Alan Burkitt, Amelia Adams-Pearce & Landi Oshinowo to star in Kiss Me, Kate

Casting has been announced for the Welsh National Opera's production of Kiss Me, Kate by Cole Porter and Samuel and Bella Spewack.

Jeni Bern will star as Lilli Vanessi/Katherine alongside Quirijn de Lang as Fred Graham/Petruchio.

The production will embark on a UK tour in the autumn, visiting Bristol Hippodrome, Venue Cymru, Birmingham Hippodrome, Wales Millennium Centre, New Theatre Oxford, Mayflower Theatre and Liverpool Empire Theatre. 

Casting announced for new tour of Kiss Me, Kate

Opera North and the Welsh National Opera are co-producing a new production of Cole Porter's musical Kiss Me, Kate. 

The show is set to tour England, opening at the Leeds Grand Theatre on 21st September, before visiting Newcastle, Salford and Nottingham.

Kiss Me, Kate will be performed by a cast of opera and West End singers, with the full scale orchestra of Opera North. Kiss Me, Kate is conducted by David Charles Abell (ENO's Sweeney Todd) and directed by Jo Davies (Opera North's Carousel). Choreography is by Will Tuckett (The Wind in the Willows). 

Big Interview: Carolyn Maitland

Last year Carolyn Maitland won West End Frame’s Understudy of the Year Award for covering the role of Ellen in the West End revival of Miss Saigon at the Prince Edward Theatre. 

Carolyn will depart the production next month to star as Kathy Selden in Singin’ in the Rain at the Kilworth House Theatre.

Carolyn received huge acclaim for understudying Hannah Waddingham in Kiss Me, Kate at the Chichester Festival Theatre and Old Vic. She has understudied countless roles including Karen Holmes in From Here To Eternity (Shaftesbury), Vivienne & Serena in Legally Blonde (Savoy), Lucy Harris in Jekyll & Hyde (UK Tour), Gabriella & Taylor in High School Musical 2 (UK Tour) and Serena, Mabel & Miss Bell in Fame (UK Tour). 

I recently met with Carolyn to discuss her whirlwind year in Miss Saigon, going on as Ellen with no rehearsal and her experience in Kiss Me, Kate as well as why she was thrilled to win WEF’s Understudy of the Year Award plus much, much more…

How familiar were you with Miss Saigon before being cast in the show?

I had never, ever seen Miss Saigon! My fiancé had worked in the sound team in the original. When I was called in to be seen they had been auditioning for months and months. It was a last minute call in; when we found out From Here To Eternity was going to close they called me and a few other girls in for understudy Ellen, I think that they’d had trouble finding the fit for what they wanted. Everyone always goes on about Ellen but I had never seen it before so turned to YouTube and read about it. After my first audition – where I just did my own songs – they sent through the new song ‘Maybe’ which was actually in a different key to what they use in the show now. It was a very long and hard song to learn until you really broke down the text – I thought the song was just so beautiful. I fell in love with it and it was at that point I really started getting excited about the part. 

Editor's Blog: Christmas telly picks + odds & ends

Turkey? Check. Presents? Check. Stagey TV planned and set to record...?

Christmas wouldn't be Christmas without some stagey TV. Highlights on Christmas Day include Kiss Me, Kate at the Proms (BBC2 / 14.45) starring Ben Davis, Tony Yazbeck, Alexandra Silber and Louise Dearman, as well as The Sound of Music Live (Channel 5 / 12.35) which was originally broadcast live on US TV. It stars Carrie Underwood, Stephen Moyer, Christian Borle and Audra McDonald.

Louise Dearman in Kiss Me, Kate at the Proms

If you're looking for a classic musical movie there's Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (Channel 5 / 15.25) or documentary-wise there's Frozen at Christmas (Channel 4 / 20.00) and Tim Rice - A Life In Song (BBC2 / 22.30).

Ben Davis, Tony Yazbeck, Alexandra Silber & Louise Dearman star in BBC Proms production of Kiss Me, Kate

It has been announced that Ben Davis, Tony Yazbeck, Alexandra Silber and Louise Dearman (pictured right) will lead the BBC Proms cast of Kiss Me, Kate. The concert performance takes place at the Royal Albert Hall on Saturday 2nd August 2014 at 7.30pm.

Following the enormous success of the staged performance of My Fair Lady in 2012, John Wilson returns to perform Cole Porter's Tony Award-winning musical Kiss Me, Kate in its original 1948 arrangements. The performance will be broadcast live on BBC Radio 3 on 3rd August at 7:30pm and recorded for television broadcast on BBC2 in December.

Review: Kiss Me Kate at Upstairs at the Gatehouse

Kiss Me Kate
Upstairs at the Gatehouse
Reviewed on Tuesday 17th December 2013

There is nothing worse than seeing an awful fringe show, but there is nothing better than discovering a world class production hidden away above a pub in Highgate. This Christmas Ovation have staged the fringe premiere of Kiss Me Kate which was last seen in London this time last year when Chichester's production of the musical transferred to the Old Vic. When this production was announced, having seen Chichester's brilliant staging, I wondered how such a huge musical could work in such a small theatre... but John Plew's production has blown me away.

Full casting announced for fringe premiere of Kiss Me Kate at Upstairs at the Gatehouse

Full casting has been announced for the fringe premiere of the the award-winning hit Broadway musical Kiss Me Kate. 

The production opens on 17th December 2013 (previews from 12th December) and runs until 26th January 2014. The musical, which won five Tony Awards, has music and lyrics by Cole Porter and book by Sam & Bella Spewack.

Lilli Vanessi (Katherine) will be played by Sabrina Carter (who was nominated for West End Frame's Understudy of the Year Award in 2012). Sabrina's theatre credits include: One Man, Two Guvnors (International Tour), The 39 Steps (Criterion Theatre) and Oliver (Theatre Royal Drury Lane). She also understudied and played Elphaba in the West End production of Wicked at the Apollo Victoria Theatre.

Review: Kiss Me Kate at The Old Vic

Kiss Me Kate

The Old Vic

Reviewed on Tuesday 12th February 2013

"Featuring music and lyrics by Cole Porter with book by Sam and Bella Spewack, Kiss Me Kate is an exuberant show-within-a-show that throws together the worlds of gun-toting gangsters, sparring actors and romantic entanglements against a backdrop of a musical production of The Taming of the Shrew."

Kiss Me Kate is a delightful show. This production, which after a successful run at the Chichester Festival Theatre transferred to The Old Vic last November, has a terrific cast, glorious design and slick choreography.

The Old Vic's annual 24 Hour Celebrity Gala to have musical theme

The Old Vic's annual 24 Hour Celebrity Gala will have a musical theme this year which coincides with the venue’s production of Kiss Me Kate. This year, for the first time ever, the event will be titled The 24 Hour Musicals Celebrity Gala and see established actors, singers, writers, composers and directors come together to create a series of four musicals in the space of just 24 hours.

The event, now in its ninth year, raises funds for The Old Vic Theatre Trust. This year’s gala, which will be hosted by a yet-to-be-announced "leading actor/comedian", takes place at The Old Vic on Sunday 9 December, followed as always by post-show party The 25th Hour. 

Over the past eight years, The 24 Hour Plays Celebrity Gala has involved participants and hosts include: Jim Broadbent, Kelly Brook, John Cleese, Lily Cole, Benedict Cumberbatch, Joseph Fiennes, Stephen Fry, Tom Hardy, James Nesbitt, Sophie Okonedo, Tamsin Outhwaite, Rosumund Pike, Rufus Sewell, Michael Sheen, Brooke Shields, Catherine Tate, Vince Vaughn and Old Vic artistic director Kevin Spacey.