Hamilton, Pretty Woman and Caroline, Or Change stars to feature in MTPRIDE
Casting has been announced for Queered, the first of several events a part of MTPRIDE. MTPRIDE celebrates Pride past, present and future through performances from Musical Theatre stars who are also members of the LGBTQ+ community.
Beginning the festival, Queered reframes existing shows and reimagines classic MT moments in completely new contexts to explore queer histories, lost stories & personal experiences. The showcase, directed by Matt Powell, will blend live performances and spectacular recordings to create an evening that celebrates and interrogates what queer representation in Musical Theatre can be. The performance will be streamed on the MPTheatricals YouTube Channel on Wednesday 24th June, at 8pm BST.
The cast will feature west end performers including Hamilton cast member Waylon Jacobs, Soho Cinders’ Michael Mather, Footloose star Evie Rose Lane and Bring It On’s Roshani Abbey.
Other cast members include: Roly Botha, Lucy Dickson, Jo Eaton-Kent, Eleanor Faye, Ashley Gibbins, Conor Gormally, Kaidyn Niall Hinds, Matthew Jacobs Morgan, Alan Lewis, Freddie Love, Jordan McMahon, Emily Qualmann, Faye Wheeler, Elliott Wooster, Aitch Wylie and Charlotte Elisabeth Yorke, Adam Raymont, Harrison Knights, Joash Musundi & Richard Davies.
MTPRIDE have also partnered with Musical Theatre Network and Mercury Musical Development to host a panel discussion about the future of LGBTQ+ Musical Theatre in the UK. In recent years there has been a slight increase in the diversity of LGBTQIA voices and characters represented in new musical theatre, including stories with trans protagonists and non-binary characters: this panel asks what changes in LGBTQ+ representation musical theatre audiences can expect to see in the next decade.
The panel will take place at 5pm on Monday 29th June, and will feature practitioners from all corners of the LGBTQ+ Community including Olivier winner Sharon D Clarke (Caroline, or Change), Susie McKenna (Associate Director at The Kiln), JBR (JBR Management), Rikki Beadle-Blair (Team Angelica), Harrison Knights (Trans Voices Cabaret), Gus Gowland (Pieces of String) and Dr. James Lovelock (Lecturer in Musical Theatre at the University of Wolverhampton). (Subject to Change).
Full details and schedule can be found at www.mtpride.co.uk. All events will be available on a Pay What You Can basis as MTPRIDE believes it is vital that queer focused works are easily accessible, particularly for younger LGBTQ+ viewers. All proceeds will be split between UK Black Pride, Gendered Intelligence, and a support fund for the artists involved.
More information on each performance, how to watch and support MTPRIDE can be found at www.mtpride.co.uk.
Curators: Lucy Dickson (she/her), Meg McGrady (they/them) & Matt Powell (he/they)
Technical Production Partners: Adam Lenson (he/him) & Chris Czornyj (he/him)
MTPRIDE artwork by William Lloyd (@william.lloydart)