FULL CAST ANNOUNCED FOR

ORIGINAL JAPANESE STAGE PRODUCTION OF

STUDIO GHIBLI’S OSCAR-WINNING CLASSIC

“SPIRITED AWAY”

AT THE LONDON COLISEUM

PLAYING FROM

30APRIL UNTIL 24 AUGUST 2024

TOHO Co., Ltd. and PW Productions Ltd. are delighted to announce the full cast for the European premiere of the stage adaptation of SPIRITED AWAY at the London Coliseum.

Returning from the original Japanese production are Kanna Hashimoto and Mone Kamishiraishi as Chihiro, Kotaro Daigo and Hiroki Miura as Haku; Fu Hinami as Lin and Chihiro’s mother; Tomorowo Taguchi and Satoshi Hashimoto as Kamaji; Mari Natsuki and Romi Park as Yubaba and Zeniba; Kenya Osumi as Aniyaku and Chihiro’s father; Sunao Yoshimura as Chichiyaku; Obata no Oniisan as Aogaeru; Yuya Igarashi as Kashira and Mayu Musha as Bo.

Mari Natsuki returns to the role of Yubaba in this stage production, having voiced the role in Studio Ghibli’s 2001 Oscar-winning film.

Joining the company for the London production are Rina Kawaei and Momoko Fukuchi as Chihiro; Atsuki Mashiko as Haku; Hikaru Yamano as Kaonashi or ‘No-Face’; Yuki Hana and Rion Misaki as Lin and Chihiro’s mother; Tomu Miyazaki as Kamaji; Hitomi Harukaze as Yubaba and Zeniba; Toshihiko Ito as Chichiyaku and Seiya Motoki as Aogaeru.

Completing the company are Miyu Ayahashi, Kaito Arai, Yoko Ose, Wataru Oshige, Motoko Orii, Akino Konno, Ryo Sawamura, Mayu Suetomi, Rico Takahashi, Hayato Takehiro, Saya Chinen, Hanano Teshirogi, Ayame Nakagami, Yuuki Nishinomiya, Rei Hanashima, Yoshiki Fujioka, Norihide Mantani, Eiji Mizuno, Miffy, Maki Morita, Yuna Yasuno, Yamato, Kazuma Kimura, Annakanako Mohri, Marina Mori and Toshiki Hirose.

Studio Ghibli’s SPIRITED AWAY, created by legendary animator and director Hayao Miyazaki, has beenre-imagined for the stage by Toho Theatrical Department and Olivier and Tony Award-winning director John Caird (Les Misérables). Following a sell-out tour of Japan in 2022, the original Japanese cast will perform this spectacular production for a strictly limited London season. The production will be presented in the original Japanese, with English captions. Miyazaki’s masterpiece is brought beautifully to life with a live orchestra playing the magnificent film score by Joe Hisaishi arranged by Brad Haak (Mary Poppins), dazzling set design by Jon Bausor (Bat Out of Hell), wildly imaginative puppets designed by Toby Olié (Pinocchio: National Theatre), choreography by Shigehiro Ide (NODA MAP Series), and lavish costumes by Sachiko Nakahara.

Director Hayao Miyazaki’s timeless masterpiece SPIRITED AWAY became an explosive blockbuster after its 2001 release and won the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature Film in 2003. A masterpiece of storytelling and stunning visuals SPIRITED AWAY tells the enchanting tale of Chihiro who while traveling to a new home with her family, stumbles into a world of fantastic spirits ruled over by the sorceress Yubaba. When her parents are turned
into pigs and she is put to work in a magical bathhouse, Chihiro must use her wits to
survive in this strange new place, find a way to free her parents, and return to the normal world.

TOHO Co., Ltd. is the leading production company of theatre and film in Japan, internationally recognized for the Godzilla series and for Akira Kurosawa’s masterpieces. Its theatrical department has presented numerous original and licensed musicals and plays in Japan, including Broadway and West End imports such as Les Misérables, Miss Saigon, Moulin Rouge! The Musical, My Fair Lady, Man of La Mancha, Fiddler on the Roof, La Cage Aux Folles, RENT, Jekyll & Hyde, Next to Normal, Jersey Boys, Beautiful The Carole King Musical, Waitress and The Producers among many others. Recently, Toho has co-produced the Broadway musical Tootsie. Toho has also produced the Japanese versions of musicals from Central Europe, including Elisabeth, Mozart! and Rebecca the Musical. The company also collaborated to create the original musicals Marie Antoinette and Lady Bess with the creators of Elisabeth, Michael Kunze (book and lyrics) and Sylvester Levay (music). Marie Antoinette was licensed and presented in Germany, Korea and Hungary. In 2017, Toho presented a new production of Shakespeare’s As You Like It directed by Michael Mayer, music by Tom Kitt, choreography by Lorin Latarro. Previous productions with John Caird include Les Misérables (original production co-directed by Trevor Nunn), Beggar’s Opera, Candide, Private Lives, Daddy Long Legs, Twelfth Night and Knights’ Tale. Alongside this London production, TOHO Co Ltd will also present SPIRITED AWAY on a National Tour of Japan in 2024.

PW Productions Ltd. is one of the West End’s most prolific and significant theatre producers, responsible for some of the most successful productions in British theatre since it was founded in 1983 by Peter Wilson MBE. Productions have included Susan Hill’s The Woman in Black, An Inspector Calls, Sting’s The Last Ship and many more. The company has acted as General Manager and Production Accountant for more than 600 productions throughout the world. PW Productions, in partnerships with promoters and co-producers, has also presented work in Japan, Singapore, Canada, USA, Germany, Ireland, Luxembourg, Austria, Australia and Hong Kong.

The original Japanese Stage Production of SPIRITED AWAY is based on the Oscar-winning animated feature film by Hayao Miyazaki, adapted by John Caird, co-adapted by Maoko Imai and featuring the original score by Joe Hisaishi.

Royal Theatre, Windsor – until 9 March 2024

Reviewed by Joanna Huggett

5*****

It was a delight to watch the opening night of “Closure” written by Catherine O’Reilly and Tim Churchill at the Theatre Royal Windsor.

The play takes place entirely within the living room of Emma (played by Roxanne McKee) and Josh Carlisle (played by Joseph Thompson) of their remote country house. Emma has invited her parents Libby (Susan Penhaligon) and Henry Kennedy (Peter Duncan), her sister Becca (Jemma Donovan) and Becca’s new plus-one Alex (Christopher Jeffers) to join them for dinner and drinks (but mostly drinks).

The superbly designed stage portrays a beautiful country manor, somewhere out in the sticks, where Emma and Josh have hidden themselves away for far too long and Emma spends her days painting – although what she has been painting will have to be revealed at some point during the story.

As the story unfolds, we learn why they’ve been so distant and what other secrets the family has been keeping from one another. Underneath it all, the story is about getting closure and what lengths Emma, Josh and her family would go to, to achieve that.

There are some occasional interactions with Henry’s former colleague Graham, played by Marcus Adolphy, who ultimately joins them for the cliff hanger of an ending.

The story is a thriller, but there’s also a lot of comedy, a lot of drinking and so many plot twists that will you won’t really know what the story was about until the very end.

A very entertaining evening in Windsor, not to be missed.

Cambridge Arts Theatre, Cambridge – until Saturday 2nd March 2024

Reviewed by Steph Lott

4****

I don’t think I have been at a performance where the whole audience laughed as much as they did at last night’s performance of “Drop the Dead Donkey – the Reawakening!” at the Cambridge Arts Theatre. It was almost a full house and the production’s popularity was probably due to the affection that the original series was viewed with. The impressive turnout indicates that a lot of goodwill remains for this Channel 4 comedy from the 1990s. It was set in the offices of “GlobeLink News” and made use of contemporary news events. The series ended with GlobeLink being closed down.

Now, more than 25 years later, the newsroom sitcom makes a welcome return, this time to the stage. Written once again by creators Andy Hamilton and Guy Jenkins, this revival assembled at Cambridge Arts Theatre under Derek Bond’s direction recaptures the sly, cynical magic of the classic series. However, while the potent first half delivers plenty of laughs and gasps, the production unfortunately loses steam somewhat after the interval before rallying for a solid, if not wholly satisfying conclusion. One of the problems is when something that works in a 25-minute format is stretched to, in this case, just under two hours. And in addition, something that was a series is transferred to stage as a one off. Where is it going?

So, the premise is that Gus, the old GlobeLink boss, has taken charge at the brand-new news channel, Truth News. He assembles all the old hands he used to work with in cloak and dagger fashion and one by one we are reunited with editor George, deputy editor Dave, reporter – now newsreader – Damien, newsreader Sally, assistant editor Helen, and HR diva Joy. There is a new face – intern “weathergirl” Rita and also investigative journalist Mairead. The team are tasked with getting Truth News off the ground and producing its first broadcasts. The trouble is this new channel is obsessed with algorithms and social media hits rather than anything remotely related to actual news, and financially supported by some shady unknown backers.

The play wastes no time skewering today’s fast-paced, ethics-deficient media landscape – a rich target that gifted writers Hamilton and Jenkins lambast with glee. The first half gets off to a flying start with snappy dialogue laden with the duo’s trademark black humour landing again and again, guided by Bond’s brisk pacing and the cast’s deft comic timing.

The set design smartly adapts the classic cramped, messy newsroom look to the modern open office concept, peppered with contemporary touches like sweeping digital display boards. Multimedia elements shine at points, such as the faux broadcast snippets interspersed for context, and there’s a very innovative coffee machine!

As the first half closes, Truth News’ staff are locked in ethical confusion over journalistic responsibility versus clickbait sensationalism. There is a disastrous launch night of Truth News. A couple of national treasures do not escape unharmed, either physically or reputationally!

However, things slow after the interval, bogged down by an odd lull. At that point I was wondering how they would bring this to a satisfactory conclusion.

Fortunately, as our heroes scramble to save their journalistic integrity against corrosive corporate forces, the satire bites hard once more. As well as the solid gags, the other pleasure is the cast and the dynamic between them, intact after all these decades.

Despite the lull in the midsection, “Drop the Dead Donkey: The Reawakening!” remains a hilarious tribute three decades in the making. Long-term fans won’t be disappointed by a performance brimming with savage wit, while introducing new audiences to a comedic tour de force.

Awkwardprods present The Glasgow Willy Wonka Experience Quiz and Game Experience at Two Brewers 21 March

If you couldn’t get your wonky ass to that warehouse in Glasgow, we are bringing it to you! Enjoy as many magnificently sweet treats you can eat (maximum one jelly bean per customer) as you join Linus Karp (Diana: The untold and Untrue Story), Joseph Martin (Gwyneth Goes Skiing), Rob Madge (My Son’s A Queer – but what can you do?), Kate Butch (RuPaul’s Drag Race) and HRH Kate Middleton* (The Royal Family) for an evening of sweet dreams/nightmares in our Chocolate** Factory. 

Prepare yourself for comedy so rich, it’ll make a triple chocolate cake look like a diet food and silliness so silly, you’ll forget how to even. Quiz and game yourself through the night in teams of up to six – as special guests will pop up like daisies in this garden of chaos. Join the Oompa Loompas in their sweet, sweet meth lab, have your photos taken at our wonktastic photo ops with no expenses spared***, rescue the captured Princess and fight the evil UNKNOWN!

1/4 cup of lemonade included with EVERY ticket!

*Kate Middleton unlikely to appear unless found.

**No Chocolate will be present

***Expenses will be spared

Details:

The Glasgow Willy Wonka Experience Quiz and Game Experience

When: 21 March, 19:15

Where: 

Two Brewers

114 Clapham High Street

London

SW4 7UJ

Featuring: 

Linus Karp

Joseph Martin

Kate Butch

Rob Madge

More UNKNOWN surprise guests to be announced 

Tickets from £12

Available at awkwardprods.co.uk

Nottingham Playhouse – until March 9th 2024

Reviewed by Amy V Gathercole

5*****

“Minority Report – it’s ambitious, new and it’s already pretty iconic! – See it soon!”

I’m fortunate to have experienced a lot of theatre in my life, but I’ve never seen anything like Minority Report. It’s ambitious, new and its already pretty iconic. Bringing the sci-fi genre to the stage in a powerful and exciting event that really reminds you what theatre can and should do. Make you think and break down boundaries.

As the plot races urgently in real-time through London in 2050, our leading lady, neuroscientist Dame Julia Anderton (a very impressive and memorable Jodie McNee), is somewhat awkwardly and shockingly found to be guilty of Pre-Crime. In the futuristic society we are living in here, this means you’ve been predicted (via a supposedly infallible system) to be guilty of going to commit a crime and will be detained ahead of committing it.

The shock of this is that Julia is the CEO of the company that built the system to eradicate crime, like I say it’s all a bit awkward. She runs the company with her husband Sir George (a fabulous performance by Nick Fletcher) – the man who created the computer programming that runs the advanced system.

Following the Pre-Crime prediction, we go on the run with Julia as she tries to escape what she built, as she and many that surround her are in disbelief that she’s been accused and start asking more questions to gain some valuable answers.

The talented David Haig has adapted the 1950s novel by Phillip K. Dick and you may be aware of the Hollywood blockbuster made famous by Tom Cruise and Nottingham’s very own Samantha Morton. This is a very different version. Minority Report is full of break-neck performances, honestly the acting is first class from everyone and features some very memorable performances.

I’d say make time to see this show because of the set as you’ve never seen anything like it! It’s futuristic, smart and fast. With sets and spaces that scroll across the stage and rise and fall with speed and precision. One minute you’re in a sped up car chase and the next inside an AI operated modern office.

The costuming is another thing to admire as it depicts futuristic society with angular designs and practical clothing, above fashion for the majority of the cast, with designs that compliment the ultra-modern society that’s been created here.

Unexpected humour appears throughout the script as the writers take some liberties with jokes about AI and things we live with today and the highlight of the whole show for me was the stunning visual effects.

Minority Report is a very important piece of theatre for the modern age. In a world where the arts are tragically facing yet more cuts, the fact that Nottingham Playhouse, Birmingham Rep and Lyric Hammersmith Theatre have joined together to collaborate is fantastic. It’s becoming common in theatre to see smaller casts, with actors taking on multiple roles and stripped back sets, relying predominantly on projections to act as scene transitions and backdrops.

Here it’s entirely the opposite, in the most tech-based show I’ve ever seen! It would be easy for this show to lose its humanity and focus purely on the tech but instead it incorporates implanted chips and advanced sassy AI systems and chatbots, (Tanvi Virmani as an opinionated yet helpful AI companion David was my favourite performance in the show) into one of the most cinematic theatre performances I’ve seen. Whilst also raising several questions over philosophical issues surrounding free will. What will it take to create a crime free world? Are the potential risks worth it? And ultimately, how much trust should we place in technology?

24 JULY, 2024.
DEAR DIARY…

THE RECORD-BREAKING HIT SHOW

RETURNS FOR A NEW UK TOUR THIS AUTUMN

WRITTEN BY LAURENCE O’KEEFE & KEVIN MURPHY

AND WINNER OF

BEST NEW MUSICAL

WHATSONSTAGE AWARDS

****

Daily Telegraph, The Independent, Metro, Daily Express,

The Stage, Attitude, The Arts Desk, Broadway World

*****

The New European, City AM

Corn Nuts! What are you waiting for? There are new dates to add to your diaries…

Following a smash hit West End run at the Theatre Royal Haymarket in 2018, two national tours and record breaking runs at London’s The Other Palace, the WhatsOnStage ‘BEST NEW MUSICAL’ winner, Heathers the Musical is back on tour this year opening on 24 July at Theatre Royal Windsor. 

Produced by Bill Kenwright Ltd and Paul Taylor-Mills, this high octane, black comedy, rock musical based on one of the greatest cult teen films of all-time that starred Winona Ryder and Christian Slater, is back with a bang!

The 2024 Class of Westerberg High will be announced shortly.

Greetings and salutations! Welcome to Westerberg High, where popularity is so very a matter of life and death, and Veronica Sawyer is just another of the nobodies dreaming of a better day.

But when she’s unexpectedly taken under the wings of the three beautiful and impossibly cruel Heathers, her dreams of popularity finally start to come true.

That is until JD turns up, the mysterious teen rebel who teaches her that it might kill to be a nobody, but it’s murder being a somebody.

The award-winning writing team, Laurence O’Keefe and Kevin Murphy’s hit musical adaptation has enjoyed successful runs in Los Angeles and New York, and its European premiere saw it become the highest grossing show at The Other Palace, having sold over 20,000 tickets across the initial run and selling-out prior to its opening gala performance. It had similar success transferring to the Theatre Royal Haymarket. The show then broke records again back at its original home, The Other Palace, as the longest running show in the venue’s history.

The musical is directed by acclaimed American screen and stage director Andy Fickman, with choreography by Gary Lloyd, design by David Shields, lighting by Ben Cracknell and sound by Dan Samson.

LISTINGS

BILL KENWRIGHT & PAUL TAYLOR-MILLS PRESENT

HEATHERS THE MUSICAL

2024 UK TOUR

BOOK, MUSIC AND LYRICS KEVIN MURPHY & LAURENCE O’KEEFE

BASED ON A FILM BY DANIEL WATERS

DIRECTED BY ANDY FICKMAN

CHOREOGRAPHY AND ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR GARY LLOYD

DESIGN BY DAVID SHIELDS

LIGHTING BY BEN CRACKNELL

SOUND BY DAN SAMSON

Theatre Royal Windsor                                             theatreroyalwindsor.co.uk

24 – 27 July 2024                                                        01753 853 888

Theatre Royal Bath                                                    theatreroyal.org.uk

30 July – 3 August 2024                                              01225 448844

On Sale: 6 March

King’s Theatre Portsmouth                                      kingsportsmouth.co.uk
6 – 10 August 2024                                                      023 9282 8282
On Sale: 8 March

Wales Millennium Centre                                             wmc.org.uk
13 – 17 August 2024                                                            029 2063 6464

On Sale: 8 March

Theatre Royal Newcastle                                          theatreroyal.co.uk

3 – 7 September 2024                                                0191 232 7010

On Sale: 20 March

Milton Keynes Theatre                                              atgtickets.com/MiltonKeynes

10 – 14 September 2024                                           

On Sale: 8 March

Storyhouse Chester                                                    storyhouse.com
17 –21 September 2024                                             01244 409 113

On Sale: 11 March

Sheffield Lyceum Theatre                                         sheffieldtheatres.co.uk         

1 – 5 October 2024                                                     0114 249 6000

On Sale: 23 March

Stockton Globe Theatre                                            stocktonglobe.co.uk
15 – 19 October 2024                                                

On Sale: 8 March

Princess Theatre Torquay                                        atgtickets.com/Torquay
5 – 9 November

On Sale: 8 March

THE WEST END SMASH-HIT

TINA – THE TINA TURNER MUSICAL

ANNOUNCES FIRST EVER UK AND IRELAND TOUR

OPENING AT

CURVE, LEICESTER
FROM 6 MARCH 2025

The producers of the hit West End production, TINA – THE TINA TURNER MUSICAL are delighted to announce the first ever UK and Ireland tour, opening at Curve Leicester from Thursday 6 March 2025 to Saturday 22 March 2025. Tour schedule below with further dates and casting to be announced soon. www.tinathemusical.com/uktour

TINA – THE TINA TURNER MUSICAL continues to run in the West End at the Aldwych Theatre, where it has played for over 5 years following its world premiere, receiving critical acclaim, and breaking all Box Office records at the venue. It is currently booking until 31 May 2025, making it the longest running show to ever run at the Aldwych. The production is also a global success, with 8 productions having opened worldwide since 2018, including on Broadway and across North America, Germany, Spain, Netherlands and Australia. The show is currently on tour in both North America and Australia.

Producer Tali Pelman said, “Tina Turner played to packed out arenas across the UK and Ireland throughout her extensive career. We’re thrilled to now be able to bring her extraordinary story to stages across the UK and Ireland for the first time with TINA – THE TINA TURNER MUSICAL, celebrating the life and times of a truly inspirational woman whose story continues to move and elate audiences around the world every night.”

TINA – THE TINA TURNER MUSICAL is the story of legendary artist Tina Turner, the twelve-time Grammy Award winning Queen of Rock ‘n’ Roll. Set to the pulse-pounding soundtrack of her iconic hits, including The Best, What’s Love Got To Do With It?, Private Dancer and River Deep, Mountain High, the musical is an inspiring true story of a woman who dared to dream fiercely, shatter barriers and defy the bounds of age, gender, and race to conquer the world against all odds.

Directed by Phyllida Lloyd and written by Olivier Award and Pulitzer Prize-winner Katori Hall, with Frank Ketelaar and Kees Prins, TINA – THE TINA TURNER MUSICAL is choreographed by Anthony van Laast, with set and costume designs by Mark Thompson, musical supervision by Nicholas Skilbeck, lighting by Bruno Poet, sound by Nevin Steinberg, projection design by Jeff Sugg, orchestrations by Ethan Popp, and wigs, hair and makeup design by Campbell Young Associates, casting by Pippa Ailion CDG and Natalie Gallacher CDG.

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

TINA – THE TINA TURNER MUSICAL is dedicated to the memory of Tina Turner, who sadly passed away in May 2023.

www.tinathemusical.com/uktour

TINA – THE TINA TURNER MUSICAL UK TOUR – 2025/2026 TOUR LISTINGS

THURSDAY 6 – SATURDAY 22 MARCH 2025

LEICESTER CURVE

www.curveonline.co.uk

ON SALE SOON – Thu 7 March 2024

WEDNESDAY 26 MARCH – SATURDAY 5 APRIL 2025

SUNDERLAND EMPIRE

https://www.atgtickets.com/sunderland-empire

ON SALE SOON – Tue 5 March 2024

TUESDAY 8 – SATURDAY 26 APRIL 2025

BRISTOL HIPPODROME

https://www.atgtickets.com/bristol-hippodrome

ON SALE SOON – Tue 5 March 2024

TUESDAY 6 – SATURDAY 24 MAY 2025

GRAND OPERA HOUSE, BELFAST

www.goh.co.uk

ON SALE SOON

TUESDAY 27 MAY – SATURDAY 14 JUNE 2025

BORD GAIS ENERGY THEATRE, DUBLIN

www.bordgaisenergytheatre.ie

ON SALE SOON

TUESDAY 17 – SATURDAY 28 JUNE 2025

BIRMINGHAM HIPPODROME

www.birminghamhippodrome.com

ON SALE SOON

TUESDAY 1 – SATURDAY 12 JULY 2025

THEATRE ROYAL, PLYMOUTH

www.theatreroyal.com

ON SALE SOON

TUESDAY 15 JULY – SATURDAY 2 AUGUST 2025

THEATRE ROYAL, NOTTINGHAM

www.trch.co.uk

ON SALE SOON – Mon 11 March 2024

TUESDAY 12 – SATURDAY 23 AUGUST 2025

EMPIRE THEATRE, LIVERPOOL

https://www.atgtickets.com/liverpool-empire

ON SALE SOON – Thu 28 March 2024

TUESDAY 26 AUGUST – SATURDAY 6 SEPTEMBER 2025

CLIFFS PAVILION, SOUTHEND

www.southendtheatres.org.uk

ON SALE SOON – Wed 6 March 2024

TUESDAY 9 – SATURDAY 20 SEPTEMBER 2025

SHEFFIELD LYCEUM

www.sheffieldtheatres.co.uk

ON SALE SOON

TUESDAY 23 SEPTEMBER – SATURDAY 4 OCTOBER 2025

KING’S THEATRE GLASGOW

https://www.atgtickets.com/kings-theatre-glasgow

ON SALE SOON – Tue 5 March 2024

TUESDAY 7 – SATURDAY 18 OCTOBER 2025

MAYFLOWER THEATRE, SOUTHAMPTON

www.mayflower.org.uk

ON SALE SOON – Fri 15 March 2024

TUESDAY 28 OCTOBER – SATURDAY 8 NOVEMBER 2025

MARLOWE THEATRE, CANTERBURY

www.marlowetheatre.com

ON SALE SOON – Tue 9 April 2024

TUESDAY 11 – SATURDAY 22 NOVEMBER 2025

PLAYHOUSE THEATRE, EDINBURGH

https://www.atgtickets.com/edinburgh-playhouse

ON SALE SOON – Tue 5 March 2024

TUESDAY 25 NOVEMBER 2025 – SATURDAY 3 JANUARY 2026

PALACE THEATRE, MANCHESTER

https://www.atgtickets.com/palace-theatre-manchester

ON SALE SOON – Tue 5 March 2024

TUESDAY 13 – SATURDAY 24 JANUARY 2026

THEATRE ROYAL, NORWICH

www.norwichtheatre.org

ON SALE SOON – Thu 28 March 2024

TUESDAY 27 JANUARY – SATURDAY 7 FEBRUARY 2026

MILTON KEYNES THEATRE

https://www.atgtickets.com/milton-keynes-theatre

ON SALE SOON – Tue 5 March 2024

TUESDAY 10 – SATURDAY 28 FEBRUARY 2026

WALES MILLENNIUM CENTRE, CARDIFF

www.wmc.org.uk

ON SALE SOON

TUESDAY 3 – SATURDAY 14 MARCH 2026

THEATRE ROYAL, NEWCASTLE

www.theatreroyal.co.uk

ON SALE SOON

TUESDAY 17 MARCH – SATURDAY 4 APRIL 2026

LEEDS GRAND THEATRE

www.leedsheritagetheatres.com

ON SALE SOON

FULL CAST ANNOUNCED FOR WORLD PREMIERE STAGE PRODUCTION OF

THE ARTIST

★            NICOLE ALPHONCE, ALEXANDER BEAN, WILL BOZIER, MATTHEW CAPUTO, TIFFANY GRAVES, TIM HODGES, LUKAS HUNT, LILY LAIGHT, DEJA LINTON, TYLER LOTZOF, LOUIS MACKRODT,  SHAYNA MCPHERSON, EBONY MOLINA, RACHEL MULDOON, MARK SAMARAS, THOMAS WALTON AND DAISY WEST COMPLETE THE CAST.

★         THEY JOIN THE PREVIOUSLY ANNOUNCED INTERNATIONAL AWARD-WINNING DANCER AND ACTOR ROBBIE FAIRCHILD AS GEORGE VALENTIN, WITH WEST END FAVOURITE GARY WILMOT AS AL ZIMMER AND INTRODUCING BRIANA CRAIG IN THE ROLE OF PEPPY MILLER

★           BASED ON THE ORIGINAL MULTI-ACADEMY AWARD-WINNING FILM

BY MICHEL HAZANAVICIUS

★            CO-ADAPTED FOR THE STAGE BY LINDSEY FERRENTINO AND

DREW MCONIE WITH A MULTI-AWARD WINNING CREATIVE TEAM

★            DIRECTED AND CHOREOGRAPHED BY OLIVIER AWARD WINNER

DREW MCONIE

★             TICKETS ON SALE NOW FOR STRICTLY LIMITED RUN AT THEATRE

                ROYAL PLYMOUTH 11 – 25 MAY 2024.

Producers today announce full casting for the world premiere stage production of Michel Hazanavicius’ multi–Academy Award-winning film The Artist. The cast includes Nicole Alphonce (Swing/Dance Captain), Alexander Bean (Clifton), Will Bozier (Ensemble), Matthew Caputo (Ensemble), Tiffany Graves (Gertie Gams), Tim Hodges (Swing), Lukas Hunt (Swing/Dance Captain), Lily Laight (Ensemble), Deja Linton (Ensemble), Tyler Lotzof (Ensemble), Louis Mackrodt (Ensemble),  Shayna McPherson (Swing) , Ebony Molina (Doris Valentin), Rachel Muldoon (Constance), Mark Samaras (Ensemble),  Thomas Walton (Uggie) and Daisy West (Ensemble).

They join multi award-winning international dancer and actor Robbie Fairchild as silent movie icon George Valentin, returning to the UK stage for the first time since his acclaimed leading performance in An American In Paris, West End favourite Gary Wilmot as Al Zimmer, and introducing Briana Craig (42^nd Street tour) as Peppy Miller.

Drew McOnie, Artistic Director of The McOnie Company, said: “It is such a privilege to work alongside this exceptional group of world class artists. Being part of an original cast on any project requires a heart full of hope, unbelievable stamina, patience, good humour, and otherworldly talent and this company have that in abundance. I’m very excited and even more grateful.”

Tickets are now on sale for The Artist at Theatre Royal Plymouth, where the production beginsits journey with a strictly limited run from Saturday 11 May until Saturday 25 May 2024.

The Artist is co-adapted for the stage by Lindsey Ferrentino and Drew McOnie and directed and choreographed by Drew McOnie. The multi award-winning creative team includes set and costume designs by Tony and Olivier Award winner Christopher Oram (Wolf Hall Parts I & II, Red, Disney’s Frozen), music by Tony and Olivier Award winner Simon Hale (Girl From The North Country, Get Up Stand Up!), the Musical Director is Isaac McCullough,lighting by Zoe Spurr (Good, Fantastically Great Women Who Changed The World), sound by Tony and Olivier Award winner Simon Baker (Matilda The Musical, A Christmas Carol), video by Ash J Woodward (The 47^th, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child), puppetry by Maia Kirkman-Richards (The Sorcerer’s Apprentice), casting by Will Burton and the Associate Director/Choreographer is Ebony Molina.

The Artist is a McOnie Company production produced by Theatre Royal Plymouth, The McOnie Company, Playful Productions, Bill Damaschke and Underbelly.

In 1920s Hollywood the business of making dreams come true is in full swing. 

Silent movie icon George Valentin has long been the darling of the silver screen when he falls for aspiring actress Peppy Miller.   

But while her star is about to rise, his might soon flicker out: amidst all the glamour, laughter and romance, the silent movie industry is on the brink of a revolution. 

With the Talkies on their way, George must either find his voice in a brave new world or lose everything he holds dear to a bygone era.  

The Artist has mesmerised film audiences across the world for over a decade, winning five Academy Awards, seven BAFTAs and three Golden Globe Awards. Now the beguiling love story is reinvented for the stage in a dazzling celebration of silent cinema that blends cutting-edge theatre-making with iconic music of the period. 

CAST BIOGRAPHIES

Nicole Alphonce

She/Her

Theatre credits include: Swan Lake (Matthew Bourne’s New Adventures); Chrysalis (London Company 2015-2016).

Screen credits include: Doctor Who S1 & S2; Bridgerton S2 & S3; Queen Charlotte; Disney’s – Snow White; Greatest Days; The Marvels; Britannia S3; Man In Black; Disney’s – Aladdin; Disney’s – The Nutcracker and The Four Realms.

Training: Swedish National Ballet School and Tring Park School for The Performing Arts

Alexander Bean

He/Him

Theatre credits include: Unbelievable (Kenny Wax); One Man Two Guvnors, Summer Holiday, Gulliver’s Travels, Wizard of Oz (Octagon Theatre Bolton); The Tempest (The Pleasence); Just So, Jungle Book (The Watermill); The Crucible, Blonde Bombshells 1943, North and South & Summer Holiday (Pitlochry Festival Theatre); Aladdin, Robin Hood (Leeds City Varities); Romeo and Juliet, Macbeth, Teddy (Southwark Playhouse).

Training: Rose Bruford

William Bozier

He/Him

Theatre credits include: Moulin Rouge! (Piccadilly Theatre); Mamma Mia! (International tour); Wicked (Apollo Victoria); Edward Scissorhands, Sleeping Beauty, The Red Shoes, Cinderella, Swan Lake, The Car Man (Matthew Bournes New Adventures), Saturday Night Fever (UK Tour); Cinderella (Gillian Lynne).

Concert credits include: Mi Roar, SuperYou (Lyric Theatre).

Film credits include: Beauty & the Beast (Disney); Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again; Swan Lake (Matthew Bournes New Adventures).

Other credits include: Swan Lake Matthew Bourne’s New Adventures Olivier Awards 2019

Training: Arts Educational School Tring Park

Matthew Caputo

He/Him

Theatre credits include: The Book Thief (DEM Productions); Hamilton (Cameron Mackintosh); City of Angels (Nimax Theatres); Matilda (RSC); Mary Poppins (Disney Theatrical); Top Hat (Kenny Wax Productions); Cats (The Really Useful Group); On The Town (Regents Park); The Life (Southwark Playhouse); 21 Chump Street (Courtyard Theatre); White Christmas, Scrooge, Gypsy, 42nd Street (Curve Theatre, Leicester).

TV credits  include: National Lottery’s Big Night of Musicals (BBC), All Star Musicals (ITV).

Film credits include: My Favorite Things.

Training: Bird College

Briana Craig

She/Her

Theatre credits include: 42nd Street (National Tour/Sadler’s Wells/Toronto); Singin’ in the Rain (Sadler’s Wells/Japan/ National Tour/Toronto); Jack and the Beanstalk (London Palladium); Dick Whittington (New Wimbledon Theatre).

Other credits include: Festival of Remembrance (BBC/Royal Albert Hall)

Training: The Dance School of Scotland and Laine Theatre Arts.

Robbie Fairchild

He/Him

Robbie Fairchild made his Tony nominated Broadway debut in 2015 as Jerry Mulligan in the Tony Award-winning musical An American in Paris, which he reprised in London’s West End in 2017. He was awarded the Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle, Theater World, National Dance and Astaire Award for this performance and was nominated for the Evening Standard and Drama League Awards. From 2009 to 2017, Fairchild performed as a Principal Dancer with the New York City Ballet.

Other theatre credits include: Mary Shelly’s Frankenstein (Signature Theater, Chita Rivera Award); Brigadoon (New York City Center); Oklahoma! (Royal Albert Hall, London); A Chorus Line (Hollywood Bowl); Kiss Me Kate (Roundabout Theater Company’s 2017 Gala).

TV credits include: Soundtrack (Netflix); Julie’s Greenroom (Netflix); Oklahoma! (BBC Proms); NY Philharmonic’s Carousel (PBS’s Live from Lincoln Center); Dancing With The Stars; The Late Show With Stephen Colbert; Live with Kelly and Michael; CBS Sunday Morning; and 60 Minutes.

Film credits include: Tom Hooper’s Cats; An American in Paris Live (West End Production); The Chaperone and NY Export: Opus Jazz.

Tiffany Graves

She/Her

Theatre credits include: National Theatre 50 Years on Stage; A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum; Roald Dahl’s The Witches (National Theatre); Chicago (West End); Sweet Charity (Theatre Royal Haymarket); Gypsy (Buxton Opera House); The Boyfriend (Menier Chocolate Factory); But, I’m a Cheerleader (Turbine Theatre); Top Hat (The Mill at Sonning); The Wild Party (The Other Palace); Witches of Eastwick (Watermill Playhouse); The Snow Queen (Theatre Royal Stratford East) ; Apocalypse Meow (The Globe); 101 Dalmatians (Regent’s Park); Kiss Me, Kate (Opera North); Wonderful Town (The Hallé); Chess (Royal Albert Hall); We Will Rock You (Phil McIntyre Productions); The Producers (UK Tour).

Screen credits include: Blitz (Film) Andy and The Band (BBC)

Training: Arts Educational School, Tring.

Tim Hodges

He/Him

Previous McOnie Company credits: Nutcracker (Southbank Centre), Jekyll and Hyde (The Old Vic); Making Midnight (Latitude Festival)

Theatre credits include: Carousel (Regents Park); Strictly Ballroom (Piccadilly Theatre); Half A Sixpence (Chichester Festival and The Noel Coward Theatre); Oliver (Curve); The Car Man; Hot Rod; Edward Scissorhands; Swan Lake (New Adentures); Singin’ In The Rain (Stage Entertainment); Dirty Dancing (Palace Theatre); Chicago (Cambridge Theatre, UK Tour) Cats (UK Tour); We Will Rock You (Dominion Theatre); Murderous Instincts (Savoy Theatre). 

Lukas Hunt

He/Him

Previous McOnie Company credits include: Nutcracker (Southbank Centre)

Recent theatre credits include: La Strada (Sadler’s Wells); Cake (UK Tour); Dreamgirls (UK Tour); Alice’s Adventures Underground (Royal Opera House); On The Town (Hyogo Performing Arts); The Lion King (UK & Intl Tour); Carmen (Ballet Ireland); Káťa Kabanová  (Glyndebourne); Contemporary Company (Holly Noble); Back & Waltz in Swingtime (Dance Theatre of Harlem); Interludes (Temple of Understanding Gala); Nutcracker (Ballet Theatre NY).

TV Credits include: Anyone Can Sing (Sky Arts)

Film credits include: Death on the Nile; Artemis Fowl; Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again

Training: Tring Park School for Performing Arts

Lily Laight

She/Her

Theatre credits include: Dirty Dancing (Dominion/UK Tour); Gypsy (Alexandra Palace); Hairspray (London Coliseum); Aladdin (Crossroads); Matilda (RSC).

TV credits include: Doc Martin; Five Go To Rehab

Film credits include: Barbie; Love, Rosie; In Secret, Les Misérables; Frequencies

Deja Linton

She/Her

Theatre credits include: The Lion King (Lyceum Theatre); The Wizard of Oz (The London Palladium); The Secret Garden (The Ambassadors Theatre); Snow White (Peacock Theatre); 42^nd Street (UK tour and Toronto).

Other credits include: Commercials and programmes such as Children in Need and The One Show.

Training:The Urdang Academy

Tyler Lotzof

She/Her

Theatre credits include: Peter Pan (London Palladium); Dirty Dancing (UK and Ireland tour); Cats (Taiwan Tour & South Korean Tour).

Training: Patrick School of the Arts in Melbourne, Australia.

Louis Mackrodt

He/Him

Theatre credits include: Treason (Alexandra Palace & UK Tour); Hamilton (Victoria Palace); 42 Balloons Concert (Vaudeville); Guys and Dolls (Theatre Marigny, Paris); The Producers (Royal Exchange, Manchester); Lewis (The King’s Head & Edinburgh Festival); Time Flies (Theatre Royal, Drury Lane); Peter Pan (Churchill Theatre & Hull New Theatre).

TV credits include: National Lottery’s Big Night of Musicals (BBC).

Training: Laine Theatre Arts.

Shayna McPherson

She/Her

Theatre credits includes: Sunset Boulevard (West End); Johannes Radebe: Freedom Unleashed (UK Tour); Aladdin (Apollo Theater, Stuttgart); The Wiz (Hope Mill Theatre).

Film Includes: Disenchanted (Disney).

Training: The Urdang Academy

Ebony Molina

She/Her

Ebony Molina Ebony is the Associate Artistic director of the McOnie Company.

Previous McOnie Company credits: Jekyll and Hyde (Old Vic); Be Mine (Jackson’s Place).

Theatre credits as Associate Choreographer include: The Witches (The National Theatre); La Cage aux Folle, Carousel, On the Town (Regents Park); The Secret Life of Bees (Almeida).

Theatre credits as Choreographic Supervisor include: Wizard of Oz (Curve).

Theatre credits as Associate Director/Choreographer include: The Wild Party (The Other Palace); Bugsy Malone (Lyric Hammersmith).

Theatre credits as Associate Choreographer: This House (Minerva, Chichester); The Lorax (Old Vic); Tommy, Spring Awakening (English Theatre, Frankfurt); Soho Cinders (Queens Theatre).

Theatre credits as a performer: Singin In The Rain (Palace Theatre and Chichester Festival Theatre); 42nd Street (Curve); Shoes (Sadlers Wells); Sweet Charity (Theatre Royal Haymarket and Menier Chocolate Factory); Shall We Dance (Sadlers Wells); L’Heure Espangnole (ROH); On The Town (Theatre du Chatelet Paris); Sinatra ( The London Palladium); Chicago (Adelphi); West Side Story (Bregenz Festival); Beauty and the Beast (RSC); On your Toes (Japan); Les Demoiselles du Rochefort (Palais De Congres Paris); My One and Only (Piccadilly Theatre); Romeo and Juliet (Piccadilly Theatre); Chess (Denmark); The Carman, Dorian Gray , Nutcracker, Edward Scissorhands (New Adventures).

Film credits include: Disney’s Beauty and The Beast, The Little Mermaid, Wonka, Greatest Days (Associate Choreographer).

Rachel Muldoon

She/Her

Previous McOnie Company credits include: Nutcracker (Southbank Centre), Jekyll & Hyde (The Old Vic), Making Midnight (Latitude Festival).

Theatre credits include: Oklahoma! (BBC Proms); On The Town (Regent’s Park); Carousel (ENO); Wicked (Apollo Victoria); The Hurly Burly Show (Duchess Theatre); Notre Dame de Paris (International Tour); Cats (UK Tour); Chicago (Cambridge Theatre); Shall We Dance (Sadler’s Wells); Grease (Piccadilly Theatre); The Genius of Ray Charles (US Tour).

Screen credits include: BAFTA – Sophie Ellis Bextor; Hannah Waddingham – Home for Christmas; Ant and Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway; King Charles III Coronation Concert; All Star Musicals; Strictly Come Dancing; X Factor; The Brit Awards; Britain’s Got Talent; The Greatest Dancer; The Entire Universe; Royal Variety Performances; Take That; Little Mix; Kylie; Robbie Williams; Becky Hill; Jake Shears; Laura Mvula; Laura Marling; James Blunt; Blitz; Look to the Light; Cruella; Rocketman; Mamma Mia 2; Mary Poppins Returns; Ready Player One; Avengers: Age of Ultron.

Training: The Royal Ballet School, Laine Theatre Arts.

Mark Samaras

He/Him

Previous McOnie Company credits include: Nutcracker (Southbank Centre)

Theatre credits include: Nutcracker, Giselle (Ballet Ireland); Cinderella, Romeo and Juliet, Swan Lake (Matthew Bourne’s New Adventures), Newsies (West End).

Film credits include: Greatest Days.

Training: Central School of Ballet

Thomas Walton

He/Him

Theatre credits include: Everybody’s Talking About Jamie (UK Tour); Bugsy Malone (UK Tour); Dick Whittington (Royal and Derngate).

Training: Bird College

Gary Wilmot

He/Him

Past Theatre Royal Plymouth credits: Big The Musical

Theatre credits include: Jack & The Beanstalk (Palladium), Wicked (Apollo Theatre), Anything Goes (Barbican), Pantoland at the Palladium (Palladium); Prince of Egypt (Dominion); Goldilocks and the Three Bears (Palladium); Mr Gum and the Dancing Bear (National Theatre); Little Miss Sunshine (Arcola); Snow White and The Seven Dwarfs (Palladium); Flowers for Mrs Harris (Chichester Festival Theatre); Dick Whittington (Palladium); The Wind in the Willows (Palladium); End of the Rainbow (National Tour); Oklahoma (National Tour); Dirty Rotten Scoundrels (Savoy Theatre & National Tour); The Pajama Game (Shaftesbury Theatre); Radio Times (The Watermill & National Tour); A Bowl Of Cherries (Charing Cross Theatre); The Invisible Man (Menier Chocolate Factory); Arthur Saville’s Crime (National Tour); Chicago (National Tour); The Wizard of Oz (Royal Festival Hall/Mayflower); Half A Sixpence (National Tour); Santa Claus The Musical (Mayflower); H.M.S. Pinafore (NSC, Regents Park); Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (Palladium); Travels With My Aunt (National Tour).

Screen credits include: The Grinch, Showstoppers, Cue Gary, The 6’ O’Clock Show, The Saturday Gang, Copycats, So You Wanna Be Top, Never Mind The Buzzcocks, The Tony Ferrino Phenomenon, Aspel And Co, The Bob Monkhouse Show, Don Black – Diamonds Are Forever and One Drop (Short Film).

Daisy West

She/Her

Theatre Credits Include: Dirty Dancing (UK & International Tour); The Wizard of Oz (Curve); Carousel (Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre); On The Town (Hyogo Performing Arts Centre and Bunka Kaikan Theatre, Japan); Macbeth (Mark Bruce Company, UK Tour); Medea (Grand Théâtre de Genève); Al Wasl (Dubai Expo); Sea of Troubles (Yorke Dance Project, Royal Opera House); Rewind, Forward (Yorke Dance Project, UK Tour); The King (Danish Tour).

Film Credits Include: Snow White (Disney); Greatest Days (Elysian Film Group).

Music Videos Include: Newton Faulkner (Up, Up and Away); Slow Club (Complete Surrender).

Training: Rambert School of Ballet and Contemporary Dance

Other Credits Include: Pet Shop Boys (Live at BBC Radio 2 Hyde Park); Jess Glynne at the Brit Awards (O2 Arena); Go Go Penguin (Latitude Festival).

CREATIVE BIOGRAPHIES

Drew McOnie, Co-adaptor, director and choreographer 

Drew is the Artistic Director of The McOnie Company and the Artistic Director and Joint Chief Executive of Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre in London. Drew won the Olivier Award for Best Theatre Choreography for In the Heights and he was nominated for the same award the following year for the ground-breaking production of Jesus Christ Superstar at Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre.

Theatre credits as director/choreographer include: On the Town (Olivier Award Nomination for Best Musical Revival – Regent’s Park), The Wild Party (The Other Palace), King Kong (The Broadway Theatre, Broadway), Strictly Ballroom (Piccadilly Theatre, West End / Toronto / West Yorkshire Playhouse), Torch Song (The Turbine Theatre London), CAKE (Lyric Theatre, West End). 

Select credits as a choreographer include: Carousel (Regents Park), Jesus Christ Superstar (Olivier Award Nomination for Best Theatre Choreography – Regents Park, Barbican Theatre and American National Tour), In the Heights (Olivier Award Winner for Best Theatre Choreography, Winner of the Off West End Theatre Award for Best Choreography – Southwark Playhouse and Kings Cross Theatre), The Lorax (Old Vic), Hairspray (BroadwayWorld Award Winner for Best Choreographer – UK Tour), Bugsy Malone (Lyric Hammersmith and National Tour), Oklahoma! (National Tour), Chicago(Curve Theatre, Leicester), Tommy(European Tour).

For the McOnie Company: Nutcracker (The Tuff Nutt Jazz Club, Southbank Centre), Jekyll and Hyde (BroadwayWorld Award Winner for Outstanding Achievement in Dance – Old Vic), DRUNK! (Curve Theatre Leicester/ The Bridewell Theatre London) which led to him being nominated for the ‘Emerging Artist Award’ at the National Dance Awards, Making Midnight (Jermyn Street Theatre/ Latitude Festival), Slaughter (Audience Choice Award Winner – The Place Prize), Be Mine! (Robin Howard Theatre). 

Ballets include: Merlin (Northern Ballet National Tour), Monochrome Suite (Sadlers Wells), The Old Man Of Lochnagar (Sadlers Wells and Hackney Empire), Little Red Riding Hood (Wimbledon Theatre), To You (Sadlers Wells).  

Film credits include: Greatest Days Movie produced by Danny Perkins and Kate Solomon, Me Before You (Directed by Thea Sharrock).

Lindsey Ferrentino, Co-adaptor

Lindsey Ferrentino is a prolific playwright and screenwriter who writes with, according to The New York Times, “a muscular empathy which seeks to enter the minds of people for whom life is often a struggle of heroic proportions”. Whether writing about a female burn survivor or penning the first off-Broadway play with a leading role for a person with Down Syndrome, Lindsey has been called “a brave playwright of dauntless conviction whose unflinching portraits are hard to come by outside of journalism.”

Her produced plays include Ugly Lies the Bone (The National Theatre, UK,Roundabout Theatre Company, NYT Critics Pick), the “barrier breaking” Amy and the Orphans (Roundabout Theatre Company), This Flat Earth (Playwrights Horizons), and The Year to Come (La Jolla Playhouse).  Ferrentino is writing the book to a number of musicals including Queen of Versailles, with composer Stephen Schwartz, starring Kristin Chenoweth premiering at The Colonial Theater in Boston this summer.

Ferrentino is the recipient of the Kesselring Prize, Catalyst Award for Entertainment Industry Excellence, Laurents/ Hatcher Citation of Excellence, ASCAP Cole Porter Playwriting Prize, Paul Newman Drama Award, , NYU Distinguished Young Alumna Award, 40 Under 40 at Hunter College, and is the only two-time finalist for the Kendeda Playwriting Prize.

Lindsey has various film/TV projects. Lindsey is writing and directing the feature version of her stage play Amy and the Orphans, produced by Jason Bateman’s company Aggregate. As a screenwriter, Lindsey has also penned the following features in pre-production: Ugly Lies the Bone, A Very Large Expanse of the Sea (Levantine Films) and Not Fade Away to name a few.

She is currently under commission from Roundabout, The Geffen, Manhattan Theatre Club, and South Coast Rep. She holds a B.F.A. from New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts, and has two M.F.A.’s in playwriting from Hunter College and The Yale School of Drama.

Christopher Oram, Set and costume designs

Christopher Oram is a Tony and Olivier award-winning scenic and costume designer.

Recent work includes: Frozen (Broadway/West End) Backstairs Billy (MGC) Wolf Hall/bring up the Bodies/the mirror and the light (RSC) the Wreckers (HGO) and Geisha (Northern Ballet).

His many collaborations with Michael Grandage Company include Red, Hughie, Photograph 51, Peter and Alice and The Cripple of Inishmaan. He has also the recipient of the Drama Desk, Evening Standard, Critic’s Circle, Garland, Falstaff, whatsonstage and Ovation awards for his work both here and in the United States.

https://www.christopheroram.co.uk/

https://www.instagram.com/christopheroram/

Simon Hale, Musical Supervisor, Composer (original music) and Orchestrator

Simon Hale is a composer, orchestrator, arranger and musical supervisor. His theatre credits include: Girl From The North Country (Old Vic, West End, Broadway, UK & Ireland Tour – Tony Award for Best Orchestrations); Cold War (Almeida Theatre); Newsies (Troubador Theatre); Kiss My Aztec (Hartford Stage); Spring Awakening (Almeida Theatre, Broadway, West End, US Tour); Hex (National Theatre); Get Up Stand Up! (West End – Olivier Award for Best Original Score and Orchestrations); Bedknobs & Broomsticks (UK Tour); Looking A Lot Like Christmas (Donmar Warehouse); Romantics Anonymous (Shakespeare’s Globe, Bristol Old Vic, US Tour); Tootsie (Chicago, Broadway, US Tour); Strictly Ballroom (West Yorkshire Playhouse, Toronto, West End); Guys ‘n’ Dolls (Royal Exchange Theatre); Side Show (Southwark Playhouse); Finding Neverland (A.R.T. Boston, Broadway, US Tour); Women On The Verge Of A Nervous Breakdown (Broadway, West End), Company (Sheffield Theatres). His film credits include: Spectre ‘The Writing’s On The Wall’ by Sam Smith.

Simon’s solo album, East Fifteen, led to recordings with many artists, including Duncan Sheik, George Benson, Simply Red, Jamiroquai, Björk, Taylor Swift, Alicia Keys and Sam Smith.

Zoe Spurr, Lighting design

Zoe is a theatre lighting designer whose work has been seen on the West End, throughout the UK and internationally. She won the 2019 Theatre and Technology Award Lighting Design for The Unreturning (Frantic Assembly UK Tour), Lightmongers’ ALD Award ‘New Talent in Entertainment Lighting’ and the OFFIE award for Lighting Design for her work on Tiny Dynamite (Old Red Lion Theatre).

Recent designs include: Underdog- the Other Other Bronte (National Theatre); The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button (Southwark Playhouse); The Vortex (CFT); Bonnie And Clyde (West End); Beginning (Royal Exchange Manchester); How Not To Drown (Thickskin UK Tour); Good (Harold Pinter Theatre); The Importance Of Being Earnest (ETT), Migrations (The Welsh National Opera); Our Generation (National Theatre); She Described It To Death (Royal Opera House Linbury Studio); Fantastically Great Women Who Changed The World (Kenny Wax Family Entertainment for MAST Mayflower, UK Tour); Hamlet (Bill Kenwright Ltd at Theatre Royal Windsor); The Unreturning (Frantic Assembly UK Tour); Meek (Headlong UK Tour); Emilia (West End). 

Simon Baker, Sound design 

Simon Baker has worked and experienced almost every corner of the theatre sound industry. He has served time in the sound departments of both the RSC and the National Theatre where he held the post of sound supervisor, and in 1999 he joined leading British sound design and rental company, Autograph, where he stayed for 11 years. He is Technical Director for Wise Children and an Associate Artist at The Old Vic. Simon is a Fellow of Guildhall School of Music & Drama.

His theatre credits include Groundhog Day (The Old Vic, Broadway); The Secret Life of Bees (Almeida Theatre); Hex (National Theatre); A Christmas Carol (The Old Vic, Broadway – Tony Award for Best Sound Design for a Play); Woman In Mind (Chichester Festival Theatre); Girl From The North Country (Old Vic, West End, Broadway, UK & Ireland Tour); Wuthering Heights (Wise Children, UK Tour); Bagdad Café (Wise Children, Old Vic); The Flying Lovers of Vitebsk (Bristol Old Vic); Faith Healer, Three Kings, Lungs, Present Laughter, Wise Children, The Caretaker, The Master Builder, Future Conditional, High Society (Old Vic); Standing At The Sky’s Edge (Sheffield Theatres); Brief Encounter (West End, UK Tour); Matilda The Musical (Royal Shakespeare Company, West End, Broadway – Olivier Award for Best Sound, Helpmann Award for Best Sound); Pinocchio (National Theatre) and The Grinning Man (Bristol Old Vic, West End).

Ash J Woodward, Video design

Ash J Woodward is a video designer and filmmaker. Woodward has designed and animated content for large-scale shows in the West End, on Broadway and around the world. Work includes hand-drawn, 2D and 3D animation, cinematography, visual effects and design work for other live performance genres such as live music, exhibitions, and art installations. Ash J Woodward is an associate artist at the Squint theatre company. Work in theatre as video and projection designer includes The Witches Musical, Dear England and Hex (National Theatre); Patriots (Noël Coward); Harry Potter and the Cursed Child (worldwide); Local Hero (CFT); Famous Five the Musical (Theatr Clwyd); The 47th (The Old Vic); The Glass Menagerie (Duke of York’s); Can I Live (Complicité); The Beauty Parade (Wales Millennium Centre); Bletchley Park Hut 11A (Bletchley Park); Armadillo (The Yard); and Molly (Squint Theatre).

Maia Kirkman-Richards, Puppetry director and design

Maia is a Designer and Maker and Director of puppetry and in 2018 was selected for the Old Vic 12 as their first Puppetry Consultant.   

Puppet Director credits include: Bear Snores On (Regents Park Open Air Theatre); There’s A Rang-Tan In My Bedroom (Little Angel & UK tour); My Cloud (National Theatre of Qatar); Our Teacher’s A Troll (Ruined Theatre); The Butterfly Lion (The Barn Theatre); A Dickensian Christmas (The Old Library); Look Up (National Tour); A Stone’s Throw (Edinburgh International Festival). 

Puppet Design credits include: Bear Snores On (Regents Park Open Air Theatre);  There’s A Rang-Tan In My Bedroom (Little Angel); The Sorcerer’s Apprentice (Southwark Playhouse); Our Teacher’s A Troll (Ruined Theatre); Wind In The Willows (The Turbine Theatre & UK tour);  My Cloud (National Theatre of Qatar); The Butterfly Lion (The Barn Theatre); The Further Adventures Of The Owl And The Pussycat (The Little Angel); The Slightly Annoying Elephant (The Little Angel); Great Apes (Arcola); Jack Frost (Moon On A Stick – Norwich Theatre Royal and National Tour); Baby Bear (Moon On A Stick – National Tour); Meet The Eastenders (Museum of London Docklands); Metamorphosis (Theatrical Niche – UK Tour); The Dream Factory (National Tour).  

Puppet Maker credits include: My Neighbour Totoro (Barbican); Animal Farm (UK Tour); The Magician’s Elephant (Royal Shakespeare Company); Gnomus (BBC Proms); Wizard Of Oz (Birmingham Rep); Peter Pan (Troubadour White City); Beauty and the Beast (Chichester Festival Theatre); Mr Poppers Penguins (International Tour); Wolves in the Walls (Little Angel and National Tour); Doctor Dolittle (UK Tour).

Assistant & Associate Puppet Director credits include:  101 Dalmatians (Regents Park Open Air); The Everywhere Bear (Polka).

The McOnie Company

The McOnie Company is the hot-blooded theatre company with ‘Rock n’ Roll swagger’ (The Observer). The company is led by Producer Georgia Gatti and Olivier Award-winning director and choreographer Drew McOnie, whose work has been described as having ‘the explosive feel of barely contained ecstasy’ (Chicago Sun Times).

The company was launched to celebrate the power of visual storytelling and holds audiences at the centre of its creative mission. We are committed to creating exhilarating stories for today that push boundaries. Our wild-hearted company presents both known titles reimagined for the stage and screen, alongside brand-new work.

The McOnie Company holds a proud association with the Old Vic Theatre and Birmingham Rep.

The company’s productions include the award-winning dance-thriller reimagining of Jekyll and Hyde at the Old Vic Theatre, the song and dance revue Drunk at the Bridewell Theatre, Making Midnight at Jermyn Street Theatre, Slaughter at The Place and Be Mine at the Robin Howard Theatre.

The McOnie Company’s production Nutcracker, directed and choreographed by Drew McOnie, opens on 4 November at the Tuff Nutt Jazz Club, Southbank Centre.

www.mconiecompany.com

Twitter: @McOnieCompany

Instagram: @mconiecompany

TheArtistOnStage.com

Booking Information:

The Artist

Theatre Royal Plymouth, Royal Parade, Plymouth, PL1 2TR

11 May  – 25 May 2024

www.theatreroyal.com | Box Office: 01752 267222

Announcing the English language premiere of a major new musical, MARIE CURIE

Byungwon Kang & LIVE corp. present

The English language premiere of a major new musical
MARIE CURIE
Book & Lyrics by Seeun Choun
Music by Jongyoon Choi
Directed by Sarah Meadows

Charing Cross Theatre
Saturday 1 June – Sunday 28 July

Marie Sklodowska Curie. Physicist. Pioneer. Parent.

As she arrives from her native home in Poland to study at Sorbonne University in Paris, young Marie Sklodowska is certain she can make a name for herself and change the course of science. She discovers radium, a new chemical element, with her husband Pierre Curie, and she’s lauded with the Nobel Prize.

But she is faced with an overwhelming moral dilemma. As Marie discovers the lifesaving potential of radium to cure cancer, factory workers handling the glowing substance are succumbing to the insidious grip of radium poisoning.

As a woman with society against her, can she wrestle with both the potential and danger of her discovery – and what is she if radium’s dangers overshadow its possibilities?

A story of life and death, ‘Marie Curie’ has already captivated audiences in Korea and Japan with its sweeping score and story and is now brought to London audiences for the first time in a stirring original production directed by Sarah Meadows (Ride).

Marie Curie premiered in South Korea in 2020 at the Chungmu Art Center and recorded a rating of 9.8 (out of 10). A live performance was then broadcast, watched by 790,000 people. The show returned to Hongik Art Center Grand Theater, winning the Grand Prize, Best Book, Best Music, Best Director, and Best Producer at the 5th Korea Musical Awards. In 2023/24 Marie Curie opened its third season touring to six cities across South Korea. In Korea it was acclaimed for its cinematic quality and proved incredibly popular – watched in theatres by a cumulative total of 100,000 people.

Cast to be announced.

Creative team includes:

Producers: Byungwon Kang & LIVE corp.
Book & Lyrics: Seeun Choun
Music: Jongyoon Choi
Director: Sarah Meadows
English Book Adaptation: Tom Ramsay
English Lyrics Adaptation: Emma Fraser
Literal Translation: Ahreumbi Rew
Musical Director: Emma Fraser
Choreographer: Joanna Goodwin
Sound Designer: Andrew Johnson
Casting Director: Jane Deitch
Production Manager: James Anderton
General Management: Aria Entertainment

LIVE corp.
LIVE corp., founded in March 2011 by producer Byungwon Kang, aims to produce global musical
content.

Starting with the musical Paradise Ticket, Live Corp. has produced the musicals The Champ, Marines!, Fly High, Taekwon, Almond, Gwangju, Marie Curie, Fan Letter, Rimbaud, My Bucket List, Bachelor’s Vegetable Store, Mr. Lee Clean Center, In The Mood For Sorrow, plays Rent Apartment, Happiness Deliveryman Mr. Woo-soo, and the films House of the Disappeared, Respect, and many more.

LIVE corp. is Korea’s leading K-Musical production company. It exported the most extensive number of Korean musicals beyond South Korea, including China, Japan, and Taiwan, and all across Asia. From 2013 to the present, LIVE corp’s musicals have performed more than 1,000 times outside of South Korea, in original tours and licensed performances in more than 40 Asian cities. Musicals Bachelor’s Vegetable Store, My Bucket List, Rimbaud, In The Mood For Sorrow, and Fan Letter were presented in China; Fan Letter in Taiwan, and Bachelor’s Vegetable Store, Marie Curie, My Bucket List, and Fan Letter in Japan. Bachelor’s Vegetable Store was also produced as a TV series broadcast all across Asia.

In 2021 Marie Curie won the Grand Prize, Best Book, Best Music, Best Directing, and Best Producer in the 5th Korea Musical Awards, as well as the “Golden Watering Can (Złota Konewka)” the Grand Prix at the Music Gardens Festival in Poland. In the “Hyehwaroun-Gongyeonsenghwal” Awards in which the South Korean musical theater audience votes, in 2022 Fan Letter won the Best Work Award, and in 2023 Musical Rimbaud won the Best Work Award.

Producer Byungwon Kang has won the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Award three times in 2017, 2019, and 2023 and was named the “Producer of the Year” by the Korea Performing Producers Association in 2018. In 2022, he won the Korea Performing Tourism Grand Award presented by the Korea Performing Tourism Association. Currently, he is also the vice president of the Korea Musical Association.

Producer Byungwon Kang hosted the creative musical contest “Glocal Musical Live” with the Korea Creative Content Agency every year until season 8 and has developed about 50 new works as a creative producer.

LIVE corp. will do its best to plan and develop original K-cultural content that can be sympathised with and loved by people worldwide, continuing in the future.

LISTINGS INFO
Byungwon Kang & LIVE corp.
present

The English language premiere of
MARIE CURIE

Book & Lyrics by Seeun Choun
Music by Jongyoon Choi
Directed by Sarah Meadows

English Book Adaptation by Tom Ramsay
English Lyrics Adaptation by Emma Fraser
Based on a Literal Translation by Ahreumbi Rew

Charing Cross Theatre
The Arches
Villiers Street
London WC2N 6NL
www.charingcrosstheatre.co.uk

Box office: 08444 930650

The box office is open from 2 hours before
curtain time on performance days for personal callers

Saturday 1 June – Sunday 28 July

Performances:
Tuesday – Saturday at 7.30pm
Wednesday at 2.30pm
Saturday at 2.30pm
 Sunday at 3.00pm

Tickets from £15.00

Upgrade your ticket to include a glass of bubbly and a programme for just £7.50

Social Media
Twitter
@CharingCrossThr
Instagram
@CharingCrossThr

FIRST LOOK: NEW ‘WICKED’ LONDON CAST 

First images released of Michael Fenton Stevens,

Graham Kent, Laura Harrison, and Christine Tucker

New company begins performances Tuesday 12 March 2024

www.WickedTheMusical.co.uk

WICKED, the West End stage musical phenomenon that tells the incredible untold story of the Witches of Oz, today releases the first production images, by photographer Matt Crockett, of Michael Fenton Stevens (The Wizard), Graham Kent (Doctor Dillamond), Laura Harrison (Standby for Elphaba) and Christine Tucker (Standby for Glinda, Maternity Cover), together with new images of current cast members Lucy St. Louis (Glinda), Ryan Reid (Fiyero), Caitlin Anderson (Nessarose), and Joe Thompson-Oubari (Boq).

Former ensemble cast member Laura Harrison returns to Wicked as Standby for Elphaba and current ensemble cast member Christine Tucker remains with the company to assume the role of Standby for Glinda, as maternity cover for Lisa-Anne Wood.

“One of the most successful musicals of all time” (BBC News), Wicked opened in London in 2006 and is already the 11^th longest-running West End production in history. Winner of more than 100 global awards, the production has now been seen by more than 12 million people in London alone.

From Tuesday 12 March 2024,the London productionwill star Alexia Khadime (Elphaba), Lucy St. Louis (Glinda), Ryan Reid (Fiyero), Sophie-Louise Dann (Madame Morrible), Michael Fenton Stevens (The Wizard), Caitlin Anderson (Nessarose), Graham Kent (Doctor Dillamond), Joe Thompson-Oubari (Boq), Laura Harrison (Standby for Elphaba), Christine Tucker* (Standby for Glinda), Conor Ashman, Jessica Aubrey, Jeremy Batt, Felipe Bejarano, Asmara Cammock, Joshua Clemetson, Effie Rae Dyson, Aimee Hodnett, Kate Leiper, Jemima Loddy, Joshua Lovell, Rory Maguire, PaddyJoe Martin, Darnell Mathew-James, Millie Mayhew, Ayden Morgan, Rishard-Kyro Nelson, Aston Newman Hannington, Aiesha Naomi Pease, Jeanie Ryan, Natalie Spriggs, Charlotte Anne Steen, James Titchener, Micaela Todd, Taela Yeomans-Brown, and Jacob Young.  *Maternity cover for Lisa-Anne Wood.

Current cast members Mark Curry (The Wizard), Steven Pinder (Doctor Dillamond), Amy Webb (Standby for Elphaba), Yuki Abe, Kofi Aidoo-Appiah, Fergus Dale, Nicola Espallardo, Danny Fogarty, Ross Harmon, Harry Mills, Daniel Parrott, and Jaydon Vijn all depart on Sunday 10 March 2024.

London performances begin Tuesday – Saturday at 7.30pm, and Wednesday, Saturday, and Sunday at 2.30pm. The following four added shows are also now on sale: Thursday 4 April,Thursday 1 August, Thursday 15 August and Thursday 31 October 2024, all at 2:30pm. DOORS OPEN 90 MINUTES PRIOR TO THE START OF PERFORMANCES.

Wicked is also touring to various cities in England, Scotland, Wales, and the Republic of Ireland until January 2025. Visiting the Birmingham Hippodrome from 5 March until 7 April 2024, the critically acclaimed production then continues to Bradford Alhambra Theatre; Southampton Mayflower Theatre; Liverpool Empire; Dublin Bord Gáis Energy Theatre; Sunderland Empire; and Cardiff Wales Millennium Centre. The tour will conclude with a 2024/5 Christmas season at the Manchester Palace Theatre, the venue that hosted the tour premiere in September 2013.

Stephen Schwartz and Winnie Holzman’s celebrated stage musical is based on the acclaimed novel by Gregory Maguire and imagines a beguiling backstory and future possibilities to the lives of L. Frank Baum’s beloved characters from ‘The Wonderful Wizard of Oz’, revealing the decisions and events that shape the destinies of two unlikely university friends on their journey to becoming ‘Glinda The Good’ and the ‘Wicked Witch of the West’.

Wicked has music and lyrics by multi-Oscar and Grammy Award winner Stephen Schwartz (‘Godspell’, ‘Pippin’, ‘The Prince of Egypt’, Disney’s ‘Pocahontas’, ‘The Hunchback of Notre Dame’and ‘Enchanted’). It is based on the multimillion-copy best-selling novel ‘Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of theWest’ by Gregory Maguire and written by Emmy and Tony Award nominee Winnie Holzman (creator of the landmark American television series ‘My So-Called Life’). Musical staging is by Tony Award-winner Wayne Cilento with direction by two-time Tony Award-winner Joe Mantello.

Wicked is produced by Marc Platt, Universal Stage Productions, The Araca Group, Jon B. Platt, and David Stone. Executive Producer (UK) Michael McCabe.

Through its ‘For Good’ charitable endeavours and acclaimed Wicked Active Learning cultural and social education programme, the London production of Wicked proudly supports and champions the work of the Anti-Bullying Alliance, the National Literacy Trust, and Theatre Works!, the charity providing theatre tickets to disadvantaged children across the UK. 

The Apollo Victoria Theatre, Wilton Road, London, SW1V 1LG

Official UK website: www.WickedTheMusical.co.uk

Education programme: www.WickedActiveLearning.co.uk

‘X’ (Twitter): @WickedUK  |  Facebook: /WickedUK  |  Instagram: @WickedUK