ROYO, UNIVERSAL MUSIC UK, SONY MUSIC ENTERTAINMENT & MIGHTY VILLAGE are delighted to announce that Nina Wadia will star as Gemma in the world premiere of NOW That’s What I Call A Musical, a brand-new British musical written by award-winning comedian Pippa Evans and directed and choreographed by Craig Revel Horwood. NOW That’s What I Call A Musical will begin performances on 6 September 2024 at Aylesbury’s Waterside Theatre before commencing a major UK and Ireland tour.

Joining Nina in 2024 at certain performances will be an array of special guest stars playing themselves and singing the songs that made them NOW icons. Sinitta will perform in Aylesbury, Sheffield, Canterbury, Nottingham and Norwich with Sonia in Newcastle, Cardiff, Milton Keynes and Brighton, Carol Decker in Truro, Belfast and Woking, and Jay Osmond in Bradford and Dartford.

Further guest stars and musical cast members are to be announced.

Nina said “I grew up listening to the NOW tapes so for me being a part of this musical is like going home. When I read the script I immediately fell in love with the characters and Pippa’s story. I can’t wait to get started on my first ever musical and to see you all there later this year.”

Sinitta said “The most exciting thing about being involved in this project is the music. Dust off your spandex, crimp your hair and I’ll see you there.”

Sonia said “We are going to take people back on a nostalgic road of all their favourite songs. Everybody has memories of where they were when that song was out and what they were doing.

Carol added “Being part of the musical is a real compliment. T’Pau are on several of the [NOW] albums, it’s part of my life, part of my career.”

Jay said “I am so excited to be back in the UK and performing live on stage in NOW That’s What I Call A Musical.’ My brothers and I were featured in many NOW albums over the years and it’s an honour to be asked to be a part of this brand-new show.”

NINA WADIA OBE is an award winning actress renowned for her timeless sketch show Goodness Gracious Me, as well as her role as Zainab Masood in BBC One's Eastenders for which she won ‘Best Comedy Performance’ and ‘Best Onscreen Partnership’ at the British Soap Awards. Nina’s film credits include: Disney’s Aladdin, A Streetcat Named Bob, and its sequel A Gift From Bob. She can also currently be seen in the movies, Repeat, The Stranger in our Bed and I. Her television credits include: Count Abdulla (ITVX) The Sandman (Netflix), The Hitmen (Amazon Prime), The Outlaws (BBC/Amazon Prime) and Still Open All Hours (BBC). Nina’s theatre credits include Bleak Expectations (Criterion Theatre), the Tony Award Winning The Vagina Monologues, Macbeth with Sir Mark Rylance and Matchbox Theatre (Hampstead Theatre).

Get ready to relive the playlist of your life by celebrating 40 years of the iconic and chart-topping compilations brand NOW That’s What I Call Music, which has sold an estimated 200 million copies worldwide. This fun-filled evening is bursting with hits from Whitney Houston, Wham! Blondie, Tears For Fears, Spandau Ballet and so many more.

It’s Birmingham, 1989. Two school friends, Gemma and April, are busy with very important business - planning their lives based on Number One Magazine quizzes and dreaming of snogging Rick Astley. Cut to Birmingham 2009 and it’s the most dreaded event of their lives– the school reunion. Drama, old flames and receding hairlines come together as friends reunite and everything from the past starts to slot into place. The biggest question is: what was with all that hairspray?

The creative team will include Set and Costume Design by Tom Rogers & Toots Butcher, Musical Supervision and Arrangements by Mark Crossland, Lighting Design by Ben Cracknell, Sound Design by Adam Fisher, Wigs & Hair Design by Sam Cox, Associate Direction by Guy Woolf, Associate Choreography by Aaron Renfree, Associate Sound Design by Ollie Durrant and Casting by Annelie Powell CDG.

NOW is produced by ROYO, Universal Music UK, SONY Music Entertainment and Mighty Village.

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