DEM Productions, on behalf of Writers’ Cage, announce the full cast for AUSTENLAND, a new musical based on the novel by Shannon Hale. The world premiere will feature two concert performances at the Savoy Theatre on Monday, 24 March 2025.
Joining the previously announced Lucie Jones as Jane Hayes are Stephenson Ardern-Sodje as Captain East (Passing Strange, Young Vic Theatre), Laura Baldwin as Miss Heartwright (Waitress, Adelphi Theatre), Oli Higginson as Nobley (The Last Five Years, Southwark Playhouse & Garrick Theatre), George Ioannides as Hot Darcy/Colonel Andrews (Guys and Dolls, Bridge Theatre), Cassidy Janson as Aunt Carolyn/Wattlesbrook (& Juliet, Shaftesbury Theatre), Idriss Kargbo as Manly (I Wish You Well: The Gwyneth Paltrow Ski Trial Musical, Criterion Theatre), Daniel Krikler as Martin (Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812, Donmar Warehouse), and Alex Young as Elizabeth Charming (Stranger Things: The First Shadow, Phoenix Theatre). The cast is completed by Ashley Gilmour (My Fair Lady, Curve Theatre), Lily Laight (The Artist, Theatre Royal Plymouth), Ying Ue Li (My Fair Lady, Curve Theatre), Amonik Melaco (Heathers The Musical, The Other Place), Nathan Ryles (Burlesque, Manchester Opera House), and Hollie Jane Stephens (Guys and Dolls, Bridge Theatre).
The new musical, based on Shannon Hale’s 2007 novel, is the third musical adaptation from the writers of The Book Thief (Leicester Curve, Belgrade Theatre Coventry) and Between the Lines (Off-Broadway). The book is by award-winning best-selling author Jodi Picoult (My Sister’s Keeper & Small Great Things) and Timothy Allen McDonald (adaptor of Roald Dahl’s Willy Wonka & James and the Giant Peach), with music and lyrics by Kate Anderson and Elyssa Samsel (Apple TV’s Central Park & Olaf’s Frozen Adventure).
Meet Jane Hayes – unlucky-in-love and Austen-obsessed, she’s ditching the dating apps for a dream vacation to AUSTENLAND, where every dance, duel, and scandal promises a taste of Regency romance. But beneath the corsets and cravats lies a world where nothing is as it seems, and love is never scripted. Is the mysterious Mr. Nobley an authentic suitor or an actor who works for AUSTENLAND? Is the gorgeous gardener the real deal? Will Jane become fully immersed in the fantasy, or could her true Mr. Darcy be the person she least expects?
AUSTENLAND will be directed by Jonathan O’Boyle (Cruel Intentions, The Other Palace; Calendar Girls, UK Tour) with choreography by Joanna Goodwin (My Fair Lady, Leicester Curve; An Officer and a Gentleman, UK & Ireland Tour), musical supervision, orchestration, and arrangements by Matthew Malone (The Book Thief, Leicester Curve, Carousel, Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre), music direction by Natalie Pound (The Creakers, Southbank Centre & Theatre Royal Plymouth; Lovestuck, Theatre Royal Stratford East), design by Polly Sullivan (Cruel Intentions The 90s Musical, The Other Palace & tour; Describe the Night, Hampstead Theatre), lighting by Jack Weir (The Woman In White, Electric Theatre; One Night Only, Sandi Toksvig, Theatre Royal Drury Lane), and sound by Sound Quiet Time (Clueless, Churchill Theatre; Manic Street Creature, Southwark Playhouse, London).
AUSTENLAND is produced by Writers’ Cage and managed by Deus Ex Machina Productions (The Book Thief, RIDE, A Sherlock Carol, Spring Awakening).
