A dynamic all-male cast have been announced for the return of Sasha Regan’s most critically acclaimed production, Iolanthe – one of Gilbert and Sullivan’s most famous operettas.
Torches flash in the darkness as a party of naughty schoolboys adventure into the magical surroundings of an old theatre. Amid all the backstage paraphernalia they discover a Narnia-likewardrobe and a dusty copy of Gilbert and Sullivan’s Iolanthe. What follows is pure magic!
The exciting cast are: Reece Budin (Matilda the Musical, The Civic in Australia; Man of La Mancha, Seymour Centre; Pacific Overtunes, Theatre Works), Michael Burgen (Spamalot, Playhouse Theatre; All-Male H.M.S. Pinafore, UK Tour; The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe, New Vic Theatre), Richard Carson (Mamma Mia, Novello Theatre; Miss Saigon, Prince Edward Theatre; Wicked, UK and Ireland Tour), Christopher Finn (Alice’s Adventures Underground, The Vaults; Molly Wobbly’s Tit Factory, Leicester Square Theatre; All-Male Iolanthe, Union Theatreand Wilton’s Music Hall), James Gulliford (Salad Days, Theatre Royal Bath; Labyrinth, Hampstead Theatre; Luna Park, Tristan Bates Theatre), Dominic Harbison (Annie Get Your Gun, Union Theatre; Sunset Boulevard, Yvonne Arnaud Theatre; Aladdin, Stratford Arts House), Joe Henry (Cats, UK/International Tour; Miracle on 34th Street, Madinat Theatre in Dubai; LIFT The Musical, whilst training), Alastair Hill (Dreamboats and Petticoats, UK Tour; Dreamboats and Miniskirts, UK Tour; The Fix, Union Theatre), Jack Hinton (Christmasaurus: Live!, Eventim Hammersmith Apollo; Mamma Mia: Here We Go Again, Universal Pictures), Jamie Jukes (Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat, UK Tour; The Rocky Horror Show, European Tour; All- Male Mikado, UK Tour), Sam Kipling (The Habit or Art, National Theatre; Archibald Craven, whilst training; Bullets Over Broadway, whilst training), Daniel Miles (All-Male Mikado, UK Tour;One Man Two Guvnors, Welsh Tour; Grease, Scandinavia), Benjamin Mundy (Annie, Piccadilly Theatre; Grease, Dubai; Cats, London Palladium), Adam Pettit (The 12 Tenors 10th Anniversary Tour, European Tour; Beauty and the Beast, Palace Theatre in Newark; Out There, Union Theatre), Richard Russell Edwards (All-Male H.M.S. Pinafore, Union Theatre; All-Male Pirates of Penzance, UK Tour; All-Male Mikado, UK Tour) and Duncan Sandilands (Carousel, Barbican;South Pacific, Kilworth House; Thursford Christmas Spectacular, Thursford).
Universally regarded as Sir Arthur Sullivan’s most beautiful score, Iolanthe is a topsy-turvy lovestory between the most unlikely of couples... fairies and members of the House of Lord’s! Sasha Regan’s inimitable inventiveness combined with Gilbert and Sullivan’s inherent barminess makefor an unmissable night out.
Sasha Regan comments, Iolanthe is a beautiful piece to direct and I can’t wait to revisit it afternearly eight years. Mark Smith and I wanted to make a world of elegant and magical fairies so Mark, as a deaf choreographer, has incorporated sign language into all the movement - it’sdefinitely a challenge for the company to learn but the end result is worth it. This is a hilarious and tender piece that is simply a joy to direct.
When it premiered in 2011 Iolanthe was nominated for numerous Off West End Awards - Best Director, Best Choreographer, Best Production, Best Costume Design and Best Male Performance. Iolanthe broke all box office records on its transfer to Wilton’s Music Hall in 2011.
Brought to you by the same team who created the award winning, all-male The Pirates of Penzance, this absurdly silly but sweetly touching version of Iolanthe is a comic pleasure. If there is a message, it is that everyone needs to release their inner fairy... Irresistible (* * * * The Guardian).
