Buddy - Richmond Theatre
Preview by Lizzie Guilfoyle
THE WORLD’S most successful rock ‘n’ roll musical, Buddy – The Buddy Holly Story, will visit Richmond Theatre (May 16 to May 21, 2011) as part of a new national tour.
Fifty years ago, the man who changed the face of popular music tragically died in a plane crash aged just 22. His untimely death was immortalised in Don McLean’s American Pie as “the day the music died”.
Buddy tells the story of the three years in which he became the world’s top recording artist with a show that features over 20 of his greatest hits, among them Peggy Sue, That’ll Be The Day, Oh Boy, Rave On, Heartbeat and Raining In My Heart.
As well as over 15 years in the West End, Buddy has played 431 weeks, or eight and a half years, on the road in the UK and Ireland. In total, it has been seen by more than 21 million people in over 20,000 performances worldwide.
Buddy is written and produced by Alan Janes, who said: “We’re looking forward to once again playing to all our fans across the UK, especially as Buddy is the perfect antidote for recession depression.”
Matt Salisbury directs a cast that includes Glen Joseph, Roger Rowley, Chris Redmond, Dan Graham, Felicity Chilver, Steve Dorsett, Miguel Angel, Gary Trainor, Klye Riley, Katia Sartini, Melissa Keyes and Alex Marshall.
Buddy is designed by Adrian Rees, with musical direction by John Banister, choreography by Lizzi Gee, sound by Peter Cox for Thames Audio and lighting by Joe Atkins.
The tour kicks off at Dartford’s Orchard Theatre (February 1 to February 5, 2011) before continuing to Croydon, Swindon, Aylesbury, Bradford, Worthing, Bristol, Cardiff, Manchester Brighton, Wolverhampton, Sunderland, Dundee, Lincoln, Hayes, Richmond, Leicester, Belfast, Barnstaple, Norwich, Southend, Wycombe, Glasgow and Edinburgh, where it concludes July 11 to July 16, 2011.