Back to Productions SEXUAL PERVERSITY IN CHICAGO This production began performances on 3rd May and closed on 2nd August 2003. ​ ​ The Chicago singles scene is a hotbed of opportunity for Danny ( Matthew Perry ) and his friend Bernie ( Hank Azaria ), two red-blooded males playing the mating and dating game. Bars, libraries, beaches – they'll go anywhere that the women are – the very places frequented by smart girls like Joan ( Minnie Driver ) and Deborah ( Kelly Reilly ). ​ ​ Controversial, provocative and bitingly funny, David Mamet 's classic 1974 play Sexual Perversity in Chicago is a play about four young people looking for love. Matthew Perry is best known for his Emmy-nominated role as Chandler Bing in the international hit comedy series Friends. Oscar-nominated actress Minnie Driver is one of the UK's most successful film actresses, having appeared in Good Will Hunting, Grosse Pointe Blank and Circle of Friends. Triple Emmy Award-winner Hank Azaria provides some of the key character voices for The Simpsons, whilst his film roles include The Birdcage and Quiz Show. Kelly Reilly is one of Britain's most versatile stage actresses and has appeared in The Graduate, The London Cuckolds and Blasted. ​ ​ CAST MATTHEW PERRY – Danny MINNIE DRIVER – Joan HANK AZARIA – Bernard KELLY REILLY – Deborah CREATIVES DAVID MAMET – Playwright LINDSAY POSNER – Director JEREMY HERBERT – Designer NIGEL EDWARDS – Lighting Designer TERRY DAVIES – Music MATT MCKENZIE – Sound Designer JIM CARNHAN – U.S. Casting

Back to News & Press Dreamgirls announces further venues for its first ever tour of the UK Friday, 28 February 2020 Sonia Friedman Productions is delighted to announce further venues and dates for Dreamgirls ’ first ever UK tour. Following on from performances in 2020 in Bristol, Milton Keynes, Blackpool, Aberdeen, Edinburgh and Birmingham, Dreamgirls will continue to tour in 2021 to Sunderland, Hull, Nottingham, Liverpool, Norwich, Canterbury and Leeds. Featuring the classic songs ‘And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going’, ‘Listen’ and ‘One Night Only’, this sensational, multi-award winning new production of Dreamgirls had its critically acclaimed West End Premiere in December 2016 at London’s Savoy Theatre, 35 years on from opening on Broadway. Meet The Dreams – Effie, Lorrell and Deena – three talented young singers in the turbulent 1960s, a revolutionary time in American music history. Join the three friends as they embark upon a musical rollercoaster ride through a world of fame, fortune and the ruthless realities of show business, testing their friendships to the very limit. In 2006, Dreamgirls was adapted into an Oscar® winning motion picture starring Beyoncé Knowles, Jennifer Hudson, Eddie Murphy and Jamie Foxx. Casting for the Dreamgirls UK tour will be announced soon. This award winning production is Directed and Choreographed by Olivier® and Tony® Award winning Casey Nicholaw (The Book of Mormon, Mean Girls, Disney’s Aladdin and Something Rotten!), with Set and Costume Design by Tim Hatley , Lighting Design by Hugh Vanstone , Sound Design by Richard Brooker , Hair Design by Josh Marquette and Music Supervision by Nick Finlow . With Book and Lyrics by Tom Eyen and Music by Henry Krieger , with Additional Material by Willie Reale , the original Broadway production of Dreamgirls , Directed and Choreographed by Michael Bennett , opened in 1981 and subsequently won six Tony® Awards. The original cast recording won two Grammy® Awards for Best Musical Album and Best Vocal Performance for Jennifer Holliday’s ‘And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going.’ The Original London Cast Recording of hit West End musical Dreamgirls is available via Sony Masterworks Broadway . The UK Tour of Dreamgirls is produced by Sonia Friedman Productions , Greenleaf Productions , Fakston Productions , Rupert Gavin , Tulchin Bartner Productions , Griffin Dohr , Adam Blanshay Productions in association with 1001 Nights Productions , Eighth Sea Incorporated , Glass Half Full Productions . Up Up

Back to Productions BOEING BOEING – BROADWAY This production began on 4th May 2008 and closed on 4th January 2009. ​ ​ In Boeing-Boeing, an architect living in Paris ( Whitford ) has been successfully juggling three flight attendant fiancées ( Gershon , Hahn and McCormack ) with his housekeeper (Baranski) reluctantly playing romantic air traffic controller as they fly in and out of his swank bachelor pad. But when an old school pal ( Rylance ) visits, things get rather turbulent. Schedules change, flights are delayed and chaos ensues in this whirl of mayhem and matchmaking. ​ ​ Winner of two Tony Awards: BEST REVIVAL and BEST ACTOR IN A PLAY (MARK RYLANCE ) Winner of two Drama Desk Awards: BEST REVIVAL and BEST ACTOR (MARK RYLANCE ) Christine Baranski , Mark Rylance , Bradley Whitford , Gina Gershon , Kathryn Hahn and Mary McCormack star in the London smash Boeing-Boeing. Marc Camoletti 's classic sixties comedy of errors now playing at Broadway's Longacre Theatre, directed by Matthew Warchus . . The London production was just honoured with two 2008 Oliver Award nominations: Best Revival and Best Actor in a Play, Mark Rylance . ​ ​ CAST CHRISTINE BARANSKI – Berthe MARK RYLANCE – Robert GREG GERNAMM – Bernard GINA GERSHON – Gabriella KATHRYN HAHN – Gloria MISSI PYLE – Gretchen CREATIVES MARC CAMOLETTI – Playwright BEVERLEY CROSS & FRANCIS EVANS – Translators MATTHEW WARCHUS – Director ROB HOWELL – Designer HUGH VANSTONE – Lighting Designer CLAIRE VAN KAMPEN – Original Music SIMON BAKER – Sound Designer

Back to News & Press Character portraits of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child cast released Wednesday, 1 June 2016 Joining previously announced Jamie Parker as Harry Potter, Noma Dumezweni as Hermione Granger, andPaul Thornley as Ron Weasley are: Sam Clemmett as Albus Potter, Poppy Miller as Ginny Potter, Cherrelle Skeete as Rose Granger-Weasley, Alex Price as Draco Malfoy and Anthony Boyle as Scorpius Malfoy. With the first preview just around the corner, you can also take a look behind the scenes at the character portraits photoshoot in an exciting new video, which can be found here . Visit the official website to see all of the character portraits and for more information about the production. Up Up

Back to News & Press Sonia Friedman on pandemic theatre: ‘It’s a bloodbath’ Monday, 17 January 2022 Sunday Times - Interview with Sonia Friedman: By Kirsty Lang Sunday January 09 2022, 12.01am, The Sunday Times Sonia Friedman hasn’t stopped since she left school at 16 for a job backstage, winning 58 Olivier awards and 34 Tonys on her rags to riches way to the top. If all goes to plan, the super-producer’s blockbuster openings this year include Mark Rylance reprising his role in Jerusalem in the West End and Funny Girl on Broadway. Friedman, though, has not had a happy new year. In the past three weeks she has had to cancel 158 performances and lost more than £4 million. Omicron has rolled inexorably through the West End like a tsunami. The new variant could not have arrived at a worse time. The Christmas period is when theatre companies build up their reserves. A pantomime can account for 40 per cent of a regional theatre’s annual box-office income. “It’s a bloodbath and it’s chaotic,” Friedman says. “We are seeing drops in our box office of between 25 and 50 per cent. There’s fear, despair and confusion all round.” Read the full article on the Sunday Times website → Up Up

Back to News & Press Five Star Hit - 1984 - Transfers to the West End's Playhouse Theatre Friday, 7 March 2014 A new adaptation created by Robert Icke and Duncan Macmillan Playhouse Theatre, Northumberland Ave, London, WC2N 5DE 28 April –19 July 2014 www.1984ThePlay.co.uk Robert Icke and Duncan Macmillan’s critically acclaimed adaptation of George Orwell’s dystopian masterpiece will come to the West End, directly from the Almeida Theatre, for a strictly limited 12-week run at the Playhouse Theatre from 28 April - 19 July 2014, with Press Night on 8 May. “This is a rigorous and prodigiously confident reimagining of Orwell’s dystopian nightmare” Evening Standard Tickets on sale from today. For each performance of this stunning show which, among many other things, brought the concept of Big Brother and Room 101 into the public consciousness, there will be 101 tickets available each day for the price of £19.84. “This is a staging that reconsiders a classic with such steely power that it chills Brain, Blood and Bone” The Times 1984 is a new adaptation of George Orwell’s novel created by Robert Icke and Duncan Macmillan, designed by Chloe Lamford, with lighting by Natasha Chivers, sound by Tom Gibbons and video designed by Tim Reid. Originally produced by Headlong, Nottingham Playhouse and the Almeida Theatre, 1984 had its world premiere at Nottingham Playhouse in September and enjoyed a hugely successful UK tour. George Orwell’s 1984, published in 1949, is one of the most influential novels in recent history, with its chilling depiction of perpetual war, pervasive government surveillance and incessant public mind-control. Its ideas have become our ideas, and Orwell’s fiction is often said to be our reality. Filtering the spirit and the ambition of the novel through the lens of contemporary culture, this radical new staging explores surveillance culture, identity and how thinking you can fly might actually be the first step to flying. Up Up

Back to News & Press Richard Coyle To Play Atticus Finch in To Kill A Mockingbird Monday, 27 June 2022 Acclaimed stage and screen actor, Richard Coyle , will return to the West End to play the iconic role of Atticus Finch in the critically acclaimed production of Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird – a new play by Aaron Sorkin , directed by Bartlett Sher . Coyle was last on the West End stage in the Olivier Award-nominated hit play, Ink . Niall Buggy (Olivier and Drama Desk Award-winner) will also join the production as Judge Taylor. Coyle and Buggy will join the original London company and begin performances from 15 August for the current booking period until 19 November at the Gielgud Theatre. Rafe Spall and Jim Norton , who are currently playing Atticus Finch and Judge Taylor respectively, will have their final performances on 13 August. Click here to book tickets for the Autumn season. Up Up

Back to News & Press Relative Values: Sonia and Maria Friedman Saturday, 24 August 2019 Sonia Maria and I have spent many hours trying to figure out how we survived our childhood. Our mum’s recent death has thrown up all sorts of questions about how we got through it. We both agree that if we were in the same situation now, we’d probably have ended up in foster care. I don’t want to use the word neglect. Mum was a woman of enormous intelligence and pride, bringing up four children under the age of 10 with no emotional or financial support. Our dad [the violinist Leonard Friedman] left when I was born. She was trying to provide for us [she worked as a concert pianist], but it meant she was constantly absent. There was no parental guidance, no boundaries and no support. A gypsy called Wally, who mum brought into the home, was the only older person in our life. He at least ensured we were all in at night. We fed ourselves. We got ourselves up and we put ourselves to bed. I have no memory of ever having a family meal together. From birth to the age of 10, my three siblings provided constant love, music, energy and laughs. It was mad, wild and bohemian. Then, within the space of a few months, my brother Richard left home and so did Sarah, who was two years older. Maria, who was 15, went to live in a bedsit with her boyfriend — young, yes, but that’s just how we were. I’ve always rebelled against structure and authority and routine. After that, I truanted from school. I had no confidence or ambition, no idea what I wanted to do. Maria, who is five years older than me, pulled me along with her. She took me to her school with her, and when she started acting she took me to the theatre and sat me in the prompt corner to watch the performance. When I was about 13, she was in a production of Oklahoma! at the Palace Theatre and I vividly remember swivelling round to watch the crew and the dressers instead of the stage. I felt I was sharing a magical secret. I knew in that moment I wanted to be a producer, like watching all my childhood dreams spring to life. Maria was my safe place and she still is. Her voice makes me feel protected and warm. I cry just thinking about it. She has no idea how much I listen to her. All the things she’s been through — her struggles, her suffering, her highs and lows, and everything our family has dealt with — come over in everything she sings. As soon as I hear her, I am her baby sister, she’s looking after me again and I feel so lucky she’s there. She’s had primary breast cancer twice. The second time, five years after the first, it was very aggressive. She had a double mastectomy and was seriously ill. I went to New York with her when she had surgery. Her two beautiful boys needed her support, so she had to make the decision to put her musical theatre career on hold. [Toby has a form of cerebral palsy and Alfie has Asperger’s]. But out of that difficult time she’s also created an extraordinary career as a theatre director. She’s just a brilliant communicator. We’ve both felt lost since Mum died. She’d always be in the audience when Maria was performing. Within weeks of her dying we did the only thing we knew — the four of us put on a show, just as we did as children. But this time we drew on the top talent in the world: we had the best orchestras and choirs; Andrew Scott performed a soliloquy from Hamlet. It was something only our family could have pulled off. It was our mad, mad childhood made real. I’m now producing the most wonderful piece of magic [Harry Potter and the Cursed Child] at the Palace Theatre; whenever I go, I stand on the spot where Maria sat me down to watch Oklahoma! I touch the walls, the years slip away and I feel extraordinarily blessed. Maria: Sonia was born with incredible energy and focus and clarity: she can hold 10 worlds in her head, yet there’s still something childlike about her. She could have stylists and houses all over the world, but she likes to keep things simple. She just loves the work, and that’s kept us both safe. We had a mum who had a lot of ill health — she did what she could, but it was never going to be enough. You don’t feel the chaos and lack of structure as a child, it’s only later in life, when you see how other people live, that you realise what you didn’t have. It’s driven us to make our world secure. You learnt to put an arm around yourself to make sure you’re OK because you never knew what was going to happen next. I held on tight to Sonia, particularly. I was five when she was born and she saved me. Our brother and sister had been sent to boarding school and Mum was largely absent, but I had this beautiful little thing who I loved to the point of distraction. Sonia was everything to me and I wanted everything for her. It made me feel great that I had someone tremendous to look after. We gave each other an enormous amount of love. I don’t mean in the flabby sense — I think love is doing, love is being there, and she and I will always be there for each other. I was diagnosed with primary breast cancer for the second time five years ago. It was a deeply distressing time and it’s had a massive impact. Sonia was tremendous: she went into full-on organisational mode; she made sure I was financially OK. She paid the school fees for my son when I couldn’t, and came with us to New York for treatment. Then my family moved into her house. She gave us her heart and her home. The whole family has ended up with much younger partners: our mother was with someone 17 years younger than herself. There’s a 20-year gap between my brother and his partner. My husband [the actor Adrian Der Gregorian] is 20 years younger than me. Sonia’s partner [the writer Joe Murphy] is 25 years younger than her. There’s something about successful women that men our age find very difficult; younger men love our success and celebrate it — I’ve spent the past 14 years with someone who only wishes me well. We both hate the fact it’s constantly brought up. I find it revolting when people call them toy boys. I’ve often been called my husband’s mother, I’ve been called his grandmother. And to begin with it made me want to leave him. Then I thought: “Why let other people define my joy?” I have two children with special needs. Toby is profoundly affected; Alfie has Asperger’s. Both were badly bullied at school, and when I was having radiotherapy I realised I had to spend more time with them. I stopped work and designed bespoke educations for them. I’ve spent every penny I’ve earned doing things that were never done with us. Sonia is a wonderful parent to a thousand people. Everyone wants to be in a Sonia Friedman production because you’re thought about, you’re listened to. She parents all of us. Neither of us takes holidays. What’s the point? We feel we’re on holiday if we find a little cafe and have a gorgeous coffee — that’ll do for us. We’ve learnt to live in the cracks of our busy lives as women always have. And you know what? We’re really, really good at finding joy. Up Up

Back to News & Press Tickets on sale for West End run of MEAN GIRLS. Wednesday, 1 November 2023 Lorne Michaels, Sonia Friedman Productions, and David Ian for Crossroads Live - producers of MEAN GIRLS in the West End - are delighted to announce that tickets go on sale today for MEAN GIRLS at the Savoy Theatre! The smash hit musical comedy based on the Paramount Pictures film of the same name will debut at the West End's Savoy Theatre on 5 June 2024, with opening on 19 June 2024. It's gonna be a little bit dramatic... Get in loser, MEAN GIRLS is coming to London! Broadway's hilarious hit musical from an award-winning creative team including writer Tina Fey (''JO Rock"/ composer Jeff Richmond ("Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt'J lyricist Nell Benjamin {Legally Blonde) and director and choreographer Casey Nicholaw {The Book of Mormon), opens at the Savoy Theatre late next spring. Meet The Plastics -Regina, Gretchen and Karen. They rule North Shore High and will burn anyone who gets in their way. Home-schooled Cady Heron may think she knows a thing or two about survival of the fittest thanks to her zoologist parents, but high school is a whole new level of savage. When Cady devises a plan to end Regina's reign, she learns the hard way that you can't cross a queen bee without getting stung. Expect iconic characters, razor-sharp wit, and k!ller songs. Grab your friends and your cool mom, this is going to be fetch - and YES London, we're making it happen! The reign begins June 2024. If you want to sit with us, book your tickets and don't forget .. on Wednesdays, we wear pink. Casting will be announced at a later date. Up Up

Back to News & Press Initial casting announced for the Broadway transfer of Jez Butterworth's The Ferryman Initial casting announced for the Broadway transfer of Jez Butterworth's The Ferryman Wednesday, 9 May 2018 The Ferryman ’s cast will feature Paddy Considine in his stage debut as Quinn Carney, Laura Donnelly as Caitlin Carney, and Genevieve O’Reilly as Mary Carney. The cast will also include Dean Ashton , Glynis Bell , Gina Costigan , Charles Dale , Justin Edwards , Fra Fee , Fionnula Flanagan , Tom Glynn-Carney , Stuart Graham , Mark Lambert , Carla Langley , Conor MacNeill , Colin McPhillamy , Rob Malone , Dearbhla Molloy , Glenn Speers and Niall Wright , with further casting to be announced. The Broadway production will begin previews Tuesday, October 2 ahead of a Sunday, October 21 opening night at Broadway’s Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre (242 W. 45th Street, New York). Tickets are now on sale at www.telecharge.com . Developed by Sonia Friedman Productions and produced with Neal Street Productions and The Royal Court Theatre , The Ferryman opened at The Royal Court in May 2017 to huge critical acclaim and was the fastest-selling play in the theater’s history. The sold-out show transferred to the Gielgud Theatre in London’s West End, and will end its thrice-extended, year-long run on May 19. In London, The Ferryman received an extraordinary 24 five-star reviews. Last month the production won three 2018 Olivier Awards, including Best New Play (marking Jez Butterworth ’s second Olivier win), Best Actress Laura Donnelly and Best Director Sam Mendes (marking his fourth Olivier win). The Ferryman has also won three 2017 Evening Standard Awards, including Best Play and Best Director, as well as the Emerging Talent Award for Tom Glynn-Carney ; three 2018 Whatsonstage Awards, including Best New Play, Best Director, and Best Supporting Actor for Fra Fee ; and was named the Best New Play at the 2018 UK Critics’ Circle Awards. The Ferryman is set in rural Northern Ireland in 1981. The Carney farmhouse is a hive of activity with preparations for the annual harvest. A day of hard work on the land and a traditional night of feasting and celebrations lie ahead. But this year they will be interrupted by a visitor. The production is designed by Rob Howell , with lighting by Peter Mumford , and sound and original music by Nick Powell . UK Casting is by Amy Ball CDG and US Casting is by Jim Carnahan, C.S.A and Jillian Cimini C.S.A. Other members of the Broadway creative team will be announced at a later date. The Ferryman is produced on Broadway by Sonia Friedman Productions & Neal Street Productions with Ronald Frankel, Roy Furman, Gavin Kalin Productions, Scott M. Delman, Stephanie P. McClelland, Tulchin Bartner Productions, Kallish Weinstein Creative, Ron Kastner, Starry Night Entertainment, Scott Landis, Steve Traxler, Richard Winkler, Burnt Umber Productions, Rupert Gavin, Scott Rudin, 1001 Nights, William Damaschke, The Shubert Organization, Sam Levy/Lauren Stevens, Ramin Sabi/Christopher Ketner, and Jamie deRoy/Catherine Adler . Up Up

Back to Productions OTHELLO This production began performances on 11th September and closed on 12th December 2009. ​ ​ Love, racism, jealousy and desire are at the emotional core of Shakespeare's monumental tragedy, a tender love story shattered by one man's obsessive hatred of another. Othello is noble, brave and victorious. Iago, passed over for a position in the army, fuels his diabolical revenge with hatred and snarling racism. Poignant, intense and heartbreaking, Othello mercilessly explores every inch of the human condition. ​ ​ The Northern Broadsides and West Yorkshire Playhouse production of Othello, starring Lenny Henry in the title role, will transfer to Trafalgar Studios from 11 September following a sell-out, regional tour. ​ ​ CAST DAVID BECKFORD MATT CONNOR ANDY CRYER VICTORIA GEE JESSICA HARRIS LENNY HENRY GEOFF LEESLEY CONRAD NELSON CHRIS PEARSE SARA POYZER SIMON HOLLAND ROBERTS RICHARD STANDING CREATIVES BARRIE RUTTER – Director CONRAD NELSON – Composer RUARI MURCHISON – Set Designer STEPHEN SNELL – Costume Designer GUY HOARE – Lighting Designer

Back to News & Press All About Eve now showing on NT at Home Thursday, 20 January 2022 Gillan Anderson (A Streetcar Name Desire ) and Lily James (Mama Mia! ) lead in All About Eve . Margo Channing. Legend. True star of the theatre. The spotlight is hers, always has been. But now there’s Eve. Her biggest fan. Young, beautiful Eve. The golden girl, the girl next door. But you know all about Eve...don’t you? Directed by Ivo van Hove (Hedda Gabler, A View From The Bridge ) and captured from London’s West End. All About Eve lifts the curtain on a world of jealousy and ambition, and asks why our fascination with celebrity, youth and identity never seems to get old. Up Up