Partridge, Strallen, Zimmerman and Hamilton-Barritt Announced For A CHORUS LINE

The principal casting for the Palladium production of the classic musical A Chorus Line has been announced!

The role of imperious director Zach will be played by West End leading man and TV star John Partridge, best known for his role as Christian Clarke in EastEnders. John has appeared in numerous musical theatre productions including Cats, Starlight Express, Tommy, Grease, The Drowsy Chaperone, Rent and Miss Saigon. John is currently one of the presenters of the National Lottery programme and he was selected by the BBC to join Andrew Lloyd Webber, Charlotte Church and Sheila Hancock as a judge on BBC1’s Over The Rainbow.

Scarlett Strallen is currently starring as Kathy in the West End production of Singin’ in the Rain, for which she received an Olivier Award nomination. Her previous theatre work includes Clara in Passion at the Donmar Warehouse, the title role in Mary Poppins in the West End and on Broadway and Truly Scrumptious in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang at the London Palladium.

Leigh Zimmerman has appeared twice in the West End production of Chicago playing Velma Kelly and in 2005 she was Olivier nominated for her role as Ulla in The Producers at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane. Her Broadway credits include The Will Rogers Follies, Crazy For You and A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum.

Victoria Hamilton-Barritt was most recently seen playing Gypsy Rose Lee in Leicester Curve’s production of Gypsy. She also played the lead role of Alex in Flashdance in the West End. She also played the lead role of Maria in the international tour of West Side Story.

Following the announcement of a limited season through to July 2013, booking has now been extended to January 2014.

Michael Bennett’s production of A Chorus Line won nine Tony Awards and the Pulitzer Prize for Drama when it opened on Broadway in 1975 and went on to become the then longest running musical on Broadway achieving an astonishing 6137 performances. It features some of musical theatre’s best loved songs: One (Singular Sensation), What I Did For Love, I Can Do That, Hello Twelve, Hello Thirteen, Hello Love and Hope I Get It.

For the first time since its first London season, which opened in 1976 and won the Olivier Award for Best Musical, a full London revival of the Broadway Production will be staged at the London Palladium from February 5th 2013, with a press night on Tuesday February 19th.

The production will be directed by Broadway and West End veteran director and choreographer Bob Avian. Avian was Michael Bennett’s long term collaborator and his co-choreographer on the original production. Avian was also responsible for directing the 2006 Broadway revival of A Chorus Line.

Andrew Lloyd Webber said: “I am delighted to welcome A Chorus Line into The London Palladium. This classic Broadway production has not been seen in the West End for almost 35 years. Marvin Hamlisch was a great friend and supporter in my early career and I can think of no more fitting tribute to him than this major revival.”

This long anticipated revival will become a tribute to the show’s composer Marvin Hamlisch who tragically died in early August this year. Hamlisch’s contribution to the stage and screen is widely recognised as being seminal. Perhaps his best known songs include The Way We Were and Nobody Does It Better and along with his musical theatre work his scores for films include Ordinary People and Sophie’s Choice.