London’s West End will see another US import early in the new year – Million Dollar Quartet will open at the Noel Coward Theatre in February. The concept is one half jukebox musical, with the added depth of some historical clout.

On the 4th December 1956 Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Carl Perkins and Jerry Lee Lewis came together at Sun Records in Memphis for the first and only time in their careers, resulting in probably one of the ultimate ‘jam sessions’ of the twentieth century.

The historical reference should provide the necessary interesting plot moments, and of course it’s always fun to see ‘Elvis’ on stage. I think where this show will really take off is the jukebox part – that is, the songs. The show description boasts that over 20 classic hits are incorporated into the musical, including: Blue Suede Shoes, I Walk The Line, Great Balls Of Fire, Hound Dog, Riders In The Sky, and Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin’ On.

Million Dollar Quartet is an extremely popular production in New York, and it’s easy to see why; the story combined with fantastic music is an easy sell. We’ll have to see if the Brits are just as interested, but judging by the success of shows like Jersey Boys, I reckon that they will be.

Million Dollar Quartet is booking from 8th February to the 1st October 2011 and tickets start from just £12.50

Buy Million Dollar Quartet tickets here.

Theatre sites are buzzing this week with the announcement of a new Neil La Bute play, In a Forest, Dark and Deep which will have its world premiere at the Vaudeville Theatre on the 3rd of March 2011

If that wasn’t exciting enough, Matthew Fox, who played the sexy but troubled doctor Jack Shephard in the American sci fi drama Lost, will play one of the lead roles! He will be joined by British actress Olivia Williams (who played Bruce Willis’ wife in The Sixth Sense).

The plot centres around two siblings who are cleaning out a cottage on a dark and stormy night….it all starts innocently enough but before long, secrets start to come to the surface and conflict ensues.

In a Forest, Dark and Deep by Neil La Bute opens in March 2011 and is booking until the 4th June; and it will feature Matthew Fox in his West End debut!

Buy In a Forest, Dark and Deep tickets here.

Halloween is always a good time for the musical Wicked, the whole green faced witch thing fits in rather nicely with the dressing up and trick or treating. It also tends to coincide with the October half term which is always a very busy time for theatre. 

Last week’s half term was no exception and Wicked reaped the benefits. The show had its highest grossing week since it opened 4 years ago. Over 20 000 people saw the show last week and the box office gross was an extraordinary £923,612.

Considered one of the most popular musicals worldwide, Wicked is one of the most recognised shows of recent times. The untold story of the witches of Oz is dramatically played out with a superb score and special effects and has won many awards over the years.

The two lead actresses Rachel Tucker and Louise Dearman will perform the roles of Elphaba and Glinda until December 2011 and Lee Mead will continue as Fiyero until February 2011.

If you buy a stalls or dress circle ticket for Wicked midweek, you can get a free 2 course dinner at a nearby restaurant. For a selection of Wicked dinner packages on discounttheatre.com click here.

The nights are drawing in and with the clocks going back this weekend, it’s time to start counting the precious hours of daylight. With night-time starting as early as 3pm at the height of deepest darkest winter, now is the time to be indoors.

Traditionally, we are now moving into the busy part of the theatre season as the cold dark nights set in. People want entertainment that is indoors, when they meet up with friends, or need an escape from the X-Factor, the Xtra factor and the numerous repeats of the show on ITV 2.

Arguments have been made in the past that the West End is too focussed on mass appeal juke box musicals, alienating a more traditionalist theatregoer. It is true that there have been times in the recent past when musicals have occupied most West End theatres, shutting the door on the straight play. However, I detect a change in the air when I look at the productions currently on offer.

The huge surprise for us at Discount Theatre Towers is the interest in Onassis at the Novello Theatre, which stars Robert Lindsay. Taking a look at the top 10 sellers last week on Discount Theatre, Onassis ranks number 4, out of a possible 30 plus West End shows. Not bad for a straight play about a tyrannical Greek tycoon.

The other current show that is doing incredibly well is Yes, Prime Minister which depicts a coalition government that is trying to avoid a financial meltdown by doing deals with questionable world leaders. The subject matter will be very relevant to a lot of people I’m sure.

Opening this week is When We Are Married, a British comedy written by JB Priestley, that brings a farcical treatment to a quaint Yorkshire village. And next week Oscar Wilde’s classic, and literary favourite, An Ideal Husband starts previewing, which stars Alexander Hanson and Samantha Bond.

There’s more great plays to come in the next few months, such as Noel Coward’s Blithe Spirit starring Alison Steadman and Ruthie Henshall, and Clybourne Park which received great critical acclaim when it was at the Royal Court. For a full list of West End plays currently on sale click here.

You can also join the popular masses and save over 45% on Onassis at the Novello Theatre: Tickets normally £49.50 are reduced to £25.99 Monday to Thursday. Buy Onassis tickets here.

Ghost The Musical, is set to make its London premiere at the Piccadilly Theatre next June, and already there is a huge anticipation and excitement surrounding the production. Based on the Academy Award winning film of the same name which starred Demi Moore, Whoopi Goldberg and the late Patrick Swayze, the story captivated many fans; now the romantic tale will be live on stage and include the quintessential song from the movie, ‘Unchained Melody’.

Discount Theatre was able to ask a few questions to Dave Stewart, who created the music and lyrics for the new production:

DT: You are one of the most sought after writers and producers in the music industry, what inspired you to take on a project like GHOST The Musical?

DS: Because I had a similar experience to Sam Wheat once - I was in hospital and had an ‘out of body experience’ like the character, where I had to decide to go to the light or not. Bruce (Joel Rubin’s) story is brilliant and I think it really works when you musicalize the themes in the story – it’s come very natural to Glen and I.

DT: Do you have a specific approach to writing and producing music?

DS: In the show, I’ve taken Bruce’s dialogue and rough lyrics and the intention of the song, along with Matthew’s brief, and started melody on guitar, Glen then goes on the keyboards and starts to shape the melody with me and we both start getting lyrics. Mostly it comes from deciding on a song title and going from there.

DT: If you could define the music you and Glen Ballard have created for GHOST The Musical in three words, what would they be?

DS: Catchy, Emotional, Cool

DT: What can future audiences expect from GHOST The Musical in London’s West End?

DS: A roller coaster of emotions really, and a great story told really well….but it’s best for them to find out for themselves and come along!

Ghost The Musical is definitely one of our top picks for 2011 and we (and many other people) can’t wait to see it! Ghost will start previewing at the Piccadilly Theatre on the 22nd June 2011 and is booking until the 28th January 2012. Tickets are available from £44.

Buy Ghost The Musical tickets here

Flashdance The Musical  opens at the Shaftesbury Theatre tonight! We saw a preview earlier this week and had a great time. Here’s some production photos to peruse ahead of tonight’s press night.

 

 

 

It’s been quite a big year for Les Miserables; a 25 year continuous West End run is an outstanding achievement, but then again, Les Mis is an outstanding show.

This year, in addition to the original production at the Queen’s Theatre, we’ve seen the anniversary production at the Barbican and the 25th Anniversary Concert at the 02, which featured many big names past and present. And last year, Les Mis was given a big boost when Subo sang ‘I Dreamed a Dream’ on Britain’s Got Talent.

The latest news, from the Les Mis camp is that Gareth Gates, is going to star as Marius in the production at the Queen’s. Gates is famous for being in the first series of Pop Idol, losing out to Will Young in the final.

Gates will join other reality contestants Lucie Jones (The X-Factor) and Samantha Barks (BBC’s I’d Do Anything) in Les Miserables. Currently, you can buy discounted tickets for the show, with stalls and dress circle tickets reduced from £59 to £40.99.

Gareth Gates will star as Marius from the 18th October to the 20th November 2010 and from the 31st January to the 18th June 2011.

Buy Les Miserables tickets here.

Jeff Goldblum will soon no longer be a ‘prisoner’ at the Vaudeville Theatre; his run in The Prisoner of Second Avenue will come to an end on the 25th September. After the black comedy departs, another type moves in. Pam Ann – Flying High is the hilarious creation of Australian comedienne Caroline Reid. Last seen at the London Palladium, the so called ‘air hostess from hell’ is a crazy character that tells of boisterous shenanigans of the mile high club. Pam Ann is only a short run, so best to plan your itinerary now if you want to see her.

After Pam Ann flies off, the Vaudeville gets serious for the winter with the return of a classic, Oscar Wilde’s An Ideal Husband. The play is full of 19th century schemes and blackmail; not unlike today’s politicians, the lead character Sir Robert Chiltern is a high ranking government official who finds his reputation and relationship with his wife threatened as a result of being in the public eye. Can he rise above the accusations, or will he admit to cheating on his wife with a Cheeky Girl and using public funds to pay for a duck pond. You will have to buy a ticket for one of the great British plays to find out.

The cast should be highlight as well, which includes Alexander Hanson ( The Sound Of Music, A Little Night Music) who will play Chiltern, and his real life wife Samantha Bond (Miss Moneypenny in the Bond films) who will play the devious Mrs Cheveley.

The next few months for the Vaudeville look great, still time to see Goldblum in The Prisoner Of Second Avenue  where there are great tickets available for only £13.50. Then Pam Ann lands for a brief stop over before British classic An Ideal Husband moves in for the winter months.

Buy theatre tickets here.

Legally Blonde is ditching its Sunday performances as of the 14th September and going back to the standard Monday to Saturday schedule. Priscilla Queen Of The Desert’s experiment with Sunday performances will also be coming to a close in September. The producers of that show wanted to test the market without committing to the Sunday schedule, so they decided to do a 4 month Sunday run and revert back to Monday to Saturday in the Autumn.

I’ve said before in this blog that Sunday performances are a really good thing for the theatre industry. Many shows have incorporated it into their schedules: Jersey Boys, Stomp and The Lion King are the shows that immediately come to mind. Yet the Sunday performance is still not widely practised in London’s West End. And with so many tourists coming for weekend breaks it doesn’t make sense to stick with the traditional Monday to Saturday schedule. Almost all Broadway shows have a Sunday performance, choosing to have a Monday or Tuesday as a day off.

So what do you think? Would you come into town on Sunday for a matinee or do London’s Sunday train engineering works scare you away? Is the Sunday performance a seasonal thing or should it be used all year round? We would love to know.

Legally Blonde will play Sunday matinees until the 12th September. Buy Legally Blonde tickets here.

It was announced this week that Sophie Evans, runner up in BBC’s Over the Rainbow, will be the alternate Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz at the London Palladium. She will play the role on Tuesday evenings and during Danielle Hope’s scheduled holidays.

I suppose this doesn’t come as a big surprise; when Jodie Prenger won the role of Nancy in Oliver! at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane, the understudy part was offered runner up Jessie Buckley (who turned it down and went on to get a part in A Little Night Music.)

It’s a smart move for Sophie to take this part as she will gain invaluable stage experience. And looking at How Do You Solve A Problem Like Maria? finalist Aoife Mullholland (who was understudy in The Sound Of Music) she has gone on to roles in Chicago and Legally Blonde. It could prove to be a great stepping stone for Sophie.

I suppose the question is: do the public feel cheated that the other finalists are still being cast (in some respect) in the show? The public obviously wanted Danielle. As we’ve seen before with The Sound Of Music star Connie Fisher, it’s irresponsible to demand 8 performances a week. Some performances will have to use an alternate or risk exhausting the lead performer. But those who did not vote for Sophie and paid to vote for Danielle will still be getting Sophie at least once a week.

Personally I would like to see both and compare. What do you think?

Buy Wizard of Oz tickets here.