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Captain Corelli's Mandolin star Alex Mugnaioni gives us five ways to woo this summer

The stage version of the novel has just arrived in the West End

Alex Mugnaioni
Alex Mugnaioni
As the luxuriously romantic stage adaptation of Captain Corelli's Mandolin lands in the West End, we asked the lead star Alex Mugnaioni to give us five ways to woo this summer.

Mugnaioni plays the titular heartstring-tugging and mandolin-plucking captain in the piece, which initially toured the UK earlier this year.

Mugnaioni is joined in the show by Madison Clare as Pelagia, Fred Fergus as Francesco and Joseph Long as Dr Iannis.

Penned for the stage by Rona Munro (My Name is Lucy Barton), the piece is set on a Greek island and follows the life of Dr Iannis and his daughter Pelagia during the Italian and German occupation of World War II. In 2001 the novel was adapted into a film starring Nicolas Cage, Penélope Cruz and Christian Bale.

Completing the cast are Graeme Dalling as Soldier, Ryan Donaldson as Carlo, Ashley Gayle as Mandras, Eliot Giuralarocca as Priest, Luisa Guerreiro as Goat, Kezrena James as Lemoni, Eve Polycarpou as Drosoula, John Sandeman as Soldier, Stewart Scudamore as Velisarios, Kate Spencer as Günter and Elizabeth Mary Williams as Psipsina.

The production is directed by Olivier and Tony Award-nominee Melly Still (The Lovely Bones), with set and costume designs by Mayou Trikerioti, lighting design by Malcolm Rippeth, sound design by Jon Nicholls, projection design by Dom Baker for OD Vision and music composed by Harry Blake.

The show now runs at the Harold Pinter Theatre for a limited season until 31 August.