In November 2021 we heard rumours about John Whaite’s West End debut. Now it looks like an announcement will be made shortly. Some say John will take centre stage in a brand new ALW musical. Others say it might be a role in an existing production. Either way it’ll be a dream job for a man whose dancing skills astonished and delighted everyone, including himself. If he can perform as confidently on the West End stage, it’s going to be quite something. Add the fact that John can also sing beautifully and the signs are looking very good indeed.
Rumours, rumours... Cinderella, Starlight Express or Joseph?
Whatever the show is, they say it’s going to be ‘huge’. They say John Whaite, the talented finalist of Strictly Come Dancing 2021, will be starring in a West End musical by Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber. But they’re not saying much else. Apparently it’ll be on stage in theatreland this summer, in July. But that’s about all we know. So let’s speculate!
Could it be Starlight Express, currently running in Germany? It doesn’t seem very likely. Might John be offered a starring role in the return of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, currently touring the UK? Perhaps. Is it Lloyd Webber’s Cinderella, still running and scheduled to transfer to Broadway this year? On the other hand ALW already has a lot on his plate so maybe the rumour is just that. A rumour.
Will John Whaite star in Tell Me On A Sunday?
The lyricist Don Black dropped some interesting hints in a July 2020 interview with the BBC about Tell Me On A Sunday. Yes, it's a one-woman show. But gender swapping is becoming the norm so why not?
Apparently Black has been working on a ‘great idea’ while trying out a new version of Tell Me On A Sunday, now forty years old, for which he wrote the song lyrics. Back in 1979 it was a show about the romantic adventures of a young female Londoner living in the USA. The new version is set in the same era but the central character is a gay man.
In Black’s words, he “knew immediately it could open up resonant new areas of the story.” And with that, we rest our case. How about you? Do you have any bright ideas about which ALW musical could soon star John Whaite?
Once the news is announced and we know what’s happening, you’ll be able to buy tickets online with us and choose the best seats with our handy theatre seating plan. In the meantime, we’ll keep the rumours coming and we’ll keep our ears to the ground for more news.
Jeffrey Seller and Cameron Mackintosh, the proud producers of the West End production of Lin-Manuel Miranda's 