Rose Ayling-Ellis & James Spence to lead cast of European premiere of PRIVATE JONES
Casting has been announced for new musical PRIVATE JONES, which plays at Southwark Playhouse Elephant from 14 December 2026 - 30 January 2027.
The production, which weaves together sign language, live captioning, a Foley soundscape, and a sweeping original score, will feature a cast of hearing, hard-of-hearing, and deaf performers including BAFTA-winning actor, presenter and children’s author Rose Ayling-Ellis MBE (Reunion, BBC; Code of Silence, ITV; As You Like It, @sohoplace) as The Storyteller, Ffion Haf (The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe, UK & Ireland tour) as Gwenolyn/Evans, Nadeem Islam (The Father and the Assassin, National Theatre) as Henry & Others, Bronwyn James (Wicked; Wicked: For Good) as King & Others, George Karanja (Journey’s End, Performers College Birmingham) as Swing, Luke McCall (Les Misérables, Arena Tour) as Father & Others, Lili Mohammad (The Emu War: A New Musical, Pleasance Theatre Edinburgh/New Wimbledon Theatre) as Ensemble, Thea Munoz-Buirski (Diana The Musical in Concert, Eventim Apollo Hammersmith) as Ensemble, Katie Louise Prichard (Cry Baby, RWCMD) as Swing/ Pit Singer, James Spence (Unfortunate: The Untold Story of Ursula the Sea Witch) as Gomer Jones, Jacob Ethan Tanner (Death Valley, BBC) as Alwyn & Others, and Jacob Young (Wicked, West End) as Trystan & Others.
Rose Ayling-Ellis said: “I’m delighted to be joining the cast of Private Jones and to work with Marshall Pailet, Misha Shields and Alexandria Wailes, alongside such a talented cast of deaf, hard of hearing and hearing people. It’s a special production and I’m excited to return to the stage in London.”
PRIVATE JONES is a thrillingly theatrical, completely original new musical set in WW1 about the journeys that transform us and the friendships that remind us we're not meant to go it alone.
Gomer Jones is restless to find where he belongs, but the recent loss of his hearing has left him feeling shut out of the world he longs to join. Amid a company of misfit young men, he becomes an unlikely hero, only to discover that the prize he’s been chasing may not be the one that matters.
A coming-of-age story told with grit, heart, and a touch of irreverence, PRIVATE JONES is written and directed by acclaimed creative Marshall Pailet, with choreography by Misha Shields, artistic sign language direction by Alexandria Wailes, music direction by Màth Roberts, set design by Anna Kelsey, lighting by Tim Deiling, sound by Yvonne Gilbert, video design by Ben Glover, casting by Rob Kelly, BSL direction by Daryl Jackson, Welsh language consultancy by Lowri Morgan, music consultancy by Myrna Conn, and dramaturgy by Jac Moore.