Miss Saigon is getting ready to sweep West End audiences off their feet
by Oliver Mitford on Wednesday 4 September 2013, 1:11 pm in Upcoming and New Shows
After producer Cameron Mackintosh announced that Miss Saigon would return to the West End stage at some point in 2014, he has kept us all guessing when the epic musical would arrive at the Prince Edward Theatre. Finally, it has been announced that Miss Saigon will sweep into town from 3 May to 25 October, 2014.
The original production, directed by Nicholas Hytner, ran at Theatre Royal Drury Lane from 1989 to 1999 and notoriously featured a huge flying helicopter. This new production is based on a re-imagined version that was created by director Laurence Connor and its opening in May 2014 will mark the 25th anniversary since its original staging back in 1989.
Miss Saigon comes from composer Claude-Michel Schönberg and lyricist Alain Boublil, the duo behind Les Misérables. Director Laurence Connor will be familiar with their work, having recently revamped the touring version of Les Misérables for Cameron Mackintosh.
Alongside Connor, the creative team includes musical staging by Bob Avian and additional choreography by Geoffrey Garratt, production design by Totie Driver and Matt Kinley, costumes design by Andreane Neofitou, lighting design by Bruno Poet and sound design by Mick Potter.
When asked to comment on the production, Mackintosh said: ‘If anything, the tragic love story of Miss Saigon has become even more relevant today. In the last 25 years, our country has become involved in similar wars in Iraq and Afghanistan in the way we weren’t in Vietnam, and the American Dream has been buffeted by the reality of recent history. The new production has taken a more gritty and realistic approach to the design than the operatic original but still delivers the power and epic sweep of Boublil and Schönberg’s great score.’
Miss Saigon opens at the Prince Edward Theatre on 3 May 2014. Booking opens on 9 September 2013.