David Hunter Will Lead World Premiere of BEAUTIFUL LITTLE FOOL at Southwark Playhouse Borough
He joins the previously announced Lauren Ward and Hannah Corneau.
By: Stephi Wild Nov. 10, 2025
David Hunter - whose extensive musical theatre roles include Waitress, Once, Kinky Boots and The Time Traveller's Wife - will star as ‘F. Scott' in the world premiere production of Beautiful Little Fool, alongside the previously announced Lauren Ward (Matilda, Dear Evan Hansen, Stranger Things: The First Shadow) as ‘Scottie', and Hannah Corneau (Wicked, Renascence, Frozen) as ‘Zelda'.
With music and lyrics by Hannah Corneau and a book by Mona Mansour, directed by Michael Greif, Beautiful Little Fool tells the story of Zelda and F. Scott Fitzgerald through the eyes of their daughter Scottie, as she rediscovers the lives and writings of her brilliant and tempestuous parents.
The world premiere production at Southwark Playhouse Borough from Thursday 15 January until Saturday 28 February 2026, with a national press night on Thursday 22 January.
The company is completed by David Austin-Barnes (Book of Mormon, US tour) as ensemble / cover ‘F.Scott', Amy Parker (13 Going on 30, Manchester Opera House, Ride, Charing Cross Theatre) as Ensemble / cover ‘Scottie' and ‘Zelda', and Jasmine Hackett (Muriel's Wedding, Leicester Curve, Toys the Musical, Watford) as swing.
David replaces the previously announced Declan Bennett who, due to another professional commitment, has had to withdraw from Beautiful Little Fool.
The release of the full Beautiful Little Fool concept album – featuring Jessie Mueller, Ryan Vasquez and Hannah Corneau – continues to build excitement ahead of the London premiere. Following the first single So Alive, sung by Jessie Mueller, audiences can also enjoy One Night in July, available to stream alongside the complete album on all major platforms, including Spotify and Amazon.
Recorded in New York with orchestrations and musical direction by Adam Rothenberg, the album offers an early introduction to Hannah Corneau's lush and emotionally charged score.
The London production of Beautiful Little Fool will have orchestrations by Adam Rothenberg, musical direction by Jerome van den Berghe, set design by Shankho Chaudhuri, costume design by Laura Hopkins, lighting design by Ben Stanton, and sound design by Domnic Bilkey.
Beautiful Little Fool was originally commissioned by New Works Provincetown, and is produced by Mark Cortale, Jonathan Murray, Harvey Reese, and Willette & Manny Klausner.
Director Michael Greif said, “We're thrilled to welcome David Hunter to the company of Beautiful Little Fool. David brings such heart, warmth and musical intelligence to everything he does, and he's a wonderful fit for the role of F. Scott. As the concept album continues to find new listeners around the world, we can't wait to bring this extraordinary story to life on stage in January.”
