First Performance of SYLVIA Turned Open Dress Cancelled

The buzz abounds for the new show hitting the West End, Sylvia, but the production is already facing trouble.

According to What's On Stage, the show intended to hold its first preview on 3 September and was forced to convert it to an open dress rehearsal. Old Vic Artistic Director Matthew Warchus contacted patrons via email to announce the change stating, "As is often the case with new musicals, due to the scale of the endeavour, the production process has taken longer than planned."

While patrons were generously allowed to attend the typically private event, they still weren't able to see the full show. Cast member Genesis Lynea who plays the leading role of Sylvia Pankhurst was taken ill and was unable to continue her performance early in act two.

The Old Vic was clear in saying that "the safety and well-being of our cast is of the upmost importance." The following performance was also cancelled and opening night has been delayed from 11 September to 17 September.

For more on this story, visit What's On Stage here.

Co-written by Kate Prince and Priya Parmar with original music by Josh Cohen and DJ Walde, Sylvia is a modern musical celebrating the life of Sylvia Pankhurst, her pivotal role in the campaign for women's rights and the price of the passion and politics that tore her family apart.

Votes for Women and a fractured family at a momentous hour in British history.

100 years after the first women in Britain were granted the vote, Kate Prince combines dance, hip hop, soul and funk to shed new light on a remarkable story at the heart of the Suffragette movement.

Sylvia is co-commissioned by 14-18 NOW, the UK's arts programme for the First World War centenary, with support from the National Lottery through Arts Council England and the Heritage Lottery Fund, and from the Department for Culture Media and Sport.

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