Lesley Sharp & Marc Warren Head up Little VoiceDate: 20 August 2009
Further casting has been announced for Terry Johnson's forthcoming West End revival of Jim Cartwright's Olivier Award-winning comedy The Rise and Fall of Little Voice (See News, 9 Jul 2009), which opens at the Vaudeville Theatre on 20 October 2009 (previews from 8 October).
Joining X Factor star Diana Vickers, who steps into Jane Horrocks' shoes in the title role, are Lesley Sharp as Mari, and Marc Warren as Ray Say. The cast also features Rachel Lumbert as Sadie and the playwright's 24-year-old son James Cartwright as Billy.
Billed as a “savage black comedy-drama”, The Rise and Fall of Little Voice concerns a about painfully shy, diminutive Little Voice (LV), who lives alone in the north of England with her mother, Mari. Mari’s drunken, overbearing personality has driven LV into seclusion in her bedroom, where she listens to her late father’s records and has perfected faultless impersonations of the greatest divas, including Judy Garland and Dame Shirley Bassey. When Mari’s latest boyfriend, small-time working men’s club impresario Ray Say, overhears LV singing, he puts in place a tragic sequence of events as he pushes her towards stardom she doesn’t want and is literally terrified of.
Lesley Sharp has enjoyed a prolific and award-winning career in theatre, television and film. On stage, she has had a number of leading roles at the National Theatre and Royal Court, most recently at the NT in Harper Regan. Her television roles include Cranford, After Life, Bob and Rose, Clocking Off and three series of Playing the Field. Film work includes two films for Mike Leigh, Vera Drake and Naked, as well as The Full Monty.
Marc Warren is best known for his television work including Hustle, Messiah and comedy series Mutual Friends. He won the Royal Television Society Best Actor Award in 2000, and has made a number of films, most recently Wanted with Angelina Jolie. Earlier this year he appeared on stage as Katurian in Martin McDonagh’s The Pillowman at Leicester Curve, which marked his first return to the stage following a seven-year absence (See News, 2 Sep 2009).
Marc Warren, Lesley Sharp & Diana Vickers Little Voice is designed by Lez Brotherston, with musical supervision by Nigel Lilley, lighting by Mark Henderson and sound by Ian Dickinson. It's produced in the West End by Nica Burns, Max Weitzenhoffer, TFP, Josephine Genetay.
- by Theo Bosanquet
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