Sheila Ferguson as Mama Morton in the touring production of Chicago. Picture: Matt Crockett
Sheila Ferguson will step into the role of Mamma Morton when the UK and Ireland tour of Chicago opens in Liverpool early next month.
The Three Degrees singer whose musical theatre credits include Thoroughly Modern Millie and Soul Train, will join the previously announced chart-topping classical recording artist Russell Watson (Jeff Wayne’s The War of the Worlds tour, English world premiere of Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus’ Kristina, Carnegie Hall and Royal Albert Hall) as Billy Flynn, former Coronation Street regular Faye Brookes (The Sound of Music, Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre) as Roxie Hart alongside Djalenga Scott (Annie, Piccadilly Theatre) as Velma Kelly. They will be joined by Jamie Baughan (Kinky Boots, Adelphi Theatre) as Amos Hart and B.E. Wong (Sleepless: A Musical Romance, Troubadour Theatre) as Mary Sunshine.
The cast will also include Ishmail Aaron, Michelle Andrews, Gabby Antrobus, Delycia Belgrave, Joel Benjamin, Tanisha-Mae Brown, Daniel Clift, Callum Fitzgerald, Emily Goodenough, Billy Hardy, Aaron Jenkins, Liam Marcellino, Theo Reece, Hollie Jane Stephens and Harrison Wilde.
Produced by David Ian in association with the Broadway producers Barry and Fran Weissler, the production is due to open at the Liverpool Empire on 7 February 2022.
The production is based on the successful 1996 Broadway revival which was directed by Walter Bobbie with choreography by Ann Reinking in the style of Bob Fosse.
Following the Liverpool run which will end on 12 February the tour will visit Eastbourne, Southend, Cheltenham, Milton Keynes, Stoke-on-Trent, Ipswich, Aberdeen, Dublin, Dartford, Bristol, Woking, Leeds, Wimbledon, Manchester, Sunderland, Belfast, Plymouth, Cardiff, Sheffield, Norwich, Oxford and Llandudno.
Inspired by the 1926 play of the same name by crime reporter Maurine Dallas Watkins, Chicago boasts a book by Fred Ebb and Fosse, with music by John Kander and lyrics by Ebb. The original Broadway production debuted in 1975 and arrived in London in 1979.
The hit revival production opened at the Adelphi Theatre in London on 18 November 1997 to rave reviews and ran for 15 highly successful years in the West End. The production claimed the 1998 Laurence Olivier Award for Outstanding Musical Production and the 1998 Critics Circle Drama Award for Best Musical. The show is the longest-running American musical in Broadway and West End history.
Chicago has played in 36 countries worldwide and has been performed in English, Dutch, German, Swedish, Spanish, Portuguese, Russian, Italian, French, Danish, Japanese and Korean. The musical has been seen by an estimated 33 million people, grossed over $1.7 billion and played more than 32,500 performances.
Angela Thomas
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