Tommy Steele Heads to Blackpool in The Glenn Miller Story
Blackpool Opera House has added another show to its 2015 season with the announcement that Tommy Steele is to take to the stage to narrate The Glenn Miller Story.
In this brand new production, Steele will tell the extraordinary story of the world’s most famous big band leader accompanied by a live 16-piece orchestra and a full supporting company of singers, dancers and actors.
This is the latest show to be announced at the Winter Gardens venue which will also see an eight-week run of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s CATS over the summer, the World Premiere of Last Night a DJ Saved My Life starring David Hasselhoff, Michael Flatley’s Lord of the Dance and Tommy the Rock Musical.
The Glenn Miller Story runs at the Opera House from October 5 – 10 and tickets are on sale now.
Winter Gardens Managing Director Michael Williams said the year ahead looks great for the historic theatre complex.
He said: “We are very pleased to be announcing yet another show at the Opera House for 2015 and to be welcoming Tommy Steele in The Glenn Miller Story.
“This is a fantastic show and one that I am sure will delight our audiences.
“The Opera House and Winter Gardens as a whole has a great programme of shows, live music and events planned for 2015 and I am confident it will be a fantastic year for the venue.”
It’s been 70 years since Glenn Miller vanished over the English Channel as he flew to Paris to entertain the troops during the Second World War. Did he crash? Was he shot down? Will the mystery ever be solved? His music defined an era; his disappearance stunned the world, and now the story of one of the most iconic musical figures of the 20th century will be brought to life in a brand new production.
The Glenn Miller Story is directed and produced by Bill Kenwright (Whistle Down the Wind, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Jesus Christ Superstar, Blood Brothers and recently Evita at the Dominion Theatre). It is choreographed by Olivier Award-winner Bill Deamer (Evita, Save the Last Dance For Me and Top Hat).
Tommy Steele was Britain’s first rock‘n’roll star. Dubbed the UK’s answer to Elvis Presley, he landed his first UK No.1 with ‘Singing the Blues’ in January 1957. The big screen soon beckoned and that same year he filmed The Tommy Steele Story which dramatised his rise to fame and was one of the first British rock‘n’roll movies. A soundtrack of the same name was released to coincide with the film’s opening and became the first album by a UK-based act to reach No.1.
His career includes more than 20 hit singles, 12 movies and several stage musicals such as Half a Sixpence, Hans Andersen and Singin’ in the Rain.
In recent years, Steele has starred as Christmas miser Ebenezer Scrooge in Bill Kenwright’s production of the festive musical, which enjoyed two successful runs at the London Palladium as well as the Blackpool Opera House.
Tickets priced from £19.50 are on sale now and are available from www.wintergardensblackpool.co.uk
Showtimes
Monday 5 Oct – Saturday 10 Oct 7.30pm
ENDS
Notes to editors: Pic attached of Tommy Steele in The Glenn Miller Story
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Blackpool Opera House is one of the UK's largest theatres, with a seating capacity of almost 3,000. It's a world famous venue which has seen performances from some of the greatest entertainers and shows such as stars of yesteryear Frank Sinatra, Judy Garland and Bob Hope to today's biggest names including Bob Dylan, Peter Kay, One Direction and Little Mix. Many of the most popular touring shows have graced the stage including Mamma Mia!, Starlight Express, Calendar Girls and Scrooge.
The Winter Gardens Blackpool offers a variety of venues for events ranging from business lunches to exhibitions and conferences. 11 separate spaces are available for hire either individually or in combination. Whether it be the grandeur of The Empress Ballroom or The Opera House, the vast space of Olympia or the more intimate surroundings of The Spanish Hall Suite, each of the venues has its own unique character and history – the perfect setting for any event.
The Winter Gardens celebrated its 135th birthday in 2013.