THE ROYAL SHAKESPEARE COMPANY ANNOUNCES UK AND IRELAND TOUR OF MATILDA THE MUSICAL FROM MARCH 2018 – AUGUST 2019
- LAUNCHING AT LEICESTER CURVE ON 5 MARCH 2018, THE RSC’S MATILDA THE MUSICAL WILL VISIT DUBLIN, SUNDERLAND, MILTON KEYNES, BIRMINGHAM, MANCHESTER AND CARDIFF. FURTHER DATES AND LOCATIONS TO BE ANNOUNCED IN DUE COURSE
- THE MULTI AWARD-WINNING PRODUCTION WILL CONTINUE TO PLAY IN THE WEST END AS WELL AS ITS TOURS IN AUSTRALIA, NEW ZEALAND AND NORTH AMERICA
Today, the Royal Shakespeare Company announces that its multi award-winning production of Matilda The Musical will embark on a UK and Ireland tour in 2018-2019.
Winner of 85 international awards, including 16 for Best Musical, the RSC’s touring production of Matilda The Musical will open at Leicester Curve, playing from 5 – 24 March 2018, followed by Dublin Bord Gais Energy Theatre (4 April – 28 April), Sunderland Empire (8 May – 2 June), Milton Keynes Theatre (5 June – 30 June), Birmingham Hippodrome (3 July – 8 September), Manchester Palace (18 September – 24 November) and Cardiff Wales Millennium Centre (4 December – 12 January 2019).
Tickets for Leicester, Dublin, Sunderland, Milton Keynes, Manchester and Cardiff will go on sale to the public on 26 April following a priority booking period between 19 and 25 April. Tickets for Birmingham go on sale on 9 May, after a priority booking from 25 April to 8 May. Further dates and venues are to be announced in due course. The West End production continues at the Cambridge Theatre, currently booking until 17 December 2017.
The production will be accompanied in each location by a new education programme to engage young people, inspired by Matilda The Musical. From a travelling library of stories led by Mrs Phelps, to whole school takeovers of Matilda, the RSC aims to reach over 15,000 children, in collaboration with touring theatre partners. Further details to be announced.
Dennis Kelly, (book) said:
“It’s been a long time coming but I’m delighted that we get to take Matilda around the UK and to Ireland. We have some fantastic theatres in this country and in Ireland, supported by smart, engaged audiences and we can’t wait to bring this crazy, messy, anarchic explosion of a show to them.”
Tim Minchin (music and lyrics) said:
“I - like millions of others - feel like Dahl is in my blood, because I grew up with his books. So to have contributed to a piece of work that brings one of his most famous stories to life is one of my life's great joys. I’m utterly thrilled that audiences in cities all across the UK and Ireland will now share and be part of Matilda’s story.”
Catherine Mallyon, RSC Executive Director said:
“We are thrilled our home-grown miracle, which started life after a seven year gestation in Stratford-upon-Avon, has grown into a bit of a global phenomenon. Following Matilda’s successful run on Broadway, our current tours around North America, Australia and New Zealand, and continuing into our sixth year at the Cambridge Theatre in London’s West End, it is fantastic that we can share Matilda with audiences around the UK and in Ireland. In collaboration with our touring partners we will also deliver a programme of ground-breaking interactive education projects to enable young people to emulate Matilda, sharing the extraordinary power of story-telling and the boundless creativity of their imaginations.”
Now in its sixth year in London’s West End, Matilda The Musical is the longest running production at the Cambridge Theatre where it continues to play to packed houses.
With book by Dennis Kelly, original songs by Tim Minchin and direction by Matthew Warchus, Matilda The Musical is the story of an extraordinary little girl who, armed with a vivid imagination and a sharp mind, dares to take a stand and change her own destiny.
Inspired by the incomparable Roald Dahl’s beloved book, Matilda The Musical was commissioned by the Royal Shakespeare Company and premiered at the RSC’s The Courtyard Theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon in November 2010, before transferring to London’s West End in October 2011, where it opened to rave reviews.
The New York production of Matilda The Musical opened in April 2013 at Broadway’s Shubert Theatre and was celebrated on 10 “Top Ten” lists for 2013, including TIME Magazine’s #1 Show of the Year.
Matilda The Musical has been seen by more than 6.5 million people worldwide. Having swept the board at the 2012 Olivier Awards, with a record-breaking seven awards, and winning four Tony Awards and a Tony Honor for Excellence in the Theater for the four girls sharing the title role on Broadway, Matilda The Musical has now played in 50 cities worldwide and continues to delight audiences in London, Australia and on tour around North America.
After winning a Sydney Theatre Award for Best Musical in 2015, the Australian production played a sold-out season at Melbourne’s Princess Theatre. In July 2016, the production broke further records by winning all 13 Helpmann Awards for which it was nominated. The tour continues in Perth and Adelaide and will premiere in New Zealand at The Civic in Auckland in August 2017 for a strictly limited season.
Matilda The Musical is produced by the Royal Shakespeare Company with André Ptaszynski and Denise Wood as Executive Producers. The production was developed with the support of Jeanie O’Hare and the RSC Literary Department.
Matilda The Musical is written by Dennis Kelly, with music and lyrics by Tim Minchin, and direction by Matthew Warchus. The production is designed by Rob Howell, with choreography by Peter Darling, orchestrations, additional music and musical supervision by Christopher Nightingale, lighting by Hugh Vanstone, sound by Simon Baker and the special effects and illusions are by Paul Kieve.
-ENDS-
TOUR Listings
Leicester Curve
Monday 5 – Saturday 24 March 2018
Box Office: 0116 242 3595
www.curveonline.co.uk
Dublin Bord Gais Energy Theatre
Wednesday 4 – Saturday 28 April 2018
Box Office: +353 (1) 677 7999
www.bordgaisenergytheatre.ie
Sunderland Empire Theatre
Tuesday 8 May – Saturday 2 June 2018
Box Office: 0844 871 3022*
www.atgtickets.com/venues/sunderland-empire
Milton Keynes Theatre
Tuesday 5 – Saturday 30 June 2018
Box Office: 0844 871 7652*
www.atgtickets.com/venues/milton-keynes-theatre
Birmingham Hippodrome
Tuesday 3 July – Saturday 8 September 2018
Box Office: 0844 338 5000**
www.birminghamhippodrome.com
Manchester Palace Theatre
Tuesday 18 September – Saturday 24 November 2018
Box Office: 0844 871 3019*
www.atgtickets.com/venues/palace-theatre-manchester
Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff / Canolfan Mileniwm Cymru
Tuesday 4 December 2018 – Saturday 12 January 2019
Box Office: 029 2063 6464
www.wmc.org.uk
* Calls cost 7p per minute, plus your phone company's access charge.
** Calls cost 4.5p per minute plus your phone company’s access charge.
www.matildathemusical.com
#matildaontour
WEST END LISTING
MATILDA THE MUSICAL
Cambridge Theatre, Earlham Street, WC2H 9HU
Booking until 17 December 2017
Tuesdays 7pm
Wednesday – Saturday 7:30pm
Wednesday & Saturday 2:30pm
Sundays 3pm
Box Office: Cambridge Theatre 0844 412 4652* / RSC Ticket Hotline 01789 403493
No booking fee. *Calls cost 7p per min plus your telephone company's network access charge.
Twitter: @MatildaMusical
Facebook: @MatildaTheMusical
Instagram: @MatildaTheMusical
Press Representatives: Hannah Clapham and Laurence Ainscough at
The Corner Shop PR I Tel. 020 7831 7657
HannahC@thecornershoppr.com I Laurence@thecornershoppr.com
NOTES TO EDITORS
- The original cast recording ofMatilda the Musical is available from iTunes and on CD. Recorded in a studio by the original Stratford-upon-Avon cast, the album includes 17 original numbers from the production, including When I Grow Up, Revolting Children and The Smell of Rebellion.The CD is available from the RSC Shop - www.rsc.org.uk/shop, iTunes, or via the Matilda The Musical website www.matildathemusical.com
- The work of the RSC Literary Department is generously supported by THE DRUE HEINZ TRUST
- The RSC Acting Companies are generously supported by THE GATSBY CHARITABLE FOUNDATION and THE KOVNER FOUNDATION
- Edwardian Group is the preferred hotel partner for Matilda The Musical in London
- EPK footage of Matilda The Musical is available here.
About the RSC
The Royal Shakespeare Company creates theatre at its best, made in Stratford-upon-Avon and shared around the world. We produce an inspirational artistic programme each year, setting Shakespeare in context, alongside the work of his contemporaries and today’s writers.
Everyone at the RSC - from actors to armourers, musicians to technicians - plays a part in creating the world you see on stage. All our productions begin life at our Stratford workshops and theatres and we bring them to the widest possible audience through our touring, residencies, live broadcasts and online activity. So wherever you experience the RSC, you experience work made in Shakespeare’s home town.
We have trained generations of the very best theatre makers and we continue to nurture the talent of the future. We encourage everyone to enjoy a lifelong relationship with Shakespeare and live theatre. We reach 530,000 children and young people annually through our education work, transforming their experiences in the classroom, in performance and online. Registered charity no. 212481 www.rsc.org.uk.
About Roald Dahl and his legacy
Roald Dahl (1916-1990) was the author of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Matilda, The BFG and many more of the world’s best-loved children’s stories. He remains one of the World’s greatest storytellers.
His first children’s story, James and the Giant Peach published in 1961, was a hit and every subsequent book became a best-seller.
Today, his stories are available in 58 languages and, by a conservative estimate, he has sold more than 250 million books. Many of these stories have also been adapted for stage and screen, including the 1971 film classic Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, Wes Anderson’s acclaimed Fantastic Mr Fox, and the Royal Shakespeare Company’s multi-award winning production of Matilda The Musical. The latest Roald Dahl story to hit the big screen was Steven Spielberg’s #1 box office blockbuster The BFG in 2016.