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Charlie & the Chocolate Factory musical premieres at Palladium, June 2013

Producers of a new musical version of Roald Dahl’s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory have confirmed that the show will premiere at the London Palladium in June 2013.

As previously rumoured, the new stage musical will be directed by Sam Mendes, with a book by David Greig and new songs from Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman, whose credits include the Tony Award-winning Hairspray.

Dahl’s popular story centres on the mysterious Willy Wonka, who is opening his Chocolate Factory for just one day, and the humble boy Charlie Bucket for whom it promises to be a mouth-watering chance to feast his eyes on sweets beyond his wildest imagination.

The production will be the second Dahl adaptation playing in London with the RSC’s multi award-winning Matilda the Musical continuing at the Cambridge Theatre.

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is produced by Warner Bros. Theatre Ventures, Neal Street Productions and Kevin McCormick. Tickets go on sale in October, with exact dates and casting still to be announced.

Set and costume design will be by Mark Thompson with choreography by Peter Darling (Matilda, Billy Elliot). Other members of the creative team include: Doug Besterman (orchestrations); Nicholas Skilbeck (music director); Paul Pyant (lighting designer); Paul Arditti (sound designer) and Jon Driscoll (video and projection designer).

Artwork for Charlie and the Chocolate Factory

More recently he was involved in a joint venture between The Old Vic and BAM in New York, The Bridge Project, for which he directed several productions including The Tempest, The Cherry Orchard, A Winter’s Tale and Richard III starring Kevin Spacey. His film credits include the Oscar-winning American Beauty (which also starred Spacey), Road To Perdition, Jarhead, Revolutionary Road and Away We Go. He is currently directing the 23rd James Bond film, Skyfall, which will be released in October 2012.

Scottish playwright David Greig’s work includes The Strange Undoing Of Prudencia Hart, Midsummer, Dunsinane, Damascus and Miniskirts Of Kabul. Adaptations include The Creditors (Donmar Warehouse and BAM, NYC), The Bacchae (Edinburgh International Festival and Lyric Theatre, Hammersmith), Tintin In Tibet (Barbican, Playhouse Theatre, London and National Tour) and Peter Pan (NTS, Traverse/Barbican). His previous work for children and young people includes The Monster In The Hall, Yellow Moon, Gobbo and Dr Korczcak’s Example. He is currently working with Film Four on a screen adaptation of his stage 'play with songs' Midsummer.

Currently at the London Palladium, Andrew Lloyd Webber’s new staging of The Wizard of Oz continues until 2 September. No further productions have yet been confirmed, though the Lincoln Centre revival of South Pacific is rumoured to be transferring later in the year.

- by Theo Bosanquet

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Internal Links
	South Pacific sails into Palladium after Wizard? - 17th Feb 2012 Gossip
	Mendes Brings Charlie & the Chocolate Factory Musical to London??? - 20th May 2011 Gossip

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