TOP HAT Headed to Broadway with a Little Help from Tommy Tune?

TOP HAT is currently playing at the Aldwych Theatre, and will close on October 26 to make room for Andrew Lloyd Webber's new STEPHEN WARD musical, which is set to open in November 2013. Thare are plans for a UK tour in 2014-15.

The show has been said to be aimed towards Broadway since it first opened, with American producers on board from day one. Today, Michael Riedel reports in the New York Post that "Tune, now 74, is getting back in the game. At the behest of his good friend Jimmy Nederlander, a theater legend in his own right, Tune's in London inspecting a new show called 'Top Hat.'"

There's no official word yet on a transfer, or on what Tune's involvement might be. Stay tuned!

Performed by a cast of 31 and accompanied by a live band of 15, this new musical comedy includes Irving Berlin classics from the original movie. A further ten numbers have been interpolated from Berlin's 1200 strong back catalogue.

Top Hat won three 2013 Laurence Olivier awards for Best New Musical, Best Choreography (Bill Deamer), and Best Costume design (Jon Morrell) at the ceremony held on April 28.

The musical was nominated for seven Oliviers including, Best Actor in a Musical (Tom Chambers), Best Actress in a Musical (Summer Strallen), Best Set Design (Hildegard Bechtler) and Best Sound Design (Gareth Owen).Directed by Matthew White and choreographed by Bill Deamer, Top Hat has set designs by Hildegard Bechtler, costume designs by Jon Morrell, lighting design by Peter Mumford, sound by Gareth Owen, new orchestrations by Chris Walker, musical supervision by Richard Balcombe and musical direction by Daniel Jackson. With music and lyrics by Irving Berlin and based on the RKO motion picture, the screenplay by Dwight Taylor and Allan Scott has been adapted for the stage by Matthew White and Howard Jacques and is presented by arrangement with RKO Pictures LLC, Warner Bros Theatre Ventures Inc. and the Irving Berlin Music Company.

Top Hat is produced by Kenny Wax, and his partners on the production are Stewart Lane and Bonnie Comley, TEd Hartley, Flora Suk-Hwa Yoon and Lee Menzies.

For tickets and more information, visit: www.tophatonstage.com