Curve Leicester's The Wizard of Oz announces 2023 UK tour and moves Christmas run to 2022

Exclusive: Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice's version of iconic piece The Wizard of Oz will now play at Curve Leicester in 2022 ahead of a UK tour the subsequent year.

Based on the iconic MGM film, the musical features iconic numbers by Harold Arlen and E Y Harburg including "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" and "Follow The Yellow Brick Road", alongside new music and lyrics penned by Lloyd Webber and Rice. The book is by Lloyd Webber and Jeremy Sams.

Casting and the creative team for the production are to be announced. Previous Curve Christmas productions have included Scrooge, White Christmas (which transferred to the West End ahead of a tour this Christmas) and most recently West Side Story.

To fill the show's place this Christmas, the venue has unveiled a production of hit Broadway musical A Chorus Line.

Curve's chief executive Chris Stafford and artistic director Nikolai Foster said: "Christmas at Curve is always a special time, but as we re-open our theatre and come together, this year promises to be the most joyous, life-enriching and singularly sensational Christmas at Curve so far. And whilst the road to OZ might be a little longer than any of us could ever have imagined, we know it will be well worth the wait.

"We look forward to finally reaching the Emerald City in 2022 and working with the team at Really Useful Group and our co-producer Michael Harrison on a UK tour in early 2023. As ever, thank you to our incredibly loyal audiences for your patience and navigating these extraordinary times alongside us with such understanding."

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