Kinky Boots’ Tim Prottey-Jones to release third Album: To Do. To Be.
London just got kinky, people! The most hotly anticipated musical of the year, Kinky Boots has finally arrived in the West End, and the audience reaction to these first preview performances has been through the roof. Sex is in the heel and five star success is in the air. The entire company must be on a high right now that has nothing to do with a six-inch stiletto, but for one cast member, the excitement is twofold as they not only have a new show, but a new album too.
Actor and singer/songwriter Tim Prottey-Jones can currently be found at the Adelphi Theatre where he plays the role of Mutt as part of the original London cast of Kinky Boots. A talented performer, his stage career has gone from strength to strength since he appeared as one of the finalists in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s ITV show Superstar, which searched for a new leading man to star as Jesus Christ in an all-new Arena Tour of Jesus Christ Superstar. Although it was Ben Forster who won the show, and the role, Tim was still chosen to join the company of the show and understudy Tim Minchin in the principal role of Judas. Following that, he spent a year playing Billy in the hit West End production of Once The Musical.
In addition to being a rising star of the stage, he is also one of the most promising British musical theatre writers of today. He has already released two albums of original material, More With Every Line and Surrounded By the Sounds, which featured an array of guest vocalists from the West End and Broadway such as Sabrina Aloueche, Tituss Burgess, Samantha Barks, Louise Dearman, Drew Sarich, John Owen-Jones, Jodie Jacobs, Mark Evans, Lauren Samuels, Alex Gaumond, Michael Xavier and Constantine Maroulis. Both albums were a phenomenal success and helped to establish Tim as one-to-watch in the world of new musical theatre writing, as did the stage production of his British pop-rock musical, After The Turn, which had a short run at the Courtyard Theatre at the start of 2012.
Now, four years after his last album, another offering of new songs from the brilliant mind of Tim Prottey-Jones are soon to be heard with the release of his third album, To Do. To Be. All the tracks are brand new songs taken from six original pieces of musical theatre, musical short films and musical feature length films, co-written with an assortment of writers and lyricists that includes Tori Allen-Martin, Nick Smithers, Angela Prottey-Jones, Martin Meehan, Daragh Carville and Ali Harris. The six musical projects are:
After The Turn (stage musical) – A story of grief, guilt, self-discovery, forgiveness, and that thing we just can’t do without; love. At seventeen, Michael was the exceptionally talented lead singer of a band on the brink of stardom, when his mother was killed in a hit and run accident. Fast-forward three years and Michael hasn’t uttered a word since. His ex-girlfriend Lauren reluctantly agrees to try and help, and bit by bit Michael’s past is revealed, reawakening buried emotion, in them both.
Down Flew the Doves (musical feature length film) – This is a small, intimate story about the unspoken passions that can underlie simple acts of kindness but with a soaring musical score that gives life to what can never be said.
Equally (stage musical) – Orianna is just a normal girl, living a quiet life in a sleepy town, when out of nowhere Tristan arrives on the scene, straight into her heart, like a bullet. Suddenly, nothing will ever be the same again. Orianna has to make a choice, and either way it’s going to hurt. Described as ‘Once’ meets ‘Closer’, a musical with a lot of heart and some unexpected twists.
Exes (A proposed play with music) – Set in Northern Ireland, about relationships between ex- lovers, relationships between friends and the relationship between the present and the past.
Standing on the Edge (musical short film) – This is set against the backdrop of a viral pandemic that has pushed the human race to the brink of extinction. Two brothers must face reality, and test how far they are willing to go for family, and survival.
The First Last Kiss (stage musical) – Two hearts + fifteen years = how many kisses? How do you hold on to a love that is slowly slipping away from you? How do you cope when you know that every kiss is a countdown to goodbye…. This is the heart-breaking story of Ryan and Molly and how they fell in love with their first kiss and were torn apart before their last. Based on the best-selling novel by Ali Harris.
As with his previous albums, there are some incredible guest vocalists on To Do. To Be. as well. The line-up for this album features Amy Lennox (Kinky Boots, Legally Blonde), Joe Tracini (Spamalot), Emma Hatton (Wicked, We Will Rock You), Alistair Brammer (Miss Saigon, Les Miserables), Jacqueline Hughes (Wicked), Paul Ayres (Kinky Boots), Ambra Caserotti (Rent), Declan Bennett (EastEnders, Once), Tyrone Huntley (Memphis, The Book of Mormon), Zrinka Cvitesic (Once), Evelyn Hoskins (Carrie), Brian Gilligan (The Commitments), Cameron Sharp (Rock of Ages), Laura Pitt-Pulford (Seven Brides For Seven Brothers, The Sound of Music), and Tim himself, who can be heard on there performing a duet with former Once cast mate Arthur Darvill, as well as with his band, The Paper Hearts. There is also the chance to hear the track recorded by Andrew Bateup, the winner of a competition set up by Tim earlier this year to find a new talent to be the voice of this song, chosen by a judging panel of industry professionals that included Rachel Tucker and John Owen-Jones, both of whom featured on his previous albums.
I once interviewed Tim at the album launch for his second album, Surrounded By the Sounds. He spoke then of his desire to appeal to a wide range of people by not only working with different vocalists on each album, but also opening that up to include a mixture of household names, up-and-coming performers and new, unknown talent. It’s worked well for him in the past – he formed a Twitter Choir for that album by holding auditions through Twitter – and he is continuing in the same vein with his latest album. He’s chosen a fantastic collection of names from varying levels in the industry.
I’ve always been an advocate for the support of new musical theatre writing, and as such, have followed his career for years now. An exceptional talent both on and off the stage, he is doing great things in this area of the industry and fellow supporters would do well to take notice of the name of Tim Prottey-Jones.
To Do. To Be. is due to be released on 7th September 2015, and available to pre-order on iTunes and Dress Circle now.
By Julie Robinson: @missjulie25
Tuesday 26th August 2015
