This_Is_London_7 December 2018

18
Theo Ancient
THE BOX OF DELIGHTS RETURNS
TO WILTON’S MUSIC HALL
The Christmas classic The Box of
Delights by Piers Torday, based on the
novel by John Masefield, returns to
London’s most festive venue Wilton’s
Music Hall in a wintery adventure full of
magic, talking animals, and even a flying
car... The action-packed festive tale is
based on the 1935 novel by Poet
Laureate John Masefield and returns to
the East London music hall after its
critically-acclaimed and sold out world
premiere last year.
The production welcomes back some
old faces and introduces some brandnew
cast members, including Theo
Ancient, no stranger to magic, fresh
from playing Albus Potter in West End
smash hit Harry Potter and the Cursed
Child.
On the train home for the school
holidays, schoolboy Kay Harker has a
strange encounter with mysterious
magician Cole Hawlings, who entrusts
him with his Box of Delights, an
enchanted object with powers Kay could
only dream of. When Cole suddenly
vanishes, and his arch enemy Abner
Brown will stop at nothing to get his
hands on the Box, Kay and his friends
find themselves in a magical world of
time-travel, bewitchment and baddies as
they fight to save the Box and even
Christmas itself.
THE WIDER EARTH AT THE
NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM
The Wider Earth – the critically
acclaimed drama about the young
Charles Darwin’s expedition on HMS
Beagle, currently playing at the custombuilt
theatre in the Jerwood Gallery at
London’s Natural History Museum, has
extended its run and will now play until
24 February.
Featuring a cast of seven, and 30
extraordinary hand-crafted puppets
representing the exotic wildlife Darwin
encountered, The Wider Earth is an
ingenious coming-of-age story which
celebrates the incredible complexity of
our planet and Darwin’s adventurous
spirit as he faced perilous environments
and unknown dangers on his bold
voyage.
THE KING AND I: FROM THE
LONDON PALLADIUM
The film version of the multiple Tony
award-winning Lincoln Center Theater
production of Rodgers and
Hammerstein’s The King and I: From The
London Palladium has become the
biggest theatre event in cinemas of 2018
following last week’s screenings around
the world. The production is expected to
take $2.5m at the box office. In the UK
the film reached the number one spot,
with more than double the box office of
the next film, Fantastic Beasts: The
Crimes of Grindelwald.
More than 135,000 movie goers
packed into cinemas across
the globe to watch the
production filmed on stage at
the iconic London Palladium.
Such has been the demand for
tickets, Trafalgar Releasing has
scheduled encore screenings
both in the UK and globally
throughout December.
This majestic production,
directed by Tony Awardwinner
Bartlett Sher, first
opened on Broadway in 2015
for a critically acclaimed 16
month run at The Lincoln
Center Theater, followed by an
unprecedented record-breaking sold out
USA tour. The show then transferred to the
London Palladium in June this year, with
the three original Broadway lead actors
reprising their starring roles – Tony
Award-winner (Best Performance by an
Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical for
The King and I) Kelli O’Hara, Tony and
Oscar nominee Ken Watanabe and Tony
Award-winner (Best Performance by an
Actress in a Featured Role in a Musical for
The King and I) Ruthie Ann Miles.
The London production drew huge
critical acclaim, played to packed houses,
received nightly standing ovations and
smashed box office records – including
the biggest grossing week in the London
Palladium’s history, taking £1,058,317.50
for an eight performance week.
Set in 1860s Bangkok, the musical
tells the story of the unconventional and
tempestuous relationship that develops
between the King of Siam and Anna, a
British schoolteacher whom the modernist
King, in an imperialistic world, brings to
Siam to teach his many wives and
children. With one of the finest scores
ever written including Whistle a Happy
Tune, Getting to Know You and Shall We
Dance, and a company of over 50 worldclass
performers, The King And I: From
The Palladium is a testament to the lavish
heritage of gloriously romantic musical
theatre – it is the greatest musical from
the golden age of musicals.
www.kingandimusicalcinema.com
Ken Watanabe & Kelli O'Hara. Photo: Matthew Murphy.
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