BARNUM JUST ANNOUNCED AT THE THEATRE ROYAL!: Theatre Royal

Cameron Mackintosh and Michael Harrison will bring their smash hit production of the musical Barnum, starring Brian Conley as PT Barnum and Linzi Hateley as Chairy, to Newcastle Theatre Royal, 17 28 February 2015. This production of Barnum opened at Chichester Festival Theatres Theatre in the Park in July last year and became one of the most successful musicals in the 51 year history of Chichester Festival Theatre with a record box office attendance of almost 70,000 people. The musical follows the irrepressible imagination and dreams of Phineas T Barnum, Americas Greatest Showman. The story of his life and his marriage to Chairy reveals a couple who looked at the world from opposite sides of the spectrum, and also reveals that she was the practical one who made Barnums dreams come true. The production follows the legendary showmans life as he lit up the world with the colour, warmth and excitement of his imagination and finally teamed up with J A Bailey to create Barnum and Baileys Circus the Greatest Show on Earth. Cy Colemans wonderfully exuberant score includes the hits Come Follow The Band, The Colours Of My Life and There Is A Sucker Born Evry Minute. Brian Conley is one of the UKs most versatile actors and performers. He most recently scored a huge success as Fagin in the national tour of Cameron Mackintoshs production of Oliver! which stormed the Theatre Royal in 2012. His recent West End stage credits include Edna Turnblad in Hairspray at the Shaftesbury Theatre and Caractacus Potts in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang at the London Palladium.  One of the highlights of his career was originating the role of another great iconic American showman Al Jolson in Jolson at the Victoria Palace for which he was nominated for an Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Musical.  On television he is probably best known for playing Doug Digby in The Grimleys, his ITV1 show The Brian Conley Show, his hugely successful An Audience with Brian Conley and numerous Royal Variety Performances. Linzi Hateley is an award winning actress who has starred on Broadway, in the West End, with the RSC and at the National Theatre. She created the role of Mrs Banks in Disney and Cameron Mackintoshs Mary Poppins and was nominated for an Olivier Award for her performance as The Narrator in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. Her many other West End credits include Donna in Mamma Mia!, Roxie in Chicago, Rizzo in Grease and Eponine in Les Misérables. She most recently appeared in the National Theatres smash hit production of London Road. Barnum was a smash-hit when it opened on Broadway in 1980. Starring Glenn Close and Jim Dale, it won three Tony Awards and a Drama Desk Award. When Barnum opened at the London Palladium in 1981 Michael Crawford took the lead, winning an Olivier Award for his performance. Barnum has music by Cy Coleman, lyrics by Michael Stewart and a book by Mark Bramble in a revised version by Cameron Mackintosh and Mark Bramble.