West End favourite Oliver Tompsett will step into the leading role of Edward Lewis in Pretty Woman The Musical at the Savoy Theatre from 4 April until 18 June 2023. The production will then close in London before embarking on a UK and Ireland tour, opening at Birmingham’s Alexandra Theatre on 17 October.
Currently starring as Shakespeare in & Juliet at the Shaftesbury Theatre, Tompsett (Rock of Ages, Shaftesbury Theatre, Wicked, Apollo Victoria) will join the hit production following the departure of original star Danny Mac who will take his final bow in the show on 2 April.
Aimie Atkinson (Six, Arts Theatre, In The Heights, King’s Cross Theatre) continues to star as Vivian Ward at the Savoy alongside Courtney Bowman (Legally Blonde, Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre, Everybody’s Talking About Jamie, Apollo Theatre/Sheffield Crucible) as Kit De Luca and Andy Barke as Happy Man/Mr Thompson.
The current cast also includes John Addison, Jemma Alexander, Becky Anderson, Matt Bateman, Patrick Barrett, Robertina Bonano, Oliver Brenin, Alex Charles, Daniel Clift, Ben Darcy, Hannah Ducharme, Elishia Edwards, Tom Andrew Hargreaves, Antony Hewitt, Helen Hill, Mark Holden, Elly Jay, Matt Jones, Kurt Kansley, Georgia Kleopa, Annabelle Laing, Will Luckett, Curtis Patrick, Hassun Sharif, Cilla Silvia and Charlotte Elisabeth Yorke.
Casting for the UK and Ireland tour will be confirmed at a later date.
Featuring music by multi-award-winning rock star Bryan Adams and his song writing partner Jim Vallance, the stage-musical version of the modern Cinderella story boasts a book co-written by the original film’s director, the late Garry Marshall and screenwriter J.F. Lawton.
Directed and choreographed by double Tony Award winner Jerry Mitchell, Pretty Woman The Musical features scenic design by David Rockwell and costumes by Tom Rogers from the original Broadway designs by Gregg Barnes, with lighting design by Kenneth Posner and Philip S. Rosenberg, sound design by John Shivers, hair design by Josh Marquette, and music supervision, arrangements and orchestrations by Will Van Dyke.
Pretty Woman The Musical received its world premiere in Chicago in March 2018 ahead of its Broadway debut in August 2018. Samantha Barks (Les Misérables, Frozen) made her Broadway debut in the coveted title role alongside US TV star Steve Kazee (Nashville) whose last appearance on Broadway in Once had earned him a Tony Award.
The original movie version of the unlikely love story of the vibrant street-walker and the bored businessman who hires her as an escort and falls in love featured a career-launching performance from Julia Roberts. A relative unknown when she won the role, Roberts had co-starred in the low budget cult favourite Mystic Pizza and completed a supporting role in the, at the time, unreleased Steel Magnolias. She was nominated for both an Oscar and a Golden Globe for her performance in the film. As well as turning Roberts into Hollywood’s newest leading lady the film helped revitalise Richard Gere’s career which had stalled somewhat following the critical and audience success of American Gigolo and An Officer and a Gentleman.
Angela Thomas
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