Olivier Award winner and Musical Theatre icon Ruthie Henshall (Les Miserables; Miss Saigon; Oliver; Crazy For You; Chicago; Billy Elliot) will lead a reimagining of Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine’s multi-award-winning ‘Passion‘ at the Hope Mill Theatre in Manchester, for a limited run 5 May – 5 June 2022.
Under the direction of Michael Strassen (Pacific Overtures; Company; Assassins), Henshall will breathe life into this anticipated revival, re-energising the tale of love, sex and obsession in a new dynamic staging. In its strictly limited run of 37 performances at The Hope Mill, the producers are embracing Manchester’s “Factory of Creativity” to re-develop the show for a future life. Further casting will be announced in due course.
Arguably Sondheim’s most lyrical and romantic work, Passion is a legendary musical based on Ettore Scola’s Italian film, Passion d’Amore. Situated in 19th Century Italy, the production tells the tale of a young soldier, Giorgio, who is obsessively pursued by the relation of his superior officer, Fosca – a woman prone to severe melancholy and mania. Strassen’s modern retelling of the tale, with movement direction by Sundeep Saini (As You Like It, Little Shop of Horrors), will put Fosca front and centre, finding the real heart and truth within the piece.
