Two new #StageFaves join Ordinary Days as it returns to London

25 Oct
2017
Posted in: Theatre News
Author: Press Releases
two-new-stagefaves-join-ordinary-days-as-it-returns-to-london
The stars of Ordinary Days

Great news for fans of ORDINARY DAYS - the show is returning to London with two new #StageFaves in the cast. After impressing audiences at London Theatre Workshop and taking Edinburgh by storm, two original cast members return with the production and are joined by two new faces - can you recognise them from the musicals in which they've previously starred?

After a very successful run in Edinburgh where they received rave reviews, were shortlisted as one of only ten musicals for the Musical Theatre Review Best Musical Award and were nominated for Best Musical at the Broadway World Awards, Streetlights, People! Productions’ revival of Adam Gwon's musical now returns to London at the Drayton Arms as the winner of the Drayton Arms’ Eddies Kensington Award, intended to identify “the most exciting new companies at this year’s Fringe Festival.”

Executive producer Nora Perone (ORDINARY DAYS in London and Edinburgh) and associate producer Neil Cameron (NewsRevue and Take That: Progress Tour), who play Deb and Warren respectively, are joined by Taite-Elliot Drew (My Land’s Shore and The Braille Legacy) as Jason and Natalie Day (Fantine 1st cover in Les Miserables and Edwin Drood in The Mystery of Edwin Drood) as Claire.

They are directed by Jen Coles, who is directing ORDINARY DAYS for the fourth time, alongside musical director Rowland Braché (Coin Operated – The Music of Zack Zadek, Footloose UK Tour, and one-third of The Clique, the pop/dance group that made a splash on this season of The X Factor).

ORDINARY DAYS is a contemporary musical, set in modern-day New York. It follows the parallel lives of four young city-dwellers struggling to find meaning in the madness: Claire, who can’t let go of her past; Jason, determined to begin their future together; Warren, an artist who’s lost his sense of purpose; and Deb, a student who’s lost her thesis notes. It is a witty, poignant, and ultimately very relatable story about human connection and finding beauty in unexpected places.

Streetlights, People! was founded by Nora Perone (who plays Deb) and Jen Coles (who directs) while they were both students at the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama– for them, producing their own projects meant never having to spend a day at home waiting for the phone to ring.

Nora Perone says:

“I was drawn to ORDINARY DAYS because, as well as being a triumph of musical comedy, it’s also a brilliant examination of the struggles faced today by young adults– and particularly by young artists. ORDINARY DAYS is a breath of fresh air in a city that can sometimes feel polluted with cynicism and self-doubt. We set out to do two performances last October, and suddenly it’s a year later, and our press night at the Drayton Arms will be our 50th show. We’ve really been very lucky: we are immensely grateful to have audiences who love the show just as much as we do.”

Audrey Thayer, Programming Manager at the Draytion Arms, says:

“I am so pleased to have ORDINARY DAYS as our 2017 Kensington Eddies Award Winners. As an emerging company, taking on a show that is heartfelt, inspiring and deserving of a larger audience, they are exactly who we strive to support as a theatre. When I saw ORDINARY DAYS performed in Edinburgh – a story about choosing to live the life that makes you happy, performed by such a talented group of actors – I knew it was the perfect show to spread a message of hope and new beginnings in a time of far and uncertainty.”

This production of ORDINARY DAYS began with a sold-out engagement at the Hen and Chickens Theatre last October before transferring to London Theatre Workshop. It now runs from 21 November to 9 December 2017 at the Drayton Arms Theatre.