Beautiful - The Carole King Musical - Matthew Seadon-Young and Barbara Drennan join cast
Casting news
ON NOVEMBER 28, 2016, Matthew Seadon-Young and Barbara Drennan will join the West End cast of Beautiful – The Carole King Musical to play Gerry Goffin (Carole King’s husband and song-writing partner) and Genie Klein (King’s mother) respectively.
Cassidy Janson (as Carole King) continues in the production, as does Lorna Want who plays song-writer Cynthia Weil, a role for which she won the 2015 Olivier for Best Actress in a Supporting Role in a Musical, and Ian McIntosh who plays song-writer Barry Mann.
And Joseph Prouse, who recently joined the company, plays Donnie Kirshner (music publisher and producer).
Matthew Seadon-Young was last on stage playing Tony, Billy’s brother, in Billy Elliot the Musical at the Victoria Palace Theatre. His other theatre credits include Sweeney Todd (London Coliseum), Urinetown: The Musical (Apollo Theatre), The Architects (a Shunt event at the Biscuit Factory in Bermondsey), The School for Scandal (Theatre Royal Bath), She Stoops to Conquer (National Theatre) and Les Misérables (Queen’s Theatre).
Seadon-Young’s film credits include Pride and Les Misérables. He has also performed at the 2015 BBC Proms and in the Les Misérables ensemble at the 2013 Oscars Ceremony.
Barbara Drennan’s theatre credits include The Winter’s Tale, To Kill A Mockingbird, An Enemy of the People, The Family Way, Noises Off, A View from the Bridge and Love Story (Octagon Theatre Bolton), Sweeney Todd (Manchester Royal Exchange/West Yorkshire Playhouse), Season’s Greetings (Theatre Royal Windsor) and national tours of The Graduate and Over The Rainbow.
On screen, she has appeared in A Touch of Cloth, By Any Means, Mayday, The Jury, Holby City, Emmerdale, EastEnders, Doctors, Brookside, Dangerfield and Bergerac (TV); Brooklyn, Can’t Bank on Heaven, In The Dark and Scary Movies (film).
Joseph Prouse’s theatre work includes Jesus Christ Superstar (Regent’s Park Theatre), The Suicide (National Theatre), Mack and Mable (Chichester Festival Theatre), Sweeney Todd (London Coliseum), Forbidden Broadway (Menier Chocolate Factory/Vaudeville Theatre), I Can’t Sing! and Oliver! (London Palladium), Singin’ in the Rain (Palace Theatre), Shrek (Theatre Royal Drury Lane), Jersey Boys (Prince Edward Theatre) and Footloose (Playhouse Theatre).
From November 28, 2016, the cast of Beautiful will also include Gavin Alex, Georgie Ashford, Koko Basigara, Tsemaye Bob-Egbe, Ashford Campbell, Treyc Cohen, Natasha Cottriall, Michael Duke, Matthew Gonsalves, Jammy Kasongo, Leigh Lothian and Earl R. Perkins who play iconic musical performers and band members of the era and swings Derek Aidoo, Rosie Heath, Dominic Hodson, Emma Louise Jones, Jessica Joslin, Vicki Manser, David O’Mahony and Jaime Tait.
Beautiful – The Carole King Musical is the untold story of her journey from school girl to superstar; from her relationship with husband and song-writing partner Gerry Goffin, their close friendship and playful rivalry with fellow song-writing duo Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil, to her remarkable rise to stardom. Along the way, she became one of the most successful solo acts in music history, and wrote the soundtrack to a generation.
Beautiful – The Carole King Musical is currently booking at the Aldwych Theatre until July 22, 2017.
Read more about Beautiful.