Stage Door, an on-demand radio series presented by West End stars including Louise Dearman and Killian Donnelly, will launch in January 2015, it has been announced. The project was originally planned as a 24-hour service dedicated to musical theatre when it was first announced last year, however organisers failed to reach the set fundraising target of £145,000, which they had intended to raise through crowdfunding. It was always maintained that the organisers wanted to make a musical theatre radio station for fans of the genre, not for shareholders wanting to make money.
As a result, just over £3,000 was donated to the fundraising initiative and plans for the station were scaled back. The project will now comprise of a series of individual programmes hosted by West End talent such as Richard Fleeshman, Lauren Samuels and Alistair Brammer. The presenters will play tracks from shows they have appeared in, and talk about their experiences working in musicals.
This resource for musical theatre fans will provide a wealth of knowledge and anecdotes for listeners as a welcome addition to their interest in musical theatre. Despite being a small one, Stage Door is a positive step towards bringing the musical theatre world into the limelight and championing all it does for fans old and new alike. Making the content readily available will also ensure there is easy access to learning more about musical theatre and its stars.
The content will be available on internet site Mixcloud or through Stage Door’s Facebook page. Stage Door is a partnership between production company Wise Buddah and management company Mothership Management.