Tag: Prince Edward Theatre

James Graham’s Dear England scores West End transfer to Prince Edward Theatre

James Graham’s Dear England will transfer from the National Theatre to the Prince Edward Theatre in the West End, where it will have a strictly 14-week run.

Directed by Rupert Goold, the play tells the story of the England men’s football team under manager Gareth Southgate.

It’s time to change the game. The country that gave the world football has since delivered a painful pattern of loss. Why can’t England’s men win at their own game? With the worst track record for penalties in the world, England manager Gareth Southgate knows he needs to open his mind and face up to the years of hurt to take team and country back to the promised land.

Joseph Fiennes (The Handmaid’s Tale) will reprise his role as Gareth Southgate, with further casting to be announced.

Goold is joined by set designer Es Devlin, costume designer Evie Gurney, lighting designer Jon Clark, movement directors Ellen Kane and Hannes Langolf, sound designers Dan Balfour and Tom Gibbons and video designer Ash J Woodward.  Casting is by Bryony Jarvis Taylor, dialect coach is Richard Ryder and associate director is Elin Schofield.

Commissioned by the National Theatre, Dear England was developed with the theatre’s New Work department and had its world premiere in the Olivier theatre on June 20, 2023.

Dear England will run at the Prince Edward Theatre from October 9.

Temptations show Ain’t Too Proud to end Prince Edward Theatre run

Temptations musical Ain’t Too Proud will play its final performance at the Prince Edward Theatre in September.

The producers of the Tony Award-winning Broadway musical revealed the news after ending its limited run earlier than planned on Sunday, September 17, 2023.

Ain’t Too Proud – The Life and Times of The Temptations, which won the 2019 Tony Award for Best Choreography, is pitched as the electrifying new musical that follows the remarkable journey of the group from the streets of Detroit to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.

With their signature dance moves and unmistakable harmonies, The Temptations rose to the top of the charts creating an amazing 42 Top Ten Hits with 14 reaching number one. The rest is history – how they met, how they rose, the ground-breaking heights they hit, and how personal and political conflicts threatened to tear the group apart as the United States fell into civil unrest. The thrilling story of brotherhood, family, loyalty and betrayal is set to the beat of the group’s Grammy Award-winning music including the hits My Girl, Just My Imagination, Papa Was a Rollin’ Stone, Get Ready, Ain’t Too Proud to Beg and so many more.

Ain’t Too Proud stars Cameron Bernard Jones as Melvin Franklin, Kyle Cox as Paul Williams, Sifiso Mazibuko as Otis Williams, Tosh Wanogho-Maud as David Ruffin and Mitchell Zhangazha as Eddie Kendricks.

The company is completed by Evonnee Bentley-Holder, Natalia Brown, Ryan Carter, Hannah Fairclough, Christopher Gopaul, Daniel Haswell, Naomi Katiyo, Akmed Junior Khemalai, Holly Liburd, Darnell Mathew-James, Simeon Montague, Posi Morakinyo, Sadie-Jean Shirley, Michael James Stewart, Toyan Thomas-Browne, Dylan Turner and Kevin Yates.

Ain’t Too Proud has a book by playwright Dominique Morisseau and reunites director Des McAnuff with choreographer Sergio Trujilio, whose previous collaborations include Jersey Boys.

It has scenic design by Robert Brill with costume design by Paul Tazewell. Lighting designer Howell Binkley and sound designer Steve Canyon Kennedy also reunited following their success working together on Jersey Boys.

Projection design is by Peter Nigrini, hair and wig design by Charles G LaPointe. Music supervision and arrangements are by Kenny Seymour, orchestrations by Harold Wheeler, music direction by Matt Smith and casting by Pippa Ailion and Natalie Gallacher.

Ain’t Too Proud is produced in the West End by Ira Pittelman, Tom Hulce, Stephen Gabriel and Jamie Wilson.

More information: ainttooproudmusical.co.uk