THE LONDON PREMIERE OF A NEW MUSICAL
BASED ON THE CHARLES DICKENS CLASSIC NOVEL
DIRECTED BY PAUL NICHOLAS
CAST
Charles Darney - MICHAEL STACEY
Lucie Manette - JENNIFER HEPBURN
Dr Manette - JOHN FLEMING
Jarvis Lorry - RICHARD STIRLING
Miss Pross - SARAH DEARLOVE
Madame Defarge - SUSAN RAASAY
Marquis De Evremonde - RUFUS GRAHAM
Gabelle - TOM MURPHY
Barsad - PADDY CRAWLEY
Gaspard - TIMOTHY WRIGHT
Stryver - ADAM BOOTH
Seamstress - AMY COOMBES
This is Tim Benton’s first London performance. He has worked extensively in New Zealand and appeared in Australia and Hawaii. He’s played Professor Higgins in My Fair Lady, Jean Valjean in Les Miserables, Julian Marsh in 42nd Street, Magaldi in Evita and Pontius Pilate in Jesus Christ Superstar. A New Zealand National Opera chorus member, his play credits include Pygmalion, Broadway Bound and Hay Fever. He’s played the man in Sondheim’s two-hander Marry Me a Little and most recently featured in Tony Bennett Swings, a salute to the jazz legend.
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Originally from Blackpool, Michael trained at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music & Drama graduating with a Masters Degree in Performance in Musical Theatre. Prior to this he had studied Cell Biology and Pathology at the University of St- Andrews.
Theatre Credits include Guilt(Upstairs at the Gatehouse); The Confessions of Julian Po and Iron Curtain (Edinburgh Fringe Festival); Wild Honey(RSAMD); The Fabulist, Like You Like It and About Face (Cardiff International Festival of Musical Theatre); The Tempest (Prague Fringe Festival and Byre Theatre, St- Andrews); Such Sweet Thunder (NYMT, Newcastle Theatre Royal).
Michael has also performed his self- devised cabaret entitled Degree Dilemma at The Arches, Glasgow.
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Jennifer recently completed an engagement with Les Miserables during which she played the role of ‘Fantine’ on numerous occasions at the Queen’s Theatre, London. She has also appeared as ‘Patience’ in a workshop presentation and cast recording of the Cat Stevens musical, Moonshadow.
Before joining the Les Mis Company, Jennifer was on a No. 1 Tour of Cats, as part of the ensemble, and covering ‘Jellylorum’, ‘Jennyanydotts’ and ‘Grisabella’, all of which she performed several times.
Immediately following her Postgraduate course at Royal Academy of Music in 2004 and Jennifer went straight into the UK Productions No 1 Tour of Jekyll And Hyde (with Paul Nicholas) in which she played ‘Nellie’ and for certain performances the lead role ‘Lucy’. She played ‘Mrs. Lovett’ in Sweeney Todd at the Glastonbury Festival and also had her first Panto experience playing ‘Robin Hood’ in Babes In The Wood for Bruce James Productions.
In her native US, Jennifer played ‘Betty Blake’ in the US National tour of Will Rogers’ Follies and was Lead Vocalist in the Central American tour of Blues In The Night. She played ‘Lorraine’ in 42nd Street, ‘Anita’ in West Side Story, ‘Fruma Sarah’ in Fiddler On The Roof and ‘Angel’ in Anything Goes all at the Mac-Haydn Theatre, NY. Jennifer was Lead Vocalist in Brecht On Brecht at the Producer’s Club II, New York City and played ‘Yitzak’ in Hedwig And The Angry Inch at the Contemporary Amercian Theatre, OH.
Her film and TV credits include The Yard for Miramax and New York Undercover Fox Television.
Recordings include various musical theatre numbers for TER/JAY Records.
Jennifer has a Bachelor of Music degree from New York University.
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This is John's 3rd Dickensian musical having played Wemmick in Great Expectations (Liverpool Playhouse) & Sowerberry & Fagin in Oliver (The Albery); other West End appearances include nearly 2000 perfomances in The Mousetrap (St. Martin's) Dearly Beloved (Aldwych) & Give a dog a Bone (Westminster). This Christmas he is playing Dame in Snow White at the Elgiva Theatre Chesham. He recently recorded audio books of The Turn Of The Screw & Desire & Pursuit of the Whole & has made over 100 radio broadcasts for Capital Radio & the B.B.C. as a member of the Radio Drama Co. in roles as diverse as a talking head in the Sony Award winning Master & Margarita & a Castrati in The Angel of Rome! National tours include Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, A Study in Scarlet, Whiteoaks, Scrooge with Antony Newley & a European tour as Doc in West Side Story.
Regional credits include Pitlochry Festival, Bristol Old Vic, York, Cheltenham, Harrogate, Northcott Exeter & Lancaster where he played Quince in the 1st &10th Anniversary open air promenade productions of A Midsummer Night's Dream. Favourite roles include Mathew Parris The Crucible, Major Flack Privates on Parade, Pirelli Sweeney Todd, Chaplain Catch 22, Richelieu Three Muskateers & Dr. Crippen!
Television & film credits include Roger Roger, The Naked Civil Servant, The Brittas Empire, The Peter Principle, Sorry, Strange But True, The Doughety Brothers, Hush Little Baby & Distress Signals
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Richard trained at RADA. His previous Dickens work is in Our Mutual Friend (BBC), Great Expectations (BBC and stage) and Little Dorrit (film). His other film roles are in Scoop, Mrs Dalloway and War Requiem, and his television work includes The Secret Agent (as Stevie), The Choir and The Prince and the Pauper.
He recently appeared in The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie in Washington, DC. His stage work also includes Private Lives (National Theatre), An Inspector Calls (tour), Easy Virtue and Breaking the Code (West End), Taking Steps (Vienna), An Awfully Big Adventure, When I Was A Girl I Used to Scream and Shout and Out of Order.
Richard’s writing work includes the musical play Over My Shoulder in London and on tour. His recent book, Julie Andrews: an intimate biography (a Sunday Times Top Ten bestseller) is published on both sides of the Atlantic.
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This is Sarah’s debut performance since graduating in July from The Bridge Theatre Training Company, London.
Whilst training Sarah played the role of Bernarda in Lorca’s House of Bernarda Alba, the narrator in Entertaining Strangers and Great Aunt Clare in the premiere of The Dating Game a new musicl by Alexander Abbott.
Prior to training Sarah enjoyed performing many lead roles in both musicals and plays in the theatres of York.
She is thrilled to be part of this fabulous show.
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Recent credits include: Signoria Fioria in Do I Hear A Waltz? and Kander & Ebb’s And the World Goes ‘Round (Landor Theatre); the premiere of Miller & Hammond’s When Midnight Strikes and the cast recording of the show (The Finborough); the Secretary of State in a new Tim Stimpson play One, Nineteen (The Arcola). She recently played the Singer in a short film Domestic Flight directed by Julie Edwards with a screenplay by Tilly Vosburgh and due for release in November.
Earlier this year Susan directed a production of Stepping Out (De Valois Studio) and The Music Man (Kenneth Moore Theatre).
Susan trained at the Guildford School of Acting.
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Tim is delighted to be appearing at the Gatehouse.
Last year he appeared as Harry Bright on the International Tour of Mamma Mia!
Past work includes creating the role of Bert Soloman in the play ‘Hell Fire Corner’. Ralph Rackstraw in ‘HMS Pinafore’ and several musicals including ‘Always’, ‘Oliver!’ ‘Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat’, ‘Me and My Girl’, ‘Elvis the musical’, ‘My Fair Lady’ and many concert appearances.
He can currently be seen on two television adverts, laughing and eating chicken, or falling asleep on a sofa, one for DFS and the other for KFC. It’s up to you to guess which!
Tim is also an original performer of the corporate entertainment sensation, The Three Waiters.
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Rufus Graham was born and brought up in Edinburgh, studied Zoology at Oxford and the Harpsichord with Rafael Puyana in Paris and then became, among many other things, a classical bass-baritone in France. This millennium, he trained as an actor at Central School of Speech & Drama, and played President Truman in Ken Russell’s outrageous Xmas Movie for 2007, A Kitten For Hitler, among his many other roles. Check his IMDb profile as well!
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Tom, a graduate of the Royal Academy of Music, has appeared in many musicals including Disney's Beauty and the Beast (Bookseller) and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (Turkey Farmer/Inventor. Opera includes Hansel and Gretel (Father) and Opera Soap at the BAC Opera season. Straight theatre includes Caligula in Camus's Caligula. TV includes documentaries on Channel 5 (Britain's Closest Encounters), BBC Learning Zone and Discovery Channel. Recordings include Les Miserables, South Pacific, Oklahoma and The Messiah. Tom performs regularly in cabaret.
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Paddy trained at Dartington.
Recent credits include: Edward IV in Richard III (The Broadway, Lewisham), George IV in Reminiscence (The Space), Father Finnegan in Sam the Highest Jumper of Them All (Finborough).
More details on Paddy’s work can be found at www.paddycrawley.com
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Timothy Wright trained at the Arts Educational School. Since then he has appeared in Measure for Measure (the Cockpit Theatre), The Mousetrap (European Tour), Jack and the Beanstalk (Hull New Theatre), Judgement (Café Theatre) and Seasons (Chichester Festival Theatre).
Film credits include: Sounds Films Little Dorritt.
TV credits include: BBC’s Doctors and ITV’s The Bill.
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Adam trained at Bristol Old Vic.
Theatre credits include: productions of King Lear and The Seagull ( RSC – Stratford, West End & World Tour); Scar & Pumbaa Lion King (Lyceum); Charlemagne Pippin, Colonel Hard Love of a Good Man and Richard Gaugleprixtown (Union Theatre); Cliff Danelaw and Ed Entertaining Mr. Sloane (White Bear) and Mr McNamara Wild Girl Wild Boy (UK Tour).
Film & Television credits include King Lear –(Channel 4), Mortus Illumina (5ylac), Life and Death in Rome ( Sky) and The Bench (Channel 4).
Radio includes Loves Labours Lost ( BBC), Tales for Christmas (BBC) and Papa Jo and the Grand Mogul.
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Having gained a first class honours degree in Drama and Education with QTS from UWIC, Cardiff, Amy trained in Musical Theatre at Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts. Mountview credits include: WOMAN 2 in Maltby and Shire’s Closer Than Ever at the Chelsea Theatre; SALLY BOWLES in Cabaret; DESDEMONA in Othello; LADY HELENA in Gut Girls. Other theatre credits include: FLUELLA in Tickledom (Upstairs at the Gatehouse); PRINCESS in Jack & the Beanstalk (Muni Arts Theatre); YUM YUM in The Mikado (St Fagans Open Air Theatre Festival); NANCY in Oliver! (New Theatre, Cardiff); MARIA in West Side Story (New Theatre, Cardiff); SUKIE in the Welsh premiere of The Witches of Eastwick (New Theatre, Cardiff).
Other Credits include: Original cast recording of Only the Brave; Original cast recording of Tickledom; XTRA (S4C) and Can I Gymru (S4C). Originally from South Wales, Amy tours as a soloist with the Dave Barry Big Band and has performed in more pubs and clubs than she cares to remember.
Amy is thrilled to be back at the Gatehouse this year to join the London premiere of ‘A TALE OF TWO CITIES’.
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