This week, the much-anticipated Prince of Egypt musical makes its first casting announcement, and Paul McCartney is writing a musical! Find all that and more in our weekly round-up of the latest from London theatre.
A musical adaptation of It’s A Wonderful Life may be in the works…from Paul McCartney. Wait…what? You read that right. McCartney is currently partnering with Bill Kenwright to adapt Frank Capra’s classic 1946 film into a musical. Tony Award-winning writer Lee Hall is working on the book. It’s A Wonderful Life is eyeing a London opening in late 2020, but that’s all the information we have at this point.
The Prince of Egypt announces initial casting (pictured above). Luke Brady (Sweeney Todd, St. George and the Dragon) will play Moses. Liam Tamne (The Light in the Piazza) will play Ramses. Christine Allado (Hamilton) will play Tzipporah. Alexia Khadime (Wicked) will play Miriam. Directed by Scott Schwartz, The Prince of Egypt runs at the Dominion Theatre from 5 February 2020.
Toby Stephens and Claire Skinner will star in A Day in the Death of Joe Egg at Trafalgar Studios. This revival of Peter Nichol’s comedy will be its first staging in more than 15 years. Directed by Simon Evans, A Day in the Death of Joe Egg runs from 20 September.
Colin Salmon (James Bond, Master of None, Krypton) will star in The Time Of Our Lies for one night only on 2 August. For the remainder of the run, Daniel Benzali will play the lead role. Other cast members include Trang Le and Jessye Romeo. Directed by Ché Walker, The Time of Our Lies runs at the Park Theatre from 1 August.
Back to the Future announces further casting. Hugh Coles will play George McFly, with Rosanna Hyland (School of Rock) as Lorraine Baines and Cedric Neal (Motown the Musical) as Mayor Goldie Wilson. They join the previously announced Olly Dobson as Marty McFly. Back to the Future opens at the Manchester Opera House in February 2020 before transferring to the West End. Further details have yet to be announced.
Ghost Stories returns to the West End this October. A new production of the cult-classic horror show by Andy Nyman and Jeremy Dyson will play a 12-week run at the Ambassadors Theatre, starting 17 October, before embarking on a national tour. Tickets are on sale now.
The West End transfer of Touching the Void announces casting. Directed by Tom Morris, the production will star original cast members Fiona Hampton, Patrick McNamee and Josh Williams, joined by newcomer Angus Yellowlees. Touching the Void runs at the Duke of York’s Theatre from 9 November.
The immersive adaptation of The Wolf of Wall Street announces venue and casting. Based on the memoirs of stockbroker Jordan Belfort, the production will take place at 5-15 Sun Street, in a four-story building that will be renovated to recreate Belfort’s 1990s New York. The 16-person cast includes Oliver Tilney as Belfort, with Rhiannon Harper-Rafferty as his wife and James Bryant as his business partner Danny. The Wolf of Wall Street runs from 5 September.
Paterson Joseph will star in the Old Vic’s A Christmas Carol. Paterson, who has appeared in several National Theatre and RSC productions, will play Ebenezer Scrooge in Jack Thorne’s adaptation of the Dickens classic. The production runs at the Old Vic from 23 November, with further casting to come.
Lorna Brown, Raghad Charr and Yoi Fuller join the cast of Two Ladies at the Bridge Theatre. They join Zoe Wanamaker and Zrinka Cvitešić in this world premiere of Nancy Harris’ play, directed by Nicholas Hytner. Two Ladies runs from 14 September to 26 October.
The Man in the White Suit announces full casting. Joining Stephen Mangan will be Kara Tointon, Sue Johnston, Richard Cordery, Richard Durden, Delroy Atkinson, Katie Bernstein, Ben Deery, Matthew Durkan, Rina Fatania, Oliver Kaderbhai, Eugene McCoy, Elliott Rennie and Katherine Toy. The Man in the White Suit opens at Wyndham’s Theatre 27 September.
The world premiere of Anupama Chandrasekhar’s When the Crows Visit announces full casting. Running at the Kiln Theatre from 23 October, the play will star Ayesha Dharker, Bally Gill, Mariam Haque, Asif Khan, Aryana Ramkhalawon, Paul G. Raymond and Soni Razdan.
The Elixir of Love comes to the King’s Head Theatre. This new production of the classic opera, set in an Italian immigrant community in 1982 Wales, runs from 25 September to 26 October.
Disney’s musicals The Lion King, Aladdin, Frozen and Mary Poppins will take part in a Disney in the West End Summer Pop-Up. The event will take place in Covent Garden from 23 July to 1 September, and will feature plenty of free events and activities.
