Michael Ball, Adam Cooper, Ian McKellen, Summer Strallen, Imelda Staunton, et al. Set for 2011 Chichester Season

The Chichester Festival has announced its 2011 season, according to Whatsonstage.com.

The Festival Theater season opens with a revival of Tom Stoppard’s Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead, directed by Trevor Nunn (May 20-June 11), to be followed by artistic director Jonathan Church’s new production of Singin’ in the Rain (June 27-September 10), starring Adam Cooper, Daniel Crossley, and Scarlett Strallen.

Up next will be Philip Franks’ production of Terrence Rattigan’s The Deep Blue Sea (July 13-September 2), and Rattigan’s Nijinksy, Nicholas Wright ‘s drama based on an unproduced 1974 television script Rattigan wrote for the BBC (September 2-October 8).

The Festival Theatre season culminates with Jonathan Kent’s production of Stephen Sondheim and Hugh Wheeler’s musical Sweeney Todd, starring Michael Ball and Imelda Staunton (September 24-November 5).

At the Minerva Theater, the season launches with Joe Masteroff, Jerry Bock, and Sheldon Harnick’s classic musical She Loves Me (May 9-June 18), to be directed and choreographed by Stephen Mear and starring Joe McFadden as George and Dianne Pilkington as Amalia.

Up next will be Max Stafford-Clark’s revival of Caryl Churchill’s Top Girls (June 23-July 16), followed by Sean Mathias’ production of Mike Poulton’s crime drama The Syndicate (July 21-August 20), starring Sir Ian McKellen and Michael Pennington.

The final offering in the Minerva will be a double bill of Angus Jackson’s revival of Rattigan’s The Browning Version and David Hare’s new one-act South Downs, directed by Jeremy Herrin (running in repertory from September 2-October 8). Also to be presented in the Minerva will be a series of rehearsed readings of lesser-known Rattigan plays, and a presentation of In Praise of Rattigan, featuring Penelope Keith.