West End Everybody's Talking About Jamie Vets Will Join Layton Williams in American Premiere

Williams stars alongside Roy Haylock, a.k.a. Bianca Del Rio.

Roy Haylock and Layton Williams (both center) in Everybody's Talking About Jamie
Roy Haylock and Layton Williams (both center) in Everybody's Talking About Jamie
(© Johan Persson)

A number of West End Everybody's Talking About Jamie will join Layton Williams and Roy Haylock (a.k.a. Bianca Del Rio) in the American premiere of the musical, running running January 16-February 20 at Center Theatre Group's Ahmanson Theatre in Los Angeles.

As previously announced, longtime cast member Williams will once again take on the title role of Jamie New, with Haylock reprising the role of Hugo/Loco Chanelle. They'll be joined by West End production vets Melissa Jacques as Margaret New, Shobna Gulati as Ray, Gillian Ford as Miss Hedge, Hiba Elchikhe as Pritti Pasha, Marlon G. Day as Jamie's Dad, James Gillan as Tray Sophisticay, David O'Reilly as Laika Virgin, Leon Craig as Sandra Bollock, Richard Appiah-Sarpong as Cy, Zion Battles as Levi, Ryan Hughes as Mickey, Jodie Knight as Fatimah, Harriet Payne as Bex, Adam Taylor as Sayid, and swing Rachel Seirian. Rounding out the company are touring Jamie vets George Sampson as Dean, Kazmin Borrer as Vicki, Talia Palamathanan as Becca, and swing/dance captains Simeon Beckett and Emma Robotham-Hunt.

Inspired by the documentary Jamie: Drag Queen at 16, the musical tells the story of 16-year-old Jamie New, a young man living in public housing who dreams of being a drag queen. Everybody's Talking About Jamie is directed by Jonathan Buterell, with a score by Dan Gillespie Sells and book and lyrics by Tom MacRae. The production has choreography by Kate Prince, sets and costumes by Anna Fleischle, lighting by Lucy Carter, sound by Paul Groothuis, video by Luke Hall, music supervision by Theo Jamieson, and casting by Will Burton.

Everybody's Talking About Jamie opened at the Sheffield Crucible in 2017 before moving to the Apollo Theatre in London's West End. A film version, also directed by Butterell, is available on Prime Video.