It may not have been her last ending as Cinderella in the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical of the same name after it closed early 10 days ago, but West End star Carrie Hope Fletcher has already taken on a new role.
Fletcher is set to star in a new production by Bertolt Brecht ‘The Caucasian Chalk Circle’ at London’s Rose Theatre. You’ll play as Grusha Vashnadze, a maid who rescues her lover’s child after it was abandoned during a coup, raising him to be good and generous. Later, Grusha’s mistress tries to retrieve the child, sending soldiers to capture him, until Grusha is finally prosecuted and declared to be the child’s real mother.
Steve Waters has written a remake of the play, which will be supervised by Christopher Haydon, artistic director of Rose Theatre. Michael Henry will compose the music.
The news comes on the heels of the dramatic conclusion of Cinderella’s 10-month run in the West End. The musical, with a book by writer-director Emerald Fennell and “A Promising Young Woman” writer and lyrics by David Zeppel, opened in August 2021, in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic after several delays as Lloyd Webber openly battled the UK government over pandemic regulations.
The musical got off to an ominous start after Press Night was called off at the last minute when a cast member tested positive for COVID and was then forced to shut down temporarily over Christmas, traditionally the West End’s most lucrative season, due to the COVID-19 rush.
In March, Lloyd Webber suddenly announced that he was shutting down the production, much to the surprise and anger of the cast and crew, which led to protests outside the theater. One actress, Georgina Castle, who played one of Cinderella’s sisters-in-law, even told the Daily Mail that her dream of buying a home was dashed after a mortgage lender heard that the show was over and pulled out.
The last show was held 10 days ago. After the curtain came down one last time, director Lawrence Connor joined the cast on stage to recite a statement from Lloyd Webber, who was not present in person. The speech, which called the production a “costly mistake,” was met with boos from the audience.
In a statement later posted to social media, the West End company manager sought to clarify his comments, saying his words had been misunderstood.
Lloyd Webber is said to be planning an overhaul of the song “Cinderella” for which he composed the music, before taking it to Broadway.
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