Imelda Staunton Will Lead HELLO, DOLLY! in the West End in 2024

The previously-postponed production of Hello, Dolly!, starring Imelda Staunton in the title role, is now set to take place in the summer of 2024, Deadline reports.

As BroadwayWorld previously reported, the show was originally set to begin performances in the summer of 2020 at the West End's Adelphi Theatre, but was postponed due to the pandemic.

The musical was originally pushed back to 2022, but was delayed once more due to Staunton's casting as Queen Elizabeth in The Crown.

Deadline reports now that Staunton confirmed that she will definitely be taking on the role in 2024. Contract negotiations for a West End theater have been completed, but its name cannot yet be disclosed. Tony Award-nominee Jenna Russell was set to join Staunton as Irene Molloy, but it is not confirmed whether or not she will appear in the postponed production.

She reportedly had a meeting with composer Jerry Herman shortly before his death in 2019, at which he granted permission to adjust the show's opening scenes and make changes to one of the songs. Read the original story on Deadline.

Imelda Staunton most recently appeared on the West End in the 2018 revival Stephen Sondheim's Follies and her Olivier Award-winning performance as Mama Rose in Gypsy. Amongst her many other theatre credits, notable performances include Mrs Lovett in Sweeney Todd, for which she won an Olivier Award, Circle, Mirror, Transformation for the Royal Court and the role of Claire in Edward Albee's A Delicate Balance at The Almeida Theatre. In total, Staunton has been nominated for eleven Olivier Awards, winning four. On film Staunton is perhaps best known for playing the title role in Vera Drake, for which she received the BAFTA Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role, and for the role of Dolores Umbridge in the Harry Potter films.