London’s iconic Southbank Centre will be home to Windmill Theatre Co and State Theatre Company South Australia’s Rumpelstiltskin this December and January as Queen Elizabeth Hall hosts this award-winning production as its centrepiece 2018 Christmas show.
Rumpelstiltskin premiered at the Dunstan Playhouse in 2016 to rave reviews and sell out performances. The production won Best Show – Musical/Opera at the 2017 Adelaide Theatre Guide Curtain Call Awards and was nominated for two 2017 South Australian Ruby Awards, including Best Work. The UK season will see it play a four-week season in the 915-seat Queen Elizabeth Hall from 13 December 2018.
Spinning straw into gold is a party trick that will take you far. It can buy you a big house full of beautiful things, a wardrobe of designer clothes and a life of total luxury, but money, as they say, can’t buy you… two people, once best friends, torn apart by desire for the things they cannot have. This is the story of the ultimate price of greed.
The exquisitely mercurial Paul Capsis stars as a shape-shifting imp whose thirst for vengeance may well bring him undone. Full of twists and turns, Rumpelstiltskin is a whole new spin on a heart of gold.
“This is such fantastic recognition for our artists and our respective companies,” said Rosemary Myers, Windmill’s Artistic Director and Rumpelstiltskin director. “We had lots of fun making this work, with all its slapstick one-liners, pop culture references and rock-inspired musical tracks – seeing these feature as part of the Christmas pantomime season in London is pretty special.”
The London run follows the successful tour of both companies’ previous family musical collaboration Pinocchio, which played on New York’s 42nd Street in 2015. Windmill has established a solid reputation as a major producer of new theatre for children, teenage and family audiences. In recent years, the company has become one of Australia’s leading exporters of arts and culture to the world, having delivered 225 live theatre performances across 46 cities in 2017.
State Theatre Company made its London debut in 2016 with Frantic Assembly co-production Things I Know To Be True. Finishing its third run in February, the production enjoyed standing ovations and five-star reviews on its four-month long UK tour and second month-long season at London’s Lyric Hammersmith.
“At its best, theatre pushes the limits of what we think of as possible – wonder, excitement, spectacle and mischief can have such an impact on the audience,” said Rupert Thomson, Senior Programmer for Performance and Dance at Southbank Centre.
“This wonderful adaptation of the Rumpelstiltskin story masterfully achieves all these things and more, in a spectacularly visual production we are delighted to be premiering for UK audiences at Southbank Centre’s Queen Elizabeth Hall.”
“This tale is one packed with mesmerising characters and a universal, resonant message of love trumping hate.” – Glam Adelaide
Rumpelstiltskin will play Queen Elizabeth Hall – Southbank Centre: 13 December 2018 – 6 January 2019. For more information, visit: www.windmill.org.au for details.
Image: Paul Capsis stars in Rumpelstiltskin (supplied)