The Trevor Nunn-directed new British musical Identical will make its long-awaited debut at the Nottingham Playhouse next summer two years later than originally planned.
Co-produced by Nottingham Playhouse and Kenny Wax Ltd (producer of the Goes Wrong shows and Six) the musical based on the best-selling book Lottie and Lisa which inspired the hit 1961 and 1998 films The Parent Trap will now receive its world premiere in Nottingham from 26 July until 14 August 2022.
With music and lyrics by George Stiles and Anthony Drewe, and a book by Stuart Paterson, Identical will bring Erich Kästner’s story of twin girls separated at birth who swap lives in an attempt to bring their divorced parents back together to the stage.
Commenting on their involvement in the project, award-winning writers Stiles and Drewe said: “It’s been a delight to adapt Erich Kästner’s hauntingly beautiful and timeless tale of two identical twins separated as babies, and their wily determination to stitch their family back together. It’s a story packed with wonderful humour and characters which makes it a great canvas to become a musical and retell for a 21st century audience.”
Kästner’s 1949 book Lottie and Lisa has been the starting point for two hit Disney films. The first Parent Trap in 1961 starred Hayley Mills taking on the dual role of the twin sisters at the heart of the story with Maureen O’Hara and Brian Keith as the twins’ estranged parents. In 1998, director and writer Nancy Myers returned to the story with an updated version starring Lindsay Lohan in her feature film debut as the twins and Dennis Quaid and Natasha Richardson as their parents.
Identical will be the final production in the Nottingham Playhouse’s spring/summer 2022 season which will feature the programme of works postponed from 2020 due to the first Covid-19 lockdown.
The season will open with the professional premiere of Simon Reade’s adaptation of Michael Morpurgo’s First World War novel Private Peaceful. Directed by Elle While, the production will debut at the Nottingham Playhouse from 12 to 26 February 2022 before embarking on a national tour.
Running from 13 to 30 April 2022, the second production will be the world premiere of Red Ellen by award-winning poet and playwright Caroline Bird. Presented by Nottingham Playhouse, Northern Stage and Royal Lyceum Edinburgh, the play inspired by the true story of 1940s Labour MP Ellen Wilkinson will be directed by Wils Wilson.
The penultimate production in the season will be the world premiere of Nathaniel Price’s First Touch. Directed by Jeff James, the play which takes its inspiration from the recent football abuse scandals will run from 7 to 21 May 2022.
Announcing the new season, Nottingham Playhouse’s artistic director Adam Penford said: “I’m proud that our spring/summer season contains four back-to-back world premieres. New writing is the heartbeat of theatre and we wanted to give the space over to living writers and their unique voices.
“Many freelance theatre-makers suffered over the last 18 months, and we were determined to honour our commitment to projects which had been interrupted by Covid, celebrating the rich talents of the freelance artists we work with.
“The productions are linked by a search for belonging, identity and family; what is our place in the world and how do we connect with those around us.”
Angela Thomas
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