Cast announced for new musical FRANZ & MARIE

Based on Woyzeck, a famously unfinished 19th century play by German dramatist Georg Büchne, Franz & Marie is set in a twisted world inspired by European folklore. Traumatised Franz Woyzeck, a man tormented by nightmares from his experiences in the war, is consumed by hallucinations that blur the line between reality and trauma. As his platoon continues to remain stationed at an isolated outpost, he is driven to desperate measures to protect his girlfriend Marie and their baby.

Brenock O’Connor and Jade Oswald will lead a 14-strong actor-musician company as Franz and Marie respectively. They are joined by Steve Simmonds as Sergeant Ursid, Paula James as Zella, Richard Emerson Gould as Doctor Simian, Matthew Heywood as Drum Major Varg, Max Alexander-Taylor as André Schmitt, Mark Meadows as Captain Peccary, Eve Polycarpou as Vashti, Elaine Hua Jones as Kat. The company is completed by Antony Lam, Anna-Marie Piazza, Emily Panes and Tom Aubrey.

With a book & lyrics by Chris Broderick, Franz & Marie was originally commissioned two decades ago by the award-winning Korean company Acom and created by key members of the Kentish underground cult band, The Singing Loins. This new production is freshly adapted from the original by Teresa Howard with additional music arrangements and orchestrations by Steven Edis. It sets out to reimagine the original story to explore contemporary themes of class prejudice and toxic masculinity, set to a score of soul-rattling Indie raw folk music.

The musical is directed by Michael Oakley, with music by Rob Shepherd and Chris Broderick (The Singing Loins), alongside choreography by Ben Wright, lighting design by Christopher Nairne and sound design by Andrew Johnson and Oscar Cotran with design by Bretta Gerecke.

Franz & Marie will play at the Charing Cross Theatre from Monday 28 September to Saturday 14 November with a press night on Monday 5 October.

Franz & Marie Tickets