Busted star Matt Jay-Willis will play Bob Cratchit opposite Brian Conley’s Ebenezer Scrooge in the new concert staging of Alan Menken, Lynn Ahrens and Mike Ockrent’s A Christmas Carol at the Dominion Theatre.
The singer who previously appeared in the West End in Wicked and Little Shop of Horrors will play Scrooge’s downtrodden employee alongside comedian turned musical theatre favourite Conley in the special production featuring a cast of over 50 and the London Musical Theatre Orchestra.
They will be joined by former EastEnder and last year’s I’m A Celebrity winner Jacqueline Jossa who will make her West End debut as Emily and The Ghost of Christmas Future; Lucie Jones (Waitress, Rent) as The Ghost of Christmas Past; and Martyn Ellis (My Fair Lady, Guys and Dolls) and Sandra Marvin (Waitress, Chicago) as Mr and Mrs Fezziwig.
Cedric Neal (Motown The Musical, Back To The Future The Musical) will take on the role of The Ghost of Christmas Present with Jeremy Secomb (The Phantom of the Opera, Jerry Springer: The Opera) as Jacob Marley, Rebecca Lock (Heathers, Curtains) as Mrs Cratchit and Sam Oladeinde (Hamilton, The Book of Mormon) as Fred Anderson/Young Scrooge.
Tickets are now on sale for the production which will run from 7 December 2020 until 2 January 2021.
Produced by Freddie Tapner for the London Musical Theatre Orchestra (LMTO) and Gary England, this year’s Conley-led version of the 1994 Broadway musical reworking of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, follows on from LMTO’s successful sold-out concert performances of the show in 2016, 2017 and 2018.
The director of LMTO’s previous concert productions including A Christmas Carol and Mack and Mabel, Shaun Kerrison will return to direct the production which will feature musical direction by LMTO founder Tapner. Sound design will be by Nick Lidster for Autograph, with design by Dora Schweitzer, musical staging by Tim Jackson, lighting design by Mike Robertson, projection design by George Reeve and casting by Jim Arnold.
Covid safety measures and social distancing will be in place front of house, on stage, backstage and throughout the Dominion. Following the successful daily Covid-19 test trail implemented for the late summer run of Sleepless, A Musical Romance at the Troubadour Theatre, the producers of A Christmas Carol are working in partnership with GeneMe UK to put FRANKD testing in place throughout the entire run. As with Sleepless, the cast, musicians and backstage crew members will be tested during rehearsals with the results available within 30 minutes through the ID app Yoti.
Ticketholders will also be offered the chance to exchange their tickets free of charge up to 24 hours before a performance if they are unable to attend, feel unwell or have to isolate.
Based on Dickens’ timeless tale of Scrooge and his ghostly visitors the show features music written by Tony, Olivier and eight-time Academy award winner Alan Menken, with lyrics by Tony Award winner Lynn Ahrens (Ragtime) and a book by Drama Desk award winner Mike Ockrent (Me and My Girl) and Ahrens.
A Christmas Carol was presented annually in New York from 1994 until 2003 with some of the biggest names in entertainment including F. Murray Abraham, Tim Curry, Jim Dale, Frank Langella and Roddy McDowell who all took on the central role of the ultimate Christmas killjoy. The production was adapted for television in 2004 with Kelsey Grammar as Scrooge and Jason Alexander as Jacob Marley.
The hit musical The Prince of Egypt is due to resume its run at the Dominion Theatre in the spring of 2021 pending changes to Government Covid-safety advice.
Angela Thomas
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