According to the Daily Mail, Beverley Knight will star in the West End premiere of Memphis which is set to open at the Shaftesbury Theatre in October. The performer recently made her West End debut in The Bodyguard to rave reviews, she will leave the production on 31st May.
Memphis opened on Broadway in October 2009 where it ran for 1,165 performances and won 4 Toy Awards including Best Musical, Best Book of a Musical, Best Original Score and Best Orchestrations.
Memphis takes place in the smoky halls and underground clubs of the segregated 50's, where a young white DJ named Huey Calhoun fell in love with everything he shouldn't: rock and roll and an electrifying black singer. Memphis is an original story about the cultural revolution that erupted when his vision met her voice, and the music changed forever.
UPDATE: Memphis' West End transfer has been confirmed. WhatsOnStage has reported that the production will open at the Shaftesbury Theatre on Thursday 23rd October 2014 (previews from 9th October) with public booking opening on 13th March.
Beverley Knight has also Tweeted about the news:
True! I will be doing the musical Memphis this autumn! I'm in @TheBodyguardUK until 31st May & my life now is ALL about THIS great show! Xx
— Beverley Knight (@Beverleyknight) February 21, 2014
As if the above wasn't juicy enough, Baz Bamigboye has also claimed that The Bodyguard is being forced out of the Adelphi Theatre in August to make way for the musical version of Made In Dagenham. However, the musical is running an advance sale of £2.5 million so producers are searching for a new West End home for the production, and for Knight's replacement.
Anybody else stupidly excited?! We will let you know as soon as everything is confirmed. More soon...
Photo Credit: Paul Coltas
Photo Credit: Paul Coltas
No comments:
Post a Comment