Mary Poppins to return to the West End with Zizi Strallen and Charlie Stemp

Zizi Strallen will star as Mary Poppins in a West End run of the hit show, it has been announced.

Running at the Prince Edward Theatre (following the closing of Aladdin), Strallen returns to the role following her performance in the UK tour of the production. She'll be joined by Charlie Stemp (Half a Sixpence), who plays Burt in the show.

The creative team is led by director Richard Eyre, with co-direction and choreography by Matthew Bourne, co-choreography by Stephen Mear, set and costume designs by Bob Crowley, lighting design by Natasha Katz, sound design by Paul Gatehouse and orchestrations by William David Brohn.

Mary Poppins has a book by Downton Abbey creator Julian Fellowes and includes the classic songs "Jolly Holiday", "Step in Time", "Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious" and "Feed the Birds" by the Sherman Brothers. The stage production originally opened in the West End in December 2004, running for three years and over 1,250 performances.

Producer Cameron Mackintosh said: "I'm thrilled to be bringing the internationally acclaimed new staging of Pamela Travers' magical stories back to London in the autumn of 2019, with Disney, featuring the dazzling talents of Zizi Strallen and Charlie Stemp as Mary and Bert. The original production, over 14 years ago, only played London and Broadway and subsequently was revised and continues to be staged around the world with phenomenal success.

"The recent UK tour, starring Zizi as Mary, broke box office records everywhere it played. It has been particularly gratifying that the stage musical with its brilliant script by Julian Fellowes and wonderful new score by Stiles and Drewe, complementing the Sherman Brothers' classic songs, has taken on its own magical life separate from the film, appealing to audiences of all ages and nationalities."

Tickets for the show will be available from January 2019.