LOVERS of stage musicals are in for a veritable feast at the end of the month when they will be taken on a whistle-stop tour from the heart of London’s theatre land to the glitz of Broadway by a critically acclaimed show which celebrates the very best songs from the shows many know and love.

Heading for Malvern’s Forum Theatre for one night only on Saturday, October 31, with a host of many favourite numbers from the pen of Rodgers & Hammerstein, Kander & Ebb, Andrew Lloyd Webber and Boublil & Schonberg, will be the talented cast of Mad About the Musicals who will evoke the true spirit of the stage to bring its audience the very best show in town.

  From the bittersweet All I Ask Of You to the powerful One Day More, musical fans will be able to sit back and enjoy two hours of unforgettable London and New York favourites, performed by a cast direct from the West End, including Gareth Gates and Michael Courtney.

It promises to be a pure slice of entertainment.

  Hailed as ‘outstanding’ by the Stage, ‘the best show of its kind’ by Encore Magazine and nominated in 2008 The UK producer of the year, this is one definitely not to miss!!

  Gates and Courtney head the cast of the 10th anniversary production, which kicked off in early autumn at the Palace Theatre Redditch, and as well as visiting Malvern the show will also be staged just down the road at Tewkesbury’s Roses Theatre on November 8.

The two lead singers will be joined on stage by musical theatre actresses Rosanne Priest, Kerry O’Dowd and Nichola Lagen.

  Gareth Gates rose to fame in the inaugural Pop Idol TV show in 2001/2. He became a household name making it to the most memorable of these finals, when he went up against Will Young.  He went on to sell over five million records worldwide and have hits across the globe.

His version of Unchained Melody sold over a million copies in the UK and is the third best-selling single of the Noughties, whilst Anyone of Us was an international hit.  He is also the youngest ever-male solo artist to debut at number 1.    

More recently Gareth has had a hugely enjoyable and successful career in musical theatre and has appeared in Les Miserables, Legally Blonde and Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.   

In 2014 he picked up his skates again to appear in the last ever TV series of Dancing on Ice.  This finale bought back show winners and viewers favourites to compete for one last time!  He also found time to join a band and become part of the second series of the Big Reunion, in the super group 5th Story, alongside Dane Bowers, Adam Rickitt, Kenzie and Kavana.

This newly formed boy band will play arenas across the country later this autumn with Blue, 5ive, Damage and 3T.  Then in November Gareth will taking a totally different show on the road, with his acoustic band set up, playing all the old hits together with new songs.

Of the current tour, and forthcoming Malvern show, he said: “Mad About The Musicals is a show that will appeal to everyone, as even if you don’t know the individual musicals, you will definitely know the songs. There has been some amazing music to come out of theatre shows in the last few decades, so we will be paying homage to them.

“Some shows I have appeared in, like my all-time favourite Les Miserables, and some will be new songs for me to sing,” he added. “I’ve never sung anything from Jesus Christ Superstar and I am singing the amazing Heaven on their Minds.”

 Michael Courtney has produced and directed the UK tours of the critically acclaimed Mad About The Musicals, Waterloo, Shakin All Over, Its D’Lovely, A Night Of Musicals, over 30 UK Pantomimes and was nominated as the UK Producer of The Year by Encore Magazine.