Menier Chocolate Factory's Pacific Overtures Revival Begins November 25

The Menier Chocolate Factory revival of Stephen Sondheim and John Weidman's 1976 Tony-nominated musical Pacific Overtures begins previews November 25.

The co-production with Umeda Arts Theater will play the London venue through February 24, 2024, with an official opening December 4.

Directed by Matthew White, the cast features Jon Chew as the Reciter, Kanako Nakano as Tamate, Saori Oda as Shogun/Madam, Takuro Ohno as Kayama, and Joaquin Pedro Valdes as Manjiro, with Luoran Ding, Masashi Fujimoto, Rachel Hayne Picar, Eu Jin Hwang, Abel Law, Ethan Le Phong, JoJo Meredith, Patrick Munday, Sario Solomon, Joy Tan, Lee V G, and Iverson Yabut.

READ: How Actor Ethan Le Phong Made Sure the Vietnamese in Miss Saigon Was Correct

The musical—set in 1853, after 200 years of stability, as Japan faces an American expedition determined to open the “floating kingdom” to trade—also has set design by Paul Farnsworth, costume design by Ayako Maeda, sound design by Gregory Clarke, choreography by Ashley Nottingham, musical supervision by Catherine Jayes, musical direction by Paul Bogaev, orchestrations by Jonathan Tunick, and hair and makeup design by Wakana Yoshihara. You-Ri Yamanaka is the cultural consultant.

Pacific Overtures, featuring such tunes as “Someone in a Tree,” “Pretty Lady,” and “A Bowler Hat,” completes the Menier’s trilogy of Weidman-Sondheim musicals following productions of Assassins and Road Show.

This staging, following successful runs in Tokyo and Osaka, marks the first time the revisions made by Sondheim and Weidman in 2017 have been seen in the U.K.

The original Broadway production of Pacific Overtures opened at the Winter Garden Theatre in January 1976, playing 13 previews and 193 regular performances. The production was nominated for 10 1976 Tony Awards, including Best Musical. It won Tonys for Best Costume Design (Florence Klotz) and Best Scenic Design (Boris Aronson).

For more information click here.