The show began rehearsals in March 2015, prior to beginning performances May 15 and officially opening June 24.
Directed by Gurinder Chadha, who also directed the original film and has co-written the book with Paul Mayeda Berges, the show has original music by Howard Goodall and lyrics by Charles Hart. Choreography and musical staging are by Aletta Collins, with set design by Miriam Buether; costume design by Katrina Lindsay; lighting design by Neil Austin; sound design by Richard Brooker; musical direction by Nigel Lilley; and orchestrations by Howard Goodall and Kuljit Bhamra.
The producers are currently finalizing both national and international touring offers including a tour of India visiting multiple stadia.
In a press statement, Chadha commented, "I am incredibly proud of the Bend It Like Beckham cast, musicians, production and creative teams. We opened at the Phoenix Theatre to the most amazing five star reviews and we've inspired and entertained people of all ages and all backgrounds, something I have not seen in the West End for many years. I set out to tell our stories from my perspective of our multicultural London. Our show celebrates all of us on stage and behind the scenes, something myself and the team worked so well together to realise. From the responses I have received since we opened there is a genuine hunger for us to tell our story internationally so as well as planning a UK tour for the show, we are now working on expanding the production for a proposed tour of India to include multiple stadia. Whether in the UK or abroad, Bend It Like Beckham will continue to defy expectations and proudly represent and celebrate the U.K. we all know and love." The production stars Natalie Dew stars as football (soccer) crazy Jess with Lauren Samuels as Jules, a player with the Harriers, a local women's football team, with Jamie Muscato (who recently took over from Jamie Campbell Bower) as their coach Joe.
Sophie-Louise Dan plays Paula, Jules’ Mum, with Jamal Andréas as Jess’ good friend Tony. Preeya Kalidas plays Pinky, Jess' sister, with Tony Jayawardena and Natasha Jayetileke as her parents, Mr. and Mrs. Bhamra.
Sohm Kapila, Buckso Dhillon-Woolley and Harveen Mann play Aunties, Irvine Iqbal and Karl Seth play Uncles, with Sejal Keshwala, Serina Mathew and Sharan Phull as Cousins. Rakesh Boury, Jorell Coiffic-Kamall, Tom Millen, Daniel Bolton play footballers, with Teetu played by Raj Bajaj.
The Harriers are played by Michelle Bishop, Lisa Bridge, Chloe Chambers, Genesis Lynea, Kirstie Skivington and Danielle Young. Rekha Sawhney and Shahid Khan are the production’s Indian Heritage Singers. They are accompanied by swings, including Kayleigh McKnight.
Bend It Like Beckham is produced in the West End by Sonia Friedman Productions, Deepak Nayar Productions, Bend it Films, Fischer & Vaswani Productions, Tanya Link Productions & Zeilinger Productions, Lost Marbles & Two Way Split, Delman Jacobson, Doit M&E India and Reliance Entertainment.
To book tickets, contact the box office on 0843 316 1082 or visit www.benditlikebeckhamthemusical.co.uk.
