British designers Chloe Lamford and Gareth Owen join the creative team for Imitation of Life, the new Lynn Nottage and John Legend musical, whose principal casting around Adrienne Warren has now been confirmed.
Two British designers with long records in the West End and at the National Theatre have been named to the creative team of Imitation of Life, the new musical by Lynn Nottage and John Legend that receives its world premiere in New York this autumn. Chloe Lamford designs the set and Gareth Owen the sound, in an announcement that also confirmed the principal casting around Adrienne Warren.
Lamford, a Tony Award winner and an Olivier nominee, works internationally across theatre, opera and dance. Her West End credits include Mrs Warren’s Profession, Next to Normal, Teeth ’n’ Smiles and Get Up Stand Up! The Bob Marley Musical, and she has designed Phaedra, Amadeus and Rules for Living at the National Theatre, The Mad King for the Royal Shakespeare Company and The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie for the National Theatre of Scotland.
Owen holds a Tony Award for MJ: The Musical and two Olivier Awards, for Come From Away and Memphis. His London work includes Paddington: The Musical at the Savoy Theatre, The Devil Wears Prada at the Dominion Theatre and Thelma & Louise at the Young Vic, alongside Starlight Express, Back to the Future The Musical, & Juliet and Just For One Day.
A third thread reaches back to London. Brandon Michael Nase, who supervises the music, held the same role on the London revival of Passing Strange at the Young Vic in the spring of 2024.
The remainder of the creative team is American. Whitney White, a two-time Tony Award nominee, directs, with choreography by Baye & Asa. Costume design is by Qween Jean, who in 2026 became the first openly transgender person to win a Tony Award, for Cats: The Jellicle Ball, and lighting is by Natasha Katz, an eight-time Tony Award winner. Ben Covello is music director, co-orchestrations are by Bryan Carter and Charlie Rosen, and casting is by The Telsey Company.
Adrienne Warren, announced earlier, plays Delilah. She is joined by Jessica Vosk as Bea, Michael Luwoye as Elroy, Charlie Thurston as Archie, Aleyse Shannon as Adult Peola, Scarlett London Diviney as Young Peola and Lily Gilliam as Young Jessie. Further casting is to be announced.
The musical takes its story from Fannie Hurst’s 1933 novel and the two Universal films it inspired, John Stahl’s of 1934 and Douglas Sirk’s of 1959. It follows two single mothers, one Black and one White, and their daughters, from the Atlantic City of the 1920s into the New York of the 1930s.
Imitation of Life runs at the Griffin Theater at The Shed, in a co-production with National Black Theatre. The first performance is on Saturday 21 November 2026, the official opening night is Thursday 3 December 2026, and the strictly limited six-week engagement closes on Sunday 3 January 2027. Tickets are on sale through theshed.org.
National Black Theatre, Universal Theatrical Group, Sue Wagner, John Johnson, Get Lifted Film Co., Crocodile Eyes, LD Entertainment and The Shed produce.
