Matthew Needham News

Full casting has been announced for The Turbine Theatre's first musical production, High Fidelity. Leading the ensemble is musical theatre start Oliver Ormson as vinyl shop owner, Rob. The rest of the cast will include Carl Au (Dick), Robbie Durham (Barry), Rosie Fletcher (Anna), Joshua Dever (Neil Young/Bruce Springsteen), Shanay Holmes (Laura), Eleanor Kane (Marie), Jessica Lee (Ensemble), Bobbie Little (Liz), Lauran Rae (Ensemble) and Robert Tripolino (Ian)

The UK premiere of the irresistible new musical comedy High Fidelity, based on the acclaimed British novel by Nick Hornby (State Of The Union/About A Boy/Fever Pitch), is the second production in Paul Taylor-Mills' inaugural season at The Turbine Theatre. Directed and choreographed by Tom Jackson Greaves, the first musical to open at the new Battersea Power Station based theatre, runs from 21 October a?" 7 December, with press night on Friday 1 November 2019.

Turbine Theatre presents its inaugural production, Torch Song starring Matthew Needham (Arnold), Daisy Boulton (Laurel), Dino Fetscher (Ed) and Rish Shah (Alan), Jay Lycurgo (David) and Bernice Stegers (Ma). Let's see what the critics had to say.

It's an exciting time for London theatre at the moment, and never more so than when a brand new theatre opens, leaving us brimming with anticipation at the potential to come. Torch Song is the inaugural production at The Turbine Theatre a?' a trendy and intimate space at Battersea Power Station a?' and it' proven to be an excellent launch pad for what will hopefully be a long life for Paul Taylor-Mills' new venture.

Just before the company of Torch Song started their previews, director Drew McOnie and actor Matthew Needham took some time off from their hectic rehearsal schedule to sit down with us and talk about their show. The play follows drag queen Arnold Beckoff on his quest for true love in 1970s New York.

Matthew Needham (Arnold), Daisy Boulton (Laurel), Dino Fetscher (Ed), Jay Lycurgo (David), Rish Shah (Alan) and Bernice Stegers (Ma) star in the Turbine Theatre's inaugural production, Torch Song, directed by Drew McOnie. Torch Song runs for a strictly limited season from 22 August – 13 October 2019, with press night on Friday 6 September.

London is never short of temptations, whether splashy West End shows, epic dramas or bold fringe offerings. From a landmark musical and Caryl Churchill to Wall Street and ABBA immersion, here are some of this month's most eye-catching openings. Don't forget to check back for BroadwayWorld's reviews, interviews and features!

Get a sneak peek inside the rehearsal room for the Turbine Theatre's inaugural production Torch Song.

Final casting has been announced for the Turbine Theatre's inaugural production, Torch Song. Alongside the previously announced Matthew Needham (Arnold), Daisy Boulton (Laurel), Dino Fetscher (Ed) and Rish Shah (Alan), are Jay Lycurgo (David) and Bernice Stegers (Ma).

The Turbine Theatre is a brand new theatre on the banks of the Thames next to the iconic Battersea Power Station, presented by Bill Kenwright and founded and led by Artistic Director Paul Taylor-Mills. The theatre will be located under the Grosvenor Bridge railway arches at Circus West Village, the first chapter of the iconic Battersea Power Station's regeneration, which is already a thriving riverside destination located at the foot of the iconic Grade II* listed landmark. 

Sonia Friedman Productions confirms the previously announced end-date of 19 January 2019 for the West End production of Summer and Smoke. Audiences have less than three weeks to catch Rebecca Frecknall's critically acclaimed revival and reinvention of Tennessee Williams' intoxicating and gripping classic. This breathtaking production starring the sensational Patsy Ferran and Matthew Needham completes its highly successful West End run at the Duke of York's Theatre.

Music sits very much at the heart of director Rebecca Fracknell's vision of Summer and Smoke, the stage surrounded by pianos. Giving us an insight into how that world is created on stage, actor Forbes Masson also shares how that music continues offstage with a certain cast tradition.

Straight off her win for Best Actress in a New Production of a Play at BroadwayWorld's UK Awards, Patsy Ferran shares what it's like to have a character in your head for that long a time. Taking us through how her own impressions of Alma have changed, she also reveals just how Alma has changed her too.

Rebecca Frecknall's production of Summer and Smoke lands in the West End after a starry run at Almeida Theatre earlier this year. In its new incarnation, one of Tennessee Williams' undervalued pieces is turned into an aesthetic dream to inspire a broader reflection on how the 1948 play resonates 70 years later.

The West End transfer of Tennessee Williams' intoxicating and rarely staged classic, Summer and Smoke, follows a sold-out and critically lauded run at the Almeida Theatre. Directed by the Almeida's Associate Director Rebecca Frecknall with the full cast reprising their roles for the West End run, this innovative new production of Summer and Smoke has a limited run from 10 November 2018 - 19 January 2019, at the Duke Of York's Theatre, with press night on Tuesday 20 November at 7pm.

London is never short of temptations, whether splashy West End shows, epic dramas or bold fringe offerings. From new musicals to Shakespeare, Pinter and Magic Mike, here are some of this month's most eye-catching openings. Don't forget to check back for BroadwayWorld reviews, interviews and features!

First performed at the Royal Court in 2009, Mike Bartlett's play Cock has been revived as part of the Chichester Festival season at the Minerva Theatre, following on from Michael Frayn's Copenhagen. Despite being written almost a decade ago, the themes of this play are arguably more relevant now than they ever have been, so this revival could not have been timed much better.

To celebrate less than six weeks until the West End transfer, an exclusive trailer for Tennessee Williams' intoxicating and rarely staged classic, Summer and Smoke, has been released.

Three of the UK's most exciting young actors - Luke Thallon, Matthew Needham and Isabella Laughland - will appear in Kate Hewitt's new production of Mike Bartlett's COCK, which will play in the round at Chichester's Minerva Theatre from 28 September - 27 October. They will be joined by Simon Chandler, whose most recent Chichester appearance was in Festival 2017's The Stepmother. This will be the first revival of Bartlett's Olivier Award-winning play since its 2009 premiere at the Royal Court.

Following a critically acclaimed, sold-out run at the Almeida Theatre, Rebecca Frecknall's production of Tennessee Williams' SUMMER AND SMOKE transfers to the West End's Duke of York's Theatre for a strictly limited season. Book tickets here!