The Drifters Girl: UK and Ireland tour cast announced
Not long till the new musical is on tour!🎶
Michael Harrison and David Ian have announced casting for the first-ever UK and Ireland tour of The Drifters Girl, the acclaimed new West End musical which tells the remarkable story of one of the world's greatest vocal groups and the woman who made them.
Carly Mercedes Dyer, former star of Six the Musical and who delighted audiences with her performances as Erma in Anything Goes, will play music industry change-maker, Faye Treadwell.
Carly will star alongside Ashford Campbell (who hit UK screens in ITV’s The X Factor as member of The Risk and now continues his journey with The Drifters Girl having performed as part of the West End company), Miles Anthony Daley ( Tina: The Tina Turner Musical, Aldwych Theatre; Choir of Man, Arts Theatre), Tarik Frimpong (The Wiz, Hope Mill Theatre; Aladdin, Prince Edward Theatre) and Dalton Harris, who won The X Factor in 2018.
As well as Jaydah Bell-Ricketts (A Little Princess, Royal Festival Hall; School Of Rock, Gillian Lynne Theatre) to her first touring role as Girl.
Completing the cast is Loren Anderson, Tre Copeland-Williams, Ethan Davis, Matthew Dawkins and Linseigh Green.
Having played to packed houses and nightly standing ovations at the Garrick Theatre in London's West End (following a triumphant run at Newcastle's Theatre Royal), the production recently announced a UK Tour to open in 2023, with performances beginning at the Mayflower Theatre, Southampton, on Tuesday 12th September 2023.
WATCH: Carly Mercedes Dyer performing Harlem Child
The Drifters Girl tells the story of the trailblazing efforts of the world’s first African American, female music manager and how she never gave up on the group she cared so passionately about. 30 years, and hundreds of hit songs later, there is no doubt that Faye Treadwell was and always will be The Drifters Girl.
The musical includes plenty of the group's most famous songs such as 'Save the Last Dance for Me', 'Under the Boardwalk', 'Kissin' in the Back Row of the Movies', 'Stand by Me', 'Come on Over to My Place', and 'Saturday Night at the Movies'.
WATCH: The Drifters Girl trailer
The Drifters Girl has a book by Ed Curtis, is based on an idea by Tina Treadwell, and which is co-created by Beverley Knight, Adam J Bernard, Tarinn Callender, Matt Henry and Tosh Wanogho-Maud. The show is directed by Jonathan Church, with set design by Anthony Ward, choreography by Karen Bruce, costume design by Fay Fullerton, orchestrations and musical supervision by Chris Egan lighting design by Ben Cracknell, sound design by Tom Marshall and video design by Andrzej Goulding. Associate Director is Tyrone Huntley and Associate Choreographer is Myles Brown with casting by Stuart Burt and children’s casting by Jo Hawes.
The Drifters Girl is produced by Michael Harrison and David Ian.
How to get tickets for The Drifters Girl
To get tickets to the tour and to find out tour dates you can visit The Drifters Girl website.
Scroll through some of our favourite Jukebox musicals:
& Juliet
One of the newer entries to the jukebox musical list is & Juliet, which imagines what would have happened if Shakespeare's famous character hadn't died at the end of his play and what would come next. The show is packed with the music of producer and songwriter Max Martin who's behind the hits of some of the biggest pop artists including Britney Spears, Bon Jovi, Katy Perry, Ariana Grande and the Backstreet Boys.
The musical includes songs such as 'Baby One More Time', 'It's My Life' 'Everybody (Backstreet's Back)' and a brilliant mash up of 'Teenage Dream' and 'Break Free'.
Bat Out of Hell: The Musical
Based on Jim Steinman and Meat Loaf's Bat Out of Hell album trilogy, Bat Out of Hell: The Musical is not a spectacle to be missed! The story is loosely based on the story of Peter Pan but set in a post-apocalyptic Manhattan which is now ruled by tyrannical ruler called Obsidian.
The show's score includes many fan favourites such as 'Bat Out of Hell', 'You Took the Words Right Out of My Mouth (Hot Summer Night)', 'It's All Coming Back to Me Now', and 'I'd Do Anything for Love (But I Won't Do That)'.
Beautiful: The Carole King Musical
This musical is exactly what you'd expect from the title, Beautiful: The Carole King Musical tells the story of the singer and songwriter, Carole King.
The musical is packed with music written by Carole and those she worked with. Some of the songs included are 'Take Good Care of My Baby', 'Will You Love Me Tomorrow', '(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman', and 'I Feel the Earth Move'.
Jersey Boys
When you think about jukebox musicals there's no doubt that Jersey Boys would come to mind! Since it opened on Broadway back in 2005 Jersey Boys has become a global sensation! The musical stays close to its source material as the plot revolves around the history of The Four Seasons (AKA Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons).
Using the seasons as a story telling device the musical gives each band member their chance to narrate the story. The musical includes some of The Four Seasons' most famous songs including 'Sherry', 'Big Girls Don't Cry', 'December 1963 (Oh What a Night)', and 'Can't Take My Eyes Off You'.
Mamma Mia!
It's fair to argue that Mamma Mia is probably one of if not the most successful jukebox musicals of all time. Featuring the music of the Eurovision-winning band ABBA, Mamma Mia takes us to a Greek Island where 20-year-old Sophie is set to marry her fiancée. Sophie wants to invite her father to the wedding however she doesn't know who he could be. After finding her mother's diary she finds out there are three possible contenders and decides to invite them all to the wedding!
The West End production opened back in 1999 and includes so many of ABBA's greatest hits including 'Take a Chance on Me', 'Dancing Queen', and 'Voulez-Vous' to name a few. A film adaptation was released in 2008 with an A-list cast including Meryl Streep, Colin Firth, Pierce Brosnan, and Julie Walters. The film was a huge success and got its own sequel – Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again 10 years later which starred Cher!
Moulin Rouge!
Originally made as a musical film, Baz Luhrman's Moulin Rouge! has been adapted as a stage show with new additions to its phenomenal score. Set in Paris' iconic venue Moulin Rouge is a story of love set in a surreal world with high camp mash ups!
After success on Broadway the show has now entertaining UK audiences in London's West End!
Priscilla Queen of the Desert
This musical has become a classic musical beloved by the LGBT+ community, based on the 1994 film of the same name, Priscilla Queen of the Desert takes us on a road trip across Australia as three drag queens travel to a perform in a show.
Despite being a fun and whacky adventure with some queer anthems such as 'Don't Leave Me This Way' , 'Go West' and 'MacArthur Park', Priscilla is unafraid to take on the tough realities of the homophobia and transphobia still suffered by the LGBT+ community.
Return to the Forbidden Planet
Probably one of the lesser-known musicals on this list, Return to the Forbidden Planet is a gem of a silly-but-fun musical. With a plot based on Shakespeare's The Tempest and the 1956 sci-fi film Forbidden Planet this musical plays wonderful homage to classic science fiction. The musical is packed with the rock 'n' roll hits of the 1950s and 60s such as 'Great Balls of Fire', 'Good Vibrations', 'Teenager in Love', and 'Shake, Rattle and Roll'.
Rock of Ages
Rock of Ages takes us back to 1987 where the Bourbon Room, a Hollywood bar is under threat by developers who want to clean up the Sunset Strip's reputation for 'sex, drugs and rock-n-roll'! The show is filled with classic rock anthems such as 'Don't Stop Believin', 'We Built This City', and 'Here I Go Again'.
The musical was adapted into a film in 2012 which included a star-studded cast including Tom Cruise, Alec Baldwin, Catherine Zeta-Jones, and Mary J. Blige!
TINA: The Tina Turner Musical
Based on the life of the legendary singer, TINA: The Tina Turner musical explores her humble beginnings in town in Tennessee to growing into a global superstar. The show is packed with some iconic hits such as 'River Deep Mountain High' and 'Proud Mary'.
We Will Rock You
Does anyone else miss the statue of Freddie Mercury that used to stand at the front of the Dominion Theatre? The statue was a prominent fixture of the theatre throughout We Will Rock You's 12-year West End run. With the incredible music of Queen, We Will Rock You took us to a dystopian future where all non-computer generated music is banned and all instruments have been locked away!
The show is jam packed with brilliant characters and amazing Queen songs including 'Radio Gaga' (with some updated lyrics), 'Somebody to Love', 'Killer Queen' 'Under Pressure', and 'Seven Seas of Rye'.
Read more:
Jersey Boys in the West End and UK & Ireland tour
The Cher Show UK & Ireland tour
Six the musical: get the lowdown on the Queens rocking the West End