BUT I’M A CHEERLEADER: THE MUSICAL extends at Turbine Theatre
Photo credit: Mark Senior
The UK premiere of But I’m A Cheerleader: The Musical will play an extended run at the Turbine Theatre until 8 May, it has been announced, following a short closure to allow some “necessary changes for its future life”.
Producer Paul Taylor-Mills commented, “The Turbine Theatre was always meant to be a safe space in which we could develop, shape and hone work. For the last few months we have produced the sell-out musical But I’m A Cheerleader and have learnt so much from our audiences. I’ve always acknowledged how crucial listening to the audience is in terms of how we learn more about where our show sits, and with whom it resonates.
“Our audience’s reactions have been wonderful and incredibly positive, many commenting on how wonderful it is to see two queer characters leading a musical. That said, we believe there is work still to do on our show and are therefore taking a short pause to make some adjustments. Following this we will be returning for a few weeks to finish off our triumphant run with what we hope will be the definitive (if that ever exists!) version of the show.
“Having the ability to do this and indeed creating a safe space to allow this to happen makes me unbelievably happy as this was always my ultimate ambition with the Turbine Theatre. This is a similar process to which we followed many years ago with Heathers at The Other Palace before we moved to the West End. The idea is that we will do the same with But I’m A Cheerleader and hope to get the show as ready, as ready can be, for its future.
“I’d like to thank everyone involved in the development of this musical which is the fruit of 20 years of hard work from hundreds of artists. Most shows are nearly sold out but please do come and join us for our final few weeks and hopefully one day you’ll be able to say you were there at the beginning.
“In light of the recent news today we’re desperate to try and do something meaningful and have set up a petition to Ban Conversion Therapy. To everyone in the UK, if you have a second to sign, then we’d be very grateful.
“You can find the petition at http://www.change.org/banconversiontherapyUK “
Joining the cheer squad as the new ‘Super Cheerleaders’ will be Lauren Soley and Owen McHugh, taking on the baton as the cast swings. Addition changes to the cast include Leslie Bowan taking over the role of André and Kurt Kansley as Mike at the end of April. And joining as the resident director/choreographer will be Ruthie Stephens.
The current cast features Alice Croft as Megan, Oliver Brooks as Dad/Larry, Edward Chitticks as Jared/Rock, Damon Gould as André, Tiffany Graves as Mary Brown, Jodie Jacobs as Mom/Lloyd, Lemuel Knights as Mike, Evie Rose Lane as Graham, Harry Singh as Jalal, Jodie Steele as Kimberly/Hilary, Aaron Teoh as Dolph and Kia-Paris Walcott as Sinead.
For more information and to book tickets, please click here.