National Tour of DIRTY ROTTEN SCOUNDRELS Announces Full Cast, Including Michael Praed

The Ambassador Theatre Group (Jersey Boys, Priscilla Queen of the Desert, West Side Story) and Jerry Mitchell Productions are delighted to announce further casting for the national tour of DIRTY ROTTEN SCOUNDRELS.

DIRTY ROTTEN SCOUNDRELS stars Michael Praed as Lawrence, Noel Sullivan as Freddy and Carley Stenson as Christine. Mark Benton guest stars as Andre until Saturday 5 September 2015. From Tuesday 8 September 2015 Gary Wilmot will star as Andre.

Prepare to be transported to the luxurious lap of the French Riviera where the decadent world of sophisticated conman Lawrence Jameson is set to come crashing down with the arrival of larger-than-life Freddy Benson - a conman of an entirely different order.

Soon realising the town ain't big enough for the both of them, the two find themselves going head to head in the con of their lives, pulling out all of the stops in a bid for the affections of millionaire soap heiress Christine Colgate. Little do they know what they've let themselves in for.

Direct from London's West End, the critically acclaimed Best New Musical of 2014 ran for a year to rave reviews, packed houses and was also nominated for the Olivier Award for Best Choreography. The hit musical DIRTY ROTTEN SCOUNDRELS is based on the legendary 1988 film Dirty Rotten Scoundrels starring Michael Caine and Steve Martin.

Praise for the national tour of DIRTY ROTTEN SCOUNDRELS:

"A laugh-out-loud delight of a show; in the mode of The Book of Mormon or Matilda The Musical. New, joyful and refreshing." Midlands Newsquest

"It's glitzy, sassy and wittily entertaining" WhatsonStage

"A supremely slick, spirited and laugh-out-loud delight of a show" Stourbridge News

"The band of classic conmen are heading to a theatre near you and you'd be crazy not to get a ticket and enjoy their antics. This classic film is now a classic musical!" British Theatre Guide

It's not hard to see why this was voted one of the best musical events of 2014, expect to see a similar headline for 2015!" What's on UK

Michael Praed (Lawrence) is best known for his TV roles including 'Robin Hood' in "Robin of Sherwood", 'Prince Michael' in "Dynasty" and 'Phileas Fogg' in "The Secret Adventures of Jules Verne." On stage his credits include 'Captain Von Trapp' in the national tour of "The Sound of Music"; 'Tony' in "Copacabana"; 'Alex' in "Aspects of Love" and 'Sir Robert Chiltern' in the national tour of "An Ideal Husband".

Noel Sullivan (Freddy) is best known as a member of the British pop group Hear'Say. His theatre credits include 'Drew' in the national tour of "Rock of Ages"; 'Tick' in the "Priscilla Queen of the Desert" and 'Galileo' in "We Will Rock You." His TV appearances include a guest appearance in the hugely successful "Gavin and Stacey".

Carley Stenson (Christine) is best known to TV audiences for her long running role as 'Steph' in "Hollyoaks". Her recent theatre credits include: 'Lady of the Lake' in "Spamalot" at the Playhouse Theatre; 'Princess Fiona' in "Shrek" at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane and 'Elle Woods' in "Legally Blonde the Musical" at the Savoy Theatre.

Mark Benton (Andre) is known to millions for playing maths teacher, 'Daniel Chalk' in "Waterloo Road". He has had a prolific TV career with roles in "Kavanagh QC", "Ballykissangel", "Silent Witness", "Doctor Who", "Murphy's Law", "Holby City", "Hustle" and "Northern Lights". In 2013 he was a contestant on Strictly Come Dancing. His stage credits include 'Henry Horatio Hobson' in "Hobson's Choice" at Regent's Park Open Air Theatre, 'Edna Turnblad' in the UK tour of "Hairspray" and 'Mr. Perks in the "Railway Children" at Waterloo Station. His film credits include: Mike Leigh's "Career Girls", Anthony Minghella's "Breaking and Entering" and Terry Gilliam's "The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus".

Gary Wilmot (Andre) originally played the role in the West End production of "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels" and is currently appearing as 'Ali Hakim' in the UK tour of "Oklahoma!". His previous theatre credits include: 'Vernon Hines' in "The Pajama Game" at the Shaftesbury Theatre; 'Caractacus Potts' in "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang" at the Palladium; 'Fagin' in "Oliver" on UK tour and 'Tony' in "Copacabana" at the Prince of Wales Theatre. His TV credits include: "Don Black - Diamonds are Forever, "Cue Gary", "Showstoppers", "The Saturday Gang", "Copycats" and "Never Mind The Buzzcocks".

The rest of the company includes Emma Caffrey; Andy Conaghan; Phoebe Coupe; Geraldine Fitzgerald; Soophia Foroughi; Jonny Godbold; Orla Gormley; Patrick Harper; Justin Lee-Jones; Jordan Livesey; Lisa Mathieson; Andy Rees; Freya Rowley; Regan Shepherd; Kevin Stephen-Jones; Katie Warsopand Jenny Wickham.

DIRTY ROTTEN SCOUNDRELS is directed and choreographed by the Tony Award winning Jerry Mitchell in his debut production for Jerry Mitchell Productions. Recently nominated for an Olivier Award for Best Choreography for DIRTY ROTTEN SCOUNDRELS, Jerry's many other award winning credits include the direction and choreography for Kinky Boots, currently Broadway's biggest Tony Award winning hit and due to open in London's West End this Summer, Legally Blonde and Hairspray. DIRTY ROTTEN SCOUNDRELShas music and lyrics by Drama Desk Award winner David Yazbek (Late Night with David Letterman, The Full Monty) and book by the Golden Globe and Emmy-Award winning Jeffrey Lane (Mad About You).

Jerry Mitchell Productions is a partnership between the Ambassador Theatre Group (ATG) and Tony Award winner Jerry Mitchell. Jerry Mitchell Productions will work to develop, create and produce new productions, focussing on a wide range of projects from new commissions to fresh, innovative versions of classic pieces for ATG Theatres in London, New York and around the World.