How many hits do you know by Foreigner? Oh yes! ‘I Want to Know What Love is’….and….ummmm, errr….?
Actually you might be very surprised how many you do actually know! In spite of being one of the top selling bands of all time, they are rarely at the forefront of people’s memories when debating the cream of the crop. Here came the quandary that birthed a hopeful solution in the name of ‘Jukebox the Hero – The Musical’. The title based on the passing musings of a certain Diana Ross recently.
The show is based on all 16 of the band’s hits, including its title song Jukebox Hero, and coincides with Foreigner’s 40th Anniversary. It has an idealistic notion of wishing to calcify in people’s minds and hearts exactly how many popular the band were.
With a creative team of UK comedy gold, Dick Clement and Ian La Fanais, writers for a range of genres within film, television and theatre (The Likely Lads, Porridge, Auf Wiedersehn Pet) and Jeff Parry, who has produced and promoted of high end musical productions in London’s West End, Broadway and globally, the low key rumblings about the show till now have already garnered impressive sales. The storyline is based on a ‘coming of age’ plot, including facing familial conflict and ghosts from the past, and is set in Pennsylvania.
Formally launching the musical last night ahead of Foreigner’s London Royal Albert Hall gig, members of the creative team discussed its progress and the anticipation of merging so many talents into the show. With a Canadian cast, the production will be going on tour August onwards beginning in Canada and onto an international tour including UK. It will be interesting to see if the script will coherently meld with the songs enough to pull together an engaging enough of a story, and if it will hold any appeal to the younger age groups – or will they be left as ‘Cold As Ice’?
Names in photograph (L to R) Stewart Young (Manager of Foreigner), Jeff Parry (Promoter), Dick Clement (Writer), Phil Carson (Phil Carson Associates, music management)