The smash hit musical Anything Goes, starring Tony Award winner Sutton Foster and directed and choreographed by Tony Award winner Kathleen Marshall will sail onto Australian cinema screens for two days only on Sunday 27 March and Wednesday 30 March in a live recording filmed at London’s renowned Barbican Theatre.
Filmed live during the show’s 15 week residency at the Barbican Theatre, London during the summer of 2021, this major new five star production of the classic musical comedy features an all-star cast led by renowned Broadway royalty Sutton Foster reprising her Tony Award-winning performance as Reno Sweeney alongside three-time Olivier Award and Tony Award winner Robert Lindsay (My Family) as Moonface Martin.
Anything Goes also stars Evening Standard Theatre Award winner Felicity Kendal (The Good Life) as Evangeline Harcourt and beloved West End Legend Gary Wilmot (Chicago) as Elisha Whitney. The production also stars two Australian performers, WAAPA Graduate and experienced West End performer Vivien Carter who was the understudy to Sutton Foster’s Reno and Robbie McMillan originally from Queensland as one of the multi-talented ensemble members.
Anything Goes has music and lyrics by Cole Porter, an original book by P.G. Wodehouse & Guy Bolton with Howard Lindsay & Russel Crouse and a new book by Timothy Crouse and John Weidman.
The musical also stars Samuel Edwards (Les Misérables | Wicked) as Billy Crocker, Nicole- Lily Baisden (The Book of Mormon | Let’s Face The Music) as Hope Harcourt, Haydn Oakley (A Christmas Carol | An American in Paris) as Lord Evelyn Oakleigh and Carly Mercedes Dyer (West Side Story | Chicago) as Erma.
This 5 star hit stage production received rave reviews from audiences and the UK media, describing it “as the show of the year” (Daily Telegraph), “a joyously shipshape revival” (The Observer), a “fizzing tonic for our times” (The Guardian) and declaring it “immediately joins the pantheon of great classic musical revivals” (Daily Telegraph).
“I was thrilled to have been able to revisit Reno while performing Anything Goes in London in the fall with an amazing new cast, crew, and orchestra,” said Sutton Foster. “Now I’m thrilled that I can share her and this joyous musical more widely with audiences at theaters in Australia this March, especially at a time when I am so grateful to be back performing on a Broadway stage.”
“I am so proud to have been part of a production which delivers joy and laughter to audiences in the way Anything Goes does and I am so delighted that we are able to share that with Australian audiences in this way.”
When the S.S. American heads out to sea, etiquette and convention head out the portholes as two unlikely pairs set off on the course to true love… proving that sometimes destiny needs a little help from a crew of singing sailors, a comical disguise and some good old-fashioned blackmail.
This hilarious musical romp across the Atlantic, directed by the multi-award-winning Broadway director and choreographer Kathleen Marshall, features Cole Porter’s joyful score, including I Get A Kick Out of You, You’re the Top and the show stopping Anything Goes.
“I am so thrilled that the film of our West End production of Anything Goes is coming to Australia this spring!” Director and choreographer Kathleen Marshall. “I’m so excited to share with movie audiences this wonderful musical comedy featuring our stellar cast, amazing orchestra and incredible creative team. We hope cinema audiences will join us for this delightful and romantic crossing!”
Featuring a 50 strong cast and ensemble of the finest there is to offer on the London stage, this stunning production includes tap dancing sailors, a full-sized live orchestra, a heart-warming romance with spectacular dance routines and some of theatre’s most memorable songs.
Anything Goes was released in UK cinemas in November to the delight of musical theatre fans nationwide. The release achieved instant box office success as the highest grossing Event Cinema release in the theatre space for 2021.
All aboard! Anything Goes will take you back to the Golden Age of high society on the seas from the comfort of your cinema seat, and will be showcased in cinemas around the world on 27 & 30 March.
For more information and to book tickets, visit: www.anythinggoesmusicalcinema.com for details. Checkout the trailer here!
Image: Sutton Foster as Reno Sweeney (centre) with the Company of Anything Goes – photo by Tristram Kenton