Theatre News

Richard III rock opera postponed

”Richard Rocks” was due to premiere in east London next month

The premiere of Richard Rocks, a new rock opera inspired by Richard III, has been postponed.

The production was due to be staged in the Great Hall of The People's Palace in London, opening on 7 October 2015.

Partly inspired by Al Pacino's 1996 film Looking for Richard, it's composed by Swedish pair Peter Robsahm and Maria Robsahm.

Directed by Staffan Aspegren, it was due to feature "cutting edge lighting, sound design, video and computer animation".

According to a show representative it will now open in 2016 in a revised concert version, with a new venue due to be announced at a later date.

Richard III, the monarch who became one of Shakespeare's greatest villains, has been the subject of renewed interest since the discovery of his skeleton in a Leicester car park in 2012.