Zorro - West End dates confirmed
Preview by Lizzie Guilfoyle
IT HAS now been confirmed that the new musical version of Zorro will open in the West End – at the Garrick Theatre – on July 15, 2008 (previews from June 30).
Matt Rawle (as the eponymous hero) will again lead the 30-strong company although neither Adam Cooper (Ramon) nor Aimee Atkinson (Luisa) are expected to reprise their roles. Further casting for the London production has yet to be announced.
Previously Posted: A musical version of Zorro will receive its world premiere at Woking’s New Victoria Theatre (March 12 to March 15, 2008) ahead of a regional tour and West End transfer.
Based on the 2005 bestseller by Chilean author Isabel Allende and with music by Grammy Award-winning flamenco band, The Gipsy Kings, Zorro tells how the young Diego de la Vega becomes the swashbuckling hero.
A story that has captured the imagination since its inception in 1919, it has been told on film and television, in comics and books, and is soon to be the subject of a Nintendo Wii game. The most recent Hollywood interpretations – The Mask of Zorro and The Legend of Zorro – starred Antonio Banderas and Catherine Zeta Jones.
In the new stage adaptation, Christopher Renshaw (We Will Rock You) will direct a 30-strong cast that includes Matt Rawle as Zorro, Adam Cooper as Ramon and Aime Atkinson, winner of BBC’s Voice of Musical Theatre 2006, as Luisa. Joining them will be leading flamenco dancers.
Rawle made his West End debut in Miss Saigon and has since gone on to appear in the title role of Martin Guerre and as Che in the hugely acclaimed production of Evita in the West End.
Previously a principal dancer with the Royal Ballet, Cooper has since branched into musical theatre starring in On Your Toes, Singin’ in the Rain and, more recently, as Sky Masterson in the long running West End hit Guys and Dolls.
The score for Zorro will include several of The Gipsy Kings hits – Bamboleo, Baila Me and Djobi Djoba – as well as songs specially written for the show.
Zorro is designed by Tom Piper, and choreographed by flamenco dancer and choreographer Rafael Amargo. Musical arranger is John Cameron and the author is Stephen Clark, who provided the lyrics for the 1997 Laurence Olivier Award-winning musical Martin Guerre.
The tour also includes dates in Eastbourne (previews), Southampton, Glasgow, Manchester and Milton Keynes but as yet, neither venue nor dates have been announced for the West End.