Cast for Karate Kid musical tour revealed

Exclusive: The Karate Kid – The Musical has announced its UK premiere casting.

The stage musical adapts the 1984 film starring Ralph Macchio and Pat Morita, which became a global hit and led to multiple sequels, a remake, and the Netflix series Cobra Kai. The latest instalment in the franchise, Karate Kid: Legends, featuring Jackie Chan and Ralph Macchio, was released last year.

The Karate Kid – The Musical received its world premiere in St Louis in 2022.

The new production is written by Robert Mark Kamen, who penned the original 1984 film, with music and lyrics by Drew Gasparini. It is directed by Amon Miyamoto with choreography by Keone and Mari Madrid.

Set to star will be Adrian Pang, who will lead the company as Mr Miyagi, with Gino Ochello as Daniel LaRusso, Abigail Amin as Ali Mills, Joe Simmons as Johnny Lawrence, Matt Mills as John Kreese, Sharon Sexton as Lucille LaRusso, and Finley Oliver as Freddie Fernandez.

The ensemble includes Ambra Caserotti, Johndeep More, Ria Tanaka, Elena Breschi, Aden Dzuda, Elliott Evans, El Haq Latief, Isaac J Lewis, Emily Rose-Davis, Aaron Archer, Dylan Blake-Colbet, Serenar Douch, Esme Rothero and Sok-Ho Trinh.

The creative team also includes scenic design by Derek McLane, costume design by Ayako Maeda, lighting design by Bradley King, sound design by Kai Harada, projection design by Peter Nigrini, orchestrations by John Clancy, music supervision and arrangements by Andrew Resnick, and wigs and hair design by Tommy Kurzman. It is produced by Naoya Kinoshita, Kumiko Yoshii, Kenny Wax and John Gore.

See the initial tour dates for the show.