Drag superstar Velma Celli is heading back to Edinburgh Fringe with hit cabaret show Iconic – A Brief History of Drag. The alter-ego of musical theatre star Ian Stroughair (Rent, Chicago), will take to the stage at the Assembly Checkpoint in Edinburgh from 1-26 August 2018. Arriving in Edinburgh, following sell-out performances in Australia and […]
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Janie Dee, Danielle Hope, Ria Jones and Claire Sweeney star in new Edinburgh show Don’t Tell Me Not to Fly
Four of the West End’s most popular leading ladies will take to the stage in a series of special shows at the newly refurbished McEwan Hall at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. Presented by Underbelly Productions from 4-27 August 2018, Don’t Tell Me Not to Fly will feature Janie Dee (Follies, Hello Dolly!), Danielle Hope (The […]
Wendi Peters to join Salad Days autumn tour
Former Coronation Street favourite Wendi Peters will star in a major new touring production of classic British musical Salad Days this autumn. Presented by Regan de Wynter productions, director Bryan Hodgson’s re-imagining of the show which debuted in Bristol in 1954 will begin its UK tour to the Theatre Royal, Brighton from 5 to 8 […]
Bat Out of Hell extends booking into 2019
The Dominion Theatre run of the award-winning Bat Out Of Hell has been extended into next year with the announcement of a new booking period running from 27 October 2018 until 5 January 2019. Led by the production’s original Strat and Raven, American actor Andrew Polec and Christina Bennington, the cast of the show which was […]
CD Review – Redhead – Studio cast and original Mexican cast
REDHEAD – Studio Cast and Original Mexican Cast (Stage Door Records – STAGE 2450) Star rating: five stars ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ I have always been a keen follower of musicals as far back as I can remember. In the 60s, when I was in my teens, I didn’t have a lot of money […]
CD Review – Em – Original Cast Album
EM – Original Cast album (Hind Style Records – HSR005 and downloads available from usual sites) Star rating: five stars ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ Em is the latest musical from the pen of BAFTA-nominated composer Benjamin Till, whose previous works includes: Brass; Our Gay Wedding: The Musical and Beyond the Fence. The story is very close […]
Richard Winsor to lead Saturday Night Fever tour
Former Matthew Bourne principle dancer Richard Winsor will take on the iconic role of Tony Manero in Bill Kenwright’s new touring production of Saturday Night Fever which is due to launch in late August 2018 at the New Wimbledon Theatre. Winsor who starred in some of Bourne’s most celebrated productions including the choreographer’s ground-breaking Swan […]
Broadway season preview: Kong, Cher, a Prom and a Pretty Woman
Though in absentia, two gigantic personalities tower over the upcoming fall Broadway musical season: King Kong and Cher, writes Ron Cohen. After much huffing and puffing, King Kong, the musical featuring a 20-foot tall puppet as the mighty Kong, will finally make it to the Great White Way with previews starting 5 October 2018 for […]
West End stars for Eugenius! Other Palace return
Rob Houchen will take the leading role in the Warwick Davis and Kevin Wood produced British musical Eugenius! when it returns to The Other Palace in September 2018 for a six-week season. Houchen (Titanic, Broken Wings), who will play central character Eugene, is one of a number of West End favourites lined up to play key […]
From Page To Stage 2018 line-up revealed
Aria Entertainment has revealed the seven new musicals chosen for this year’s From Page To Stage festival which will play the Southwark Playhouse in September 2018. Returning for its sixth year and running from 10 until 25 September, the musical theatre event created by leading independent theatre company Aria, will feature staged readings and showcase […]
Me and My Girl – Chichester Festival Theatre
Me and My Girl continues at the Chichester Festival Theatre until 25 August 2018. Star rating: five stars ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ When I reviewed this show on press night, the leading role of Bill Snibson was taken on by understudy Ryan Pidgin due to the indisposition of Matt Lucas. The actor, having seen a throat specialist, […]
Mr Stink – Chickenshed Theatre
Mr Stink continues at the Chickenshed Theatre, London until 4 August 2018. Star rating: four stars ★ ★ ★ ★ ✩ This show is the sort of cheery, uplifting stuff which sends you home with a spring in your step and a smile on your face. It’s inclusive. It’s diverse. And it’s fun. David Walliams’ whimsical story about […]
Perfectly Ordinary: A New Musical – G Live, Guildford
Perfectly Ordinary: A New Musical at the Bellerby Studio at G Live, Guildford. Star rating: four stars ★ ★ ★ ★ ✩ Mental health is a topic that affects us all in different ways – whether as patients, family members, friends, carers, or medical professionals. Yet despite its increasing prevalence and prominence in recent years, sadly it […]
Madagascar The Musical – New Wimbledon Theatre and Touring
Madagascar The Musical at the New Wimbledon Theatre, London then on tour until 1 June 2019. Star rating: four stars ★ ★ ★ ★ ✩ This is a four-star musical only because the two grandchildren I brought along thought it was “pretty awesome”. It is colourful and always lively but not grown-up entertainment. For any adult minus kids […]
Spamilton – Menier Chocolate Factory
Spamilton continues at the Menier Chocolate Factory until 8 September 2018. Star rating: four stars ★ ★ ★ ★ ✩ Spamilton– not to be confused with the other hip-hop parody musical Shamilton – is Forbidden Broadway creator Gerard Alessandrini’s inevitable parody of Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Herculean hit Hamilton. And just like its target, the show is packed full to bursting with […]
Alexandra Burke to play Roxie Hart in the West End’s Chicago
Alexandra Burke will take over from Sarah Soetaert in the role of Roxie Hart in the hit revival of Chicago at London’s Phoenix Theatre from Monday 16 August 2018 until Saturday 14 October. The former X Factor winner and recording artist whose musical theatre career includes starring roles in The Bodyguard (West End and UK […]
Taking the rap: Jason Denton is having all kinds of fun in Hamilton spoof Spamilton at the Menier Chocolate Factory
From the brains behind Forbidden Broadway comes Spamilton: An American Parody, playing at London’s Menier Chocolate Factory until 8 September 2018. The show follows Lin-Manuel Miranda’s quest to write the perfect musical while also lovingly spoofing a range of other musical theatre shows and personalities. Even Miranda is a fan of this show saying: “I […]
Ramin Karimloo to join Seth Rudestky for three special concert performances
Award-winning Iranian-Canadian actor and singer Ramin Karimloo is heading back to London for three special concert performances as part of Seth Rudetsky’s popular Broadway @ Leicester Square Theatre series in October. The international star who originated the lead role in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s sequel to The Phantom of the Opera, Love Never Dies, and made […]
Aladdin and The Lion King join forces for Disney summer event
Disney musical fans will get the chance to get closer than ever before to their favourite shows when a summer ‘Pop-Up’ opens in the heart of London’s Covent Garden later this month. Located at 25 Long Acre, the Aladdin and The Lion King Summer Experience will open every day from Tuesday 31 July until Sunday […]
Thriller Live to celebrate 4,000th West End performance with special charity show
The record-breaking Thriller Live will celebrate its 4,000th West End performance with a special gala show launching a new partnership with The Prince’s Trust in September. The glittering Gala Charity Performance on Wednesday 12 September 2018 will feature a number of high-profile special guest stars who will take to the stage alongside the cast at […]
London’s Playground announces autumn shows
New London venue, The Playground Theatre has unveiled a first full autumn season featuring two world premiere productions and a Christmas revival of Mary Rodgers and Marshall Barer’s musical Once Upon a Mattress. Following a successful first year, the West London theatre will open its autumn Season with the world premiere of The Paradise Circus […]
National Theatre’s Public Acts to launch with musical Pericles
A new musical adaptation of Shakespeare’s Pericles at the National Theatre will be the launch production for Public Acts, a new nationwide initiative aimed at partnering theatre professionals with community performers. Over 200 people of all ages from across London will join professional artists in the production which will play the NT’s largest stage, the […]
West End Bares theme for 2018 is Top Off The Pops
Miss Saigon star Eva Noblezada will open the ninth edition of burlesque-flavoured fundraiser West End Bares when it takes to the stage at the Shaftesbury Theatre this autumn. Fresh from her Tony Award-nominated Broadway debut Noblezada will be singing a new song written for the occasion by the returning Mark Anderson and Luke di Somma […]
Young Vic’s Twelfth Night – full cast revealed
Full casting has been revealed for award-winning director and playwright Kwame Kwei-Armah and Shaina Taub’s acclaimed re-working of Twelfth Night which will be set in London’s Notting Hill for its Young Vic run. Already tipped as one of the highlights of his first season as artistic director of the Young Vic, the show has been […]
Nikita Johal joins Broken Wings West End run a week before the show opens
Nikita Johal will step into the female lead role the West End debut of Broken Wings after the show’s original star Hiba Elchikhe withdrew from the production for personal reasons. Following on from a series of London workshops and the recording of a concept album, a semi-staged production of the musical which was created by […]
Give My Regards to Broadway – Upstairs at the Gatehouse
Give My Regards to Broadway continues at Upstairs at the Gatehouse, London until 5 August 2018. Star rating: three stars ★ ★ ★ ✩ ✩ Give My Regards to Broadwayis an unabashed love letter to the musicals of yesteryear, spanning hits from Cole Porter and Irving Berlin to Richard Rodgers and the Gershwin brothers, and takes its […]
‘As glittering, hilarious, touching & entertaining as its predecessor’: Review – Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again
Pierce Brosnan has said that Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again is the antidote the world needs right now and as the credits start to role and you’re sat there beaming and dancing along to yet another ABBA hit, it’s impossible to disagree. It’s almost ten years to the day that Mamma Mia! hit our screens, but […]
DragProv Revue – The Miller, London and Edinburgh Festival Fringe
DragProv Revue at The Miller, London ahead of its run at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe from 2-13 and 15-26 August at Venue 188 (Sweet Novotel – Novotel 1). Star rating: four stars ★ ★ ★ ★ ✩ DragProv is, as the name might suggest, a comedy improvisation act that features drag artists. Two, to be precise, in the […]
Midnight – A New Musical to premiere at the Union Theatre
New musical thriller Midnight will receive its world premiere at London’s Union Theatre in September, nearly three years after the show made its well-received debut in workshop form. Based on the play Citizens of Hell by leading Azerbaijani writer Elchin, Midnight – A New Musical features a book and lyrics by Timothy Knapman and music […]
Musical version of Around the World in 80 Days to play the Union Theatre
Phileas Fogg and Passepartout will fly high at London’s Union Theatre next month in a revival of Phil Willmott and Annemarie Lewis Thomas’ well-received musical version of Around the World in 80 Days. Produced by the Union’s artistic director Sasha Regan and directed by Brendan Matthew, the new production will run from 8 August until […]
Rebecca McKinnis & Lee Ross take lead roles in West End’s Everybody’s Talking About Jamie
Understudy Rebecca McKinnis has stepped into the role of Margaret New in the hit West End transfer production of the critically acclaimed Everybody’s Talking About Jamie. McKinnis (Mamma Mia! We Will Rock You) has moved into the role she understudied following the departure of Josie Walker who played the pivotal role of Jamie’s loving mother […]
Year three cast for School of Rock London
Craig Gallivan will step into the leading role of Dewey Finn in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Olivier Award-winning School of Rock – The Musical next month. Details of the year three cast for the hit show were released on the same day as a further 350,000 tickets were made available for the show which is now […]
Rent – Frogmore Papermill, Apsley
Rent continues until at the Frogmore Papermill, Apsley until 21 July 2018. Star rating: five stars ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ The superb immersive location of the Frogmore Papermill takes the audience on a journey of love, sorrow and excitement by transporting you to the downtown slums of New York in Jonathan Larson’s 1996 Tony Award-winning musical […]
Crucible’s Christmas Kiss Me Kate – cast announced
Sheffield Theatres’ artistic director Robert Hastie has announced full casting details for Paul Foster’s major revival of Cole Porter’s classic Kiss Me, Kate, which is due to begin previewing at the Crucible from 7 December 2018. Due to run until 12 January 2019, with an opening night on 12 December, the new production of Porter’s […]
Bonnie Langford heads back to the West End in 42nd Street
Bonnie Langford will swap Albert Square for 42nd Street when she steps into the role of Dorothy Brock in the hit re-working of classic backstage musical comedy at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane. The star who has just announced she is quitting her role as Carmel Kazemi as part of her character’s current harrowing storyline, […]
IDA – Stage and Screen Show – The Other Palace
IDA – Stage and Screen Show at The Other Palace, London. Star rating: three stars ★ ★ ★ ✩ ✩ Formed only three years ago, Ida is an all-girl classical crossover group which delivers a diverse programme of popular operatic arias and all-time favourite songs from cinema, pop and musical theatre. Since forming they have become firm […]
Barry Humphries’ Weimar Cabaret – Barbican Theatre
Barry Humphries’ Weimar Cabaret continues at the Barbican Theatre, London until 29 July 2018. Star rating: five stars ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ Tucked away in the labyrinth that is the Barbican Centre is a gem of a production celebrating the period of creativity that flourished briefly in Weimar Republic Berlin between 1919 and 1933. Most […]
Elaine Delmar – The Pheasantry
Elaine Delmar performed at The Pheasantry, London. Star rating: four stars ★ ★ ★ ★ ✩ The appreciative audience at Elaine Delmar’s cabaret show will have their own special memories of this star performer. There was ‘Honeysuckle Rose’from the all-star hit, Bubbling Brown Sugar which ran for nearly two years at the Royalty Theatre in 1979. ‘Remind […]
Amy becomes Jamie as Jonathan Bailey and Alex Gaumond join cast of re-gendered Company
Jonathan Bailey, Alex Gaumond and Daisy Maywood will complete the cast for Marianne Elliott’s eagerly-anticipated gender-swapped version of Stephen Sondheim and George Furth’s Company. Bailey (American Psycho, Almeida, Othello, National Theatre) will play the re-gender-switched role of Jamie (originally Amy) opposite Gaumond (Matilda, We Will Rock You, West End) who will play his devoted fiancée Paul. […]
An Officer and a Gentleman – Milton Keynes Theatre and Touring
An Officer and a Gentleman continues at the Milton Keynes Theatre until 14 July 2018 before continuing touring. Star rating: three stars ★ ★ ★ ✩ ✩ Based on the 1982 original film starring Richard Gere and Debra Winger, An Officer and a Gentlemantouches down in the Milton Keynes Theatre as part of its first national tour. […]
The Rise and Fall of Little Voice – Barn Theatre, Cirencester
The Rise and Fall of Little Voice continues at the Barn Theatre, Cirencester until 4 August 2018. Star rating: four stars ★ ★ ★ ★ ✩ The striking inaugural season at Cirencester’s new £4.5 million Barn Theatre is ending with a gruelling, but at times also tender revival of Jim Cartwright’s 1992 work The Rise and Fall […]
Fringe star Quentin Dentin to release first record
Off West End and Edinburgh Fringe favourite Quentin Dentin will release his debut album on 14 September. The star of the self-titled The Quentin Dentin Show which played the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in 2015 before playing two Off-West End runs in 2016 and 2017 will feature on an album produced by The Kooks’ co-founder, Paul Garred. […]
On a Clear Day You Can See Forever – Irish Repertory Theatre, New York
On a Clear Day You Can See Forever continues at the Irish Repertory Theatre, New York until 12 August 2018. Star rating: four stars ★ ★ ★ ★ ✩ On a Clear Day You Can See Forever is a tough show to reproduce. One big reason: its leading role was created specifically for a one-of-a-kind Broadway […]
‘We feel we have finally found our niche in the industry’: Meet classical crossover group IDA (with a dose of musical theatre too!)
The Other Palace is the venue to go to see all things musical theatre, not just in the main house but also in the intimate studio space and tonight there is an opportunity to see the very talented IDA in their stunning stage and screen show. These beautiful young singers have quickly established themselves as […]
It Happened in Key West – Charing Cross Theatre
It Happened in Key West continues at the Charing Cross Theatre, London until 18 August 2008. Star rating: two stars ★ ★ ✩ ✩ ✩ One can see why the macabre tale of Carl Tanzler, and the true story of his obsession with a young Cuban woman that continued long after her death, might have seemed to be […]
Me and My Girl – Chichester Festival Theatre
Me and My Girl continues at the Chichester Festival Theatre until 25 August 2018. Star rating: five stars ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ This season’s productions at Chichester have not met with the usual acclaim from other critics, although they have been well received by audiences and by this reviewer. Not surprisingly there has been speculation over […]
Marti Webb joins Tommy Steele’s Glenn Miller Show
West End favourite Marti Webb has joined Tommy Steele for the veteran entertainer’s celebration of band leader Glenn Miller at the London Coliseum which is due to run until 18 August 2018. Marking over 60 years since Steele first stepped on to the stage at the London Coliseum in a sold-out run of Rodgers and […]
Kinky Boots tour cast announced
Casting has been announced for the eagerly-anticipated UK tour of the multi-award-winning musical Kinky Boots which is due to launch in September. The role of Lola will initially (until 15 December) be played by Callum Francis (Miss Saigon, Ghost) following on from his award-winning performance as Lola in the recent Australian tour. From 17 December […]
Matt Cardle to join Strictly Ballroom cast
X Factor winner Matt Cardle will take over from Will Young in the West End premiere run of Baz Luhrmann’s Strictly Ballroom The Musical later this month. Cardle, who made his award-winning West End debut in 2015 in Memphis will return to the London stage to play band leader Wally Strand at the Piccadilly Theatre […]
‘My hope is that people walk away uplifted’: Jeremiah James on the inspiration behind writing It Happened in Key West
JEREMIAH JAMES is responsible for the original concept behind musical romantic comedy It Happened in Key West which receives its world premiere at the Charing Cross Theatre this month with its official opening on Tuesday 10 July 2018. A lead producer on the project, he is also credited as a co-writer of the book (alongside Jill Santoriello, […]
