Michael Matus is currently in rehearsals for The Astonishing Times of Timothy Cratchit at the Hope Mill Theatre. His other credits include The Split (Sister Pictures/BBC), Richard III(UK Tour), ‘King Lear’(The Duke Of York's Theatre), ‘Broken Glass’ (Watford Palace), ‘The Wizard of Oz’ (The Crucible Theatre) ‘The Roman Actor’(RSC), ‘Endeavour’ (ITV), A Midsummer Nights Dream (The Globe), Phantom of the Opera(Her Majesty's Theatre), Oklahoma! (Chichester Festival Theatre), Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown (West End), The Sound of Music (Regents Park), Imagine This (West End) and Lend Me A Tenor (West End), to name only a handful!
You’re about to star in The Astonishing Times of Timothy Cratchit at the Hope Mill Theatre this Christmas season. Tell us a bit about the show.
It’s tiny Tim at 16, looking for work, wanting to break free from uncle Srooge, his crutch and explore the world, filling the void left by the loss of his Dad. He meets a circus troupe and things get wild.
And you’ll be playing Grimaldi, can you tell us a bit about the character?
Grimaldi leads the circus troupe. He’s vain and selfish, an impossible man with an incredible talent and energy. He meets Timothy and they form an inseparable bond.
This is a new musical written by Allan Knee, whats the process like for you as an actor working on a new musical?
I love it. It’s about adding/taking away from the canvas. It’s a huge privilege being at the inception of a show, and also the pressure to get it right is thrilling and addictive.
