THE MIKADO Begins 27 November at Charing Cross Theatre

Director Thom Southerland, who wowed critics and public alike with award-winning, sold out productions of Titanic, Parade and Mack & Mabel, is next directing a radically re-conceived version of Gilbert & Sullivan's best-loved operetta, The Mikado.

The Mikado, with a Noël Coward sensitivity and G & S's delightful, much-loved score performed acoustically on two baby grand pianos, will open for a 6-week season at Charing Cross Theatre on Thursday 27 November 2014 and run to Saturday 3 January 2015.

Press night is Tuesday December 2 at 7.30pm

This Hobson's Choice-inspired take on The Mikado is set in the Titipu Umbrella and Fan Factory, owned by The Mikado. All the familiar characters and songs remain intact, including Yum-Yum, Peep-Bo, Pitti-Sing, who sing the classic "Three little maids from school are we", as workers in the department providing fans for local schools.

Rebecca Caine (Katisha) has sung internationally and is renound for her West End starring roles as Christine in The Phantom of the Opera and the original Cosette in Les Miserables. Most recently Rebecca has been touring across the UK with The Three Phantoms as their leading lady. Her other stage work includes 'Lady Raeburn' in Tete a Tete's Salad Days at Riverside Studios, 'Elsa' in The Sound of Music at Kilworth House Theatre and 'Lady Vale' in Darling of the Day at The Union Theatre.

Mark Heenehan (The Mikado) recently played Brannigan in Chichester Festival Theatre's production of Guys & Dolls and Peron in the No1 UK tour of Evita. His other musical theatre starring roles include Cord Elam in Oklahoma!. (West End), Gen Harrison in Kiss Me Kate (Old Vic), Judge Turpin in Sweeney Todd.

The rest of the cast are: Matthew Crowe (Marconi wireless operator Bride in Titanic at Southwark Playhouse), Leigh Coggins, Hugh Osborne, Steve Watts, Jacob Chapman, Sophie Rohan, Cassandra McCowan, Alyssa Martin, Kayleigh McKnight, Andrew Dovaston, Josh Wylie, Zac Wancke, George Tebbutt.

Thom Southerland (Director) was longlisted Best Newcomer in the 2011 Evening Standard Awards for Parade. He was named Best Director at the 2011 The Offies - Off West End Theatre Awards - for Me And Juliet at the Finborough. He directed Titanic, Victor/Victoria, Mack & Mabel and Parade (Southwark Playhouse); Daisy Pulls It Off, Irving Berlin's Call Me Madam! (Upstairs At The Gatehouse); the European première of I Sing!, Divorce Me, Darling!, Annie Get Your Gun, The Pajama Game and sold-out all-male adaptations of Gilbert and Sullivan's HMS Pinafore and The Mikado (Union); Noël and Gertie (Cockpit); the European première of The Unsinkable Molly Brown (Landor); and the European première of State Fair (Finborough & transfer to Trafalgar Studios). He will next direct the European premiere of Jerry Herman's The Grand Tour at the Finborough theatre in January 2015.

The Mikado, with music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W. S. Gilbert, was their ninth of 14 operatic collaborations. It opened on 14 March 1885, in the West End, where it ran at the Savoy Theatre for 672 performances, which was the second longest run for any work of musical theatre and one of the longest runs of any theatre piece up to that time. By the end of 1885, it was estimated that, in Europe and America, at least 150 companies were producing the opera. The Mikado remains one of the most frequently played musical theatre pieces in history.

To post a comment, you must register and login.