Sheffield Theatres’ artistic director Robert Hastie will direct a major new production of the 1960s romantic musical comedy She Loves Me at the Crucible this Christmas.
One of a number of productions announced for the prestigious venue’s autumn 2021/spring 2022 season, Hastie’s festive follow-up to his Christmas 2019 revival of another classic Broadway musical Guys and Dolls will run from 11 December 2021 until 15 January 2022.
Based on a play by Miklos Laszlo, with a book by Joe Masteroff, music by Jerry Bock and lyrics by Sheldon Harnick, She Loves Me premiered on Broadway in 1963. With the same source material as the films The Shop Around the Corner and You’ve Got Mail, the multi award winning She Loves Me is the romantic story of two perfume shop assistants who are each unaware that they are secret pen pals.
The musical was first seen in the West End in 1964 and there have been two award winning revivals in the West End and on Broadway. The Sheffield Crucible version of the warm-hearted musical will be designed by Ben Stones with movement direction by Ewan Jones and casting by Stuart Burt.
While She Loves Me is the final production of 2021, the autumn season at the Crucible will open with the world premiere of Typical Girls, a new punk musical play co-produced by award-winning theatre company Clean Break. Written by Morgan Lloyd Malcolm and directed by Clean Break’s joint artistic director Róisín McBrinn, the play is set in a prison mental health unit where a group of women form their own punk rock group inspired by British punk and post-punk band The Slits. The production was originally co-commissioned by Clean Break with the Royal Shakespeare Company who also contributed to its early development.
Unveiling details of the programme which includes new work for the Crucible along with visiting productions in the Lyceum and Studio, Hastie said: “We’re so excited to announce new productions. Making theatre again for our audiences and with our communities, working with talented artists and brilliant partners, is what we’re here for, and what everyone who loves theatre in Sheffield has striven so hard to protect.
“We kick off with the world premiere of a new play by one of the UK’s most remarkable writers. For Typical Girls, by Morgan Lloyd Malcolm, we’re thrilled to be working with the fantastic company Clean Break. Part gig, part-play this riotous new show sees a group of women light up through their journey into punk rock.
“Then at Christmas we bring old school elegance and a whole heap of romance to the Crucible with She Loves Me. A show full of charm, a soaring score, and all the magic of the festive season. Then, to begin 2022, Anthony Lau directs Leo Tolstoy’s epic masterpiece Anna Karenina, a play that asks us how we lead this one life we have.
“All of our stages come alive with the work of brilliant creatives, casts and companies over the coming months. In welcoming friends old and new, it is wonderful to have previous artistic director Michael Grandage back to the Crucible with The Lemon Table ahead of our 50th anniversary year.
“And outside our walls, our work across the city continues to engage with Sheffielders of all ages, most excitingly as we prepare for October’s visit from Little Amal, the giant puppet girl at the centre of Good Chance’s ground-breaking project, The Walk.
“We’re incredibly grateful to everyone who has supported us over the last 16 months. As we prepare to reopen all three of our theatres once more we can’t wait to share this bumper-crop of work with all our audiences who we have missed so much.”
Angela Thomas
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