We now have news that the previously cancelled Broadway premiere of Rebecca based on the novel by Daphne du Maurier which was to star Sierra Boggess and Tam Mutu will now open on Broadway at the Broadhurst Theatre on 18th November 2012, with previews from 30th October. Rebecca was originally scheduled to open at the Broadhurst earlier this year on 22nd April but was cancelled due to some funding problems.
Rebecca The Musical Broadway Cast
The cast will now feature the previously announced Karen Mason (Sunset Boulevard, Mamma Mia!) as Mrs Danvers, Howard McGillin (The Phantom of the Opera) as Frank Crawley, James Barbour (Beauty and the Beast, A Tale of Two Cities) as Jack Favell, Donna English (Lend Me A Tenor) as Beatrice de Winter, Nick Wyman (Les Miserables) as Giles and Henry Stram as Ben.
Casting for the leading roles of “I” and ‘Maxim de Winter’ will be announced in the coming weeks. The roles were initially to have been played by Sierra Boggess and Tam Matu. They are no longer available as Boggess is star in the new Hal Prince biopic The Prince of Broadway and Mutu is joining Les Miserables playing Javert at the Queen’s Theatre in June.
It’s now official that Sierra Boggess who played Christine in Love Never Dies in London, will be in Rebecca on Broadway!
Sierra Boggess as Christine
Sierra Boggess is one of the most popular leading ladies currently in both New York and London so having her name confirmed in the Rebecca musical can only add to the likelihood of a successful production on Broadway.
The great news about Sierra Boggess has been reported on the Rebecca Facebook page and confirmed by numerous articles in the US and international press.
The New York Times explained:
Sierra Boggess (“The Little Mermaid,” “Love Never Dies”) has been cast to play the second Mrs. de Winter in a Broadway production of “Rebecca,” a musical version of Daphne du Maurier’s gothic novel, the producers announced on Wednesday. They also said they had nailed down the Broadhurst Theater for the musical, no small feat given that producers of several shows must jockey for available theaters in an unusually tight real estate market on Broadway.
while BroadwayWorld has it as:
the new musical REBECCA, based on the classic novel by Daphne Du Maurier novel, will open on Broadway Sunday, April 22 at The Broadhurst Theatre (235 West 44th Street). Previews will begin Tuesday, March 27. Sierra Boggess (The Little Mermaid, Love Never Dies, Master Class and as Christine in last month’s 25th Anniversary Concert of The Phantom of the Opera in London) will play the lead role of “I”. Additional casting will be announced in the coming weeks…..
Sierra Boggess (“I”) recently starred in London’s West End in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Love Never Dies as Christine Daaé, a character which she also played in The Phantom of the Opera in Las Vegas. She recently reprised that role in the 25th Anniversary Concert of Phantom at London’s Royal Albert Hall. Sierra was last seen on Broadway in the MTC revival of Master Class. She also appeared on Broadway as the title character in Disney’s The Little Mermaid and in the City Center Encores! production of Music in the Air. Concert appearances: BBC Proms at Royal Albert Hall, Lincoln Center’s American Songbook Series, New York Pops at Carnegie Hall and Broadway by the Year at Town Hall. Recordings: Symphonic recording of Love Never Dies and the original cast album for The Little Mermaid.
Sierra Boggess received Drama Desk and Drama League nominations for her starring role as Ariel in the Broadway production of The Little Mermaid, and most recently appeared on Broadway in the revival of Master Class earlier this season. She also originated the role of Christine Daae in Love Never Dies, the sequel to Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Phantom of the Opera, and received an Olivier Award nomination for her work in the musical. She also played Christine in last month’s 25th Anniversary Concert of The Phantom of the Opera in London.
Here’s a crowd video of Sierra Boggess singing Love Never Dies courtesy of theatre breaks youTube
The producers have just announced that the musical Rebecca which is based on the classic novel by Daphne Du Maurier novel will open on Broadway next year on April 22nd 2012 at a Shubert Organisation theatre, yet to be announced. Previews will begin on Tuesday, March 27 2012.
Sierra Boggess (currently starring in Master Class on Broadway and soon to appear in the Phantom of The Opera 25th Anniversary Concerts at the Royal Albert Hall) is in negotiations to play the role of Maxim de Winter’s new wife “I.”
Rebecca has original book and lyrics by Michael Kunze, music by Sylvester Levay, English book adaptation by Christopher Hampton (Sunset Boulevard), English lyrics by Hampton and Kunze and direction by Michael Blakemore (Kiss Me, Kate; City of Angeles; Noises Off) and Francesca Zambello (Little Mermaid). Multiple Tony-nominated director/choreographer Graciela Daniele is in talks to do the musical staging for the show.
Love Never Dies star and London West End diva Sierra Boggess recently left the UK and headed back to New York to take part in a reading for Rebecca the Musical which is due to open there later this year.
The latest production plans call for a REBECCA premiere on Broadway in the Fall of 2011.
Rebecca, the musical which is taking to the London stage next year is not the first attempt at putting the story to music. Back in 2004 there was an Australian version written by Victor Kazan with music by Kevin Purcell. Purcell worked for Cameron Mackintosh and Andrew Lloyd-Webber in the 1990s and had hopes that their version would get backing. Their production attempted to recreate the sinister atmosphere of the book but in stark contrast to all other versions they actually cast someone to play the ghost of Rebecca.
Rebecca - the film version
It will come as no surprise, and can hardly be described as a spoiler, to remind you that in the book and the film Rebecca herself never appears. She’s there only in the way others talk about her, her house full of her personal possessions and of course her painting. Any ghost is strictly in our and the new Mrs de Winter’s imagination. It’s part of the power of the plot that we spend quite a lot of the time waiting for something supernatural to happen. Meanwhile tension and atmosphere build up and frightens us far more than any trickery or an onstage ghost ever could.
Here’s a little taste of the evil Mrs Danvers from the Austrian production:
