A Face in the Crowd

A Face in the Crowd photos

A Face in the Crowd description

What happens when you give a celeb too much power? Mayhem, that’s what! A Face in the Crowd stars Ramin Karimloo, Olly Dobson and Anoushka Lucas, a brand new Elvis Costello musical based on the classic 1957 Warner Bros Hollywood movie. Brilliant music, amazing actors, and a cautionary tale.

The old film directed by Elia Kazan is brought back to startling life on stage at The Young Vic in a fresh adaptation by Sarah Ruhl (Eurydice, The Clean House), with original music by the Grammy Award-winning musician and songwriter Elvis Costello. The Young Vic Artistic Director Kwame Kwei-Armah directs the play and the plot is based on an original story by Budd Schulberg.

The show stars Ramin Karimloo (The Phantom of the Opera, Les Miserables) as Lonesome Rhodes, Anoushka Lucas (Oklahoma!, Elephant) as Marcia Jeffries, Stavros Demetraki (Oklahoma!, The Vote) as Joey D, Olly Dobson (Back to the Future, Just for One Day) as Mel Miller, and Emily Florence as Betty Lou.

Howard Gossington (Patriots, Tina: The Tina Turner Musical) plays Sheriff Hosner and ensemble, and the rest of the ensemble includes Andrew Coshan, Sadie-Jean Shirley, Chris Jenkins, Durone Stokes, Vicki Lee Taylor, and Annie Wensak. The Swings are Jasmin Colangelo and Bobby Windebank.

A salutary tale about the misuse of power

When a local radio producer, Marcia Jeffries, comes across a drunken bum called Lonesome Rhodes in jail and interviews him for her show, she sees his potential. Given a job, Lonesome proves to be big trouble right from the start. When he starts gathering fans and they get more vocal, she realises she’s created a monster. This is a well-timed warning about the danger of letting a celebrity meddle in politics, billed as highly entertaining.

Elvis Costello’s brilliant music

Elvis Costello’s debut 1977 album, My Aim Is true, has been called one of the best debuts in pop music history. His biggest hit single, Oliver’s Army, sold more than half a million copies the UK and remains a beloved 1979 post-punk classic. He’s also known for acting and TV presenting, frequently playing himself.

Playing at Young Vic

66 The Cut, London, SE1 8LZ GB (venue info)

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