Picture: Adam Hills
West End and Broadway leading lady Kerry Ellis will be the latest actress to star as the diabolical Cruella de Vil in the hit UK and Ireland tour of the new musical version of Dodie Smith’s much-loved 101 Dalmatians.
Ellis will step into the role for the first time at the New Theatre in Oxford from 3-7 December 2024 before playing the tour’s final dates at Brighton Theatre Royal from 17 December 2024 until 5 January 2025.
An award winner for her performance as the first British Elphaba in Wicked and the originator of the role of Meat in We Will Rock You, Ellis has starred in some of the West End’s biggest hits including Miss Saigon, My Fair Lady, Les Misérables and Anything Goes.
Commenting on her latest role, Ellis said: “I am absolutely delighted to be joining the cast of 101 Dalmatians. I have always loved the film and am a massive dog lover, so this one will be a real treat for me. And I cannot wait to play Cruella. What a role!”
Ellis will follow Kym Marsh (Greatest Days, UK and Ireland tour, Coronation Street) and Steps star Faye Tozer (Singin’ in the Rain, UK tour, Everybody’s Talking About Jamie, West End) into the production which launched in Wimbledon in June with Marsh in the villainous starring role.
Tozer initially stepped into the part in Norwich, before starring in Canterbury and Leicester. Marsh returns when the tour visits Manchester (30 July-10 August) and Belfast (13-17 August), with Tozer returning for the Wolverhampton dates (20-24 August).
Marsh will also play Cruella in Newcastle, Southend, Dublin, Liverpool, Milton Keynes, Woking, Cardiff, Southampton, Aberdeen and York.
The Cruellas appear alongside Charles Brunton (Casper), Victoria Compson-Bradford (Swing), Ross Dorrington (Ensemble), Benjamin Durham (Ensemble), Jessie Elland (Danielle), Benedict Hastings (Ensemble), Danny Hendrix (Jasper), Linford Johnson (Pongo), Lottie Johnson (Ensemble), Rachel Lea-Gray (Ensemble), Tom Norman (Ensemble), Hugo Rolland (Ensemble), Lindo Shinda (Ensemble), Eugene Shire (Swing), Samuel Thomas (Tom), Emma Thornett (Perdi) and Jasmine Triadi (Ensemble).
Presented by Runaway Entertainment, the new production is a re-imagined version of the acclaimed Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre’s production which premiered at the London venue in 2022.
Featuring music and lyrics by Douglas Hodge and a book by Johnny McKnight from a stage adaptation by Zinnie Harris, the new version of the musical which mixes puppetry with live actors is directed by Bill Buckhurst.
The production features sets designed by David Woodhead, costumes designed by Sarah Mercadé, choreography by Lucy Hind, musical supervision by Alfonso Casado Trigo, orchestration by Jack Hopkins, puppets designed by Jimmy Grimes, lighting design by James Whiteside and sound design by Chris Whybrow. The musical director is Leigh Standford Thompson, and the casting director is Lucy Casson.
Angela Thomas
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