Nicole Ackman - Page 8

Dean Chisnall chats about playing Jean Valjean, his favourite song in Les Mis, and the importance of seeing live theatre.

On Monday, audiences got an exciting peek at a musical currently in development called Prom Queen. The show is based on the true story of Canadian teen Marc Hall who sued the Catholic district school board when he wasn't allowed to bring his boyfriend to prom. The show is still a work in progress, but a concert staged production of the full musical was presented with a combined cast of talented West End actors and GSA students.

We recently caught up with Lauren Ward and Nathan Amzi while on a break from rehearsals for Prom Queen, a new musical based on the true story of Canadian teen Marc Hall who took his Catholic school board to court when they wouldn't let him attend prom with his boyfriend. The show will receive a workshop presentation at The Other Palace on 2 July.

Jeremiah James is an actor, writer, and producer who has worked in New York, LA, London, and many other cities. He's the lead producer of It Happened in Key West, as well as coming up with the original concept and writing the book for this quirky musical based on the true story of an eccentric scientist in 1930s Florida, who went to extreme lengths to keep the woman he loved.

Iris Theatre's The Tempest at St Paul's Church is an outdoor promenade production of one of Shakespeare's great comedies, though it is fairly traditional in every other way. The audience follows the actors around four different locations during the course of the show: three outdoor and one within St Paul's Church. However, despite this staging, the production feels a bit too predictable and even plain.

James Clements is a Scottish theatre-maker and actor based between New York and Glasgow. He is a Co-Artistic Director of What Will the Neighbors Say?, a new theatre company producing The Diana Tapes. After its premiere off-Broadway earlier this summer, this play - about the publication of Andrew Morton's Princess Diana book, Diana: Her True Story in Her Own Words - is making its UK premiere at the Stockwell Playhouse. Clements wrote the play and is also portraying Andrew Morton

Na-Young Jeon is a Dutch-Korean actress and singer. She's played Fantine in Les Miserables in the West End and has been a part of the Miss Saigon UK Tour, and is currently playing Tuptim in The King and I at London Palladium.

The Star Seekers by the Wardrobe Ensemble is headed to the Dorfman Theatre at the National Theatre this August. It's an interactive space show for children aged three to eight years old, but with plenty for the whole family to enjoy. We got a sneak preview of the show and the chance to chat with its creators at its press launch last week.

George Blagden is well known for the roles of Athelstan on Vikings and Louis XIV on Versailles, as well as Grantaire in the Les Miserables film. He is currently playing Damis in Tartuffe at the Theatre Royal Haymarket.

Sandra Dickinson has had a long and diverse career, spanning stage and screen. An American who has lived in the UK for over four decades, she was recently seen in Steven Spielberg's Ready Player One and as Lucille Ball in I Loved Lucy at the Arts Theatre. She is currently starring opposite Jonathan Chambers in the European premiere of The Unbuilt City at the King's Head Theatre.

Machinal, written by Sophie Treadwell, is based on the sensational 1927 trial of Ruth Snyder, a housewife who murdered her husband. It is a play largely about a woman attempting to find her own agency, with little success, despite the restraints of being a wife and mother. While the Almeida production boasts a wonderful set and the modern relevancy is clear, it ultimately falls short of its source material.

In her West End debut, Laura Linney proves that she is one of the greatest actresses in the theatre industry today. She stars in My Name is Lucy Barton, Rona Munro's adaptation of Elizabeth Strout's award-winning novel at the Bridge Theatre. This ninety-minute monologue showcases Linney's talent as she plays a writer reminiscing about her difficult upbringing and time spent in a New York City hospital in the 1980s.

The National Theatre's River Stage Festival is back this summer with five weekends of exciting acts, showcasing the great work that is going on in the arts in the UK.

Buckland Theatre Company is making its West End debut in July at Trafalgar Studios with William Gibson's 1950s comedy-drama, Two For The Seesaw. Charles Dorfman, a founder of the company who has done work across theatre and film, will star as Jerry. Elsie Bennett, who has worked across television, film, and theatre, will play Gittel.

Yesterday, Heathers the Musical had its press launch at The Other Palace. The show, which runs this summer from 9 June to 4 August, is a newly revised and updated version of the 2014 Off-Broadway musical.

Nadim Naaman is best known for playing Raoul in The Phantom of the Opera in the West End, though he has also appeared in shows like Sweeney Todd, Titanic and Chess. He has released a solo album, Sides, and has just co-written his first musical with Qatari composer Dana Al Farden. Broken Wings is based on a poetic novel by Khalil Gibran about forbidden love, gender equality and religion in 1912 Lebanon.

The Royal Haymarket Theatre's new production of Tartuffe reimagines the classic Moliere comedy in the West End's first ever dual-language production. The play, adapted by Christopher Hampton, sets the satire in contemporary Los Angeles, with hints at Donald Trump replacing original references to King Louis XIV. It's a surprisingly funny and disarmingly relevant modernisation supported by a cast of English and French actors who have done impressive work across theatre, film, and television.

The concert of A Little Princess at Southbank Centre's Royal Festival Hall was a lovely production with lots of great talent of a musical that still feels a bit messy. Rebecca Trehearn, Danny Mac, and Alexia Khadime all lent their amazing voices to the show and the young girls playing Sara, Becky, Lottie, and their friends were simply incredible. However, the show itself, with book and lyrics by Brian Crawley and music by Andrew Lippa, felt rather lacking in cohesion and proper pacing.

On 4 June, Kinky Boots will gain several new cast members including Oliver Tompsett and Natalie McQueen. The show, about shoe factory owner Charlie Price and drag queen Lola, has been running at the Adelphi Theatre since 2015. Simon-Anthony Rhoden continues in the role of Lola.

Boundless Theatre's Confidence at Southwark Playhouse feels a bit lacking in, dare I say, confidence. The first UK revival of Judy Upton's 1998 play has plenty of 1990s nostalgia, but still feels shaky.