Hampstead Theatre has announced its remaining Main Stage productions for 2021. Stockard Channing and Rebecca Night will perform in the Pulitzer Prize-winning ‘night, Mother by Marsha Norman.This astonishing play, which had its UK premiere at Hampstead Theatre in 1985, will be directed by the theatre’s Artistic Director, Roxana Silbert. ‘night, Mother will run from 22 October until 4 December 2021.
Tamsin Greig will perform in Alan Plater’s raucously funny Peggy For You. Richard Wilson will direct this Olivier-nominated play, which had its world premiere at Hampstead Theatre in 1999. Peggy For You will run from 10 December until 29 January 2022.
The only major award to celebrate new writing at the Edinburgh Fringe announces Please, Feel Free to Share by Rachel Causer; My Voice Was Heard But It Was Ignored by Nana-Kofi Kufuor; This is Paradise by Michael John O’Neill; and The Cracks by Siân Rowland as shortlisted finalists for the 2021 prize.
They will share the £6,000 prize fund and the winner will be offered a guaranteed slot at one of the top six venues at the fringe. The finalist plays are now with the committee which includes: Art Malik, Inua Ellams, Jonny Woo, Francesca Moody, Annabelle Wallis, Andreja Pejic, Tony Grisoni and Noma Dumezweni. They will announce the winner in early September.
Cameron Mackintosh has announced four new additions to the principal cast of the full production of Les Misérables which is due to make its eagerly-awaited return to the West End from 25th September.
Chanice Alexander-Burnett (Motown The Musical, Shaftesbury Theatre, Our House, Union Theatre) will step into the role of Fantine and Jordan Shaw (The Scottsboro Boys, Young Vic, Miss Saigon, Prince Edward Theatre) joining the cast as Enjolras with Charlie Burn returning as Cosette after making her professional debut in the role in the UK and Ireland touring production and reprising her performance in Les Misérables – The Staged Concert. The newcomers will also include Sha Dessi who will make her West End debut as Éponine.
They will join the production’s acclaimed principal cast of Jon Robyns (Jean Valjean), Bradley Jaden (Javert), Gerard Carey (Thénardier), Josefina Gabrielle (Madame Thénardier) and Harry Apps (Marius).
The company also includes Kelly Agbowu, Emma Barr, Richard Carson, Cellen Chugg Jones, Rodney Earl Clarke, Danny Colligan, Matthew Dale, Matt Dempsey, Jessie Hart, Connor Jones, Jessica Joslin, Michael Kholwadia, Sarah Lark, Georgie Lovatt, Ellie Ann Lowe, Luke McCall, Leo Miles, Claire O’Leary, Kathy Peacock, Mark Pearce, Sam Peggs, Sake Wijers, Mared Williams, Phoebe Williams and Samuel Wyn-Morris.
Full casting has been announced for Going the Distance, the world premiere of a digital production of a new comedy by Henry Filloux-Bennett and Yasmeen Khan, available on demand from 4 – 17 October 2021.
Sara Crowe stars as ‘Em, Nicole Evans as ‘Billie’, Shobna Gulati as ‘Vic’, Sarah Hadland as ‘Rae’, Merch Husey as ‘Kem, Matthew Kelly as ‘Frank’, Emma McDonald as ‘Gail’, and Penny Ryder as ‘Maggie’ with Stephen Fry as the ‘Narrator’.
RED Entertainment has announced the Tinker Bell the Musical cast and creatives, who will gather for a workshop production of a brand-new British musical inspired by JM Barrie’s much-loved fairy companion Tinker Bell, written by Carey-Hills & Hendricks who uncover that Tinker Bell had her own story long before Peter Pan met Wendy.
Tinker Bell the Musical is directed by Anna Fox with assistant director Ayoade Bamgboye, with Alice Fearn, Courtney Bowman, Miracle Chance, Tosh Wanogho-Maud, Patrick Munday, Charlie Kristensen, Oliver Savile, Beth Hinton-Lever, Cavan Malone, Sadie Harris, Kyle Birch, Gwion Morris Jones, Ying Ue Li, Faye Wheeler, Matthew Ellis and Harriet Caplan Dean.
