Cruel Intentions musical to have London premiere

Exclusive: Cruel Intentions: The ’90s Musical is heading to the London stage!

Based on the cult 1999 movie by Roger Kumble, starring Sarah Michelle Gellar, Reese Witherspoon, Ryan Phillippe and Selmar Blair, the show is created by Jordan Ross, Lindsey Rosin and Kumble.

Inspired by the French novel, Les Liaisons Dangereuses, the piece revolves around step-siblings and privileged Manhattan high school students Sebastian Valmont and Kathryn Merteuil, who engage in a cruel bet to seduce the headmaster’s virtuous daughter, Annette Hargrove. It received a favourable review from WhatsOnStage during its Edinburgh Fringe run in 2019.

It features a wealth of ’90s pop hits from artists such as Christina Aguilera (“Genie in a Bottle”), Britney Spears (“Sometimes”), Boyz II Men (“I’ll Make Love to You”), TLC (“No Scrubs”), Natalie Imbruglia (“Torn”), The Verve (“Bittersweet Symphony”), *NSYNC (“Bye Bye Bye”) Ace of Base (“‘I Saw the Sign”), and R.E.M. (“Losing My Religion”), among others.

Kumble commented: “The perfect 25th anniversary celebration of my 1999 film about a pair of hedonistic Manhattan step-siblings is seeing it re-imagined on the London stage as a musical. It’s an amazing show with a soundtrack loaded with all the greatest ‘90s guilty pleasure songs. Even people who hate musicals will love it!”

Produced by Bill Kenwright Ltd and directed by Jonathan O’Boyle, with choreography and associate direction by Gary Lloyd, Cruel Intentions: The ’90s Musical will run at the Other Palace from 11 January to 14 April 2024. A press night is scheduled for 19 January.

Casting and additional creative team members will be announced shortly.

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