Legally Blonde at Regent's Park: All you need to know
The hit musical made a return to London in 2022
Last updated 26th Jul 2022
The Regent's Park Open Air Theatre have announced their 2022 season which will open with a revival of Legally Blonde the Musical.
Join us as we dive into what you need to know about one of the biggest revivals in London for 2022.
Who was in the cast?
Courtney Bowman (Six, Everybody's Talking About Jamie) led the cast as Elle Woods.
Joining her were Michael Ahomka-Lindsay as Emmett, Lauren Drew as Brooke, Vanessa Fisher as Vivienne, Isaac Hesketh as Margot, Nadine Higgin as Paulette, Alžbeta Matyšáková as Enid, Eugene McCoy as Callahan, Grace Mouat as Pilar, Alistair Toovey as Warner and Hannah Yun Chamberlain as Serena.
Also in the cast were Gabriela Benedetti, Lucca Chadwick-Patel, Jasmin Colangelo, Allie Daniel, Joe Foster, Dominic Lamb, Esme Laudat, Liam McEvoy, Billy Nevers, Ashley Rowe, Shakira Simpson, Biancha Szynal and Paulo Teixeira (also Dance Captain).
Who directed Legally Blonde at Regent's Park?
The 2022 revival of Legally Blonde was directed by Lucy Moss who is best known for co-creating Six The Musical alongside Toby Marlow, she also co-directed the hit musical alongside Jamie Armitage.
When Six transferred to Broadway she became the youngest female director of a Broadway musical and won a Tony at the 2022 Tony Awards. Other projects she has worked on include Hot Gay Time Machine and Ratatouille: The TikTok Musical.
Is Legally Blonde based on a book?
It is indeed! The original story for Legally Blonde come from Amanda Brown's 2001 novel of the same name which were inspired the letters that she wrote herself when she was studying at Stanford University.
The unpublished manuscript was picked up by Hollywood meaning that the film version of Legally Blonde which starred Reese Witherspoon as Elle Woods was released just a month after Amanda self-published her novel.
Who wrote Legally Blonde the Musical?
The music and lyrics for Legally Blonde The Musical were written by Laurence O'Keefe and Nell Benjamin. Other musicals by Laurence include Bat Boy The Musical and Heathers The Musical. Nell Benjamin wrote the lyrics for the musical adaptions of Mean Girls and Dave.
The book was written by Heather Hach who also wrote the screenplay for Disney's 2003 remake of Freaky Friday.
Legally Blonde: Creative Team
The creative team for Legally Blonde includes Pippa Ailion CDG and Natalie Gallacher CDG for Pippa Ailion Casting (casting directors), Cat Beveridge (musical supervisor), Tony Gayle (sound designer) and Ellen Kane (choreographer).
How to buy Legally Blonde tickets
Legally Blonde at Regent's Park Open Air Theatre has now finished its run.
What else is on at Regent's Park?
The 2022 season at Regent's Park Open Air Theatre will then continue with the previously postponed musical adaptation of 101 Dalmatians, based on Dodie Smith's 1956 children's novel which will runs until 28th August 2022.
The season will conclude with a modern retelling of Antigone written by Inua Ellams and directed by Max Webster which will run from 3rd to 24th September 2022.
Our favourite musicals based on films
Billy Elliot
Billy Elliot arrived in cinemas in 2000 telling the story of a boy from County Durham who took up ballet lessons. The film is set around the backdrop of the miners' strike of 1984-85. In 2005 the musical version opened at the Victoria Palace with music by Elton John and book and lyrics by Lee Hall (who also went on to pen the screenplay to Elton's biopic, Rocketman).
The musical was a huge success and ran in the West End for just over a decade closing in 2016 ahead of a refurbishment of the theatre which would then welcome Hamilton as its next resident. The musical was broadcast live across cinemas in 2014 and during this period had our very own Ruthie Henshall as Billy's teacher Mrs. Wilkinson.
Chitty Chitty Bang Bang
While Chitty Chitty Bang Bang may feel like it was always designed for the stage, we had to wait a while for technology to catch up before we saw our fine four fendered friend up on the stage. The 1968 film was based on the book by Bond writer Ian Fleming which starred Dick Van Dyke as Caractacus Potts. However, the story wasn't put on the stage until 2002 where it opened at the London Palladium starring Michael Ball as Caractacus, Emma Williams as Truly Scrumptious and Carrie Hope Fletcher as Jemima.
The musical version included the songs from the original including 'Chitty Chitty Bang Bang', 'Hushabye Mountain' and 'Me Ol' Bamboo'. The film's original composers, the Sherman Brothers (also known for Mary Poppins) composed six new songs for the stage adaptation.
Grey Gardens
Grey Gardens is one of the few musicals that is based on a documentary. The 1975 film showed the lives of Edith Ewing Bouvier Beale (Big Edie) and her daughter Edith Bouvier Beale (Little Edie), they were related to First Lady Jackie Kennedy but found themselves in an isolated life in a decaying mansion overrun with cats in their later life.
The first act is a fictional imagining of what the mother and daughter's lives may have been like in the 1940s as rich aristocrats living lives of luxury. The second act jumps to 1975 with the actress who played Big Edie in Act I switching over to play Little Edie in Act II. This part of the musical is based on the content of the documentary pulling lines directly from the source material.
Hairspray
Hairspray has been a huge hit since it first opened on Broadway in 2002 packed with comedy and feel-good songs. The show is based on the 1988 film of the same name which was written, directed and produced by John Waters, and starred Ricki Lake as Tracy Turnblad and the legendary drag queen Divine as Tracy's mother, Edna.
The musical has plenty of feel-good songs including 'Good Morning Baltimore' and 'You Can't Stop the Beat' and of course the powerful 'I Know Where I've Been'. The musical adaptation was successful enough that it was then itself adapted into a movie musical in 2007!
Heathers
Before the Mean Girls came along, the Heathers were terrorising the hallways. The 1989 film has a cult following and is considered one of the greatest coming of age films of all time so it's no surprise that Heathers eventually got the musical theatre treatment.
The musical quickly became a fan favourite with plenty of us listening to the Broadway cast recording on repeat when it was released and jumping for joy when the Heathers arrived in the West End. The show proved to be popular here having run on the West End twice already as well as getting a UK tour.
Kinky Boots
Set in a shoe factory in Northampton, Kinky Boots is a story about celebrating difference and accepting each other. The show's book was written by Harvey Fierstein with songs by Cyndi Lauper after opening on Broadway in 2012 it wasn't long until the musical hit the West End with the show opening at the Adelphi theatre in 2015.
Legally Blonde
How do you improve on the iconic film that is Legally Blonde? Why, add some amazing songs to it that's how! Legally Blonde has been a hit among theatre fans since it opened in 2007 with its campy up-beat songs such as 'Omigod You Guys', 'Positive', 'So Much Better' and 'Legally Blonde'.
The show made it to the West End in 2009 with Sheridan Smith in the lead as Elle Woods. It's since toured the UK twice with Faye Brookes and Lucie Jones in the leading role respectively.
Pretty Woman
The iconic 1990 Julia Roberts film is one of the more recent films to get the musical theatre treatment. Pretty Woman: The Musical premiered in Chicago in 2018 and transferred to Broadway a few months later where it ran for a year.
The show opened on the West End in early 2020 but closed after a month because of the COVID-19 pandemic - however as theatres returned, they opened back up in their new home at the Savoy Theatre.
Little Shop of Horrors
This was another cult classic that went from film to stage, to film again. The first version of Little Shop of Horrors was a black and white B movie which was released in 1960. The musical adaptation came out in 1982 with music and lyrics by Alan Menken and Howard Ashman – the pair who went on to pen music for some Disney greats including The Little Mermaid, Aladdin and Beauty and the Beast.
The show's score includes the songs 'Skid Row (Downtown)', 'Somewhere That's Green' and 'Suddenly Seymour'. The musical was quickly adapted into a movie musical in 1986 and there are plans for another film with Billy Porter in the role of Audrey II.
Singin' in the Rain
With how well this story adapts to the stage we wouldn't be surprised if people thought the stage version of Singin' in the Rain came first. However, the beloved 1952 Gene Kelly film didn't make it to the stage until 1983 when it opened at the London Palladium with Tommy Steele as Don Lockwood.
The stage version has come with plenty of amendments throughout its various revivals but still includes the songs we all love including 'Fit as a Fiddle', 'Good Mornin'', 'Would You' and of course, 'Singin' in the Rain'.
Waitress
Sugar, butter, flour. Waitress the musical has captured our hearts as we learn about what baking can do. The story is based on the 2007 film written by Adrienne Shelly who also directed and starred in the film. Sadly, Adrienne didn't live to see the film's release where it received positive reviews.
The stage adaptation has a book by Jessie Nelson and music and lyrics by Sara Bareilles. Sara has also starred in the leading role both on Broadway and the West End. The show has gone on to become a fan favourite with it making a return to Broadway and heading on a UK & Ireland tour.
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