Review: Bend It Like Beckham at the Phoenix Theatre

Bend It Like Beckham 
Phoenix Theatre
Reviewed on Thursday 25th June 2015
★★★

Based on the 2002 movie, Bend It Like Beckham is the latest screen-to-stage musical to open in the West End. Featuring some catchy tunes and strong performances, importantly Gurinder Chadha's production doesn't simply recreate the film; instead the characters and story have been taken one step further to create an original musical which is unlike anything else in the West End.

Review: Girlfriends at the Union Theatre

Girlfriends 

Union Theatre

Reviewed on Sunday 2nd November 2014

★★★

Marking the final show in the Union's triumphant Howard Goodall season, Girlfriends is a punchy musical set on an RAF Bomber Command base during World War II. Goodall's musical has a refreshing quality, the female dominated cast sound sensational when performing together - the sound bounces off the walls of the intimate Union Theatre, it's heavenly.

Union Theatre to stage three Howard Goodall musicals; casting announced for The Dreaming

It has been announced that the Union Theatre will stage three Howard Goodall musicals over the coming months.

The theatre will host the professional London premiere of The Dreaming which is  based on A Midsummer Night’s Dream by William Shakespeare. Paul Clarkson directs with musical direction by David Griffiths, choreography by Helen Rymer and design by Kingsley Hall.

The cast includes: Alastair Hill (Alexander), Joshua Tonks (David, pictured right), Richard Brindley (Julian), Daisy Tonge (Sylvia), Chris Hancock (Angel), Kayleigh McKnight (Henrietta), Michael Burgen (Cheek), Rachel Flynn (Jennifer), Holly Julier (Charlotte), Simone Murphy (Jack), Matthew Jay Ryan (Jess), David Breeds (Walter Grubb), Alex Green (Bob Fry) and Jordan Ginger (Seth / Mathews).

Theatre Gossip: Samantha Barks leads Bend It Like Beckham The Musical workshop alongside Frances Ruffelle & Richard Fleeshman

The Daily Mail has revealed that the creative team behind the musical adaptation of Bend It Like Beckham held a workshop performance last week. Samantha Barks, who recently starred in the Les Miserables film, played Jules (the role Keira Knightley famously played in the 2002 film).

Tara Divina starred alongside Samantha as Jess. The cast also included: Frances Ruffelle, Shobna Gulati, Ex-Eastenders actress Preeya Kalidas and Richard Fleeshman (pictured above with Samantha during rehearsals). Baz Bamigboye reports that no cast deals went beyond the workshop. He claims that the company were instructed not to talk or tweet about their participation in the performance which was directed by Gurinder Chadha (who directed and co-wrote the film) as the producers do not want a repeat of Viva Forever which created too much hype too early on.

Competition: Win a pair of tickets to see Howard Goodall in Singular Sensations at the Charing Cross Theatre

On Sunday 6th October, Howard Goodall will star alongside Edward Seckerson in Singular Sensations at the Charing Cross Theatre. To win two complimentary tickets to the performance, all you have to do is sign up to West End Frame's brand new newsletter by entering your details below!