Casting announced for Mischief Comedy’s THESPIANS

HOME Manchester, JPT Productions & Mercury Theatre Colchester have announced the full cast for the world premiere of Mischief’s first musical comedy, THESPIANS.

MISCHIEF, the team behind the multi award-winning The Play That Goes Wrong, rewrite ancient history with the first musical created by “the UK’s funniest theatre company” (LBC Radio). 

Written by Jonathan Sayer (co-writer of The Play That Goes Wrong, Peter Pan Goes Wrong and The Comedy About A Bank Robbery) and Ed Zanders (musical director Mischief Movie Night), Thespians transports the audience back to 534 BC, where, on Greece’s smallest island, a brave band of bards is battling to avoid defeat in a nationwide prayer competition set up by a thin-skinned tyrant.  The odds couldn’t be higher - the loser faces the death sentence and things are not looking good for the islanders... until… Thespis accidentally invents acting, leading to the world’s first play and the birth of theatre as we know it!   

The cast for this uplifting Grecian musical comedy romp comprises Allie Dart (Unfortunate; The Untold Story of Ursula the Sea Witch, The Other Palace/The Lowry/UK tour) as Rhapsodes/Dance Captain, Ashley Tucker (Christmas Carol Goes Wrong, UK tour) as part of the ensemble, Claire-Marie Hall (Operation Mincemeat, Broadway/West End) as Poly, Curtis Patrick (Young Frankenstein, Hope Mill Theatre) as part of the ensemble, James Spence (Unfortunate; The Untold Story of Ursula the Sea Witch, The Other Palace/The Lowry) as Thespis, Josh Patel-Foster (Oliver!, West End) as part of the ensemble, Luke Latchman (Now That’s What I Call A Musical, UK tour) as Atlas, Marc Pickering (The Play What I Wrote, Devonshire Park Theatre) as Adonis, Matt Cavendish (The Comedy About Spies, West End) as Bard, Mia Jerome (The Manningtree Witches, Mercury Theatre Colchester) as Melampus, and Rhys Taylor (Millennials, The Other Palace) as The Tyrant.

Joining Jonathan Sayer and Ed Zanders, the creative team is completed by director Robyn Grant, designer Jasmine Swan, choreographer Melody Sinclair-Marsh, lighting designer David Howe, sound designer Nick Lodge, musical director Ben Smith, casting directors Lucy Jenkins CDG and Sooki McShane CDG, and executive producer Henry Lewis.

Director Robyn Grant said: “I’m absolutely thrilled to be heading into rehearsals with such a brilliant cast and creative team. It’s a real joy to be directing Mischief’s first musical, and I can’t wait to start building something playful, ambitious, and full of surprises together. With a company this strong, it feels like we’re in very safe hands – and ready to take on the small matter of reinventing the origins of theatre.”

Writer Jonathan Sayer said: “I can't wait for rehearsals to start! I'm so excited about our cast, they're absolutely brilliant and it's going to be a joy to see the characters and the songs brought to life.”

Following the run at the Mercury Theatre, Thespians will embark on a ten-week tour. If you thought something funny happened on the way to the forum, wait until you hear what happened enroute to the amphitheatre! 

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