David Pugh & Dafydd Rogers and Take That have announced that the UK Tour of Tim Firth’s new musical, THE BAND, with the music of Take That, will have a major UK Tour, beginning at Manchester Opera House on 8 September, with a national press night on Tuesday 26 September 2017.
The producers made the announcement yesterday, Sunday 2 April, on stage at the Manchester Apollo (where Take That first performed in 1992), following a rapturous reception to a rehearsed reading of the new musical in front of an audience of invited guests, from fans to friends.
Take That said, “We are incredibly proud and excited that our first production as theatre producers is THE BAND – a musical that we think will touch the hearts of not just our fans, but everyone.”
THE BAND is a new musical about what it’s like to grow up with a boyband. For five 16 year-old friends in 1992, ‘the band’ is everything. 25 years on, we are reunited with the group of friends, now 40-something women, as they try once more to fulfil their dream of meeting their heroes.
The Band will be played by AJ Bentley, Nick Carsberg, Yazdan Qafouri Isfahani, Curtis T Johns and Sario Watanabe-Soloman, who, as Five to Five, won BBC’s Let It Shine. Playing the parts of Rachel and Young Rachel will be Rachel Lumberg and Faye Christall respectively. Further casting is to be announced.
TOUR SCHEDULE
Manchester Opera House 8 September 2017 – 30 September 2017
Sheffield Lyceum Theatre 4 October 2017 – 14 October 2017
Bradford Alhambra Theatre 17 October 2017 – 28 October 2017
Southampton Mayflower Theatre 31 October 2017 – 11 November 2017
Llandudno Venue Cymru 14 November 2017 – 25 November 2017
Stoke Regent Theatre 28 November 2017 – 9 December 2017
Cardiff Wales Millennium Centre 9 January 2018 – 20 January 2018
Liverpool Empire Theatre 23 January 2018 – 3 February 2018
Norwich Theatre Royal 6 February 2018 – 17 February 2018
Canterbury Marlowe Theatre 20 February 2018 – 3 March 2018
Hull New Theatre 6 March 2018 – 17 March 2018
Leeds Grand Theatre 20 March 2018 – 31 March 2018
Newcastle Theatre Royal 3 April 2018 – 14 April 2018
Bristol Hippodrome 17 April 2018 – 28 April 2018
Birmingham Hippodrome 1 May 2018 – 12 May 2018
Plymouth Theatre Royal 15 May 2018 – 26 May 2018
Northampton Royal & Derngate 29 May 2018 – 9 June 2018
Nottingham Theatre Royal 12 June 2018 – 23 June 2018
Glasgow King’s Theatre 26 June 2018 – 7 July 2018
Edinburgh Playhouse 10 July 2018 – 14 July 2018
Photo: Jay Brooks
