Olivier, Tony and Drama Desk awards nominated Lauren Ward and Josie Benson head the cast for the world premiere of
STALLED
a new musical
at the King’s Head Theatre
Book & Lyrics Liesl Wilke
Music & Lyrics Andy Marsh
with additional music and lyrics by Kyle Puccia
Director Vikki Stone
King’s Head Theatre
116 Upper Street, London N1 1QN
Thursday 13 February – Sunday 23 March, 2025
West End and Broadway star Lauren Ward (Stranger Things: The First Shadow, Dear Evan Hansen) and Josie Benson (Kiss Me Kate, Mamma Mia!) are to head the cast in the world premiere of STALLED, a new musical about mothers, daughters and moving on, at the King’s Head Theatre.
In a bougie-ass Seattle ladies room, lost-but-searching Maggie and a frazzled mother, a neurodivergent daughter, a nonbinary poet and a queer computer scientist are among the characters whose paths cross and who navigate the ups and downs of modern life. With soul-stirring melodies and a rare authenticity, their inspiring stories make for an unforgettable celebration of these complicated, beautiful souls.
STALLED, Book & Lyrics by Liesl Wilke and Music & Lyrics by Andy Marsh and with additional music and lyrics by Kyle Puccia, directed by Vikki Stone, will play a 6-week season from Thursday 13 February – Sunday 23 March, 2025.
Producer Thomas Hopkins said: “I am delighted to be producing the world premiere of Liesl and Andy’s new musical at the new Kings Head Theatre. And it is an honour to collaborate with Liesl (as co-producer) in bringing this vibrant and poignant work to life on stage. This musical gives a powerful platform for voices that deserve to be celebrated. And in the spirit of inclusivity and community, I am thrilled to introduce PAY WHAT YOU CAN TUESDAYS, made possible by the generous support of a dedicated foundation. This initiative ensures that everyone has the opportunity to experience this new musical, no matter what their financial situation.”
Lauren Ward is an Olivier Award, Tony Award and Drama Desk Award nominated actress and singer. Her West End roles include Virginia Creel in Stranger Things: The First Shadow, Cynthia in Dear Evan Hansen (Olivier nomination), Miss Flemming/Veronica’s Mum in Heathers, Miss Honey in Matilda the Musical (Olivier nomination), Baroness Elsa Schraeder in The Sound of Music and Liz in The Philadelphia Story. Her Broadway credits include Matilda the Musical (Tony nomination), Follies, 1776, The Heiress, Carousel, Violet (Drama Desk nomination, Theatre World Award).
Josie Benson recently played Hattie in Kiss Me Kate at the Barbican. Her West End roles include Tanya in Mamma Mia!, Miss Sherman in Fame The Musical, Madam Giry in The Phantom of the Opera. She was Carmen in Carmen Jones and Camila Rosario in the UK premiere of In the Heights.
Cezarah Bonner was recently seen as Lady Thiang in The King and I (West End, UK tour and international tour). Her other roles include Kim in Miss Saigon (West End & Australian premiere) and Annette in Saturday Night Fever.
Regina Co was in Not A Birthday Goes By: A Sondheim Celebration (Upstairs at the Gatehouse) and Sondheim in Red (Phoenix Arts Club).
Emma Espada is making her professional debut.
Isabella Gervais will be next be seen in The Jingleclaw (Birmingham Hippodrome). Other roles include Fame The Musical (Athens, Greece), God Catcher (Edinburgh Fringe).
Joanna Kirkland was in Dear Evan Hansen and A Chorus of Disapproval (West End), Committee and Parade (Donmar Warehouse), The Witches of Eastwick (UK tour).
Evita Khrime was Mimi in Rent (UK tour).
Rebecca-Jo Roberts is making her professional debut.
Carrie Sutton’s West End credits include Snow White, Dick Whittington, Cinderella, The Wizard of Oz, Sister Act and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (all at the London Palladium).
Grace Venus was Cinderella in the Everyman Rock ’N’ Roll Panto (Liverpool Everyman); Aurora in Sleeping Beauty (Storyhouse). Her TV credits include John Carpenter’s Suburban Screams.
Director Vikki Stone
Musical Director Livi van Warmelo
Set & Costume Designer Emily Bestow
Lighting Designer Ciarán Cunningham
Sound Designer Dan Samson
Production Manager Caroline Croft
Casting Director Rob Kelly
Producer & General Management Thomas Hopkins Productions
Marketing Tessa Daniels for Make a Noise
Social Media JWoo
Liesl Wilke – Book & Lyrics
Liesl is a New Jersey-born and southern-raised author of novels, short stories, screenplays, and stage plays. She holds a sociology degree from Princeton University and a law degree from the University of North Carolina. Since leaving the practice of law, she’s found joy and meaning in the use of story to uplift and connect with other humans, particularly marginalised groups and those with sweet, sensitive souls she recognises as family. Her work includes the award-winning novels Circle of Three (Writer’s Digest) and Unfurling Lily (PNWA). She has also received recognition for her short stories “Ordinary Commerce,” “Of Crab Traps and Fisherwomen,” and “Stalled Symphony,” which won the 2011 Raymond Carver Short Story Contest and inspired a television series and a musical set in a mall bathroom. Her stories have appeared in publications like G.W. Review, Short Story, and Narrative Magazine. Liesl is actively developing several television series and films, including Normal, a semi-autobiographical coming-of-age story about growing up in 1980s Charlotte, the social dynamics of busing, and the challenges of growing up with parents experimenting with open marriage. Her short film Lines won several awards, and she recently produced several film projects including The Rebel Girls (about survivors of a civil rights atrocity) and One For The Team (a pilot about a trans male lacrosse player). Liesl also invests in and produces theatre (Rose, Drag! The Musical, Your Lie In April the Musical, Just in Time) and develops new work (Missing Peace (NAMT), Distant Thunder).
Andy Marsh – Music & Lyrics
Los Angeles-based composer and songwriter Andy Marsh, formerly a composer at Hans Zimmer’s Bleeding Fingers Music, has a diverse portfolio. He has independently scored films such as This is Our Home and Gabe and created music for documentaries including Sundance’s Voice Through the Storm and Tribeca’s Conducting a Revolution, which explored the barriers broken by a female conductor in the world of opera. During his tenure at Bleeding Fingers, Andy contributed to high-profile projects like BBC’s Around the World in 80 Days, Netflix’s Island of the Sea Wolves, MasterChef, and Alaskan Bush People. His recent work in theatre includes composing for TH IR DS, written by Ben Edlin and Deborah Aquila, and directed by Jessica Aquila, which premiered in Los Angeles. In addition to his work in film, TV, and theatre, Andy’s commercial projects and song placements have amassed nearly 60 million streams worldwide. Throughout his career, Andy has used his musical talents as a means to explore and communicate diverse themes, from disabilities to gender barriers in the arts, working with a wide array of people and topics. With a proven track record and a dynamic approach to music composition, Andy continues to bring impactful and memorable music to new projects.
Kyle Puccia – Additional Music & Lyrics
Kyle began his career in musical theatre as a performer and transitioned into composing songs and writing musicals for the stage. The full-length musical Missing Peace, which he co-wrote with Kalani Queypo, is in development with Goodspeed and previewed at the NAMT festival in 2020. He is a gifted composer both for stage and commercial co-writes garnering over 150 million streams on Spotify. His songs have charted on Billboard’s Top 40 Hot Dance Club and garnered synchs on such TV shows and films as Pretty Little Liars, Love Island, The Titans, and more.
Vikki Stone – Director
Vikki Stone is a multi award-winning director, writer, composer, comedian, and musician, who has a rather unique set of skills in writing, classical music, musical theatre, as well as over ten years on the road as a stand-up comedian. She is the co-adapter, writer and music supervisor for the Olivier Award winning Hey Duggee Live, #zoologicalsociety for Royal & Derngate, Cinderella & Aladdin for The Lyric Hammersmith, Alice In Wonderland (music and lyrics) for the Liverpool Everyman Playhouse, Peter Pan (music and lyrics) for Rose Theatre Kingston, Dick Whittington for the New Wolsey Theatre.
Thomas Hopkins Productions – Producer & General Manger
Thomas Hopkins Productions was founded in 2019 by award winning theatre, film, TV and radio producer Thomas Hopkins. THP has to-date worked on many live theatrical productions and multiple productions created and filmed specifically for platforms such as Sky, BBC, Amazon Prime, BroadwayHD, Broadway On Demand and educational platform Digital Theatre Plus. Productions include: Sharon Osbourne – “Cut The Crap’’ (Fortune Theatre /Alexandra Theatre/202 European Tour); Song from Far Away (Home/Hampstead Theatre); Rose (Ambassadors Theatre/Hope Mill/ Park Theatre/Sky Arts/BroadwayHD – OnComm award-winning); Passion (Hope Mill); The Night Larry Kramer Kissed Me (New Wimbledon OnComm award- winning); Godspell (BroadwayHD). Thomas is passionate about the creation of new theatrical experiences and productions and is developing a new version of Boy George’s autobiography musical Taboo, a West End production of Harrison David Rivers’ play This Bitter Earth to be directed by Grammy Award, Emmy and two time Tony winning actor, singer, director, composer, and playwright Billy Porter and a new family musical by Olivier award winning composer Vikki Stone based on the Iconic BAFTA winning BBC TV show Maid Marian and Her Merry Men by Sir Tony Robinson
King’s Head Theatre
King’s Head Theatre is a purpose-built, wheelchair accessible theatre with a 255-seat flexible auditorium and 50-seat cabaret space off Upper St, Islington which showcases a wide range of performance styles from plays to musicals, to opera & cabaret, to drag & comedy. Established in 1970, King’s Head Theatre was the oldest pub theatre in the UK until it closed its doors in August 2023. For 53 years the theatre was housed in the back room of the King’s Head Pub on Upper Street in an old boxing ring and pool hall, before opening the new space in Islington Square right behind the pub theatre in January 2024. Under Artistic Director & Founder Dan Crawford, whose tenure lasted 35 years until his death in 2005, the theatre became known as a breeding ground for new talent and great work. Renowned actors like Maureen Lipman, Hugh Grant, Jennifer Saunders, Dawn French, Alan Rickman & Richard E Grant all performed at the theatre, and a number of productions transferred to the West End and Broadway, premiering work from writers such as Steven Berkoff, Tom Stoppard, Bryony Lavery and Victoria Wood. In 2010, the Olivier Award-winning company Opera UpClose Productions became the theatre’s resident company for four years, and with Adam Spreadbury-Maher as Artistic Director, turned the King’s Head into “London’s Little Opera House”, winning an Olivier Award for La Boheme in the Best New Opera category. Opera remains a key part of the theatre’s focus, alongside a commitment to emerging, daring and innovative work, such as Trainspotting, the Edinburgh Fringe and touring immersive hit developed by King’s Head Theatre. The theatre regularly showcases LGBTQ+ work which explores the full spectrum of experiences symbolised by the rainbow flag. It is a home for a new wave of theatre makers, with a focus on work which is joyful, irreverent, colourful & queer.
LISTINGS INFO
LISTINGS INFO
Thomas Hopkins Productions for
Stalled on Stage Ltd
presents the world premiere of
STALLED
a new musical
Book writer & Co-Lyricist Liesl Wilke
Composer & Lyricist Andy Marsh
with additional music and lyrics by
Kyle Puccia
Director Vikki Stone
King’s Head Theatre
116 Upper St,
London N1 1QN
www.kingsheadtheatre.com
Phone Number: 0207 226 8561
Thursday 13 February –
Sunday 23 March, 2025
Previews 13 Feb 7pm, 14 Feb 7pm,
15 Feb 2pm,
Weekly schedule from 18 February
Mon-Thur 7pm, Sat & Sun 2pm & 5pm
Pay what you can Tuesdays:
minimum £1.00
Tickets from £10.00
Running time 90mins (no interval)
Social media
X handle: x.com/stalledmusical
Instagram: www.instagram.com/stalledmusical/
Facebook: www.facebook.com/stalledmusical
TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@stalledmusical
Show website
www.Stalledthemusical.com