Ronan Keating plays Guy in Once the Musical at the Phoenix Theatre from 17 November. Picture: Hugo Glendinning
Actress and singer Jill Winternitz will be continuing in the role of Girl opposite the previously announced Ronan Keating as Guy in Once the musical. Keating will be joining the Olivier Award-winning musical on 17 November 2014 (press night is Tuesday 25 November). Once is currently booking at the Phoenix Theatre to 4 July 2015.
Jill Winternitz studied at UCLA and the Moscow Art Theatre School in Russia before training in the UK at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. She made her West End debut starring as Baby in Dirty Dancing at the Piccadilly Theatre and then on tour around the UK. Her other theatre credits include A Handful of Soil at the Drayton Theatre, The Seagull at the Moscow Art Theatre School and Sunday in the Park With George at the Interlochen Center for the Arts.
Irish recording artist, singer-songwriter and musician Ronan Keating launched his career as a member of Boyzone in 1993 and has subsequently been a hugely successful solo recording artist. With Boyzone Keating has sold more than 25 million records worldwide and as a solo artist 20 million. Before joining the cast of Once, Keating has returned to Australia for a fourth year as a judge on The X Factor.
The West End production of Once opened in April 2013 and went on to win the 2014 Olivier Award for Outstanding Achievement in Music. In addition, Zrinka Cvitesic won the Best Actress in a Musical Olivier for her performance as Girl.
The musical offers audiences a unique opportunity by serving theatregoers drinks from the onstage bar both before the performance and during the interval. The Broadway production continues at the Bernard B Jacobs Theatre. Later this year an Australian production will open at the Princess Theatre in Melbourne while the US tour continues.
From the 17 November 2014 the Once London cast comprises Ronan Keating (Guy) and Jill Winternitz (Girl) together with Fiona Bruce (Baruška), Jamie Cameron (Emcee) Mark Carlisle (Da), Matthew Ganley (Švec),Mathew Hamper (Andrej), Daniel Healy (Eamon), Loren O’Dair (Reza), Miria Parvin (Ex-Girlfriend), Tim Prottey-Jones (Billy) and Jez Unwin (Bank Manager). Alternating the role of Girl’s young daughter Ivanka will be Pacha Busby, Rebecca Connolly, Tigan Hawes and Audrey Newman. David Hunter continues in the role of Guy until 15 November 2014.
Once has a book by award-winning Irish playwright and screenwriter Enda Walsh. Based on the 2007 motion picture written and directed by John Carney, music and lyrics are by Academy Award-winning Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglová who, for ‘Falling Slowly’, won the Oscar for Best Original Song. Directed for the stage by John Tiffany, the show has scenic and costume designs by Bob Crowley, lighting by Natasha Katz, sound by Clive Goodwin, musical supervision and orchestrations by Martin Lowe and movement by Steven Hoggett. Once won the 2013 Grammy award for Best Musical Theatre album.
The producers of the West End production are Barbara Broccoli, John N. Hart Jr., Patrick Milling Smith, Frederick Zollo, Brian Carmody, Michael G. Wilson, Orin Wolf and Michael Rose in association with New York Theatre Workshop.
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