Rumours have been circulating for years about the possibility of a stage musical adaptation of the cult British film Bend it Like Beckham. The wait is now over, as it has been confirmed that the new musical will open at the Phoenix Theatre in May 2015.
Bend it Like Beckham was a 2002 British comedy-drama film directed by Gurinder Chadha and stared Keira Knightly, Parminder Nagra, Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Anupam Kher and Archie Panjabi. The film was a massive box office success, not only in the UK, but also around the world.
This new musical adaptation will have a score by Howard Goodall and lyrics by Charles Hart alongside a new book by Paul Mayeda Berges. The woman behind the original film, Gurinder Chadha, will direct the production, musical staging and choreography is by Aletta Collins, costume design by Katrina Lindsay, set design by Miriam Buether, lighting design by Neil Austin, sound design by Ricahrd Brooker, Orchestration by Kuljit Bhamra and Howard Goodall, and musical direction by Nigel Lilley.
Bend it Like Beckham tells the story of a teenage girl and daughter of Punjabi Sikhs in Hounslow, London. The 18-year-old is obsessed with football, but banned from playing by her religious parents, but this doesn’t stop this young heroine from joining the local woman’s team and following her dream.
Bend it like Beckham will replace Once, the show that is currently calling the Phoenix Theatre home until it plays its final performance and departs on much awaited European Tour.
The producers and creative team are in the midst of casting the musical, but names that have been floating around include Frances Ruffelle and Samantha Barks.
Bend it like Beckham will open on 24 June 2014, with previews from 15 May 2014.
Mark Hayhurst’s new play, Taken at Midnight premiered at the Chichester Festival Theatre in September. It has now been announced that the play will transfer to the Theatre Royal Haymarket in the heart of London’s West End from 15 January 2015, following the National Theatre's production of Great Britain.