All Star West End Gala to celebrate over 75 years of the NHS
Dame Arlene Phillips is to direct a new West End Gala celebrating over 75 years of the NHS.
Raising money for NHS Charities Together, With All Our Hearts will take place on Tuesday, 9 Aril at the Adelphi Theatre. Tickets are on sale now here.
Co-conceived by Adam Blanshay and Matthew Brind, and choreographed and directed by Dame Arlene Phillips with associate Lily Dyble, DBE, the special evening will feature new songs written specially to mark the occasion, as well as audience favourite West End hits.
Oti Mabuse (Strictly Come Dancing, BBC; Dancing on Ice, ITV) and Dr Ranj (BBC Morning Live, Strictly Come Dancing, BBC) will introduce stars of the West End including Marisha Wallace (Oklahoma!, Young Vic; Hairspray, London Coliseum), fresh off a show-stealing turn as Miss Adelaide in Guys & Dolls.
Award-winning stage legend Kerry Ellis (Anything Goes, UK Tour; Wicked, Apollo Victoria Theatre) joins the cast along with Tom Francis (Sunset Boulevard, Savoy Theatre; & Juliet, Shaftesbury Theatre) and Jodie Steele (Rehab, Neon 194; Heathers, Theatre Royal Haymarket).
Actress Joni Ayton-Kent (The Prince, Southwark Playhouse; A Christmas Carol: A Ghost Story, BBC); bionic arm-user and musical star Gracie McGonigal (The Little Big Things, @sohoplace; The Crucible, National Theatre); Ahmed Hamad (Standing At The Sky’s Edge, National Theatre; The Colour Purple, Birmingham Hippodrome); Preeya Kalidas (Eastenders, BBC; Everybody’s Talking About Jamie, Lyceum Theatre) and Trevor Dion Nicholas (Disney’s Aladdin, Dominion Theatre; Bonnie & Clyde, Theatre Royal Drury Lane) will also take to the stage to celebrate the NHS.
They’ll be joined by West End icon Alfie Boe (Les Misérables).
With All Our Hearts is directed and staged by Dame Arlene Phillips, alongside her associate Lily Dyble (Guys & Dolls, The Bridge Theatre). Rob Madge (My Son’s a Queer) will be writing the show, as well as performing themselves.
The crème de la crème West End cast will be joined by the NHS Choir from Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Trust.
Arlene Phillips said: “I am thrilled to be directing with Lily Dyble the concert to fundraise and support NHS Charities Together which supports NHS charities across the UK.
“With an evening of remarkable musical talent alongside a series of exceptional stories, With All Our Hearts celebrates the amazing work of NHS Charities Together. Matt Brind our Musical Director is bringing exciting new arrangements to familiar songs, brought to life by thrilling casting lead by Kerry Ellis and Marisha Wallace.
“The creative team are legendary in the theatre world and all I can say is, don’t miss this once-in-a-lifetime chance.”
