The Calendar Girls musical revival announces casting

The Theatre by the Lake has announced full casting for its summer production of Calendar Girls the Musical, which will run from 6 August to 5 September, with a press night on 7 August.

Based on the true story of a group of Yorkshire women who create a nude calendar to raise funds following the death of a much-loved husband, the musical features a book by Tim Firth and music and lyrics by Gary Barlow.

The cast will include Angela Caesar, Pippa Duffy, Sarah Groarke, Rachel Hammond, Matt Heslop, Karen Holmes, Matt Ian Kelly, Annie Kirkman, Christina Meehan, Alicia McKenzie, Neil Moors and Fenella Norman. Several performers return to Keswick, including Groarke, who previously appeared in The Borrowers and The Blonde Bombshells of 1943, Kelly following Brassed Off, and McKenzie after Quality Street.

The production will also feature a community ensemble, with local participants aged 16 and above joining the professional company on stage.

Directed by Paul Robinson, the staging will be presented in the round. Set and costume design are by Helen Coyston, musical direction and associate direction is by Alex Weatherill, choreography and intimacy direction by Stephanie Dattani, lighting is by Jane Lalljee, sound is by Simon Slater and casting is by Annelie Powell.

The production is a co-production with Stephen Joseph Theatre, New Wolsey Theatre and Octagon Theatre Bolton. Following its Keswick run, the show will tour to Ipswich and Bolton after opening in Scarborough earlier in the summer.