Who doesn’t love an opening night gala? We’ve also got two seasons to announce, a Company cast recording (yay!), and a brand new Jamie. Check it out!
Take That will perform at The Band‘s opening night gala performance. Following its UK tour, new musical The Band opens 4 December at the Theatre Royal Haymarket. But this won’t be just any opening night: the production will host a special gala performance for the Elton John AIDS Foundation. Take That, whose biggest hits are featured in the musical, will perform as part of the gala.
Starting 28 January 2019, Layton Williams will play the title role in Everybody’s Talking About Jamie. Williams will take over from John McCrea, the current Jamie. Williams’ past theatre credits include the title role in Billy Elliot, Seaweed Stubbs in the UK tour of Hairspray and Angel in the 20th anniversary production and UK tour of Rent. He’s also known for his role on the BBC Three sitcom Bad Education.
Marianne Elliott’s Company revival will get a cast recording. The acclaimed production, which just opened last week, is set to record a cast album in November. No official release date yet, but we’ll keep you posted.
Lambert Jackson announces a concert featuring the women of the West End. West End Women – A Celebration of Women in Musicals will feature Rachel John (Hamilton), Lauren Samuels (Romantics Anonymous, Bend It Like Beckham) and Celinde Schoenmaker (The Phantom of the Opera, Les Misérables) in some of the most famous musical theatre hits of all time. The concert takes place at Cadogan Hall on 2 February 2019.
A Hundred Words for Snow, Tatty Hennessy’s play about a girl taking her father’s ashes to the North Pole, will return to London next year. Directed by Lucy Atkinson, this “coming of age story with polar bears” comes to Trafalgar Studios from 5 March 2019.
The Royal Court announces its 2019 season. The line-up includes the end of history…: a play by Harry Potter and the Cursed Child duo Jack Thorne and John Tiffany. There will also be an immersive escape room experience: Dismantle this Room, which considers power structures within theatre. Plus, a musical about Brexit, a piece that deals with the misrepresentation of women in prison and a play that channels Kylie Jenner.
Southwark’s Playhouse announces its 2019 season. As previously announced, Aspects of Love and The Rubenstein Kiss will play in 2019. All in a Row, a collaboration by Alex Oates and Dominic Shaw (Silk Road) looks at the challenges of raising an autistic child. A new production of Twelfth Night set at a music festival opens in January, followed by James Saunders’ comedy Bodies–revived for the first time in 40 years. Opening in May is a musical adaptation of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Curious Case of Benjamin Button by Jethro Compton and Darren Clark.
New production photos are out for Matilda. New cast members joined the company of Matilda in September. Judging from the newly released production photos, Hayden Tee, Rob Compton and Holly Dale Spencer appear to be settling in all right!
Shakespeare’s Globe announces full casting for Paulette Randall’s Doctor Faustus. Opening in the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse 1 December, this new production of Marlowe’s classic play will feature Sarah Amankwah (Amadeus, The Threepenny Opera, The Lion King), Lily Bevan, Jocelyn Jee Esien (Little Miss Jocelyn), John Leader (A Monster Calls, Peter Pan), Louis Maskell, Pauline McLynn (Father Ted, Transformers, EastEnders), Lucie Sword, Mandi Symonds and Jay Villiers.
