Pure Imagination - casting announced
Casting news
CASTING has been announced for the world première of Pure Imagination, which celebrates the songs of Leslie Bricusse, one of the most prolific and well loved film and musical theatre songwriters of our time.
Directed by Tony nominated Christopher Renshaw, Pure Imagination runs at St James Theatre (Main House) for a four-week season – from September 29 (previews from September 24) to October 17, 2015.
Pure Imagination stars Dave Willetts (as The Man), Siobhan McCarthy (The Woman), Niall Sheehy (The Boy), Julie Atherton (The Girl) and Giles Terera (The Joker).
Dave Willetts has been one of this country’s leading musical theatre stars for 25 years. He was the first person to play the leading roles in the two most successful shows of recent times, Les Misérables (London and Australia) and The Phantom of the Opera (London and Manchester) for which he won the Manchester Evening News Award for Best Performance.
His other leading roles include Old Deuteronomy in Cats (London); Jesus in Jesus Christ Superstar (London and Europe); Father in Ragtime (London); Adam Pontipee in Seven Brides for Seven Brothers (National Tour and London); Sweeney Todd in Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (National Tour); George in Sunday in the Park with George (National Tour); Max Von Mayerling in Sunset Boulevard (London), for which he received an Olivier Award nomination; and Sir George Dillingham in Aspects of Love (London) for which he received a Whatsonstage Award nomination.
Siobhan McCarthy recently starred as Mrs Lovett in the sold-out production of Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street at Harrington’s Pie Shop in Tooting and the West End. She created the role of Donna in the original cast of Mamma Mia! for which she was nominated for a Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Musical.
Her other roles include Velma Von Tussle in Hairspray (Shaftesbury Theatre); Mrs Johnston in Blood Brothers and Chrissie in Dancing at Lughnasa (both at the Phoenix Theatre); Fantine in Les Misérables (Palace Theatre); Svetlana then Florence in Chess, original London cast (Prince Edward Theatre); Frankie Frayne in On Your Toes, original London cast, and Mary Magdalene in Jesus Christ Superstar (both at the Palace Theatre); and The Mistress then Eva in Evita original London cast (Prince Edward Theatre).
Niall Sheehy was a finalist on the ITV show Superstar. His musical theatre roles include: cover Chris in Miss Saigon (Prince Edward Theatre); cover Enjolras in Les Misérables (Queens Theatre); cover Fiyero and Dr. Dillamond in Wicked (Apollo Victoria); cover Sir Lancelot in Spamalot (UK Tour); Arab in West Side Story (Gaiety Theatre, Dublin); Lee Harvey Oswald in Assassins (Draíocht Theatre, Dublin); Ray Dooley in The Beauty Queen of Leenane (Int’l Theatre, Frankfurt); and Carson/Peter in A Man Of No Importance (Union Theatre and Arts Theatre transfer).
Julie Atherton (pictured above) first starred in the West End in the lead role of Sophie in Mamma Mia! Her other leading roles include: Serena Katz in the national tour of Fame and the Kolokolo Bird in the Stiles and Drewe musical Just So. In 2006, she played Kate Monster/Lucy the Slut in the West End premiere of Avenue Q (Noel Coward Theatre), and more recently, Sister Mary Robert in the first UK tour of Sister Act the Musical; Therese Raquin (Finborough and Park Theatres);and the world première of Shock Treatment, the musical sequel to The Rocky Horror Show (King’s Head Theatre).
Giles Terera (pictured below) was in the original West End cast of Book of Mormon. His other musical theatre roles include: Gary Coleman in Avenue Q (Noel Coward Theatre); Sammy Davis Jr in The Rat Pack Live from Las Vegas (Adelphi Theatre); Quickly Robinson in Jailhouse Rock (Piccadilly Theatre); Luther in 125th Street (Shaftesbury Theatre); and Mr Jefferson in Rent (Prince of Wales Theatre).
Pure Imagination has musical direction/orchestrations by Michael England, musical staging by Matthew Cole, production design by Tim Goodchild, lighting design by Derek Anderson, sound design by Mike Thacker and projection design by Victor Craven.
Read more about Pure Imagination.