Jamie Muscato and Laura Jane Matthewson lead the cast of Dogfight at Southwark Playhouse

Casting has been announced for Dogfight, the new book musical based on the 1991 movie of the same name starring River Phoenix and Lili Taylor.

Heading the London cast in the central roles of Eddie and Rose are Jamie Muscato (The Light Princess, Les Miserables, Rock of Ages, Love Story and Spring Awakening) and Laura Jane Matthewson in her London stage debut in a starring role.

Joining them are Emily Olive Boyd, Cellen Chugg Jones, Nicholas Corre (West End Men), Matthew Cutts (Victor/Victoria, Starlight Express, Saturday Night Fever and Grease), Joshua Dowen (Cool Rider), Ciaran Joyce (Les Misérables, The Story of Tracy Beaker), Amanda Minihan (Merrily We Roll Along, Sister Act, The Producers), Rebecca Trehearn (Ghost on tour, Love Story, Dirty Dancing, We Will Rock You, Aspects of Love) and Samuel J. Weir (Parade, Carnival of the Animals, Monkee Business, Les Misérables feature film).

November 21, 1963. The night before their deployment to Vietnam, three young Marines set out for one final boys’ night of debauchery. But when Corporal Eddie Birdlace meets Rose, the unassuming and idealistic waitress he enlists to win a cruel bet, she rewrites the rules of the game and opens his eyes to what really matters in life.

The show premièred Off-Broadway in 2012, winning the Lucille Lortel Award for Outstanding Musical and it was also nominated for five Outer Critics Circle and two Drama Desk Awards.

Dogfight, which is directed by Matthew Ryan (Les Miserables, Miss Saigon) and produced by Danielle Tarento (Titanic, Victor/Victoria, Three Sisters for Southwark Playhouse), runs from Friday 8 August – Saturday 13 September.