Simon Jones to Join Angela Lansbury in BLITHE SPIRIT North American Tour

The producers of the North American tour of Noël Coward's smash-hit comedic play, BLITHE SPIRIT announced today that Simon Jones ("Hitchhiker's Guide, The Real Thing) will return to the role of Dr. Bradman, which he performed during the sold-out engagements on Broadway and London's West End.

Jones will be joined on stage with previously announced television legend, Oscar recipient and five-time Tony Award-winner Angela Lansbury ("Murder, She Wrote;" Sweeney Todd; Mame; "Gaslight") as Madame Arcati. and an all-star cast including Charles Edwards ("Downton Abbey," The 39 Steps, Blithe Spirit - 2014 West End revival), Jemima Rooper ("The Black Dahlia;" One Man, Two Guvnors; Blithe Spirit - 2014 West End revival) and Charlotte Parry (Coram Boy, The Importance of Being Earnest). The cast also includes Susan Louise O'Connor (What to Do When You Hate All Your Friends, Blithe Spirit - 2009 Broadway revival) and Sandra Shipley (Anything Goes, Blithe Spirit - 2009 Broadway revival). The play is directed by two-time Tony Award-winner Michael Blakemore (Kiss Me, Kate; Copenhagen).

"I remember saying, to no one in particular, when we played Blithe Spirit on Broadway, that the experience was so enjoyable and satisfying that I'd be happy to do it wherever Dame Angela and Michael Blakemore wanted to take it. I'm vastly pleased that they heard me and took me at my word," said Simon Jones. "It's a sheer delight to be in such a polished and surely definitive production as this is, and it's going to be truly a pleasure to see and hear audiences all over North America surrendering to the infectious high spirits of this timeless comedy and the performance of our timeless leading lady."

Performances for BLITHE SPIRIT are set to begin Tuesday, December 9th at Center Theatre Group's Ahmanson Theatre in Los Angeles with an official opening on Sunday, December 14. Following the closing of the LA engagement on Sunday, January 18th, the tour will continue on to SHN's Golden Gate Theatre in San Francisco from Tuesday, January 20th through Sunday, February 1st; Mirvish Productions' Princess of Wales Theatre in Toronto from Wednesday, February 11th through Sunday, March 15th and concludes in Washington D.C. from Tuesday, March 17th through Sunday, March 29th at the National Theatre. For more information, please visit www.BlitheSpiritThePlay.com.

BLITHE SPIRIT, one of Noël Coward's most popular comedies, was first seen on Broadway in 1941, the same year it was produced in London where it set British box office records and was the longest running comedy (1,997 performances) until it was eventually surpassed by Boeing-Boeing in the 1970's. The original Broadway production played nearly two years and co-starred Leonora Corbett, Mildred Natwick, Clifton Webb and Peggy Wood. In 1987, it was revived on Broadway in an all-star production with Richard Chamberlain, Blythe Danner, Judith Ivey, and Geraldine Page, in her final Broadway appearance.

The latest revival on Broadway in 2009 was directed by Michael Blakemore and co-starred Angela Lansbury, Jayne Atkinson, Christine Ebersole, Rupert Everett, Simon Jones, and Susan Louise O'Connor. Following its critical acclaim and box office success on Broadway, Lansbury returned to the London stage after 40 years to reprise her Tony Award-winning role. Also under the direction of Michael Blakemore and starring Angela Lansbury, the London revival opened at the Gielgud Theatre on March 18, 2014, and co-starred Janie Dee, Serena Evans, Charles Edwards, Patsy Ferran, Simon Jones and Jemima Rooper.

Coward, in his autobiography, claimed he wrote the play in five days during a holiday. Only two lines of dialogue were removed before its first production in London.

Researching his new novel, Charles Condomine invites the implausible medium Madame Arcati to his house for a séance. While consumed in a trance, Madame Arcati unwittingly summons the ghost of Charles' dead wife Elvira. Appearing only to Charles, Elvira soon makes a play to reclaim her husband, much to the chagrin of Charles' new wife Ruth. One husband, two feuding wives and a whisper of mischief in the air - who will win in Coward's unworldly comedy?

The North American tour of BLITHE SPIRIT is produced by Jeffrey Richards, Jerry Frankel, Steve Traxler, Lee Dean, John Frost, Charles Diamond and Will Trice in association with JAM Theatricals.

For more information, visit www.BlitheSpiritThePlay.com