Helmed by visionary director Jamie Lloyd himself, the production will bring the musical – which hasn’t been seen on the West End stage in over a decade – to a new generation. Scherzinger, 44, will play the disillusioned, washed up movie star Norma Desmond, who fantasises about making a comeback. Casting for the role of Joe Gillis, the struggling writer who falls into her clutches, is yet to be announced.
Based on Billy Wilder’s 1950 film of the same name, the story follows the toxic relationship that develops between Norma and Joe, when both are convinced the other could be their ticket to fame, acclaim and adoration. It features music by Webber, and a book and lyrics by Don Black and Christopher Hampton.
Sunset Boulevard was never meant to be a musical. Former rights holders Paramount Pictures turned down an early proposal for its adaptation, and later, Wilder rejected a fresh concept laid out for it by Stephen Sondheim in the 1960s. After some back and forth, Webber eventually obtained the theatre rights from then holder Hal Prince, writing a version that was performed at his summer arts festival, Sydmonton Festival, in 1991, and then revising it the following year. It opened on the West End in 1993, in a production directed by Trevor Nunn, starring Patti LuPone as Norma Desmond, Kevin Anderson as Joe Gillis, Meredith Braun as Paramount script editor Betty Schaefer, and Daniel Benzali as Norma's ex-husband, Max
With the company's production of Lucy Prebble’s The Effect opening at the National Theatre the month before, Jamie Lloyd is set to be the director everybody's talking about come September.
Sunset Boulevard opens in September 2023, with exact dates still to be announced.
| What | Sunset Boulevard, Savoy Theatre |
| Where | Savoy Theatre, Savoy Court , Strand, London, WC2R 0ET | MAP |
| Nearest tube | Charing Cross (underground) |
| Price | £TBC |
| Website | Click here for more information and to book |
