The company of The Book of Mormon fundraising cabaret for MADTrust

Many West End shows have worked with The Make A Difference Trust, as part of the annual events West End Bares, A West End Christmas, the former annual event West End Eurovision, and of course, the cabarets. The casts of some of the biggest and best musicals in town have staged fundraising cabarets for the charity over the years, with the London company of The Phantom of the Opera being the most recent to perform in aid of MADTrust.

Following their Thursday evening performance (6th August) at Her Majesty’s Theatre, the Phantom cast headed to the Delfont Room below the Prince of Wales Theatre to launch the Late Night Cabaret Season, a musical extravaganza presented by MADTrust which sees five West End shows performing late night musical cabarets between August and October in aid of the charity. Cast members of the second longest running musical in the West End took to the stage at the Delfont Room for the Phantom cabaret, New Beginnings…No More Talk of Darkness, with solo, duet and group performances from such names as Emmi Christensson, Oliver Saville, Alicia Beck, Lisa-Anne Wood and Kieran Brown, who also compered the night’s entertainment. There was even a last-minute appearance from Gok Wan, who turned up to help draw the raffle, and credit must also be given to MD Scott Morgan.

The night was a great success all round, but it was just the first event in the MADTrust series of late night cabarets – the second takes place later this week. Following the evening’s performance on Thursday 13th August 2015, the London cast of The Book of Mormon will leave the stage of the Prince of Wales Theatre and head downstairs to the Delfont Room for their musical cabaret as part of MADTrust’s Late Night Cabaret Series.

The Book of Mormon was a super-mega hit on Broadway, and has proven just as popular over here in the West End. From the creators of South Park, Trey Parker and Matt Stone, and Avenue Q co-composer/lyricist Robert Lopez, the musical is a religious satire that tells the story of two young Mormon missionaries sent to a remote village in northern Uganda, and is outrageously funny, but also heartwarmingly sweet at times. It transferred from Broadway to the West End’s Prince of Wales Theatre in February 2013, and over two years later, remains one of the hottest tickets in town. It has won a torrent of theatrical awards, including nine Tony Awards for the original Broadway production, and four Olivier Awards for the West End production.

The current London company is led by Nic Rouleau and Brian Sears as Elder Price and Elder Cunningham respectively, with further cast members from both the principal and ensemble line-up including Denee Benton, Chris Jarman, Stephen Ashfield, Hugo Harold-Harrison, Gabrielle Brooks, Ross Hunter and David O’Reilly, to name a few. The audience at Thursday’s cabaret will get the chance to see members of the talented Book of Mormon cast perform in an intimate live gig that promises be a great night of entertainment, and all in aid of The Make A Difference Trust.

The Make A Difference Trust has a legacy of more than twenty five years. It brings together the theatre industry and its supporters to raise funds for HIV and AIDS projects that raise awareness and provide care, support and education in the UK and Sub-Saharan Africa, as well as supporting those in the entertainment industry facing hardship as a result of long term chronic illness.

The Book of Mormon is one you’d beg, borrow or steal a ticket for, just to be able see it, and the cabaret with its cast this Thursday is no exception to that rule. It’s not to be missed!

The Book of Mormon cabaret takes place live at the Delfont Room on Thursday 13th August 2015, 11pm. Further MADTrust cabarets are set to follow with the company of Miss Saigon (17th September 2015), Mamma Mia! (24th September 2015) and Gypsy (8th October 2015)

By Julie Robinson: @missjulie25

Tuesday 11th August 2015