A few months out from the beginning of We Will Rock You’s Australian tour, producers John Frost, Queen Theatrical Productions, Phil McIntyre Entertainment and Tribeca Theatrical Productions have announced who will be making up the show’s cast. This cast will be taking on many of Queen’s memorable songs, presented in the style of a futurist comedy.
Gareth Keegan (Jersey Boys, MTC’s Next to Normal, Hugh Jackman – Broadway to Ozconcerts) will play the central role of Galileo, a Bohemian dreamer who hears strange song lyrics in his head and is ultimately the reincarnation of Freddie Mercury. Erin Clare (Heathers, Phantom of the Opera) will be Scaramouche, a sarcastic, cynical Bohemian misfit with sharp wit who wins Galileo’s heart and is the reincarnation of Brian May, only this time “he’s a babe”.
Brian Mannix, formerly the lead singer of 1980s band Uncanny X-Men, will return to the musical stage as Buddy, an old hippy librarian/philosopher and an expert on the lost sacred musical texts. Killer Queen, a ruthless and power-crazy businesswoman who rules the world through Globalsoft, the worldwide corporation responsible for the suppression of all live music and all original thought, will be played by the extraordinary Casey Donovan (The Sapphires, Rent).
Thern Reynolds (Rock of Ages, South Pacific) and Jaz Flowers (Hairspray, Hot Shoe Shuffle, Fame) will portray Brit and Oz, a pair of Bohemian lovers who strive to rediscover the lost music and rebel against Killer Queen and Globalsoft. And Simon Russell (ABC TV’s Jack Irish, Neighbours) will be Khashoggi, Killer Queen’s second-in-command, the sinister and cruel chief of Globalsoft police in charge of capturing the Bohemians and getting rid of any original or creative musical thoughts.
These seven (all pictured above) will be joined by a sizable collection of talent including Justin Anderson, Sheridan Anderson, Erinn Arnel, Michelle Barr, Hugh Barrington, Kyla Bartholomeusz, Sarah Clarke, Keane Fletcher, Scott McConnell, Suzie Melloy, Ruvarashe Ngwenya, Morgan Palmer, Joshua Russell, Ryan Sheppard, Leigh Sleightholme, Ashlee Smith, Thalia Smith, Mike Snell, Kate Thomas and Karla Tonkich.
The Australian tour of We Will Rock You is set to begin at Sydney’s Lyric Theatre on 28th April 2016, which will be the next major (several week long) production at the venue following Matilda the Musical. It will then be performed at the QPAC Lyric Theatre (10th July), Melbourne Regent Theatre (30th August), Perth Crown Theatre (November 2016) and Adelaide Festival Theatre (January 2017).
Ben Elton | Director of We Will Rock You
Australian musical theatre is famous world-wide for the excellence of the artists it produces. WE WILL ROCK YOU has featured Australians in productions as far apart as Toronto, London and Berlin. Check a musical cast list on Broadway or in the West End and the chances are you’ll spot an Aussie. Brian, Roger and I know that the new all-Australian cast is second to none.
