Happy Friday! Here’s your weekly round-up of all the latest news in the world of London Theatre. Now go out and see a show!
Jenna Russell will star in The Bridges of Madison County at the Menier Chocolate Factory. Russell previously appeared on stage in Merrily We Roll Along, Sunday in the Park with George and Fun Home. On the screen, she’s appeared in EastEnders and Call the Midwife, among other things. The UK premiere of Jason Robert Brown’s Tony Award winning musical, directed by Trevor Nunn, will run from 13 July to 14 September.
Back to the Future: The Musical will premiere in the West End in 2020. Based on the 1985 movie, the show will feature Olly Dobson (Bat Out of Hell, Matilda) as Marty McFly. Dates, venue, and further casting will be announced later.
Tootsie announces a West End transfer. The show, currently nominated for 11 Tony Awards on Broadway, will come to London in 2021. Based on the film starring Dustin Hoffman, Tootsie tells the story of a down-and-out actor who dresses up as a woman in order to land a part.
Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat announces full casting. Joining Jason Donovan, Sheridan Smith and Jac Yarrow will be Richard Carson (Reuben), Michael Pickering (Simeon), Jack Wilcox, James Ballantyne, Joshua Steel, Femi Akinfolarin, Carl Spencer, Vanessa Fisher, Casey Al-Shaqsy, Emily Ann Potter, Thalia Burt, Harriet Samuel Gray, Kelsie-Rae Marshall, Georgina Parkinson, Michael Cortez, Matt Krzan, Hannah Taylor, Ahmed Hamad, Matthew Rowland, Blythe Jandoo and Lydia Bannister. Joseph is at the London Palladium from 27 June to 8 September.
Come From Away extends its London run. The Tony and Olivier Award winning musical is now booking to 15 February 2020 at the Phoenix Theatre.
The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole will feature Rosemary Ashe, Ian Talbot and John Hopkins. Other cast members will include Lara Denning, Andrew Langtree, Amy Ellen Richardson, Holly Ashton and Matthew Craig, with details on the child cast members to come. We also hear the musical will be appearing at this year’s West End Live!
Tyrone Huntley will star in The View UpStairs at the Soho Theatre. Huntley previously acted in Jesus Christ Superstar at Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre (for which he received an Olivier Award nomination), Memphis and The Book of Mormon. The View UpStairs runs from 18 July to 24 August.
Matthew Kelly joins the cast of Carousel at Cadogan Hall. Kelly, an Olivier Award winner, will play the Star Keeper. He joins Joanna Riding, Janie Dee, Hadley Fraser, Chizzy Akudolu, Stewart Clarke, Lucy Schaufer and Gavin Spokes for this one night concert on 19 May.
A revival of How Love Is Spelt heads to Southwark Playhouse. Written by Chloë Moss (Dickensian, This Wide Night), How Love Is Spelt originally played at the Bush Theatre in 2004. Charlotte Peters will direct, with casting to be announced later. The production runs 4 to 28 September.
Meaghan Martin will make her professional stage debut in The Actor’s Nightmare at the Park Theatre. Written by Christopher Durang, the play follows an accountant who, after being mistaken for an actor’s understudy, is forced to perform in a play. Best known for her roles in Camp Rock and 10 Things I Hate About You, Martin will be joined by Layo-Christina Akinlude, Stefan Menail, Adrian Richards and Kate Sumpter. The Actor’s Nightmare runs from 8 July to 10 August.
Anna Ziegler’s Actually will star Yasmin Paige and Simon Manyonda. A play that follows a man and a woman who hook up at a party and then spend the night together, Actually explores topics of sexual consent, gender politics, and the need for absolute truth in a society slammed with fake news and victim shaming. Making its European premiere, the play runs at Trafalgar Studios from 6 to 31 August.
Touching the Void will transfer to the Duke of York’s Theatre in 2020. Directed by Tom Morris (War Horse, The Grinning Man), Touching the Void previously played a sold-out world premiere at the Bristol Old Vic in 2018. Thrilling and darkly funny, the play charts two mountain climbers’ struggle for survival on the Siula Grande mountain in the Peruvian Andes. Casting will be announced later.
Europe at the Donmar Warehouse announces casting. Directed by Michael Longhurst, David Greig’s play will star Teo Barklem-Biggs, Ron Cooke, Billy Howle, Kevrok Malikyan, Faye Marsay, Natalia Tena, Stephen Wright and Shane Zaza. Europe runs from 20 June to 10 August at the Donmar Warehouse.
Juliet Stevenson and Ria Zmitrowicz will star in The Doctor at the Almeida Theatre. Adapted from the play by Arthur Schnitzler and directed by Robert Icke, The Doctor runs from 12 August to 28 September.
Open Air Theatre’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream announces full casting. Directed by Dominic Hill, the Shakespearean comedy will star Amber James as Hippolyta/Titania and Kieran Hill as Theseus/Oberon, with Susan Wokoma as Bottom and Myra McFayden as Puck. The young lovers will be played by Remy Deasley (Helena), Gabrielle Brooke (Hermia), Michael Elcock (Lysander) and Pierro Niel-Mee (Demetrius). A Midsummer Night’s Dream runs at Regent Park’s Open Air Theatre 28 June to 27 July.
Heathers the Musical will release its Original West End Cast Recording 31 May. Ghostlight Records has announced that the album, currently available only for digital download and streaming, will be available online and in stores on Friday, 31 May.
After Dark; or, a Drama of London Life comes to the Finborough Theatre. Written in 1868, the play is a rip-roaring Victorian melodrama. Directed by Phil Willmott, After Dark runs for four weeks from 12 June.
Waitress will hold its next Cast Album Karaoke Night 26 June. For this karaoke night, the musical will partner with Gay Times in celebration of Pride Month.
Who’s excited for this year’s West End LIVE? While we’re still waiting on performance schedules, we now know who will be performing. Come From Away, Only Fools and Horses, Waitress, 9 to 5, Fiddler on the Roof and Magic Mike will all be giving their first West End LIVE performances. But you can also count on mainstays like Les Misérables, The Phantom of the Opera and The Lion King. Plus, we’ll get to see previews of On Your Feet!, & Juliet, Heartbeat of Home and Jesus Christ Superstar. Everybody’s Talking About Jamie, Six, Tina and more will also be there. Straight from West End LIVE’s website, here’s the official list of performers:
