Casting Announced for CHITTY CHITTY BANG BANG at Darlington Operatic Society

A full cast of 34 adult performers has been announced for a local community production of the much-loved family musical Chitty Chitty Bang Bang which flies into Darlington Hippodrome from 24 October to 3 November produced by Darlington Operatic Society (DarlingtonOS).

Two members of the company have been cast in the pivotal role of Truly Scrumptious - Beth Hopper, who was last on stage with DarlingtonOS in Priscilla Queen of the Desert, and Carolyn Lithgo who appeared in Strictly Musicals 2 with the company but most recently played the lead role of Ariel in Footloose for Hartlepool Stage Society.

Leighton Taylor and Hannah Teasdale have been cast as Baron and Baroness Bomburst with Christopher McCann as their evil henchman, The Child-catcher. Completing the line-up of the Vulgarian 'baddies' are Eddie Jones and newcomer to the company Nic Myers as the bumbling, comedy spies Goran and Boris.

The eccentric Potts family is headed by Julian Cound as Caractacus with David Murray playing Grandpa Potts. The roles of Jeremy and Jemima Potts will be shared between Matthew Scott and Jamie Collict, Alex Lennie and Lily Singleton on alternate performances.

The principal line-up will be supported by 25 adult performers and 36 local children who have been cast from over 200 initial applicants. Two teams of 18 children will play alternate performances.

Andy Myers, Chairman of DarlingtonOS said "Following our fabulous production of Priscilla Queen of the Desert we are so proud to be able to bring this wonderful family musical to Darlington. It will feature sensational sets, amazing special effects and the adorable musical score by The Sherman Brothers which includes such classics as Truly Scrumptious, Toot Sweets, Hushabye Mountain and the Oscar-nominated title song Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. This amazing cast will be working so hard to ensure Chitty Chitty Bang Bang is a show audiences will not forget."

The twelve performance run of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang will be supported by Darlington Building Society. Caroline Darnbrook, Marketing Director of Darlington Building Society said "We are delighted to be involved with this exciting community production. It is great to see people involved from across our region. The fact that the company also support St Teresa's Hospice means that not only are our members helping the people involved in the production and their audiences but also our wider community as well."

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang will run at Darlington Hippodrome from Wednesday 24 October to Saturday 3 November. Both Friday performances will be audio described and Thursday 1 November will be a BSL Interpreted performance.

Tickets for Chitty Chitty Bang Bang are £23 for adults, £16 for children (16 years and under). There is a special offer of 2 adult tickets for £42 on selected performances and a limited number of Premium Seats at the front of the stalls at £30 each. Tickets are on sale now and are only available through DarlingtonOS, visit www.darlingtonos.org.uk or call the ticket hotline 01325 244659.