Over 30 years since The Commitments first burst from the pages of Roddy Doyle’s best-selling novel, the world’s hardest working and most explosive soul band are set to return to embark on a brand new 2020/2021 UK & Ireland tour, kicking off in September next year.
This new nine-month tour will see the show perform in front of fans all over the UK & Ireland in Bromley, Sheffield, Edinburgh, Peterborough, York, Llandudno, Nottingham, Bournemouth, Milton Keynes, Bradford, Glasgow, Blackpool, Northampton, Cardiff, Truro, Southend, Southampton, Bristol, Dartford, Norwich, Ipswich, Birmingham, Hull, Newcastle, Leeds, Cork, Dublin, Belfast, Reading, Liverpool, Aylesbury, Portsmouth, Manchester, Darlington, Wolverhampton, Wimbledon and Plymouth. Casting announcements will be made in the coming months.
The Commitments musical has been adapted from the novel by Booker prize-winning author Roddy Doyle and is directed by Caroline Jay Ranger. Featuring an electric playlist, The Commitments showcases more than 20 soul classics performed live on stage, including Night Train, Try A Little Tenderness, River Deep, Mountain High, In The Midnight Hour, Papa Was A Rolling Stone, Save Me, Mustang Sally, I Heard It Through The Grapevine, Thin Line Between Love and Hate, Reach Out, Uptight, Knock On Wood, I Can’t Turn You Loose and many more!
In 2013 The Commitments musical received universal critical acclaim while enjoying a record-breaking two-year residency at the Palace Theatre in London’s West End, after which it hit the road for a major tour, invigorating audiences up and down the country throughout 2016 and 2017.
Roddy Doyle says: “I’m delighted that The Commitments is coming back. I’ve been saying for years that ‘Mustang Sally’ is a traditional Irish song and this new tour will help prove my point.”
The Commitments tells the story of Jimmy Rabbitte, a young working-class music fan, who transforms an unlikely bunch of amateur musicians into an amazing live act, which becomes the finest soul band Dublin has ever produced. Placing a classified advert in a music paper, Jimmy auditions a number of wannabes before finalsing the members of his new band, which he names ‘The Commitments’.
Humour kicks in as the band get to know each other and their instruments, grappling with inter-group differences as they muddle their way through early rehearsals for the band’s first gig. Just as they improve and begin to get a name for themselves, they combust. The backing singers are more interested in the middle-aged horn playing legend, the singer has entered Eurovision, the drummer has walked out mid-gig and the saxophone player has dangerous leanings towards a jazz career.
Featuring an electric playlist, The Commitments showcases more than 20 soul classics performed live on stage, including Night Train, Try A Little Tenderness, River Deep, Mountain High, In The Midnight Hour, Papa Was A Rolling Stone, Save Me, Mustang Sally, I Heard It Through The Grapevine, Thin Line Between Love and Hate, Reach Out, Uptight, Knock On Wood, I Can’t Turn You Loose and many more!
