Sasha Regan’s All Male H.M.S. Pinafore was reviewed at the Hackney Empire, London, before beginning a tour on 3 March. The Savoy opera that secured the international success of Gilbert & Sullivan following its maiden voyage in 1878, H.M.S. Pinafore (or The Lass That Loved a Sailor) tells the story of lowly seaman Ralph Rackstraw, whose mutual […]
Jeff Harnar – Crazy Coqs
Jeff Harnar performs Does This Song Make Me Look Fat? at the Crazy Coqs, London, until 1 March. With his dapper charm and New York polish, Jeff Harnar was always a cabaret singer who made the game look easy, but the eye-catchingly named Does This Song Make Me Look Fat? show he brings with him […]
The A–Z of Mrs P – Southwark Playhouse
The A–Z of Mrs P continues at the Southwark Playhouse until 29 March. In the search for material for topics for new British musicals, some of the country’s greatest eccentrics can provide ample material. One such is Phyllis Pearsall, who created the London A-Z street atlas. The son of an immigrant Hungarian Jew and a flighty […]
The Book of Mormon is big winner at WhatsOnStage Awards
It seemed somehow appropriate that the WhatsOnStage Awards took place at the Prince of Wales Theatre as so many of the awards this year were won by The Book Of Mormon, which plays at the venue. In what turned out to be a star-studded evening, a packed house cheered as the musical picked up no […]
Nina Kristofferson – being Billie Holiday
Musical Theatre Review’s Cameron Smith catches up with actress and singer Nina Kristofferson as she prepares to take her show, the Billie Holiday Story, on tour. As one of the foremost jazz singers of the 20th century, Billie Holiday was a unique talent. Well, it takes one to know one. Nina Kristofferson is not only […]
Urinetown the Musical begins previews at St James Theatre
Simon Paisley Day, Jenna Russell, Richard Fleeshman and Jonathan Slinger lead the cast in the UK premiere of multi-Tony Award-winning Urinetown the Musical, directed by Jamie Lloyd, opening for previews this weekend at St James Theatre, London (running until 3 May 2014, press night is 11 March). The cast for the musical, which features music […]
Bel Ami – The Musical – Charing Cross Theatre
Bel Ami – The Musical continues at the Charing Cross Theatre, London until 1 March. Guy de Maupassant’s uncannily prescient novel Bel Ami receives 21st century spin-doctoring courtesy of Alex Loveless’ vibrant, electro-pop musical adaptation, which enjoys its London premiere at the Charing Cross Theatre, performed by final-year students of the London College of Music’s BA […]
Mapping out new musical The A–Z of Mrs P – meet the writers
Henry Bird meets composer/lyricist Gwyneth Herbert and librettist Diane Samuels, the writers behind the brand new musical The A-Z of Mrs P (opening at the Southwark Playhouse on 24 February). The London A-Z, the map that has guided lost Londoners for almost 80 years, is said to have started life one night in 1935, when bohemian […]
In the Heights has London premiere at Southwark Playhouse
Tony Award-winning Broadway musical In the Heights will receive its London premiere in a brand new production in The Large at Southwark Playhouse from Friday 9 May (press night is 15 May). Winner of the 2008 Tony Award for Best Musical, In the Heights is a journey into Washington Heights, one of Manhattan’s most vibrant […]
Before the Night is Through – Landor Theatre
Before the Night is Through continues at the Landor Theatre, London until 23 February. Developing a new musical is a tough and risky business, so there’s an awful lot to be said for the individuals brave enough to do so – revealing the fruits of their labour to an unsuspecting audience of sharks. Making space for […]
20th Century Boy – Warren Sollars leads cast
West End and musical theatre performer Warren Sollars (Mamma Mia!, From Here to Eternity) will lead the cast of the musical 20th Century Boy, playing the Glam Rock legend Marc Bolan. He will be joined by TV stars Sue Jenkins (Brookside, Coronation Street) and Luke Bailey (Waterloo Road, Casualty). 20th Century Boy kicks off its tour […]
