The irrepressible Cocky and the imperious Sir play "The Game of Life " - the former by the rules - the latter any way he can. There is a moral as well as several smash hit songs: "Who Can I Turn To," "On A Wonderful Day Like Today," "The Joker," and "Feeling Good."
Leslie Bricusse (Book, Music and Lyrics) originally intended to be a journalist but started to write, direct and appear in the Footlight Reviews while at Cambridge University. In 1953, his first musical, Lady at the Wheel, was produced and had a limited West End run. During the next two years, he appeared on stage with the legendary Beatrice Lillie. In the 1960s, he wrote hit songs for Max Bygraves and Matt Munro, among others, and, in early 1961, he traveled to New York to work on a Beatrice Lillie revue. He took Anthony Newley with him and they soon developed the ideas for Stop The World -1 Want To Get Off. Written in three weeks, it became a hit in both London and New York and was filmed in 1966. Bricusse then contributed to the score for the musical Pickwick, which included the hit song "If I Ruled The World." Rejoining Newley in 1965, they created The Roar of the Greasepaint. The team also wrote the theme songs for the James Bond films Goldfinger and You Only Live Twice. Bricusse wrote the score to the film Doctor Doolittle (1967) and worked with Newley on the score to the film Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory (1971). Other Newley collaborations included The Good Old Days, The Traveling Magic Show, and Once Upon A Song. He received Oscar nominations for his work on Scrooge (1970), Goodbye, Mr. Chips (1982), That's Life (1986), Home Alone (1990) and Hook (1991). He received an Acadamy Award in 1982 for VictorlVictoria in collaboration with Henry Mancini. The stage version of VictorlVictoria opened on Broadway in 1995 and was followed in 1997 with Jekyll And Hyde and a West End production of Doctor Doolittle in 1998.
Anthony Newley (Book, Music and Lyrics) worked as a child actor in several films including the role of The Artful Dodger in David Lean's acclaimed Oliver Twist (1948). His best-selling comedy album, Fool Britannia (1963) starred David Sellers and his then-wife, Joan Collins. He starred in and directed himself in Stop The World - I Want To Get Off, which ran on Broadway. Newley starred in the film Doctor Doolittle (1967), with the score by Bricusse that included the Oscar-winner "Talk To The Animals." After a few unsuccessful films, he collaborated with Bricusse on the score to the film Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory (1971). Newley was a major cabaret and concert performer for decades and even appeared for a time on the legendary television soap opera, Eastenders.
Director & Choreographer Thomas Mills
Music Director & Vocal Arranger Barbara Anselmi
With Drake Andrew, David Edwards*, Amy Epstein*, Leslie Ann Hendricks*, George S. Irving*, Lauren Lebowitz*, Mamie Parris*, Adrienne Pisoni, Jimmy Rivers*, Sandie Rosa, Jennifer L. Rose, Margie Stokley, Heather Stone*
*Denotes member of Actors Equity Association
Producer Mel Miller
Production Manager Katie Plybon
Lighting Designer Shih-hui Wu
Casting Director Stephen De Angelis
Set Design Stan Pearlman, Impact Creative Group
Set Construction Frank Getz |
