Casting has been revealed for the upcoming 15th Anniversary West End concert of Steven Sater and Duncan Sheik’s Spring Awakening, taking the Victoria Palace Theatre June 2.
Directed by Jamie Armitage (SIX), with musical direction by Nigel Lilley (Newsies, Next to Normal, The Witches), the concert will star many members of the original West End cast, including Lucy May Barker (The Crucible) as Ilse, Natasha Barnes (Hex) as Anna, Harry McEntire (Andor) as Ernst, Hayley Gallivan (Wicked) as Martha, Evelyn Hoskins (Waitress) as Thea, Edward Judge (The Play That Goes Wrong) as Otto, Jamie Muscato (Moulin Rouge) as Melchior, Jos Slovick (Beautiful – The Carole King Musical) as Georg and Charlotte Wakefield (The Great British Bake Off Musical) as Wendla.
Other returning cast members include Chris Barton (The Sound of Music), Natalie Garner, Mona Goodwin (Misfits), Gemma O’Duffy (Priscilla: Queen of the Desert) and Richard Southgate (The Dogs of War).
Additional casting will be announced at a later date.
Based on the play by Frank Wedekind, Spring Awakening explores the mysteries of attraction, desire, sex, insecurity, and the highs and lows of navigating the pressures of young adult life. The Broadway production won eight Tony Awards, while the West End debut took four Oliviers.
Said Sheik in a previous statement, “Spring Awakening is the first musical I worked on that managed to get to Broadway and then the West End. Being in London in 2009 for opening night at the Novello with that young and amazing cast was one of the highlights of my life. It is more than exciting that 15 years on, London gets to experience this anniversary concert and I’m honored that I can be some small part of that.”
Sater added, “My youthful dream was to be a part of the theatre in London. So for me, our brilliant original production of Spring Awakening at the Lyric, and then at the Novello, was an answered prayer. Fifteen years later, to bring back that production for a one-night-only anniversary concert, is like having that prayer answered all over again.”
This anniversary concert will raise funds on behalf of Imogen Kinchin, one of the original producers of the show's West End bow. Proceeds will go to Imogen's Fund, the community effort that has sprung up to support her continued cancer treatment, raising more than £80,000 so far. For further information on her care, as well as the fundraising wing of the concert, visit GoFundMe.com.
