Henshall, Ovenden & Hanson Set for New Musical Marguerite in London

Ruthie Henshall, Julian Ovenden and Alexander Hanson will be the above-the-title stars of the forthcoming London production of Marguerite, a new musical featuring a book by Jonathan Kent and Les Miz authors Alain Boublil and Claude-Michel Schonberg, lyrics by Herbert Kretzmer and music by Michel Legrand. The production, to be directed by Kent, begins previews on May 7 at the Theatre Royal, Haymarket, and will open on May 20.

The ensemble of Margueriteincludes Annalene Beechey, Matt Cross and Simon Thomas in principal roles. Completing the cast are Don Gallagher, Mark Carroll, Keiron Crook, James Doherty, Siubhan Harrison, Philip Sutton, Lucy Williamson, Duncan Smith, Gay Soper, Jon-Paul Hevey and Julia Nagle.

Set in Occupied Paris during World War II, the musical draws from a beloved, time-honored source in Alexandre Dumas' La Dame Aux Camelias, the same novel that in its time also spawned both the various stage and screen incarnations of Camille and the Verdi opera La Traviata. Orchestrations and arrangements are by Legrand and Seann Alderking, while Kent's ongoing design team of Paul Brown sets and costumes and Mark Henderson lighting are on board once again.

Marguerite is the third and final show and only musical in a £3 million $6 million lineup of productions at the Haymarket, all of which have been directed by Kent, who before this assignment is best known for having been co-artistic director of north London's Almeida Theatre for 12 years alongside Tony winner Ian McDiarmid. Interestingly, Schonberg here is not taking a composing credit, despite having written six complete scores, among them Les Miserables, Miss Saigon, Martin Guerre and The Pirate Queen.

Olivier Award winner Henshall returns to the city where she first made her career to play the title role in a venture that, Kent told a press and industry event on January 30, has been over five years in gestation. Ovenden, who played Franklin in the Donmar's Olivier Award-winning production of Merrily We Roll Along in 2000, made his Broadway debut last season alongside Nathan Lane in Butley, while the other male lead, Hanson, comes to Marguerite following a long run opposite Connie Fisher at the London Palladium in The Sound of Music. The producers are Marguerite Productions, The Theatre Royal Haymarket Company and the American-based Bob Boyett. Kent is currently represented at the Haymarket through April 19 with his production of Edward Bond's The Sea, starring Eileen Atkins, David Haig and Russell Tovey.