West End stars announced for The Barn Theatre’s Gus Gowland virtual concert

A host of West End stars will sing the music of Gus Gowland in a virtual concert.

The Barn Theatre has announced an all-star West End line up for their sixth virtual concert, The Barn Theatre Presents: The Music of Gus Gowland, which will celebrate the work of musical theatre composer Gus Gowland (Pieces of String).

The concert, which will be hosted by Barn Theatre producer Jamie Chapman Dixon, will debut on the Barn Theatre’s Facebook and YouTube channels on 29 August 2020 at 7:30pm BST.

The musical will showcase Gowland’s work including songs from his first full-length musical Pieces of String, which premiered in 2018 at the Mercury Theatre, Colchester. For his work on Pieces of String, Gowland won The Stage Debut Award for Best Composer/Lyricist, and was nominated for a Writer’s Guild of Great Britain award for Best Musical Theatre Bookwriting. The show was nominated for the UK Theatre Best Musical Production award.

The upcoming virtual concert will feature performances from: Stephenson Ardern Sodj (Hamilton), Ryan Carter (Motown, The Boy Friend), Gabriela García (West Side Story, In The Heights), Rebecca Gilliland (Wicked), Imogen Halsey (Just So), Sandra Marvin (Waitress, Emmerdale, Romantics Anonymous), Craig Mather (Les Misérables), Michael Mather (Mythic, Soho Cinders), Abigail Matthews (The Butterfly Lion), Newtion Matthews (The X Factor, The Voice UK), Kiran Patel (The Lion King, Just So), Jay Perry (Hamilton), Jack Reitman (Amour, Thrill Me) and Charlotte Wakefield (The Sound of Music, The Boy in the Dress).

As well as the performances, Gus Gowland chats with Barn Theatre producer Jamie Chapman Dixon about her career so far, the creation process behind her songs and special appearances from some of the performers, to discuss their experience rehearsing and recording from home.

The concert is the sixth edition of the Barn Theatre in Cirencester’s virtual concert series, The Barn Presents, which celebrates the work of British musical theatre composers.

You can watch past concerts online via The Barn Theatre’s YouTube channel.

The Barn Theatre (registered charity no. 1174253), which is facing a loss of £250,000 and possible permanent closure, have launched their SAVE OUR BARN campaign, via their website and social media platforms, to ensure the Barn Theatre’s survival.