Vivian Panka Archives - North West End UK

Dear Evan Hansen – Alexandra Theatre, Birmingham

23Oct

By Peter KinnockNo Comments

West Midlands

Dear Evan Hansen – Alexandra Theatre, Birmingham

If you were born in this new century and nestle within the demographic that favours “Glee” “Big Bang Theory” then “Dear Evan Hansen” seems designed just for you. For those of us outside that very slim group it remains an anomaly. The show itself has an undoubted pedigree having opened on Broadway in 2016 with music and lyrics by Benji Pasek and Justin Paul (whose credits include the glorious “The Greatest Showman” and the awful sounding “Tom and Jerry: Back to Oz”) with a book by Steven Levenson, produced by Marc Platt and starring Ben Platt - note the shared surname making lesser critics wonder if that nepo-element may go some way to explain the show’s weaknesses, but, hey, it won nine Tony Awards! The show has toured endlessly, had a long West End, a badly received film - and people love...

11Jun

By NewsdeskNo Comments

NEWS

Casting announced for brand-new UK tour of Dear Evan Hansen with a little help from TikTok

The full cast is announced for the brand-new production of the Olivier, Tony and Grammy award-winning Best Musical Dear Evan Hansen. Ryan Kopel (Newsies) will play the iconic role of Evan Hansen, alongside Lauren Conroy (Into The Woods) as Zoe Murphy and Alice Fearn (Wicked, Come From Away) as Evan’s mum, Heidi. They will be joined by Helen Anker (Mamma Mia!) as Cynthia Murphy, Richard Hurst (The Lion King) as Larry Murphy, Killian Thomas Lefevre (Bat Out Of Hell) as Connor Murphy, Tom Dickerson (Heathers) as Jared Kleinman, Vivian Panka (9 to 5 the Musical) as Alana Beck and Sonny Monaghan (discovered via TikTok) as alternate Evan. This is the first production of Dear Evan Hansen in the UK to perform the show with an ensemble. The ensemble are Lara Beth-Sas, Will Forgrave, Dan...

19May

By Paul DownhamNo Comments

NEWS

Casting announced for LIVE capture performance of Heathers the Musical

Bill Kenwright & Paul Taylor-Mills are excited to announce the cast for the eagerly anticipated recording of the hit production of Heathers the Musical, a project with Steam Motion and Sound. The cast for the filmed production are Ailsa Davidson (Veronica Sawyer), Simon Gordon (Jason “J.D” Dean), Maddison Firth (Heather Chandler), Vivian Panka (Heather Duke), Teleri Hughes (Heather McNamara), Vicki Lee Taylor (Ms. Fleming/Veronica’s Mom), Mhairi Angus (Martha Dunnstock), Liam Doyle (Kurt Kelly), Rory Phelan (Ram Sweeney), Oliver Brooks (Kurt’s Dad/Big Bud Dean/Coach Ripper), Andy Brady (Ram’s Dad/Principle Gowan/Veronica’s Dad), Benjamin Karran (Beleaguered Geek), Chris Parkinson (Hipster Dork/Officer McCord), Jermaine Woods (Peppy Stud/Officer Milner), Eleanor Morris...

9Feb

By Jo TillotsonNo Comments

Yorkshire & Humber

9 to 5: The Musical – Sheffield Lyceum

“Working 9 to 5, what a way to make a living / Barely getting by, it's all taking and no giving” I’m sure this sounds familiar, if not musically then probably existentially! One of country music’s most iconic singers, Dolly Parton, wrote these well-known lyrics back in 1980 for the film ‘9 to 5’, which she then transferred to the stage in 2008 with the help of book-writer Patricia Resnick. Parton’s fingerprints are everywhere, from the tone of the music and lyrics throughout, to her on-stage presence as the narrator of the story; that was a cute and unexpected touch, although I’m not sure that the story was complex enough to warrant the level of narration it got! 9 to 5 takes us to a corporate office in middle America where Judy is starting her first ever job having been dumped by...

9 to 5 The Musical – The Alexandra, Birmingham

17Nov

By Annette NuttallNo Comments

West Midlands

9 to 5 The Musical – The Alexandra, Birmingham

After an enforced break, this feel-good musical takes to the road again, stopping off in Birmingham for a week. Based on the 1980s film of the same name and of course, the iconic song, this show tells the tale of three woman (Doralee, Violet and Judy) with office jobs, struggling to get noticed in a man’s world. Their boss, Franklin Hart Jnr, has views that (hopefully) are outdated in the workplace today. Can the ladies get him to take them seriously? Being set in the 1980s, everything is of the era. The costumes, hair and make-up instantly transport you right back, as does the pared down set. Clever use of projection does the leg work for the scene setting allowing for a few well placed furniture items to create the location. The set changes create a choreographed musical interlude ...

3Nov

By Anne PritchardNo Comments

North West

9 to 5: The Musical – Liverpool Empire

In 2009, nearly 30 years after the film's release, 9 to 5 made its debut as a Broadway Musical with new songs written by Dolly Parton. It then made its way over to the West-End where it premiered in February 2019. Since its UK premiere, 9 to 5 The Musical, has been seen by over half a million people at over 450 performances. This is its second national UK tour. I can remember watching the film 9 to 5 in the early 1980’s starring Jane Fonda, Lily Tomlin and Dolly Parton and being blown away by it; straight from the start the music was gripping and of course the theme of feminism, equality and women’s rights was spot on. It was Dolly Parton’s acting debut, and she was fabulous as secretary to the story’s antagonist, exploitative boss. In a nutshell, the story is about three...