Greenwich is to fill the usually quiet month of August with two full-length musicals with the same cast and crew: The Adventures of Pinocchio in the afternoon and The Who's Tommy in the evening.
The double-bill was the idea of Katy Lipson of Aria Entertainment, who explained, "I have always talked with James Haddrell, artistic and executive director at the theatre, of producing something with a much longer run. I mentioned Tommy to James and he said, ‘Oh, I love that show and would love to see it at Greenwich.'"
Artistic director James Haddrell said, "it’s to Katy’s absolute credit that she got the rights to Tommy. We’ve been talking for quite a while to find the right project for a prolonged run at Greenwich and I think these two shows fit the bill perfectly.
"The quality of Katy’s work is dominating the fringe and our reputation for musical theatre is growing after Avenue Q, Rent and Altar Boyz. This will be the UK première of Pinocchio and I’ve always wanted to do Tommy. The profile of The Who could hardly be higher after playing Glastonbury and Hyde Park."
The Who's Tommy, directed by Michael Strassen with musical direction by Kevin Oliver Jones and choreography by Mark Smith, will run from 29 July to 23 August.
The Adventures of Pinocchio, directed by Bronagh Lagan with musical direction by Freddie Tapner, will run in the daytimes from 5 to 23 August.