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Irish Maria Aoife Leads Chicago's Christmas Cast

As previously tipped (See The Goss, 22 Nov 2006), How Do You Solve A Problem Like Maria? finalist Aoife Mullholland will play Roxie Hart in Kander and Ebb’s Chicago at the Cambridge Theatre from 18 December to 13 January 2007, taking over from five-time Roxie Josefina Gabrielle (See News, 26 Oct 2006).

“Irish Maria” will be joined in the cast by Annette McLaughlin, who returns to the role of Velma Kelly for the third time, having starred in Anything Goes and Tomorrow Morning in the interim. McLaughlin will be in the cast until 27 January 2007. Ian Kelsey (Billy Flynn), Brenda Edwards (Mamma Morton) and Julian Sims (Amos Hart) continue in their roles until the end of January, although Kelsey will not be appearing from 14 to 20 December.

The London production of Chicago celebrated its ninth anniversary at the Cambridge Theatre on 18 November 2006, and its tenth anniversary in New York on 14 November.

The 1975 musical, which won the 1998 Laurence Olivier Award for Outstanding Musical Production as well as the 1998 Critics' Circle Award for Best Musical, is based on the play by Maurine Dallas Watkins and has a book by Fred Ebb and Bob Fosse, music by John Kander and lyrics by Fred Ebb.

The current stage revival is directed by Walter Bobbie and designed by John Lee Beatty, with choreography by Ann Reinking in the style of Bob Fosse. It opened at the West End’s Cambridge Theatre (where the original London production of the Kander and Ebb musical opened in April 1979 and ran for 603 performances) on 28 April 2006, after a record-breaking eight-and-a-half years at the Adelphi Theatre, where it opened in November 1997.

There will be no matinee performance of Chicago on Friday 22 December, and no performances on 24, 25 and 31 December.

- by Caroline Ansdell

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