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Dateline:
5th February, 2006
A Good Year for the
Barbican
2005 was a very good year for the Barbican, figures announced last week
show. Turnover rose by 10.25% and ticket sales by 9%, whilst the £10m
ticket sales mark was reached a month earlier than in 2004. Bookings
for 2006 are already £1m up on the same time last year.
Wickedly Expensive!
The West End production of the Broadway
musical Wicked, a kind of prequel to The Wizard of Oz,
will be at the high upper range of what West End musicals cost,"
American producer David Stone announced at the show's launch last week.
That could put the cost at anything up to £10m. The Broadway production
cost $15m.
The cast of forty need 400 costumes and 80 wigs, and there is a full
orchestra.
The show opens at the Apollo Victoria on 27th September (previews from
7th).
Mack and Mabel Come
to London
The Watermill's production of Mack and Mabel, starring David
Soul and Janie Dee, will arrive at the West End's Criterion Theatre
in April. It opens on 10th (previews from 5th) and is initially booking
until 22nd July. It is directed by John Doyle with arrangements and
musical direction by Sarah Travis.
It is currently on tour, opening tomorrow (Monday 6th February) at
the King's, Edinburgh, and then going on to Darlington Civic, Dartford
Orchard, the Palace Manchester, the Yvonne Arnaud in Guildford, the
Devonshire Park in Eastbourne, and finally the Nottingham Theatre Royal.
Guys and Dolls
Cast Changes
4th March will see the departure of four principals in Michael Grandage's
production of Guys and Dolls
at the Piccadilly Theatre. On that evening Nigel Harman, Nigel Lindsay
and Jenna Russell will give their last performances, although it is
uncertain as to whether or not Sarah Lancashire (Miss Adelaide) will
appear, as she has been away from the cast due to illness since 4th
January. The part is currently being played by understudy Lynsey Britton.
The only replacement to be announced to date is Sally Ann Triplett,
who takes over as Miss Adelaide on 6th March.
Exonerated
Guest Stars Announced
Kristin Davis (Sex and the City), Danny Glover (Lethal Weapon),
Aidan Quinn (Legends of the Fall, Michael Collins) and
Kate Mulgrew (Star Trek Voyager) will be appearing in Jessica
Blank and Erik Jensen's The Exonerated, the off-Broadway play
about the inmates of Death Row, which comes to the Riverside Studios
on 21st February, after great success
at the 2005 Edinburgh Fringe, where it won
Amnesty International's 2005 U Win Tin Freedom of Expression Award.
Lestat
Cancels Two weeks of Previews
Elton John and Bernie Taupin's musical Lestat, based on Anne
Rice's The Vampire Chronicles, has cancelled its first two weeks
of previews at Broadway's Palace Theatre. Previews will now begin on
25th March and the show will open on 25th April.
Lestat (book by Linda Woolverton, lyrics by Bernie Taupin and
music by Elton John) received dreadful reviews for its pre-Broadway
try-out in San Francisco, with the San Francisco Chronicle saying it
is "didactic, disjointed, oddly miscast, confusingly designed and
floundering in an almost unrelentingly saccharine score by Elton John."
Now choroegrapher Jonathan Butterell has been brought in to "to
provide an objective overview".
Elton John told the New York Post that they are revamping the first
act and writing some new songs. "We have a lot of work to do, I'm
not going to deny that," he said. "We certainly ran into problems
in San Francisco. But I think we can sort them out."
There is no chance, he added, that the £6m musical will not open.
Resurrection Blues
Cast Change
John Wood has had to withdraw from the Old Vic production of Arthur
Miller's Resurrection Blues because of illness. He will be replaced
by James Fox (actor and brother of Edward, not the Fame Academy
star!). The play begins previews on 14th February, opens on 2nd March
and runs until 22nd April.
Extending
The Lion King (Lyceum) has extended its booking period to 25th
Marc,h 2007.
Index
G-K
Index L-Q
Index R-Z
News
Archive A-L
News Archive M-Z
Production News Archive
Please note that all three Archive
indices are very long and will therefore take some time to download.
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