Frances Barber to return as outrageous Billie Trix - Leicester Square Theatre
Previews by Lizzie Guilfoyle
FOLLOWING its sold out world premiere at the 2019 Edinburgh Fringe, critically acclaimed MUSIK is transferring to Leicester Square Theatre for a 4-week season – from Wednesday, February 5 to Sunday, March 1, 2020.
Written by Jonathan Harvey and Pet Shop Boys Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe, this 60-minute, one-woman show stars multi-award-winning actress Frances Barber reprising her role as Billie Trix from the 2001 musical, Closer to Heaven.
Pet Shop Boys said: “When we wrote Closer to Heaven almost 20 years ago, we loved the compelling outrageousness of the character Bille Trix as written by Jonathan and performed by Frances Barber. We have all discussed for many years the idea of creating her own one-woman show which would give us the chance to write more songs for her as she looks back on her incredible career. We’re thrilled that this show is finally happening.”
Jonathan Harvey said: “It has been such a treat reconnecting and working with Chris and Neil on this, 20 years after our first foray into musical theatre writing. In MUSIK Billie, dried up, drug-addled icon and rock star, tells us about her life and sings her biggest hits with Frances Barber inhabiting her again as she did so hilariously and so touchingly all those years ago.”
Frances Barber is an award-winning star of stage, screen and TV. Her extensive credits include the films Prick Up Your Ears, We Think the World of You, Dead Fish and Film Stars Don’t Die in Liverpool. Her numerous TV credits include The Street, multiple guest starring episodes of Doctor Who (as Madame Kovaria) and Silk. In the West End, she recently played Mrs. Cheveley in An Ideal Husband.
Pet Shop Boys have sold more than 50 million records worldwide and are listed as the most successful duo in UK music history by The Guinness Book of Records. Since 1985, they have achieved 42 Top 30 singles, 22 of them Top 10 hits in the UK Singles Chart, including four UK number ones and at the 2009 Brit Awards, they received an award for Outstanding Contribution to Music. They have also written a score for the classic silent film, Battleship Potemkin; a ballet, The Most Incredible Thing; and performed at the BBC Proms their musical work inspired by Alan Turing, A Man From The Future.
Jonathan Harvey is an acclaimed playwright, novelist and TV writer whose work has earned many awards. His plays include Beautiful Thing, for which he won the prestigious ‘John Whiting Award’ and Babies (National Theatre Studio/Royal Court Theatre), winner of the George Devine Award and Evening Standard’s Most Promising Playwright Award. On TV, he wrote the cult comedy series Gimme Gimme Gimme, starring Kathy Burke and James Dreyfus, Beautiful People and is a regular script writer on Coronation Street.
MUSIK is directed by Josh Seymour and has set and costume design by Lee Newby, lighting design by David Plater and sound design by Fergus O’Hare.
For more information or to book tickets (on sale from October 29 at 10am), call 0207 7342222 or visit www.leicestersquaretheatre.com/.
Image: Frances Barber as Billie Trix in MUSIK. Photo credit: The Other Richard.
Also at Leicester Square Theatre: Sh!t-Faced Showtime: A Pissedmas Carol (November 20, 2019 to January 5, 2020).