The jukebox musical, soon to make the jump to Broadway, continues its London run at Shaftesbury Theatre.
The West End production of & Juliet is welcoming three new performers to its company: Nicolas Colicos, Billy Nevers, and Joe Foster. The show first opened November 2, 2019 at the Shaftesbury Theatre in London and is currently booking through September 2023.
Nicolas Colicos, whose previous credits include starring in the original London casts of Sister Act and Mamma Mia, will play Lance. Billy Nevers Francois, featured in the original ensemble of & Juliet and last seen in the Regent Park Open Air production of Legally Blonde, will return to the show to play Francois, and Joe Foster, who also appeared in Legally Blonde at Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre, will play May.
The cast continues with Miriam-Teak Lee as Juliet (2020 Olivier Award for Best Actress) with Cassidy Janson as Anne Hathaway (2020 Olivier Award for Best Supporting Actress), Oliver Tompsett as William Shakespeare, Tom Francis as Romeo, and Malinda Parris as Angelique.
The ensemble includes Ebony Clarke, Bessy Ewa, Collette Guitart, Cassandra Lee, Nathan Louis-Fernand, Zara MacIntosh, Carl Man, Christian Maynard, Rachel Moran, Owen Saward, Aaron Shales, Benjamin Terry and Suki Wong, who join Ivan De Freitas, Rhian Duncan, Alex Tranter, Sophie Usher, and Rhys Wilkinson.
Featuring a book by Schitt’s Creek writer and Emmy winner David West Read and music from Grammy winner Max Martin, & Juliet irreverently considers a new story for Shakespeare’s tragic heroine and lovestruck teenager Juliet in which she chooses to live after Romeo dies, with a score featuring familiar pop songs from the last three decades such as “Since U Been Gone,” “Roar,” “Baby One More Time,” “Larger Than Life,” “That’s The Way It Is,” and “Can’t Stop the Feeling.” The work premiered at Manchester Opera House in 2019 ahead of moving to the West End’s Shaftesbury Theatre, where it continues to play an open-ended run.
Luke Sheppard directs with choreographer Jennifer Weber, scenic designer Soutra Gilmour, costume designer Paloma Young, lighting designer Howard Hudson, sound designer Gareth Owen, and video and projections designer Andrzej Goulding. Bill Sherman serves as musical supervisor, orchestrator, and arranger, with Patrick Hurley as music director. Casting is by Stuart Burt.
The West End favorite is set to make its jump to Broadway this season, with performances set to start October 28 at the Stephen Sondheim Theatre. The show will officially open November 17. The Broadway debut follows the work’s North American premiere at Toronto’s Princess of Wales Theatre.