The life, loves and turbulent times of 1960s singer Kathy Kirby provide the inspiration for Tom O’Brien’s (Money From America, Cricklewood Cowboys and Johnjo) new play Kathy Kirby: Icon which premieres at London’s White Bear Theatre next month.
One of the best known British singers of the 1960s, Kirby was most famous for her cover version of Secret Love (made famous by Doris Day) and the chart hit Let Me Go Lover. Her distinctive voice and blonde bombshell looks made her one of the most recognisable and reportedly, highest paid, singers of her generation. At the height of her fame in the mid-1960s she appeared in the Royal Variety Show, starred in her own BBC TV show and even represented the United Kingdom in the 1965 Eurovision Song Contest.
O’Brien’s piece chronicles the Essex born, convent school-educated singer’s rise to fame, tempestuous personal life, and her near-reclusive existence after she announced her retirement from showbusiness in 1983.
Kathy Kirby: Icon opens at the White Bear Theatre in Kennington, London on 20 October and will run until 8 November (press nights are 22 and 23 October). The show is accompanied by David Cantor’s I Play For Me, the fictional story of talented but temperamental 1960s musician, Elliot Figueroa.
Both pieces are directed by Tim Heath who is joined by choreographer Karen Halliday, musical supervisor James Cleeve and designer David Shields. The cast includes: Jeremy Gagan, Tina Jones, Maggie Lynne, Eddie Mann, Harry McLeod, Lloyd Morris, Abbi O’Keiffe and Michael Scott Wiseman.
Angela Thomas
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