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Stars Share Parts in New Tours of Sunday & Vagina

Marti Webb, former EastEnders Patsy Palmer and Steps pop star Faye Tozer will alternate in the upcoming tour of Andrew Lloyd Webber and Don Black’s solo song cycle, Tell Me on a Sunday, which launches on 16 February 2004 at Windsor’s Theatre Royal and then continues, until 3 July, to 19 further venues.

The part of a single English girl who conquers New York was originally written in 1979 for Webb, who’s currently reprising it until 14 February 2004 at the West End’s Gielgud Theatre, where she’s taken over from Denise Van Outen (See News, 31 Dec 2003).

Following Windsor, Tell Me on a Sunday will visit Manchester, Aberdeen, Sunderland, Brighton, Wimbledon, Birmingham, Nottingham, Hull, Edinburgh, Bristol, Eastbourne, Southend-on-Sea, Swansea, Woking, Liverpool, Milton Keynes and Sheffield. It’s presented on tour by Bill Kenwright.

Ahead of Tell Me on a Sunday, another female-only production hits the road again. Eve Ensler's celebration of female sexuality, The Vagina Monologues, starts its new 2004 schedule today (26 January) at Taunton’s Brewhouse, before continuing until 1 May to 31 further venues.

Linda Robson, Jean Boht, Lesley Joseph, Anneka Rice, Sarah Greene, Alison Newman (Footballers’ Wives) and Ellen Thomas (Teachers) will trade off presenting The Vagina Monologues, subtitled "An Anthropological Exploration", which reveals a series of different women's stories and experiences involving their genitalia. The material was gathered from hundreds of intimate interviews, conducted by Ensler, in which women were asked probing questions such as "If it (your vagina) could talk, what would it say?".

The production ran for over a year in the West End and was nominated for the 2002 Olivier Award for Best Entertainment. During the West End run, the production featured regularly refreshed three-strong companies, which have included stars such as Ruthie Henshall, Jerry Hall, Pam Ferris, Jenny Eclair, Maureen Lipman, Mariella Frostrup, Dannii Minogue, Kika Markham, Meera Syal, Sophie Dahl and Anita Dobson.

Every performance of The Vagina Monologues donates a portion of ticket sales to the V-day fund, that provides charitable aid to women and girls who have been victims of abuse and violence. Since May 2001, the current production has donated in excess of £130,000 to local charities.

Following Taunton, The Vagina Monologues will continue to Cornwall, Torquay, Bristol, Ipswich, Tunbridge Wells, Chatham, Jersey, Harlow, Catford, Newbury, Bury St Edmunds, Radlett, Derby, Bradford, York, Doncaster, Kings Lynn, Swansea, Darlington, Southampton, Cambridge, Weston-super-Mare, Swindon, Bath, Belfast, Buxton, Bracknell, Wellingborough, Brighton, Cheltenham and Worcester.

- by Terri Paddock

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