Frankie Goes to Bollywood musical to transfer to the Southbank Centre

Rifco Theatre Company, in collaboration with Watford Palace Theatre and HOME Manchester, will transfer new musical Frankie Goes to Bollywood to the Queen Elizabeth Hall at Southbank Centre.

The brainchild of Rifco’s artistic director, Pravesh Kumar, the musical delves into the journey of Frankie, a young woman who finds herself catapulted into the world of Bollywood after a chance encounter with a director. The show is currently having its world premiere at Watford Palace Theatre, and will embark on a national tour with a run at HOME in Manchester from 15 May.

Kumar said today: “Frankie is a multi-layered piece of theatre. It offers a sumptuous British spin on the glorious stories of Bollywood; a breathtakingly colourful journey of romance, sweeping songs and vibrant dance, juxtaposed with exploration of the darker undercurrent within the culture. This is a celebration of everything glorious and spectacular about Bollywood and Indian culture while highlighting less-positive experiences women face. I wanted to highlight this issue, because it’s men’s responsibility to shine a light on sexism, and to call it out whenever and wherever they see it. I hope this show is a catalyst.”

It has a book by Kumar, songs and music by Niraj Chag, songs and lyrics by Tasha Taylor Johnson and costume design by Andy Kumar. The cast includes Laila Zaidi, Helen K Wint, Shakil Hussain, Gigi Zahir, Navin Kundra and Katie Stasi.

Kumar added: “We have been blown away by responses to the show – the pre-sales for our opening venue have been phenomenal to the point where Frankie has almost outsold presales for any other performance at Watford Palace Theatre. We are so excited to come to Southbank and continue meeting what is clearly pent-up demand for authentic South Asian theatre in the UK.”

After HOME, the show will play in Hayes, Hornchurch, Wolverhampton, Bradford, Windsor, Coventy and Cardiff. Frankie Goes to Bollywood will play to audiences at the Queen Elizabeth Hall from 31 July to 18 August 2024, with tickets on sale now.