Cabaret comes to the Capital

Will Young reprises Emcee role in UK tour

Will Young as Emcee and company in the West End production of Cabaret. Photo © Keith Pattison

By Thom Dibdin

Edinburgh will be saying “Willkommen, bienvenue and welcome” to Will Young in October, as the touring version of the West End revival of Cabaret arrives in the capital.

Young stars as the Emcee, for which he was nominated for the Best Actor in a Musical award at this year’s Oliviers, with director Rufus Norris’s production also nominated in the Best Musical Revival category. In the event, both show and star lost out to Sweeney Todd – with Michael Ball in the title role.

Cabaret, with a book by Joe Masteroff, music by John Kander and lyrics by  Fred Ebb, features some of the most iconic songs in musical theatre including Money Makes the World Go Round, Two Ladies and of course Cabaret. The production turns Weimar Berlin of 1931 into a sassy, sizzling haven of decadence. And at its dark heart are the notorious Emcee and sassy Sally Bowles, who perform nightly at the infamous Kit Kat Klub.

The UK tour open at the New Wimbledon Theatre in September and arrives at the King’s for a week-long stay on Monday 21 October.

Since winning the inaugural series of Pop Idol in 2002, Young has enjoyed a successful and varied career as a singer and an actor. He appeared alongside Dame Judi Dench and Bob Hoskins in Stephen Frears’ 2005 movie Mrs Henderson Presents. Incidentally, Dench stared in the London premiere of Cabaret in 1968, gaining excellent notices as Sally Bowles.

The role of Sally Bowles was given its definitive performance in the 1972 film of Cabaret, in which Joel Grey reprised the role of Emcee. The film is one of those rare occasions where a musical adaptation for the cinema is regarded as an improvement on the original.

The touring production is directed by Rufus Norris, designed by Katrina Lindsay and choreographed by Javier De Frutos. Full casting has yet to be announced.

Cabaret
Mon 21 to Sat 26 October 2013, 7.30pm (Wed, Sat, mat 2.30pm).
King’s Theatre, 2 Leven Street EH3 9LQ. Tickets: www.edtheatres.com

Cabaret on tour in 2013

ENDS

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