Cast for The Car Man’s Royal Albert Hall season

Will Bozier and Richard Winsor will share the title role when Matthew Bourne’s multi-award-winning dance thriller The Car Man returns for 14 performances only as part of the Royal Albert Hall’s 150th anniversary celebrations this summer.

Presented by New Adventures and the Royal Albert Hall, the acclaimed work inspired by Bizet’s Carmen has been re-imagined for the iconic venue, utilising the full expanse of the Royal Albert Hall and featuring a cast of 33 dancers, a 25-piece live orchestra and a spectacular new design by Olivier and Tony Award winner Lez Brotherston.

Previously seen as ‘The Swan/Stranger’ in Bourne’s ground-breaking Swan Lake in 2018/2020 before featuring in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Cinderella, Bozier will play Luca for the first time in the production which will run from 9-19 June. Another former Swan Lake star, Winsor, who will also take on the role of Luca for the first time, made his New Adventures debut in The Car Man in 2021. Winsor was most recently seen as Tony Manero in Saturday Night Fever.

The role of Lana will be danced by Ashley Shaw and Zizi Strallen. A principal performer with New Adventures since 2009, Shaw has played most of the leading roles in the repertory. She won a National Dance Award for her acclaimed portrayal as Victoria Page in New Adventures’ The Red Shoes in 2018. Currently starring in Mary Poppins at the Prince Edward Theatre, Strallen will return to the role which earned her a National Dance Award in 2016.

Paris Fitzpatrick (The Midnight Bell and Romeo and Juliet) will make his debut as Angelo, sharing the role with Dominic North (Nutcracker!). One of New Adventures’ most popular dancers for nearly 20 years, North will return to the role he also plays in the most recent film production of The Car Man.

Kayla Collymore (Swan Lake, Nutcracker!) will be making her principal debut in the role of Rita with Kate Lyons (Cinderella, The Midnight Bell) returning to the role of Rita after playing the character to great acclaim in the recent film version.

The original Luca when The Car Man premiered in 2000, Alan Vincent (Play Without Words, Swan Lake, Nutcracker!) will take on the role of Dino, Lana’s violent husband in the new production.

Joining them are: Jonathon Luke Baker (Franco); Benjamin Barlow Bazeley (Fabio); Alistair Beattie (Marcello); Stephanie Billers (Delores); Isaac Peter Bowry (Elio); Cordelia Braithwaite (Mercedes); Ben Brown (Ricardo); Reece Causton (Dirk); Jade Copas (Natalie); Harrison Dowzell (Rocco); Cameron Flynn (Roberto); Rose Goddard (Sophia); Glenn Graham (Bruno); Bryony Harrison (Frankie); Shoko Ito (Elisabetta); Monique Jonas (Bianca); Nicole Kabera (Gina); Kurumi Kamayachi (Silvana); Katrina Lyndon (Monica); Rory Macleod (Marco); Andrew Monaghan (Vito); Stephen Murray (Chad); Harry Ondrak-Wright (Lorenzo); Edwin Ray (Alberto); Danny Reubens (Hot Rod); Sam Salter (Raf); Gabrielle de Souza (Giulietta); Catrin Thomas (Claudia); Christopher Thomas (Ugo); and Bryony Wood (Elsa).

Full daily principal casting will be posted on 10 May.

Directed and choreographed by Bourne, The Car Man features new arrangements of Bizet’s score by New Adventures associate artist Terry Davies and Rodion Shchedrin’s ‘Carmen Suite’ (after Bizet’s Carmen). Lighting is by Chris Davey with sound by Paul Groothius.

First seen in 2000, The Car Man swaps Bizet’s familiar 19th century Spanish cigarette factory setting for a greasy garage/diner in 1960s America. The first production won the Evening Standard Award for Musical Event of the Year and the Los Angeles Drama Critics Award for Best Choreography.

Angela Thomas