Disney's Bedknobs and Broomsticks Heading to the Stage in England
(YouTube still/Disney)
The 1971 Disney live action and animated movie-musical Bedknobs and Broomsticks is heading for the stage, with a world premiere tour beginning in England in August 2021.
Based on the novels by Mary Norton and the subsequent film, which starred Angela Lansbury and David Tomlinson, Bedknobs and Boomsticks will feature the classic tunes like "Portobello Road," "The Age of Not Believing," and "The Beautiful Briny" by Robert M. Sherman and Richard B. Sherman, with additional songs by Neil Bartram and a book by Brian Hill.
Bedknobs and Broomsticks was in development at Chicago Shakespeare Theatre, with Rachel Rockwell serving as director and choreographer. That production was subsequently cancelled after Rockwell's death in 2018.
This new world premiere tour, kicking off August 14, 2021 at the Newcastle Theatre Royal, will be staged by Candice Edmunds and Jamie Harrison, with Harrison also providing set and illusion design. It will have choreography by Neil Bettles, orchestrations by Simon Hale, musical direction by Tom Murray, costumes by Gabriella Slade, sound by Gareth Fry, and lighting by Simon Wilkinson.
Set during the Blitz, Bedknobs and Broomsticks tells the story of three orphans who are sent to live with the mysterious Eglantine Price, a trainee witch, who is searching for the secret spell that will defeat the enemy.
