Nelson Mandela musical to get World Premiere at the Young Vic this year
“Together is where tomorrow’s promise lies”
London's Young Vic have announced their summer-autumn 2022 season which includes the World Premiere of Mandela, a new musical based on the story the revolutionary activist and the movement he helped inspire.
The musical is presented in partnership with members of Nelson Mandela's family and will run at the Young Vic's Main House from 28th November 2022 to 4th February 2023.
The book is by Laiona Michelle, with music & lyrics by Greg Dean Borowsky & Shaun Borowsky, additional music and lyrics by Bongi Duma.
Schele Williams directs the production and choreography will be by Gregory Maqoma, orchestration and musical supervision by Benjamin Kwasi Burrell, casting by Pippa Ailion CDG and Natalie Gallacher CDG and developed in proud partnership with Nandi Mandela, Luvuyo Madasa and the Mandela family.
Casting information and further creatives will be announced at a later date.
Nelson Mandela's Granddaughter, Nandi Mandela said: “As my grandfather once said, music has the power to free us to dream, to unite people as one voice, and we hope that our musical will do just that. We are so proud to be bringing his story to the stage, with our brilliant creative team led by Greg and Shaun Borowsky, Laiona Michelle, Bongi Duma, Gregory Maqoma and Schele Williams in a way that honours and celebrates Madiba, for who he was - a grandfather, a father, a man who tried to do the best that he could during his journey on earth.
“We hope that my grandfather’s story, of a man from humble beginnings who pulled himself up by his bootstraps, will resonate with audiences far and wide, and communicate his message of hope - that we are all capable of doing great things, as long as we are true and authentic to ourselves.”
There will also be four live broadcasts of Mandela as a part of Best Seat in Your House, which is the Young Vic's immersive multi-camera player which allows the viewer to choose their desired camera angle throughout the show.
The Best Seat in Your House broadcasts will be on 19th, 20th 21st January 2023 at 7.30pm and 21st January 2023 at 2.30pm.
There will also be a relaxed performance (4th January 2023 at 7.30pm), socially distanced performance (21st December 2022 at 7.30pm), BSL Performance (13th December 2022 and 12 January 2023 at 7.30pm), Audio Described Performance (19th December 2022, 10 and 24th January 2023 at 7.30pm) and Captioned Performance (15th December 2022 and January 2023 at 7.30pm).
Tickets for Mandela at the Young Vic will go on sale later this year.
Check out the musicals opening in 2022:
The Osmonds: A New Musical
A new jukebox musical based on the story of the Osmond Brothers is touring the UK and Ireland. With a story by Jay Osmond, The Osmonds: A New Musical kicked off off their tour at the Curve Theatre in Leicester on 3rd February 2022.
We Will Rock You
The hit musical packed with the music of Queen is coming back for its 20th anniversary. We Will Rock You is touring the UK once again with Ben Elton back in the director's chair. The tour began on 7th February 2022 at the Kings Theatre in Portsmouth and is heading to 27 venues across the country before culminating with a residency at the Palace Theatre in Manchester.
Beautiful - The Carole King Musical
The hit jukebox musical celebrating the career of singer/songwriter Carole King is back in this new production of Beautiful - The Carole King Musical which heads is on a UK tour.
The tour is a co-production from Leicester's Curve, Theatre Royal Bath Productions and Mayflower Theatre Southampton and began performances on 28th February at the Curve Theatre.
Fantastically Great Women Who Changed the World
The stage adaptation of Fantastically Great Women Who Changed the World is on tour once again, they began with Liverpool on 25th March.
Anything Goes
Anything Goes has set sail for another voyage with a some brand new faces! The musical went on a UK tour and is now in the middle of another summer run at London's Barbican Centre until 3rd September.
The Cher Show
The Broadway musical based on the one and only Cher is has come to the UK for a national tour. The Cher Show kicked off its tour at the Curve Theatre in Leicester on 15th April 2022.
Grease
A brand new production of Grease is running in the West End in 2022! The new production is directed by Nikolai Foster and choreographed by Arlene Phillips and is running at the Dominion Theatre.
Girl From the North Country
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Bugsy Malone
Bugsy Malone is on its first professional UK tour. The show opened at the Theatre Royal Bath on 2nd July 2022, the Birmingham Rep from 27th July 2022 and then will go onto further venues across the UK.
Crazy For You
Charlie Stemp stars in a new revival of the George and Ira Gershwin's Crazy For You which runs at the Chichester Festival Theatre until 4th September 2022.
Whistle Down the Wind
A new revival of Andrew Lloyd Webber's Whistle Down the Wind runs at the Watermill theatre until 10th September 2022.
Kinky Boots
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Mrs Doubtfire
Based on the iconic film which starred Robin Williams, the musical adaptation of Mrs Doubtfire will get its UK premiere at the Manchester Opera House where it runs from 2nd September 2022.
The Color Purple
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South Pacific
The Chichester Festival Theatre production of South Pacific has returned in 2022. Following runs in Manchester and London the production heads on a UK and Ireland tour beginning on 13th September.
Sister Act
Sandra Marvin leads the touring productionof Sister Act which will open on 20th September 2022.
My Fair Lady
Following its run in the West End, the critically acclaimed Lincoln Center production of My Fair Lady heads on tour from 22nd September.
The Famous Five: A New Musical
A new musical adaptation of Enid Blyton's The Famous Five will have its world premiere later this year. It will run at Theatr Clwyd from 23rd September to 15th October and then from 21st October to 12th November at the Chichester Festival Theatre.
The Time Traveller's Wife: The Musical
A musical adaptation of The Time Traveller's Wife will premiere at the Storyhouse, Chester with a two week run from 30th September. The show will then be transferring to the West End with full details still to be announced.
The Choir of Man
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Tammy Faye
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The musical features music by Elton John, lyrics by Jake Shears and a book by James Graham.
Rodgers + Hammerstein's Cinderella
The stage version of Rodgers + Hammerstein's Cinderella is finally getting its UK premiere at Manchester's Hope Mill Theatre from 1st November 2022.
Disney's Newsies
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Jagged Little Pill
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Elf
The musical adaptation of Elf makes another trip to the Dominion theatre for the 2022 Christmas season. Elf will run from 14th November 2022 until 7th January 2023.
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
The sweetest Roald Dahl musical is making a return this year with a new production of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory running at the Leeds Playhouse from 18th November 2022 to 19th January 2023. The musical then heads on a UK tour in the new year.
Smoky Mountain Christmas Carol
Dolly Parton's take on a Christmas classic, Smoky Mountain Christmas Carol opens at the the Southbank Centre's Queen Elizabeth Hall in London on 8th December 2022 and runs until 9th January 2023.
Broken Wings
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But I'm a Cheerleader: The Musical
After being discovered at MTFestUK 2019, a new musical adaption of the cult classic But I'm a Cheerleader ran at the Turbine Theatre in London until 8th May 2022.
Hedwig and the Angry Inch
A revival of the hit LGBTQ+ musical Hedwig and the Angry Inch is on its way. The production is co-produced by the Leeds Playhouse and HOME Manchester and will star RuPaul's Drag Race UK finalist Divina De Campo in the titular role. The production ran at the Leeds Playhouse from 2nd to 23rd April 2022 and then at HOME in Manchester from 27th April to 11th May 2022.
Bonnie & Clyde
After a hugely successful concert, Bonnie & Clyde ran at the Arts Theatre for a limited run. Will the show be back? We sure hope so!
Passion
A revival of Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine's Passion ran at the Hope Mill Theatre in Manchester. The musical starred Ruthie Henshall as Fosca.
LIFT
Set in Covent Garden tube station's Lift, a new production of LIFT ran at the Southwark Playhouse from 13th May to 18th June 2022.
Legally Blonde
Regent's Park Open Air Theatre kicked off their 2022 season - which celebrates their 90th anniversary - with a brand new production of Legally Blonde. The musical was directed by Six co-creator Lucy Moss and ran from 13th May to 2nd July 2022.
Billy Elliot
This summer, the Curve Theatre in Leicester produced the first new UK production of Billy Elliot since its original West End run. The show is based on the 2000 film of the same name and has music by Elton John and ran until Saturday 20th August 2022.
Singin' in the Rain
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101 Dalmatians
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Yeast Nation (The Triumph of Life)
The bio-historical musical comedy about Yeast - yes, Yeast - set at the dawn of life itself had its European premiere at the Southwark Playhouse running until 27th August 2022.
The musical is written by Greg Kotis and Mark Hollmann and is a prequel to their other musical, Urinetown.
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