SHERIDAN Smith will be taking to the stage of Birmingham Hippodrome in one of many West End hits heading to the city this year.
The Oliver Award-winning star will be stepping back into the shoes of Fanny Brice in Funny Girl – which shot Barbara Streisand to global fame 50 years ago.
The musical – featuring classic songs such as People and Don’t Rain On My Parade – has already won huge acclaim during its West End run.
The year ahead will also see other West End hits heading to the Hippodrome – including Billy Elliot, La Cage aux Folles, Grease, The Addams Family, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, Miss Saigon, Hairspray, Crazy For You and the Olivier Award-winning Beautiful – The Carole King Musical.
And there will be dance for all tastes, including Matthew Bourne, Shobana Jeyasingh, the return of Milonga and Dance: Sampled, U-Dance National Festival, Carlos Acosta; and Birmingham Royal Ballet bring back The Nutcracker, together with Coppelia, and Three Short Story Ballets.
Welsh National Opera also offer a trio – Madam Butterfly, Die Fledermaus, and Der Rosenkavalier.
Hippodome artistic director Fiona Allen said: “We always get the biggest names in West End shows and we’re delighted to welcome Sheridan Smith back for her highly-praised role as Fanny Brice in Funny Girl. A huge hit on Broadway, The Addams Family is on it first UK tour. I can’t wait to see how it is staged – creepy and kooky works for me! Another first time UK Tour is the inspirational story of singer-songwriter Carole King, Beautiful.
“Spring 2017 sees the return of our hugely popular taster event Dance: Sampled. We had so much fantastic feedback after last time, we’ve brought it back with new acts and dance throughout the building with a line-up of international and local dance talent. We also welcome back internationally celebrated choreographer Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui with Milonga, a fascinating exploration of Argentine Tango with a 21st century twist. And there’s a return visit by international dance icon Carlos Acosta, who launches his brand new company – Acosta Danza – for their first ever UK tour with some ballet and contemporary plus a guest appearance from Carlos himself.
“Summer in Southside and B-side Hip-Hop Festival were both huge for us in 2016 so it’s great to be presenting these free events again as we grow our national reputation as a producer and commissioner of major outdoor festivals and events.”
Visitbirminghamhippodrome.com for tickets and further details.
