Jason Donovan, Liam Neeson, Carrie Hope Fletcher and more to appear in Jeff Wayne's The War of The Worlds coming to Birmingham
Jason Donovan, Carrie Hope Fletcher, Adam Garcia and more will appear in Jeff Wayne's Musical Version of The War of The Worlds in Birmingham.
Australian actor and singer Jason will return to the show - celebrating its 40th anniversary this year - playing the part of Parson Nathaniel.
He will be joined by West End actress Carrie as his wife Beth.
Speaking ahead of the show, Jason said: “I am delighted to be re-joining the cast for this very special 40th anniversary tour.
"The War of The Worlds has such enduring appeal and its fan base seems to grow and grow.
"With each tour, the scale, the drama and the special effects get more and more exciting, so I can't wait to see what Jeff has planned for this spectacular celebration."
Carrie added: "I’m absolutely delighted and honoured to be reprising my role as Beth alongside Jason, especially for this momentous 40th anniversary year.
"Having grown up listening to the album, The War of The Worlds holds a personal significance, and with the new ingredients, I can’t wait to see how this new production has evolved."
They will star alongside the likes of Coyote Ugly's Adam Garcia as The Artilleryman, British singer-songwriter Newton Faulkner as The Sung Thoughts of The Journalist, Inglorious front-man Nathan James as The Voice of Humanity, and Jeff's daughter Anna-Marie Wayne as Carrie.
Taken and Star Wars actor Liam Neeson will reprise his role as The Journalist as a hologram.
Based on HG Wells’ dark Victorian tale, The War of The Worlds will feature Jeff's nine-piece Black Smoke Band, a 35ft-tall Martian Fighting Machine firing real flames, a 100ft-wide animation wall, levitation effects, and the 'incineration' of a cast member.
Talking ahead of the production, Jeff said: “In June 1978 when my original double album was released, I had no idea if it would vanish as quickly as one can say 'ULLAdubULLA'.
"But here we are today, celebrating its 40th anniversary and seeing the newly re-mastered original double album sitting on top of the UK vinyl album charts.
"And later this year I believe we’ll be performing the most exciting arena tour to date, with a most exciting cast, all of us getting ready to do battle with the martians later this year."
Jeff Wayne's Musical Version of The War of The Worlds comes to Birmingham's Genting Arena on December 8.
