Picture: Johan Persson
Cinemagoers will get the chance to see Sheridan Smith’s critically-acclaimed performance as Fanny Brice when a filmed version of the hit stage production of Funny Girl is screened in cinemas nationwide on 24 October 2018.
Filmed by Digital Theatre during the final week of the show’s run at the Manchester Palace Theatre, the recording of the award-winning Menier Chocolate Factory production will be released in cinemas by Trafalgar Releasing.
Smith who stars alongside her original leading man, Darius Campbell (Nick Arnstein), heads a cast that includes Nigel Barber (Florenz Ziegfeld), Zoë Ann Bown (Mrs. Meeker), Martin Callaghan (Mr. Keeney), Jennifer Harding (Emma), Rachel Izen (Mrs Brice), Joshua Lay (Eddie) and Myra Sands (Mrs. Strakosh); with Rhianne Alleyne, Kit Benjamin, Lloyd Davies, Flora Dawson, Joseph Dockree, Abigayle Honeywill, Brontë Lavine, David Mcintosh, Peter Nash, Gillian Parkhouse, Tom Partridge, Nova Skipp, Alexandra Waite-Roberts, Sam Wingfield and Alexandra Wright.
Commenting on the cinema release of the award-winning show, Smith said: “Fanny Brice was an extraordinary woman who broke the mould for female entertainment, not only that, she was a brilliant comic! Her lack of vanity and her goofiness made her unique and very special, and the role was an utter joy to play. I’m beyond excited to be able to share our production of Funny Girl with audiences across the UK.”
On behalf of distributor Trafalgar Releasing, director of distribution Alice De Rose commented: “Sheridan Smith gives the performance of a lifetime in this unforgettable production of Funny Girl. We are excited to give audiences the opportunity to see the show in cinemas across the UK. We look forward to collaborating with Digital Theatre, Sonia Friedman Productions and the Menier Chocolate Factory.”
Robert Delamere, the founder of filmed-stage production specialists Digital Theatre added: “Funny Girl has been a true collaboration for all those involved, and yet again as we prepare to share the production with cinema audiences across the UK. It’s a privilege for Digital Theatre to have become part of the remarkable story of this production, working with so many fantastic collaborators and to have been able to capture this unforgettable star turn from Sheridan Smith.”
Loosely based on the life of Ziegfeld Follies star, the comedienne Fanny Brice, and focusing on her turbulent relationship with charismatic gambler Nicky Arnstein, Funny Girl was the vehicle that took Barbra Streisand from Broadway to Hollywood.
With music by Jule Styne, lyrics by Bob Merrill, book by Isobel Lennart and a revised book by Fierstein, the show includes timeless songs like ‘People’ and ‘Don’t Rain On My Parade’.
Over 50 years after the show’s debut, one of Broadway’s biggest and busiest names, Harvey Fierstein, was brought in by Menier to turn the show into a musical fit for both its new leading lady Smith and a modern audience.
in November last year.
Directed by Michael Mayer, the record-breaking Menier Chocolate Factory proved to be an instant hit with audiences and critics when it opened at the Menier before transferring to the Savoy Theatre. The successful UK tour launched at the Manchester Palace Theatre in February last year and returned to Manchester for another 10-day run at the end of the tour in August 2017.
Choreography is by Lynn Page, with set design by Michael Pavelka, costume design by Matthew Wright, lighting design by Mark Henderson and sound design by Richard Brooker, musical supervision and arrangements by Alan Williams and orchestrations by Chris Walker.
Funny Girl on film is co-produced by Digital Theatre and Sky Arts.
Angela Thomas
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