Final casting has been announced for the West End production of the Olivier Award-nominated The Rat Pack – Live from Las Vegas, which returns to the Theatre Royal Haymarket – home to its first West End run in 2003 – for a strictly limited season from Wednesday 13 December 2017 to Saturday 3 February 2018.
The cast features Garrett Phillips as Frank Sinatra, Nigel Casey as Dean Martin, David Hayes as Sammy Davis Jr, with Joanna Walters, Amelia Adams, Rebecca Parker and Laura Darton as The Burrelli Sisters. Musical Director of the 12-piece Rat Pack Big Band is Matthew Freeman.
In addition, Nicola Emmanuelle will join the show from 9 January 2018 to celebrate the 100thanniversaryy of the birth of the First Lady of Song and Queen of Jazz, Ella Fitzgerald. Songs featured in this special edition of the production will include Night and Day, The Lady is a Tramp, Mack the Knife and S’Wonderful.
From 13 December to 6 January, The Rat Pack – Live from Las Vegas – devised, directed and choreographed by Mitch Sebastian – will have a Christmas theme. Christmas with the Rat Pack showcases the trio’s unique take on such festive classics as Baby It’s Cold Outside, Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas, White Christmas, Winter Wonderland, Jingle Bells and Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow.
Commenting on the introduction of the new member to the company, The Rat Pack‘s director and choreographer Mitch Sebastian said:
“We are thrilled to introduce Ella Fitzgerald to the show for 2018 in both the West End and later UK tour dates, to celebrate the centenary of this great singers birth. The recipient of 13 Grammy Awards and the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, Ella was an artist Frank respected – ‘the best way to start any musical evening is with this girl. It don’t get better than this’, he says on one recording.
“The warmth of their friendship really shines through on the many Youtube videos of their amazing performances together. They duetted live and in several TV specials including The Frank Sinatra Show to a global audience of millions. It was the series of highly successful – and lucrative – concerts in 1974 at Caesars Palace, Las Vegas, and later for two weeks on Broadway headlining Ella, Frank and Count Basie, that are cited as an important incentive to bring Frank out of self-imposed retirement.”
