1st Night Photos: Outhwaite’s Chocolate Charity

Menier Chocolate Factory alumni including Graham Norton (La Cage Aux Folles at the Playhouse), Hannah Waddingham, Kaisa Hammarlund, and Jessie Buckley (A Little Night Music) were at the Southwark venue last night to celebrate the opening night of its latest classic Broadway musical revival – Sweet Charity, starring Tamzin Outhwaite in the title role.

Sweet Charity – which has music by Cy Coleman, lyrics by Dorothy Fields and a book by Neil Simon, with original direction and choreography by Bob Fosse – takes a look at the seedy underbelly of 1960s New York. The gullible, enchanting heroine Charity Hope Valentine dances, laughs and cries her way through a series of whirlwind romances to show-stopping numbers including “Rhythm of Life”, “If My Friends Could See Me Now” and “Hey Big Spender”.

Charity was originally played by Gwen Verdon on Broadway and was immortalised in the 1969 film version by Shirley MacLaine. The musical was last revived in the West End in a 1998 production at the Victoria Palace starring Bonnie Langford. This time round, Matthew White directs and Stephen Mears choreographs.

TO SCROLL THROUGH ALL OF SWEET CHARITY’s 1st NIGHT PHOTOS,
JUST CLICK ON THE “NEXT >” LINKS BELOW THE FOLLOWING FRAME.
PHOTOS BY DAN WOOLLER FOR WHATSONSTAGE.COM.