At last, after months and months of previews, unhappy performers quitting en masse and 3 changes of director, the producers of the troubled musical DUSTY, about the rise to fame of 60s superstar Dusty Springfield, have announced a new cast and opening night at the Charing Cross Theatre.
Critics are invited to review it on Monday 7 September after which it will initially run until 21 November, 2015.
When the show was conceived the idea was that the big selling point would be breathtaking 3D projections of Dusty Springfield, giving the impression that the late singer was present on stage. There’s no mention of this in the current press release however which simply describes DUSTY as putting Springfield herself and her amazing voice at the heart of the action.
The show tells the story of how Mary Isobel Catherine Bernadette O’Brien became Dusty Springfield, one of the biggest selling female artists and an icon of the 60s.
Springfield, a musical perfectionist, chased her own unique sound. She turned music studios upside down, recorded in toilets and corridors to get just the sound she wanted and produced some unforgettable songs. Her string of hits began in 1963 with the upbeat “I Only Want to Be with You”, and was followed by classics including “Wishin’ and Hopin’”, “I Just Don’t Know What to Do with Myself”, “You Don’t Have to Say You Love Me” and “Son of a Preacher Man”. Eventually Dusty became the best-selling female singer in the world with six top 20 singles on the US Billboard Hot 100 and 16 on the UK Singles Chart from 1963 to 1989.
Controversially she also introduced England to ‘The Sound Of Black America’ and got deported from South Africa for allowing blacks to attend her whites only concerts in the Apartheid era.
Events are seen through the eyes of Nancy Jones, one of her childhood friends.
After such unhappiness in the company casting Director Debbie O’Brian has done well to assemble a new cast. Rest assured that she has great taste and the show will now feature a line up of little known, although no doubt excellent, performers including Alison Arnopp (Dusty/Mary O’Brien), Francesca Jackson (Nancy Jones), Graham Kent (Gerrard ‘OB’ O’Brien), Leo Elso (Dion O’Brien/Tom Springfield), Sienna Sebek (Norma), Harvey Robinson (Dave Dean), Witney White (Martha Reeves), Luke Thornton (Douggie Reece), Matt Blaker (Johnny Franz), Oliver Lynes (Vic Billing), Ellen Verenieks (Kay O’Brien)
I’ve directed at this theatre a lot and it’s had a few notable successes but unfortunately it’s best know for a string of terrible flops and first nights there are always full of critics gleefully anticipating a new disaster they can rip to pieces.
Let’s hope they attend with an open mind this time and DUSTY can be the venues first major hit in years.
If you’ve noticed an increase in people humming Disney songs around the West End at the moment it’s because auditions are in full swing for the London transfer of the Broadway hit ALADDIN and almost every musical theatre performer you’ll meet has, or is hoping to have, a shot at being in the show.