A smash hit in Chichester, in the West End and most recently Sadler’s Wells, Michael Harrison and Jonathan Church present Chichester Festival Theatre and Stage Entertainment’s production of Singin’ in the Rain and are today delighted to announce casting for its major UK and Ireland 2022 tour.
Leading this glorious production are Sam Lips as Don Lockwood (Broadway and US credits include CATS, Chicago, West, Side Story, On the Town and Seven Brides for Seven Brothers. UK credits include Strictly Ballroom); Charlotte Gooch (Strictly Ballroom and Top Hat in the West End, Dirty Dancing – The Classic Story on Stage, first UK Tour and West End) as aspiring actress Kathy Selden; Ross McLaren (Sleepless, Troubadour Theatre; BIG The Musical and White Christmas at the Dominion Theatre) as Don’s slapstick sidekick Cosmo Brown and Jenny Gayner (The Girls, Chicago and Spamalot in the West End and Annie and The Rocky Horror Show on tour) as the strangulated silver-screen siren, Lina Lamont.
Across the tour, they will be reunited with their Sadler’s Wells co-stars who make special guest appearances at select dates. Steps and stage star Faye Tozer (Everybody’s Talking About Jamie, West End; Me and My Girl and Tell me on a Sunday) will reprise her role as Lina Lamont in Canterbury, Woking, Milton Keynes, Edinburgh and Newcastle and former professional Strictly Come Dancing favourite Kevin Clifton (Rock of Ages, UK Tour;Burn the Floor, West End, UK and International tours; Dirty Dancing – The Classic Story on Stage, West End) will reprise his role as Cosmo Brown in Bristol, Cardiff, Southampton, Liverpool and Glasgow.
Adam Cooper returns to the show with his legendary performance of Don Lockwood in Woking, Manchester, Glasgow and Plymouth having earned critical acclaim in the role at Chichester Festival Theatre and beyond. Adam Cooper is one of the most celebrated stars to perform at Sadler’s Wells, where he has headlined Matthew Bourne’s iconic production of Swan Lake, as well as many other productions.
Further casting includes Sandra Dickinson, who will appear as Dora Bailey, Michael Matus as Roscoe Dexter and Imogen Brooke as Zelda Zanders. The ensemble featuresBriana Craig, Alastair Crosswell, Lavinia Fitzpatrick, Alex Given, Ryan Gover, Ashleigh Graham, Thomas Inge, Robin Kent, Joshua Lovell, George Lyons, Amonik Melaco, Ashleigh Morris, Peter Nash, Dale Rapley, Molly Rees-Howe, Harriet Samuel-Gray, Heather Scott-Martin, Megan Speirs, Ben Whitnall, and Ellie May Wilson.
Don Lockwood is a silent movie star with everything he could want – fame, adulation and a well-publicised ‘romance’ with his co-star Lina Lamont. But Hollywood is about to change forever. There is rumour in the studio of a new kind of film, where the actors actually talk … and sing … and dance. Can Don and the uniquely voiced Lina make the transition, and will chorus girl Kathy Selden fulfil her dream of stardom and capture Don’s heart along the way?
Directed by Jonathan Church, Singin’ in the Rain opens at Canterbury’s Marlowe Theatre on Thursday 17th March 2022, before visiting Woking, New Victoria Theatre; Southend, Cliffs Pavilion; Milton Keynes, Milton Keynes Theatre; Edinburgh, Festival Theatre; Newcastle, Theatre Royal; Manchester, Opera House; Bristol, Bristol Hippodrome; Cardiff, Wales Millennium Centre; Dublin, Bord Gais Energy Theatre; Birmingham, Birmingham Hippodrome; Southampton, Mayflower Theatre; Liverpool, Empire Theatre;London, New Wimbledon Theatre; Nottingham, Concert Hall; Bradford, Alhambra Theatre; Sheffield, Lyceum Theatre; Aberdeen, His Majesty’s Theatre; Glasgow, King’s Theatre concluding at Plymouth’s Theatre Royal in August.
Singin’ in the Rain features songs by Nacio Herb Brown and Arthur Freed, including Make ‘em Laugh, Good Morning, Moses Supposes and Singin’ in the Rain. Original screenplay and adaptations are by Betty Comden and Adolph Green. Reuniting the original Chichester production team, Singin’ in the Rain will be directed by Jonathan Church, with Olivier Award-nominated choreography by Andrew Wright. The production is designed by Simon Higlett, with lighting by Tim Mitchell. Stuart Burt is Casting Director. Please see here for full cast biographies.
This production of Singin’ in the Rain opened at Chichester Festival Theatre and extended due to unprecedented public demand, before a transfer to London which received huge critical acclaim and four Olivier Award nominations.
It played to more than 750,000 people…. some leaving the theatre a little wetter than when they arrived! The iconic rain scenes:
Use 6k litres of water, equivalent to 5 tonnes (here's a list of things which also weigh 5 tonnes: 2 Rhinos, 11 Grand Pianos or 30 Panda Bears!)
Uses over 100 metres of heavy-duty rubber hose
Takes 15 minutes to drain. Afterwards, it is recovered, it is then recycled, cleaned and used again
Heats the water to 37 degrees for performer comfort!
The stage production of Singin’ in the Rain is based on the classic Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer film, regularly voted the most popular film musical of all time.
