Elaine Paige has taken to social media again to congratulate The Showstoppers’ team on their response to her challenge to compose a musical theatre song in just 24 hours.
The musical theatre legend who asked the improvisation specialists to create a song about home-isolation in the style of her favourite musical, West Side Story has tweeted her delight at the result.
“Amazing! Absolutely brilliant! Congratulations @The Showstoppers you took my 24hr challenge & succeeded 200%. A bit of ‘America’, ‘Tonight’ & ‘Officer Krupke!’ My favourite West Side Story re-imagined for the #COVID19 crisis. #StayAtHome #StayHomeSaveLives Thank you & well done!”
The finished song ‘Don’t Go Out’ was recorded by Ruth Bratt, Pippa Evans, Adam Meggido and Andrew Pugsley, with keys and track programming by Duncan Walsh Atkins, reeds by Chris Ash and video editing by Andrew Pugsley – all made their contributions from their homes.
Commenting on behalf of The Showstoppers, artistic director Adam Meggido said: “Elaine Paige, as the First Lady of the West End, was a natural choice to launch The 24-Hour Challenge and we are thrilled that she is thrilled with our song, written and performed in the style of West Side Story. Keep your eyes peeled for further 24-hour song challenges in the coming weeks from the biggest stars in musical theatre.
“Which musical theatre star will be next to challenge The Showstoppers to come up with a bespoke song in 24 hours? Sadly, we cannot take unsolicited approaches from the public – but watch this space!”
Created by Meggido and Dylan Emery, the Showstopper formula involves taking individual suggestions from each night’s audience and turning them into a brand new fully choreographed and scored musical.
Featuring a rotating company, the improvised musical theatre show was founded in London in 2008 and has proved to be a hit with audiences around the world. An Edinburgh Fringe favourite for 12 years, The Showstoppers have featured in their own BBC Radio 4 series and played to packed houses in the West End.
Angela Thomas
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