Photo credit: Leeds Playhouse
Leeds Playhouse has revealed the full company who will join Gareth Snook (Willy Wonka) in its exciting new production of Roald Dahl’s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory – The Musical. We are delighted that this includes Darcie Brown, a member of Leeds Conservatoire’s first Musical Theatre cohort who will graduate later this month.
The show, in which Darcie has been cast as Swing, will premiere at Leeds Playhouse from 18 November 2022 to 28 January 2023, ahead of a major UK tour. Darcie’s credits to date, listed on Spotlight, include several Leeds Conservatoire musicals and workshops. For example, roles as Martha/Dance Captain in Spring Awakening directed by Simon Hardwick, and as Florence in Chess directed by Sam Spencer-Lane.
Darcie Brown. Photo credit: David John
Darcie shared, “I feel very lucky to have such a wonderful production as my first professional job and starting in a place I know so well! Being ‘out in the real world’ is an incredible experience and I have the privilege of working with some of the most amazingly talented people. I was scared at first, however it didn’t take me long to fall into the swing of things and realise I had everything I needed in order to do this job successfully. I truly think the show is going to be something special and I cannot wait to get travelling around and sharing this beautiful story.”
Roald Dahl’s super story follows the adventure of five young people who find a golden ticket to head into the weird and wonderful Wonka Chocolate Factory. The famous five golden ticket winners include Kazmin Borrer (Veruca Salt), best known for her starring role in both the UK tour and film version of the smash hit musical Everybody’s Talking About Jamie; Teddy Hinde (Mike Teavee), who recently starred in Bird Brigade at The Other Palace; Marisha Morgan (Violet Beauregarde), known for her role in Top Boy on Netflix; and Robin Simões da Silva (Augustus Gloop), who recently starred in the UK tour of Bedknobs and Broomsticks. The role of Charlie Bucket will be shared in Leeds by four young people who all gained the role through an open call out.
You can find out about the full cast and creative team here on the Leeds Playhouse website.
Adam Stadius, Musical Theatre Programme Leader at Leeds Conservatoire, said, “As a conservatoire, being next door to one of the UK’s largest producing theatres provides a wealth of benefits to our students. With that in mind we are so incredibly proud of Darcie, one of our first cohort of Musical Theatre graduates, in securing her first professional contract on a project as epic as Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. The job itself speaks to Darcie’s wonderful gifts as a performer and cast member but also to the exciting relationship between Leeds Conservatoire and Leeds Playhouse. We can’t wait to see Darcie over the festive season, and we hope this is one of many shared success stories between the conservatoire and our neighbours.”
James Brining, Artistic Director at Leeds Playhouse, added, “It’s fantastic to be working with Darcie who has joined a multi-talented cast drawn from right across the UK. Competition for this production was really intense but Darcie’s talent and dedication shone through. We’re delighted to have a graduate from Leeds Conservatoire’s first cohort of graduating students in the Playhouse’s biggest ever Christmas show and we look forward to developing the relationship with the conservatoire in the future and to welcoming many more students over the years.”
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory – The Musical includes memorable songs from the iconic 1970s film including ‘The Candy Man’ and ‘Pure Imagination’, plus new songs by Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman. It also features an entrancing set created by award-winning designer Simon Higlett that will transform the Quarry stage at Leeds Playhouse into the chocolate-fuelled, magical and mysterious world of Willy Wonka’s factory.
