News

The Queen’s Theatre Hornchurch has today announced its ensemble cast of actor-musicians for its UK regional premiere of the Tony-Award® winning musical ONCE. It will star Daniel Healy as Guy; he originally played Eamon and was also the understudy for Ronan Keating and Arthur Darvill as Guy in the West End production. ONCE runs at the Queen’s Theatre from 3 – 20 October. Daniel Healy returns to the Queen’s Theatre Hornchurch following his appearance in the 2015 production of Roll Over Beethoven. He will be joined by Rachel Dawson as Ex-Girlfriend (The Jungle Book, UK Tour) who is no stranger to the theatre. Her previous productions there include Shakers, The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde and The Young Ones. Playing Svejc is Lloyd Gorman (Sunny Afternoon, Harold Pinter Theatre) who appeared at the theatre last year in Worst Wedding Ever and Kate Robson-Stuart is playing Reza (Crazy For You, UK Tour). Her credits at the Queen’s Theatre include Camp Horror, Love, Lies and Lust and The Rise and Fall of Little Voice. The cast also includes Sean Kingsley as Billy (Les Misérables, Queens/Palace Theatre); Emma Lucia as Girl (Beautiful: The Carole King Musical, UK Tour); Samuel Martin as Bank Manager (The Taming of the Shrew, Shakespeare’s Globe); Caolan McCarthy as Eamon (The Plough and The Stars, National Theatre); Peter Mooney as Emcee (The Commitments, West End & UK Tour); Peter Peverley as Da (The Tempest, Northern Stage); Susannah van den Berg as Baruska (Sister Act, UK & International Tour) and James William-Pattison as Andrej (The Last Ship, UK Tour). Three girls who auditioned from the local community will complete the cast alternating as Ivanka, Girl’s young daughter. ONCE tells the unforgettable story of a Dublin street musician and a funny Czech woman, drawn together by their shared love of music. This smash-hit romance musical, co-produced with the New Wolsey Theatre, opens in Ipswich on Thursday 6 September before transferring to Hornchurch. This production continues the flourishing partnership between the two theatres following recent successes including Rope, Worst Wedding Ever, The Ladykillers and Made in Dagenham. The musical is based on the 2007 film of the same name by John Carney. Like the film, music and lyrics are by Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglová, and features the Academy Award-winning song Falling Slowly. The book for the musical is written by Enda Walsh. The production is directed by Peter Rowe, Artistic Director at the New Wolsey Theatre. A Sign Language Interpreted Performance of ONCE will take place on Wednesday 17 October at 7.30pm in addition to a Dementia Friendly performance on Thursday 18 October at 1.30pm. Audio description is available at all performances. ONCE runs at the Queen’s Theatre Hornchurch from 3 – 20 October. Tickets are £13.50 - £30, with £8 tickets available for Under 26s (Tue – Thu & previews). For more information about ONCE at the Queen’s Theatre call the Box Office on 01708 443333 or visit https://queens-theatre.co.uk/whats-on/show/once