Ghetto Musical Imagine This Opens at New London

Imagine This, a new musical set in the Warsaw Ghetto during the Second World War, will transfer to the West End’s New London Theatre, where it opens on 19 November 2008 (previews from 4 November).

Premiered last summer at the Theatre Royal Plymouth, the musical revolves around a group of Polish actors in the Warsaw Ghetto in 1942 who stage plays to inspire hope and optimism within the Jewish community. However, with rumours of the Final Solution in the air, their play merges with the reality they are trying to escape and a dramatic love story unfolds.

Imagine This has music by Shuki Levy, lyrics by David Goldsmith and a book by Glenn Berenbeim. The production is directed by Open Air artistic director Timothy Sheader and designed by is Eugene Lee, who won both a Tony and a Whatsonstage.com Award for Wicked. It has costumes by Ann Hould-Ward and choreography by DV8’s Liam Steel, with lighting design by Tim Mitchell, orchestrations by Chris Walker and musical supervision by Phil Bateman.

In Plymouth, the cast of Imagine This included Stephen Ashfield, Peter Polycarpou, Gina Beck and Annette McLaughlin. Casting for the West End transfer has not yet been confirmed.

The New London has been dark since the premature closure, after just 79 performances, of
Trevor Nunn’s epic adaptation of Gone With the Wind on 14 June (See News, 31 May 2008). No other productions have been announced for the interim.

– by Terri Paddock