Assassins from Sedos - Winterflood Theatre
Preview by Lizzie Guilfoyle
SEDOS, the City of London’s premier amateur dramatics society, is presenting Stephen Sondheim’s Assassins in the Winterflood Theatre at the City of London School – from August 9 to August 13, 2011.
Described as bold, surreal and sometimes disturbingly funny, Assassins is a one-act historical musical telling the story of nine crazed would-be killers, each with one shared aim, to kill the President of the United States.
The plot weaves together the threads of American history allowing the real-life characters of John Wilkes Booth and Lee Harvey Oswald and others to speak, interact and even inspire each other in the pursuit of their murderous dreams.
Winner of five Tony Awards the show is rightly considered as one of Sondheim’s greatest musical achievements. Based on an original idea by Charles Gilbert Jr, Assassins has a book by John Weidman.
Assassins is directed by Maria Waters, who says of the production which boasts a cast of 24 and a 12 piece orchestra: “Our crazed Assassins will thrill you and chill you, but hopefully will not try to kill you! But we can’t promise anything!”
The cast includes Andrew Newton (as Balladeer/Lee Harvey Oswald), Philip Doyle (John Wilkes Booth), Chris Walters (Charles Guiteau), Ben Fuiava (Leon Czolgosz), Andrew Overin (Proprietor), Paul Erbs (Giuseppe Zangara), Peta Barker (Samuel Byck), Joe Penny (John Hinckley), Suzanna Kempner (Lynette ‘Squeaky’ Fromme), Victoria Waddington (Sara Jane Moore), Simona Hughes (Emma Goldman) and Tom Adams and Archie Lyndhurst (Boys).
They are joined by Susan Booth, Kate England, James Franey, Anthony Hagan, Sarah Lalin, Skyla Loureda, Andy Macpherson, Kara McLean, Jon Wade, Chris Warner and Jillian Wood.
Produced by Matt Hudson, Assassins has musical direction by Ryan Macaulay and choreography by Ruth Sullivan.
Tickets: £15 (concessions £12.50) unless otherwise stated – available online at www.sedos.co.uk
Times: 7.45pm, Saturday matinee at 3pm.
NB: Wednesday, August 10 is charity night, when 50% of ticket sales goes to Sedos’s charity of the year, Half Moon Young People’s Theatre.
Read more about Sedos and Half Moon Young People’s Theatre
The Winterflood Theatre, City of London School, Queen Victoria Street, London, EC4V 3AL