Chichester Festival Theatre have announced today that Gina Beck and Alex Young will share the role of Nellie Forbush in their upcoming production of Rodgers & Hammerstein’s South Pacific.

This announcement comes in light of the happy news that Gina Beck is pregnant. Beck will rehearse and open the role of Nellie as planned with performances from 5 July, then from 5 August, Alex Young will share the role and take over full-time from 23 August for the remainder of the run until 4 September.

Young returns to the Festival Theatre where she starred opposite Matt Lucas in Me and My Girl in 2018. She and Gina appeared together in Daniel Evans’s production of Show Boat in Sheffield and the West End.

Artistic Director of CFT and director of South Pacific, Daniel Evans, said: “It’s utterly joyful news that Gina is expecting her second baby and that her long-awaited Chichester debut in the role of Nellie will take place as planned from 5 July. I know that Gina is as delighted as I am that Alex Young will share the role with her at certain performances from 5 August, and take over full-time for the final weeks of the run to allow Gina to focus full-time on her next production!

“Our amazing company – of 31 adults, 6 children and 15 musicians – starts rehearsals today. We are looking forward to exploring this great musical – which invites us to confront the differences within and outside ourselves – through a contemporary lens, and revealing its pertinence to our times.’

The South Pacific cast also includes Julian Ovenden as Emile, Joanna Ampil as Bloody Mary, Keir Charles as Luther Billis, and Rob Houchen as Cable, with Iroy Abesamis, Lindsay Atherton, Carl Au, Rosanna Bates, David Birrell, Leslie Garcia Bowman, Taylor Bradshaw, Bobbie Chambers, Charlotte Coggin, Danny Collins, Oliver Edward, Sergio Giacomelli, Shailan Gohil, Adrian Grove, Zack Guest, Cameron Bernard Jones, Amanda Lindgren, Matthew Maddison, Sera Maehara (as Liat), Melissa Nettleford, Rachel Jayne Picar, Kate Playdon, Pierce Rogan, Clancy Ryan, Charlie Waddell and James Wilkinson-Jones, with children’s roles played by Archer Brandon, Ellie Chung, Lana Lakha, Kami Lieu, David Ngara-O’Dwyer and Alexander Quinlan.

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