The Book Thief musical to run at Coventry’s Belgrade Theatre and Curve Leicester
New musical The Book Thief is to run in Coventry and Leicester this autumn.
The stage adaptation of the best selling novel will run at Coventry’s Belgrade Theatre from 11 – 16 September before heading to Leicester’s Curve Theatre from 29 September – 14 October.
Presented by DEM Productions the show has a libretto by Jodi Picoult and Timothy Allen McDonald and music and lyrics by Elyssa Samsel and Kate Anderson. It made its world premiere in 2022 at the Octagon Theatre, Bolton.
The cast will feature Obioma Ugoala (Frozen the Musical, Hamilton) as Narrator, Mina Anwar (The Sarah Jane Adventures, The Worst Witch) as Rosa Hubermann, Jack Lord (West Side Story, War Horse) as Hans Hubermann and Daniel Krikler (Jersey Boys, The Secret Life Of Bees) as Max Vandenburg.
Joining them are Storytellers Matthew Caputo (Hamilton) as Referee, Katy Clayton (The Band) as Liesel’s Mother, Oonagh Cox (Matilda: The Musical) as Nurse, Mark Dugdale (Les Miserables) as Alex Steiner, Michał Horowicz (The Band’s Visit) as Max’s Mother, Thomas-Lee Kidd (Beauty and the Beast) as Mayor Hermann, Anu Ogunmefun (Tina: The Tina Turner Musical) as Swing, Simon Oskarsson (A Midsummer Night’s Dream) as Swing, Corinna Powlesland (Grease) as Social Worker, Purvi Parmar (The Jungle Book) as Barbara Steiner, Wendy Somerville (Billy Elliot) as Ilsa Hermann, Edwin Ray (Chicago) as Walter Kugler, Lee V G (Only Fools & Horses: The Musical) as Gravedigger and Russell Wilcox (The Producers) as Wolfgang Edel.
Liesel Meminger will be played by Tilly-Raye Bayer (Frozen The Musical), Mollie Casserley (The Sound of Music) and Eirini Louskou (Joseph & The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat) and Rudy Steiner will be played by Thommy Bailey Vine (Matilda: The Musical), Preston Cropp (Professional Debut) and Oliver Gordon (Newsies).
The Book Thief begins at a snow-covered graveside in 1930s Germany, as an illiterate girl steals an abandoned book – Liesel Meminger’s first act of book thievery. As her appetite for books grows, as does the Nazi regime – with the shadow of death never far away.
When her foster family hides a Jewish boxer in their basement, he teaches Liesel the power of words and together they plant seeds of kindness in a world set against them.
Co-Librettists Jodi Picoult and Timothy Allen McDonald said: “It was an honour to adapt Markus Zusak’s historical novel, The Book Thief, as a musical, and we are thrilled to present it in Leicester and Coventry.
“In a time when history seems intent on repeating itself – when hate crimes throw a spotlight on the differences between us; when words are being used to harm, rather than heal; when lies are being used to fuel a war – we feel that this story is more relevant and powerful than ever.
“It is our hope that this beautiful, moving show reminds the audience that the past has a nasty habit of not staying in the past – and that it is up to us to change that.”
The production is directed by Lotte Wakeham with choreography by Tom Jackson Greaves, orchestrations & arrangements, musical supervision & musical direction by Matthew Malone, set & costume design by Good Teeth, lighting design by Nic Farman, sound design by Andy Graham, video design by Dick Straker, puppet design by Sam Wilde, casting by Abby Galvin for Jessica Ronane Casting and production management by Andy Fox and Lee Batty for Setting Line Production Management.
For more information and tickets, visit www.thebookthiefmusical.com
