West End Wednesday: SIX

SIX is a musical retelling of the lives of the six infamous ex-wives of Henry VIII. The show premiered at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in 2017 and sees the ex-wives battle it out in a pop concert to see who suffered the most under Henry and essentially get crowned as the group’s lead singer. 

SIX was conceived in 2016 when Cambridge University student Toby Marlow was commissioned to pen a new musical for the following year’s Edinburgh Fringe Festival. Once the basic idea for the concert occurred to him during classes, Marlow enlisted the help of his friend Lucy Moss to aid in the development of the show, with the pair writing it during their final exams. They set out to model each Queen’s individuality as a representation of current pop stars. Beyonce, Jennifer Lopez, Miley Cyrus, Britney Spears, Rihanna, Iggy Azalea and Alicia Keys have been cited as influences for the vocal types and characteristics of the Queens. The pair also wanted to challenge the lack of gender diversity and queerness in the theatre, ensuring the cast was made up of female and non-binary identifying actors and include the use of queer narratives that wouldn’t usually have appeared to enforce a representative story. 

The show premiered at the 2017 Edinburgh Fringe Festival to positive notices and a sold-out run. The show’s unexpected sold-out run led to them being invited back to the festival the following year at a larger venue. The success of the run interested producers who the invested in the show for a four-night run at the Arts Theatre for its professional premiere, which was extended to six upon positive ticket sales.

Due to the success of the limited run, the musical announced its first UK tour commencing on 11 July at the Norwich Playhouse before returning to Edinburgh for the year. After Edinburgh, the show had another limited run back at the Arts Theatre, before closing the UK tour at the end of October 2018. The show initially reopened at the Arts Theatre on 17 January for a limited 16 week run. However, again due to overwhelming success, the producers turned the limited run into an open ended one with the show booking up until January 2021.

The show was directed by Jamie Armitage and Lucy Moss, with choreography by Carrie-Anne Ingrouille, set design by Emma Bailey, costume design by Gabriella Slade, and musical supervision by Joe Beighton. The opening night cast consisted of Jarneia Richard-Noel as Catherine of Aragon, Millie O’Connell as Anne Boleyn, Natalie Paris as Jane Seymour, Alexia McIntosh as Anna of Cleves, Aimie Atkinson as Katherine Howard and Maiya Quansah-Breed as Catherine Parr.

The production received five 2019 Olivier Award nominations. Unfortunately, the show closed alongside the rest of the West End due to the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020. It was announced in winter of 2020 that Nimax Theatres had offered the producers the Lyric Theatre to house SIX in order to have the show reopen under COVID-safe conditions. The show reopened with measures enforced on the 5 December 2020 to overwhelmingly enthusiastic reviews, however in mid-December it was forced to close again due to tighter government restrictions. 

2019 saw the show launch of five different incarnations of the show. Norwegian Cruise Line announced they would launch SIX on three of their ships. A second UK tour commenced in 2019 that was again suspended due to the pandemic, and a North American tour from May-December was launched, opening in Chicago. 

At the end of the US tour, it was slated for SIX to transfer to Broadway. The production opened for previews to sold out crowds and enthusiastic buzz from 13 February 2020. This made Lucy Moss the youngest female identifying director in Broadway history. Alas, the Broadway production was forced to close on its opening day of 12 March 2020 when Broadway was shut down due to the pandemic. The Broadway cast consisted of Adrianna Hicks as Catherine of Aragon, Andrea Macasaet as Anne Boleyn, Abby Mueller as Jane Seymour, Brittney Mack as Anna of Cleves, Samantha Pauly as Katherine Howard and Anna Uzele as Catherine Parr. 

The musical had its Australian premiere at the Sydney Opera House in January 2020, before commencing a nationwide tour. This tour however, also had to be abandoned due to the pandemic. It has also been announced that there are plans for a New Zealand premiere, but no date has been announced yet.

Cast recording available on streaming services. 

If you haven’t listened to the Queens yet Besties, we definitely think you should!

FACTS:

Music: Toby Marlow and Lucy Moss
Lyrics: Toby Marlow and Lucy Moss
Book: Toby Marlow and Lucy Moss 

Theatre: The Arts Theatre, The Lyric Theatre
Run: 17 January 2019 - (Suspended due to COVID-19 pandemic)

OLIVIERS:

(NOMINATED) Best Musical, Outstanding Achievement in Music – Joe Beighton, Tom Curran, Toby Marlow and Lucy Moss, Best Actress in a Supporting Role in a Musical – Aimie Atkinson, Alexia McIntosh, Millie O’Connell, Natalie Paris, Maiya Quansah-Breed and Jarneia Richard-Noel, Best Costume Design – Gabriella Slade, Best Theatre Choreographer – Carrie=Anne Ingrouille