Jersey Boys actor David McGranaghan, who is currently starring as Nick Massi in the hit West End musical, has launched the board game Game for Fame. David teamed up with fellow actor Joseph Pitcher to create Game for Fame, where you ‘race from rags to riches and end up in stitches’.
The game has gained a large following due to its tongue-in-cheek view of the celebrity world and has recently been ranked in Amazon’s top 5 selling board games. David puts the success of the game down to its originality, inclusivity and humour, with the challenges both competitive and fun. David runs the business during the day with business partner Joe and then stars in Jersey Boys in the evening, which is the best of both worlds for him.
Jersey Boys tells the remarkable true story of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons and their rise to stardom from the wrong side of the tracks. These four boys from New Jersey became one of the most successful bands in pop history, were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and sold 100 million records worldwide, all before they turned 30.
The musical is the winner of 54 major awards worldwide, including the Olivier Award for Best New Musical. The show originally opened on Broadway in 2006, receiving the Tony Award for Best Musical. As well as still running on Broadway and in the West End, Jersey Boys can be seen in Las Vegas, across the United States on its US National Tour, and in Perth, Australia, and will open soon in Cape Town, South Africa and the Netherlands. The musical will be transferring to the Piccadilly Theatre in March 2014, with the last performance at the Prince Edward Theatre on Sunday 9 March.
The Bodyguard, hit West End musical based on the iconic film, has recently recently released another 300,000 tickets in an announcement that it is extending its triumphant run until August 2014. Fans can now enjoy Thea Sharrock’s hit production for even longer, based on Lawrence Kasdan’s 1992 Oscar nominated Warner Bros. Film.
Phoenix Dance Theatre has grown over the last thirty years to become a renowned and respected British dance company. Founded in inner-city Leeds, the company has become a leading contemporary company and now completes both national and international tours in the aim to bring inspiring and entertaining dance to the widest possible audience.
The producing company Bill Kenwright Limited is planning to bring around 10 shows into the West End in 2014, under the guise of new producer Jeremy Meadow. His roster of shows which he is set to transfer to the capital will follow the opening of Twelve Angry Men at the Garrick Theatre. Also planned by Bill Kenwright Limited is the revival of French farce Chin-Chin with Simon Callow and Felicity Kendal and The Butterfly Lion by Michael Morpurgo, which are both currently on tour, and the two classics Oleanna by David Mamet and JB Priestly’s Dangerous Corner also set for revival.
The Dance Section of the Critics’ Circle has announced the list of nominations for the 14th National Dance Awards, to be awarded at a central London venue on 27 January 2014. The National Dance Awards have been organised each year since 2000, celebrating the variety of Britain’s dance culture. They are the only awards given by the body of professional dance critics in the UK.
The UK’s largest dance house, Sadler’s Wells, has announced plans for a new performance space as part of its recent ten year plan. The vision of Artistic Director and Chief Executive, Alistair Spalding, is one which is ambitious, but exciting for a city in which dance thrives. The announcement came almost ten years after he was appointed in his current role, and outlines plans for the next decade.
2013 marks the 25th anniversary of English National Ballet School, to be celebrated by a series of events which showcase the skills and talents of the students. The events will kick off with a 90 minute live broadcast from the School on 28 November, during which audiences will have a unique insight into a day in the life of the students. Also included in the broadcast will be an interview with Tamara Rojo, Artistic Director of English National Ballet, with the School being a common feeder for the main company.
The Royal Ballet has recently hit cinemas all over America and is continuing to do! Select cinemas throughout the United States will present the 2013 ‘Royal Opera House Ballet Series,’ featuring 3, one-night-only screenings of the new Don Quixote staged by and starring Carlos Acosta, Christopher Wheeldon’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, and Peter Wright’s classic production of The Nutcracker. High definition cameras are used to film the performances, which provide multiple points of view including close-ups and wide shots with a Royal Opera House production truck transmitting the live feed via satellite to the US.
Historically, the term ‘Achilles Heel’ referred to the greatest weakness of an individual: Achilles was a figure of Greek Mythology, a hero of the Trojan War killed by a small injury to his heel. Today, following this tale, the Achilles is the small tendon connecting the calf muscle to the heel bone. The tendon is still a weakness for many dancers, most notable recently was the snapping of the tendon of a Bolshoi dancer during a performance. This was a result of tendonosis, a chronic and more serious condition where bouts of tendonitis are not treated properly or the dancer does not take adequate time to rest.
The Place is once again opening it’s annual Resolution! festival up to reviewers who wish to be partnered by a professional critic and pass judgment on some of the UK’s most promising new dance companies. The Place has engaged with audiences and participants, championed the best ideas, and created inspiring conditions for artists and enthusiasts to realise their potential for over forty years, including that of Resolution!. Combining London Contemporary Dance School, Richard Alston Dance Company and the Robin Howard Dance Theatre, together with pioneering learning, teaching, outreach, recreation and professional development projects The Place champions contemporary dance in particular, and all its strands.