and Nino, Wish I Was Here, The Wind Rises, Everybody’s Hero, The Choking Man, Pinero, The Adventures of Elmo In Grouchland, Lulu on the Bridge, Men with Guns, The Princess Bride, Yentl, The Music of Chance, Daniel, Ragtime, Impromptu, The Doctor, Alien Nation, Dick Tracy, The House on Carroll Street, True Colors and Maxie.

On television, Mandy was recently seen as Judge Wackner in the Paramount+ series The Good Fight.  He won a 1995 Emmy Award for his performance in the CBS series Chicago Hope.  He starred in the CBS series Criminal Minds and in the Showtime original series Dead Like Me and Homeland as CIA Agent Saul Berenson.

As a recording artist on CBS Records, Mandy released two solo albums, Mandy Patinkin and Mandy Patinkin In Concert: Dress Casual.  More recently, on the Nonesuch label, Mandy released Children + Art and recorded three digital albums with pianist/producer Thomas Bartlett: Diary January 2018, Diary April/May 2018 and Diary December 2018.  Also with Nonesuch are Experiment, Oscar & Steve, Kidults and Mandy Patinkin Sings Sondheim.  In 1998, he debuted his most personal project, Mamaloshen, a collection of traditional, classic and contemporary songs sung entirely in Yiddish.  The recording of Mamaloshen won the Deutschen Schallplattenpreis (Germany’s equivalent of the Grammy Award).

As diverse as his professional life has been, Mandy’s education in the field of social activism has been even more varied and continues to evolve.  He has helped raise funds for organisations dear to his heart, including Brady Campaign, PAX, Doctors Without Borders, Association to Benefit Children, American Jewish World Service, Search For Common Ground, National Dance Institute and ACLU. Mandy is a board member of the Arava Institute and continues to work with the International Rescue Committee (IRC), highlighting the plight of refugees worldwide.

During the Covid-19 lockdown, Mandy and his wife Kathryn Grody entertained millions on social media when they shared hilarious nuggets of “uninterrupted togetherness”, thoughts on their 40-plus years of marriage and hundreds of other topics.  With the help of their son Gideon, Mandy and Kathryn continue to share “scenes of their marriage” on social media, as well as highlight charities and causes near and dear to their hearts.

Adam Ben-David has been living his “bucket list” dream of accompanying Mandy Patinkin in concert since 2016.  He has been active as an arranger, music director, conductor and pianist on Broadway for the past 22 years.  Adam’s credits include The Book of Mormon, Jersey Boys, Spring Awakening, Wicked, High Fidelity, The Light in the Piazza, Bombay Dreams, Aida and Once Upon a Mattress.  He has accompanied numerous artists including Kelli O’Hara, Jarrod Spector, James Taylor, Patti LuPone and Megan Hilty.  

Mandy Patinkin Live in Concert is produced in London by The Dodgers and Staci Levine.

Facebook – @MandyPatinkin

Twitter – @PatinkinMandy

Instagram – @MandyPatinkin

TikTok – @mandypatinktok

Website – mandypatinkin.org

LISTINGS INFORMATION

7 – 19 November 2023

Lyric Theatre

29 Shaftesbury Avenue

London W1D 7ES

Email: [email protected]
Phone: 0330 333 4812
Web: https://nimaxtheatres.com/shows/mandy-patinkin/ 

Performance Schedule

Tue 7 Nov Eve 8pm              Tue 14 Nov Eve 8pm

Thu 9 Nov Eve 8pm               Thu 16 Nov Eve 8pm

Sat 11 Nov Mat 3pm              Sat 18 Nov Mat 3pm

Sun 12 Nov Mat 3pm             Sun 19 Nov Mat 3pm

Tickets: From £20

Running Time:  90 minutes, without an interval

BIRMINGHAM ROYAL BALLET
AND THE ROYAL BALLET SINFONIA ANNOUNCE
YI WEI AS CONSTANT LAMBERT CONDUCTING FELLOW

Birmingham Royal Ballet has announced that Yi Wei, a Chinese conductor based in Manchester, has joined BRB and the Royal Ballet Sinfonia as the Constant Lambert Conducting Fellow for the 2023/24 and 2024/25 seasons.

Named after the Founding Music Director of The Royal Ballet & Birmingham Royal Ballet, The Constant Lambert Fellowship, generously supported by Paul Ridout, provides a tailor-made programme for ballet conducting working across The Royal Ballet and Birmingham Royal Ballet. This unique 2-year Fellowship offers a blend of performance, study and cover conducting and is fully mentored by Koen Kessels, Music Director of The Royal Ballet and Birmingham Royal Ballet and Paul Murphy, Principal Conductor of Birmingham Royal Ballet, plus a range of other ballet music professionals.

Yi Wei’s first assignment in the role will be as Assistant Conductor on Birmingham Royal Ballet’s upcoming sold-out performances of Black Sabbath – The Ballet. He said; “It is such a privilege to join the BRB for the next two seasons, I am thrilled to start the season with Black Sabbath – The Ballet, very much looking forward to working with fantastic conductors, musicians and dancers.”

Paul Murphy, BRB’s Principal Conductor added; “We are delighted to welcome Yi Wei as our 3rd Constant Lambert Fellow, following on from Thomas Jung and Charlotte Politi. Both Thomas and Charlotte now have very successful careers in and out of the orchestra pit and each will return to conduct for BRB in the forthcoming season. The concept of the CLF sprang out of the success of the BBC Performing Arts Fellowship where Jonathan Lo worked closely with BRB for one year before becoming Music Director of Northern Ballet and now, The Australian Ballet.  

“Yi Wei is a hugely talented young conductor and I feel sure that his tenure will also be a great success.”

Having achieved one of the highest final recital scores ever, Yi was awarded the Brierley / Kershaw Prize and obtained a postgraduate degree in Conducting at the Royal Northern College of Music in 2022. He also holds a bachelor’s degree in Conducting from the China Conservatory of Music under the guidance of Youqing Yang. 

Yi has conducted the Royal Scottish National Orchestra, BBC Philharmonic Orchestra, BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra and Orchestra Academia China. He was also an assistant conductor at the 2021 BBC Proms with the BBC National Orchestra of Wales.