James Bourne Pens Musical for Youth Music Theatre UK

James Bourne, best known for appearing in the bands Busted and Son of Dork and for his songwriting credits with McFly and Boyzone, is to write a new musical for Youth Music Theatre UK.

The new show, entitled Loserville: The Musical, will be an entirely new musical with an original story inspired by Son Of Dorks last album Welcome to Loserville. The show will be staged in Leeds in August, with a planned London transfer for 2010.

Bourne will pair up with musical theatre book writer and composer Elliot Davis (TMA Award for Outstanding Musical Production) for the project, which will be staged in Summer 2009 featuring a cast of thirty 11-21 year old performers auditioned across the UK.

Speaking about the project, Bourne commented "the show has a brilliant and colourful cast of characters - it's all about the geek coming through. For anyone who ever felt bullied or felt different, this show is for you! We think it will appeal to people who aren't necessary regular musical theatre goers; we hope it will convince some regular music lovers who might not be into musicals that there is something in it for them".

Elliot Davis said "when James brought the album out with Son of Dork, there were some great stories on there - I thought it would be great to bring those stories out of the songs. This show is unlike any other musicals - it's modern, completely stand-alone and original... we're taking a completely original approach".

Youth Music Theatre UK (YMT) is the country's biggest provider of music theatre projects for young people, and in 2009 will stage six new shows nationwide. Young people can register to audition for the company at www.youthmusictheatreUK.org 

Successful performers will be cast in to one of the six shows, including Loserville: The Musical. The company is also seeking instrumentalists to join the bands for each of the shows.

Before joining Busted, James Bourne was heavily involved in youth theatre, appearing in several productions including Oliver! at the London Palladium. Speaking of his experiences and inspiration for the show, he commented: 'we thought it would be great to get involved with YMT - so many musicals get written and never staged, but YMT are great at following through interesting new ideas. It's a great thing for young people to get involved with - I'm glad I did stage stuff when I was younger - it's good fun and you meet loads of friends".

Young people aged 11-21 can register now to audition for the shows in January and February by visiting www.youthmusictheatreUK.org. Successful auditionees and instrumentalists join the company of one of the six shows above.

Youth Music Theatre UK is a national charity whose principal aim is the personal and creative development of young people through the medium of new musical theatre. The company provides a wide range of residential workshops across the country as well as a variety of outreach projects, working with hundreds of young people from all corners of the country. The company celebrates its fifth anniversary in December 2008.

James Bourne was a member of the band Busted whose hits included What I Go To School For, Year 3000 and Crashed the Wedding. He subsequently formed the band Son of Dork in 2005, releasing the singles Ticket Outta Loserville and Eddie's Song. He is a prolific song writer, having worked with McFly, Boyzone, Melanie C and Jonas Brothers. His albums have sold more than six million copies, and he has achieved eighteen consecutive Top 3 singles as a songwriter.

 

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