Webber Declines Another UK Reality Show; Says He Will Cast 'Wizard of Oz' In 2010 After Phantom 2

The Guardian is reporting that Andrew Lloyd Webber has turned down an offer to cast another West End production via reality television. Webber lent his wisdom to the BBC1 talent search competition "I'd Do Anything", where contestants from all over the UK competed for a chance to star in a West End production of Oliver!

Webber states, however, that he is not ruling out another series in the future. He plans on returning to the small screen in 2010 to cast the roles of Dorothy and possibly Toto for an upcoming production of The Wizard of Oz. He sites the reasons for an immediate decline as two fold; one, he must take time away to work on his own upcoming launch of Phantom 2 and two, for his next venture into reality casting he wants it to be in a situation where he has some personal stake in the production.

Of "I'd Do Anything" he states, "I think Oliver didn't connect half as well (compared to prior shows 'How Do You Solve a Problem Like a Maria?' and 'Any Dream Will Do') with the public because neither had I wrote Oliver or was I producing it. I think the public likes the thought of my head being on the block so to speak. That it's a risk. The BBC can't be seen to be promoting my work. I enjoyed doing Oliver and there were good kids that came out of it. But I don't think it had quite the same range of appeal."

Of his latest project, Phantom 2, Webber goes on to say, "I have my own musical in Phantom 2 to get on with and bits and pieces to do in America...The problem with Phantom 2 is I can't produce the show in full. So I can't commit to a BBC show until 2010. I can't just do them – I need to be involved in producing it and you need a team, a theatre and everything else. And Phantom 2 is my first concern right now."

Webber has been working on the sequel to the hit Broadway musical for over a year now. Back in May, BroadwayWorld.com reported that the title of the sequel was being workshopped as Phantom of the Opera: Once Upon Another Time. After several readings including a private workshop at Weber's estate, the musical is currently being developed in the UK.

Webber's many other hits as a composer include Jesus Christ Superstar, Evita, Cats and Sunset Boulevard

The Phantom of the Opera features music by Webber and lyrics by Charles Hart, with additional lyrics by Charles Stilgoe.  One of the most successful musicals of all time, Phantom - which is based on the novel by Gaston Leroux - plays in numerous productions around the world and last year, became Broadway's longest-running musical.  It concerns the masked composer of the title, who haunts the Paris Opera House and longs for lovely young soprano Christine Daae.

Adapted for the stage by L. Frank Baum himself, the original stage version of The Wizard of Oz tells the story of Dorothy and her pet dog Toto kidnapped by a twister and set down somewhere in the land of the Munchkins. There, they meet the Scarecrow, the Tin Woodman, and the Cowardly Lion, and together with their new friends, they set off to find the Wizard in the Emerald City of Oz.

The Wizard of Oz premiered at the Majestic Theatre on January 20, 1903 with a cast that featured David Montgomery, FrEd Stone, Anna Laughlin, Arthur Hill, Bessie Wynn, and Grace Kimball. The classic 1939 screen version featured Judy Garland, Frank Morgan, Ray Bolger, Bert Lahr, and Jack Haley, as well as a new score by Harold Arlen and E.Y. Harburg.

Visit www.andrewlloydwebber.com for more information.

Photo Credit Walter McBride/Retna Ltd.