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Josh joins the cast at Evening Standard theatre awards
Louise Jury, Chief Arts Correspondent18.11.08
A GLITTERING cast of West End stars, including Josh Hartnett, Jude Law, Kenneth Branagh, Kelly Brook and Felicity Kendal, are set to attend this year's prestigious Evening Standard Theatre Awards.
Dozens of performers, writers and directors whose work has been seen on stage in the last year will be among 250 invited guests for the ceremony at the Royal Opera House on Monday, hosted by Richard Wilson.
Branagh, whose critically acclaimed run in Ivanov ends this month, and Law, due to play Hamlet next year, are expected to be joined by Ray Davies, who wrote and performed his musical Come Dancing at the Theatre Royal Stratford East, writer Michael Frayn and directors Michael Grandage and Nicholas Hytner.
Actors invited to the celebration include Anna Chancellor, Iain Glen and Clare Higgins.
Hartnett, the Hollywood actor starring in Rain Man at the Apollo, will announce the winner of the Charles Wintour award for most promising playwright.
Bola Agbaje, Anupama Chandrasekhar and Tarell Alvin McCraney are shortlisted for the award which comes with £10,000 for the winner and £2,500 each for the runners-up.
Charles Dance unveils who has scooped this year's best actress honours. The contenders are Lesley Sharp, for Harper Regan at the National, and Margaret Tyzack and Penelope Wilton, Donmar co-stars in The Chalk Garden. Kate Fleetwood, who played Lady Macbeth to Patrick Stewart's award-winning Macbeth, will announce best design.
Maria Friedman, who has starred in many of London's most successful singing and dancing spectaculars, will present the Ned Sherrin award for best musical. The Menier Chocolate Factory's La Cage aux Folles is vying for honours with Marguerite and Street Scene, a production at the Young Vic and Palace Theatre.
Reader views (12)
Here's a sample of the latest views published.
I went to see Come Dancing on the last night at Stratford with my family including two teenagers.
We all had a great night and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves.The songs are excellent and in a variety of styles illustrating the change from the big bands to rock and roll.The cast gave it their all and the audience really lapped it up.A great night out.
- Martin, Ropley, Hants
I presume that, while the new songs written specifically for this production are reasonably good,a few more of the bankable hits may somehow need to be appended in order for the show to succeed in making the leap onto the big stage of Broadway or the West End. Not just "Come Dancing" itself, but perhaps "Waterloo Sunset", "Days" and/or other timeless tunes. Break a leg, Ray!
- Duncan Smith, Victoria, BC, Canada
Come dancing is the best musical I have ever seen, and not only that, but the best stage show too. Ray D did a fine job, it couldn't have been better. The rest of the cast was excellent too; it was very well cast and well directed. All together fabulous.
- Roshen Kaye, New York USA / Southampton England
Come dancing is the best musical I have ever seen, and not only that, but the best stage show too. Ray D did a fine job, it couldn't have been better. The rest of the cast was excellent too; it was very well cast and well directed. All together fabulous.
- Roshen Kaye, New York USA / Southampton England
Hope Ray Davies' Come Dancing stage show gets a good recognition at the ES Theatre Awards. Deserves to go on a UK tour.
- John Adams, London, England
Come Dancing was a thrilling concept and a heartwarming show. How often do you have the writer/composer of a musical actually performing in it? I went to see the show several times and it was so interesting to watch the characters grow. The band were magnificent and added so much to the enjoyment of the evening.
Let's hope it gets the West End transfer, cast recording and dvd and then a move to Broadway and perhaps a film! A few years from now Amateur Operatic companies will be bursting at the seams to perform this new work.
- Olga Ruocco, Basildon, Essex
Ray Davies certainly deserves to take his place proudly at these awards. Come Dancing was a true gem. A magnificent job by writer and cast.I really hope to see it move on to the West End.
- Patricia Moore, London England.
Yes, Ray Davies certainly deserves to take his place at these awards proudly. The show was amazing. He did a fantastic job as did the cast. Good luck to them all.
- Patricia Moore, London England.
Come Dancing was the best musical that I saw in the last 12 months.
- Steve Garibaldi, London England
Yes, COME DANCING was a great show.
- Rolf Larsen, Copenhagen, Denmark
Come Dancing deserves a top award, and hopefully will get the West End transfer with the original brilliant cast as it truly deserves.
- Bill Orton, Atherstone Warwickshire
I certainly hope the Ray Davies musical COME DANCING and some of his Cast win some of the awards. The musical itself definitely deserves to be in the competition for best new musical. In my opinion it should win, I flew out from the US to see it and absolutely loved it and hope it comes to NYC so I can see it again! Also some of the cast from the show were great in their parts, actually they all were but I would vote for Gemma Salter who had the lead role as Julie, and Stephen Lioyd who played Sid.
Best of luck to Ray Davies his cast and come Dancing! - Frank Lima, Montvale, New Jersey- USA
- Frank Lima, Montvale, new Jersey USA
