UK's WhatsOnStage Awards Take Place 2/15, Event Almost Sold Out

The Press notes have announced that James Corden shocked the audience at last year's Whatsonstage.com Theatregoers' Choice Awards with a steamy on-stage kiss with Harry Potter" star Daniel Radcliffe - a moment that made headlines around the world.

What will happen this Sunday when Gavin & Stacey's Corden and Two Pints of Lager's Sheridan Smith host the 2009 Whatsonstage.com Theatregoers' Choice Awards, at the Prince of Wales Theatre?

One guaranteed highlight of the awards and concert, is an exclusive world premiere sneak preview of "Moonshadow", the new West End-bound musical by Yusuf Islam, the British singer-songwriter formerly known as Cat Stevens. Siobhan McCarthy, the original Donna Sheridan in "Mamma Mia!", will sing the Cat Stevens' ballad "Wild World" from "Moonshadow".

The new musical is written by Yusuf Islam and features other Cat Stevens' hits from the 1960s and 70s such as "Morning Has Broken", "Peace Train", "Father and Son", "Oh Very Young" and the song from which the show takes its title. Moonshadow is scheduled to have a tryout in Northampton in July 2009 ahead of a planned West End transfer. Siobhan McCarthy's other West End credits include Medea, Blood Brothers, Dancing at Lughnasa, Les Miserables, Chess, On Your Toes, Jesus Christ Superstar and Evita. She was nominated for a Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Musical for originating the lead role of Donna Sheridan in Mamma Mia!. The Whatsonstage.com Awards Concert will also feature a performance by the tenth anniversary company of the Abba musical, which, since premiering in London in 1999, has become an international blockbuster on both stage and screen.

Terri Paddock, editorial director of Whatsonstage.com, said today: "On Awards night, we'll be handing out prizes honouring the best of the past theatre year, but we also aim to give audiences a preview of some of the hottest new shows, like 'Moonshadow', which will no doubt be in contention for future awards. Theatregoers lucky enough to get a ticket are in for a massive treat on the 15th."

At the Awards Concert, McCarthy and Moonshadow join a line-up that also features: Ramin Karimloo, the current West End Phantom of the Opera, who is tipped to play the title role in Andrew Lloyd Webber's hugely anticipated Phantom sequel, entitled Love Never Dies; the casts of the just-opened UK premiere of Tony Award winner Spring Awakening and Four Seasons blockbuster Jersey Boys; Award nominees Elena Roger (Piaf), Leila Benn Harris (Imagine This), Ryan Molloy and Stephen Ashfield (Jersey Boys); X Factor finalist turned Blood Brothers star Niki Evans; I'd Do Anything competitors Samantha Barks and Sarah Lark; and American diva Kim Criswell; as well as Suranne Jones, Julie Atherton, Glenn Carter, Ray Shell, Jimmy Johnston and Jackie Marks.

Three days after the Whatsonstage.com Awards, Corden - along with his Gavin & Stacey co-star Mathew Horne and Kylie Minogue - will host the Brit Awards at Earl's Court.

The Whatsonstage.com Awards Concert incorporates live trophy presentations to selected winners in the only major theatre prize-giving decided by members of the public, over 35,000 of whom voted in this year's Awards. The concert is directed and devised by Russell Labey, with musical supervision by Iain Vince Gatt, lighting by Mike Robertson, sound by Ben Harrison and staging by Andrew Wright. It's produced by Stuart Piper and Jason Haigh-Ellery on behalf of Whatsonstage.com and held in aid of our 2009 adopted charity TheatreMAD (Theatre: Make a Difference), which supports those living with HIV, AIDS and other long-term conditions. How Do You Solve a Problem Like Maria? and The Sound of Music star Connie Fisher will present on behalf of the charity on the night.

Tickets for the 15 February Awards Concert are nearly sold out, a final allocation has been released today! Prices range from £15 to £40. To book, call the Prince of Wales box office on 0844 482 5133 or book online at http://awards.whatsonstage.com

 

 

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