Earlier today it was announced that Savannah Stevenson (Glinda), Jeremy Taylor (Fiyero); Sue Kelvin (Madame Morrible) and Olivier award-winning actor Paul Clarkson (Doctor Dillamond) will join the previously announced international Wicked star Willemijn Verkaik (Elphaba) in the new London cast at the Apollo Victoria Theatre from Monday 18th November 2013.
Sam Kelly will return to play The Wizard, a role he previously played in 2009/2010. Emma Hatton will be Standby Elphaba and current ensemble cast member Sophie Linder-Lee will become Standby Glinda. Katie Rowley Jones (Nessarose) and Sam Lupton (Boq) will continue in their current starring roles.
Find out more about the new cast below! (Click on an image to enlarge.)
Willemijn Verkaik made her debut as ‘Elphaba’ in the German production of Wicked on 15th November 2007 at the Palladium Theater in Stuttgart and subsequently at the Metronom Theater in Oberhausen. She reprised the role in the Dutch premiere production, opening at the AFAS Circustheater on November 6, 2011 and made her Broadway debut at the Gershwin Theatre on 12 February 2013. She has won multiple awards for her performance and received a Broadway.com Audience Choice Award nomination for ‘Favorite Replacement’. Willemijn studied at the Rotterdam Conservatory and originally pursued a career in the music industry before making the transition to musical theatre. In addition to ‘Elphaba’, she has played ‘Scaramouche' and 'Killer Queen' in the Queen/Ben Elton musical We Will Rock You; ‘Amneris’ in Tim Rice and Elton John’s Aida (Da Capo Award for ‘Best Musical Performer’); and the title role in Michael Kunze and Sylvester Levay’s musicalElisabeth. She has made numerous concert and television appearances across Europe and can be heard on two Scott Alan albums, on the Original German Cast Recording of Wicked and performs ‘Solang ich dich hab’ (As Long As You’re Mine) and ‘Gutes tun’ (No Good Deed) on the special 5th Anniversary edition of the Original Broadway Cast Recording of Wicked.
Savannah Stevenson (Glinda) has most recently been playing ‘Sybil Evers’ in Chariots of Fire at the Gielgud Theatre, directed by Edward Hall. Her other theatre appearances include: Cowardy Custard (UK Tour); Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Aspects of Love (Menier Chocolate Factory), directed by Trevor Nunn; The Secret Garden (West Yorkshire Playhouse); Simply Cinderella (Leicester Curve); Gone With The Wind (New London Theatre), directed by Trevor Nunn; The Wings of the Dove (UK Tour); Follies (Royal & Derngate, Northampton); Mary Poppins (Prince Edward Theatre), directed by Richard Eyre; Our Miss Gibbs (Finborough Theatre) and She Stoops To Conquer (Hampton Court Palace). Her film and television appearances include: The New Testament; Casualty; Twentieth Century Greats; Playing the Field and Peak Practice. Savannah trained at the Guildford School of Acting (GSA).
Jeremy Taylor (Fiyero) is currently appearing in the Queen/Ben Elton musical We Will Rock You (Dominion Theatre). Upon graduating from the Guildford School of Acting (GSA), Jeremy joined the cast of the Andrew Lloyd Webber production of The Sound of Music (London Palladium). He was subsequently cast as ‘Rolf’ for the musical’s hugely successful national tour. He also appeared in the national tour of Evita.
Sue Kelvin (Madame Morrible) enjoyed a long and much acclaimed run as ‘Mama Morton’ in Chicago at both the Adelphi Theatre and Cambridge Theatre and also played the role at the 10th Anniversary Gala. Prior to joining Wicked, she will be playing ‘Louise’ in Jonathan Kent’s revival of Private Lives at the Gielgud Theatre. Her other major theatre credits include: Travelling Light, directed by Nicholas Hytner, and A Streetcar Named Desire, directed by Trevor Nunn (both at the National Theatre); ‘Golde’ in Fiddler on the Roof (Savoy Theatre) directed by Lindsay Posner; Steven Berkoff’s Sit and Shiver (New End and Hackney Empire); ‘Widow Corney’ in Oliver! (London Palladium) directed by Sam Mendes; Assassins (Donmar Warehouse) directed by Sam Mendes and ‘Madame Thenardier’ in Les Miserables (Palace Theatre). Her television and film credits include: Silent Witness; Doctors; The Legend of Dick & Dom; Love Soup; Dr Who; Keen Eddie; Couplin; London Bridge; Red Dwarf III; Reuniting the Rubens; Song of Songs and Anxiety. 
Sam Kelly (The Wizard) returns to the West End production of Wicked where he previously played The Wizard from May 2009 to March 2010. Since the early 70s, Sam has been one of the UK’s most popular comic actors, appearing in many long-running television series including: Porridge; ‘Allo, ‘Allo; Now and Then; Haggard; On The Up; Holding On and Barbara with Gwen Taylor. His more recent appearances include: The Charles Dickens Show; Outnumbered; My Family; Magic Grandad and the film Nanny McPhee and the Big Bang. Sam has worked frequently with the director Mike Leigh, appearing in the films Grown-Ups, Topsy-Turvy, All or Nothing and A Running Jumpand on stage, at the National Theatre, in Grief with Lesley Manville. His numerous other theatre roles include: ‘Senex’ in A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum (National Theatre), directed by Edward Hall, and ‘Herbert Soppitt’ in J.B. Priestley’s When We Are Married (Garrick Theatre) opposite Maureen Lipman, directed by Christopher Luscombe.
Paul Clarkson (Doctor Dillamond) created the role of ‘Harry Bright’ in the original London production of Mamma Mia! at the Prince Edward Theatre, directed by Phyllida Lloyd. He won an Olivier Award as ‘Best Actor in a Musical’ for his performance as ‘John Tallentire’ in the West End premiere of Howard Goodall and Melvyn Bragg’s acclaimed musical The Hired Man, directed by David Gilmore. Amongst his many television roles, he is best known as ‘Graham Carpenter’ in Hollyoaks; footballer ‘Keith Nichol’ in two series of Channel 4’sThe Manageress with Cherie Lunghi, and, early in his career, as ‘Mr Christian’ in Tripper’s Day with Leonard Rossiter. On stage he most recently played ‘Jack Horsfall’ in Hull Truck Theatre’s production of The Glee Club.
Sam Lupton (Boq) made his West End debut as ‘Boq’ in October 2012 and is delighted to be staying for another year. His other theatre credits include: ‘Princeton/Rod’ in the UK tour of Avenue Q; ‘Greg’ in Single Sex and ‘Gena Hamlet’ in Galka Motalka (Royal Exchange Theatre, Manchester); ‘Harry’ in Love On The Dole; ‘Young Collector/Sailor’ in A Streetcar Named Desire (Bolton Octagon) and in the TMA award-winning production of The Hired Man (Bolton Octagon).
Katie Rowley Jones (Nessarose) returned to Wicked in October 2012 having originated the role of ‘Nessarose’ at the Apollo Victoria Theatre back in 2006, starring alongside Idina Menzel, Adam Garcia, Miriam Margolyes and Nigel Planer. She created the role of ‘Sister Mary Roberts’ in Sister Act at the London Palladium and played ‘Belle’ in the national tour of Disney’s Beauty and The Beast. Her many other roles have included: ‘Janet’ in the 30th Anniversary production of The Rocky Horror Show; ‘Sandy’ in Grease and ‘Swallow’ in Andrew Lloyd Webber’sWhistle Down The Wind. She is delighted to be staying in Wicked for another year.
Emma Hatton (Standby Elphaba) is currently appearing in the Queen/Ben Elton musical We Will Rock You at the Dominion Theatre. She appeared in Dreamboats & Petticoats at both the Savoy Theatre and the Playhouse Theatre in the West End and on UK Tour. Emma trained at the London School of Musical Theatre. Earlier this year Emma was nominated for West End Frame's Understudy Of The Year Award 2013 for understudying the roles of Scaramouche and Meat in We Will Rock You.
Sophie Linder-Lee (Standby Glinda) trained at Performers College and first joined the London ensemble cast of Wicked in 2010. She has understudied Glinda since 2011 and performed the role on several occasions. Prior to joining Wicked, Sophie made her West End debut inMamma Mia! at the Prince of Wales Theatre.
From Monday 18 November 2013, the ensemble will feature Florence Andrews, Kyle Anthony, William Bozier, Oliver Brenin, Lauren Brooke, Philippa Buxton, Philip Catchpole, Aisling Duffy, Samuel Edwards, Kerry Enright, Michelle Francis, Jacqueline Hughes, Melissa Jacques, Marc McBride, Stacey McGuire, Natalie McQueen, Greg Miller Burns, Tom Muggeridge, Rachel Muldoon, Sean Parkins, Charlie Stemp, Lauren Stroud, Lindsay Taylor, Justin Thomas, Hannah Toy, Matt Turner, Russell Walker and Jenny Wickham.
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