BILL KENWRIGHT PRESENTS

THE LONG AWAITED RETURN OF THE MULTI-AWARD WINNING MUSICAL, BLOOD BROTHERS.

STARRING LYN PAUL WHO RETURNS TO THE SHOW AS THE ICONIC MRS JOHNSTONE

VISITING THEATRE ROYAL NOTTINGHAM AS PART OF A 16 WEEK UK TOUR

 Tuesday 14 to Saturday 18 September 2021

Bill Kenwright‘s legendary production of the international smash hit musical Blood Brothers returns to the stage. The much-loved musical, which performed to sell-out houses and standing ovations on its most recent UK tour in 2019-2020, returns with gusto, including a week-long run at the Theatre Royal Nottingham from 14 to 18 September 2021.

In celebration of the musicals’ relaunch, Lyn Paul returns for her farewell tour in the iconic role of Mrs Johnstone, which she first made her own in London’s West End.

Completing the cast is: Hannah Barr (Brenda), Joel Benedict (Eddie), Josh Capper (Neighbour), Tim Churchill (Mr Lyons), Danielle Corlass (Linda), Grace Galloway (Donna Marie/Miss Jones), Andy Owens (Perkins), Alex Patmore (Mickey), Robbie Scotcher (Narrator), Paula Tappenden (Mrs Lyons) and Danny Taylor (Sammy).

Photo by Robert Day

Written by award-winning playwright Willy Russell, few musicals have been received with such acclaim as the multi-award-winning Blood Brothers. Considered ‘one of the best musicals ever written’ (Sunday Times), Bill Kenwright’s production surpassed 10,000 performances in London’s West End, one of only three musicals ever to achieve that milestone.  It has been affectionately christened the ‘Standing Ovation Musical’, as inevitably it “brings the audience cheering to its feet and roaring its approval” (Daily Mail).

This epic tale of Liverpool life started as a play, performed at a Liverpool comprehensive school in 1981, before opening at the Liverpool Playhouse in 1983. The musical has since triumphed across the globe, completing sell out seasons in the US, Australia, Canada, New Zealand and Japan, and scooping up four awards for Best Musical in London and seven Tony Award nominations on Broadway.

The superb score includes A Bright New Day, Marilyn Monroe and the emotionally charged hit Tell Me It’s Not True.

Blood Brothers tells the captivating and moving tale of twins separated at birth, who grow up on the opposite sides of the tracks, only to meet again with tragic consequences.

When Mrs Johnstone, a young mother, is deserted by her husband and left to her own devices to provide for seven hungry children she takes a job as a housekeeper in order to make ends meet. It is not long before her brittle world crashes around her when she discovers herself to be pregnant yet again – this time with twins! In a moment of weakness and desperation, she enters a secret pact with her employer which leads inexorably to the show’s shattering climax.

Lyn Paul first rose to fame in the early 1970s as a member of the New Seekers, whose hit ‘I’d Like to Teach the World to Sing’ sold over 20 million copies and remains one of the 100 best-selling UK singles of all time.  Lyn also featured as the lead vocalist on the 1974 number-one hit ‘You Won’t Find Another Fool Like Me’.  

Willy Russell is undeniably one of this country’s leading contemporary dramatists. His countless credits include Educating Rita and Shirley Valentine. Educating Rita, originally commissioned by the Royal Shakespeare Company, enjoyed a two-year run in the West End and was made into a movie starring Michael Caine and Julie Walters. Shirley Valentine also made the move from stage to screen in an enormously popular film starring Pauline Collins and Tom Conti.

LISTINGS

Bill Kenwright presents

BLOOD BROTHERS

2021 UK Tour

Written by Willy Russell

Directed by Bob Tomson & Bill Kenwright

Musical Direction by Matt Malone

Sound by Dan Samson

Set & Costumes by Andy Walmsley

Lighting by Nick Richings

Associate Lighting Designer – Darran Curtis

Nottingham listings information:

BLOOD BROTHERS

Theatre Royal Nottingham

Tuesday 14 to Saturday 18 September 2021

Tue-Sat 7.30pm, Wed & Thu 2pm, Sat 2.30pm

£20 – £47.50 plus discounts for Royal Members*, Under 16s, Under 26s, Schools, and Groups www.trch.co.uk 0115 989 5555

*Theatre Royal & Royal Concert Hall Nottingham Royal Membership scheme offers benefits including ticket discounts and exclusive pre-sales.  For more information please visit www.trch.co.uk/membership