In The Frame: Theatre Interviews from West End Frame

It's the final episode of the series and we're off to Australia to chat to musical theatre star Patrice Tipoki! Patrice understudied Elphaba in the original Australian production of Wicked and went on to take over the role alongside Jemma Rix. She received huge acclaim for her performance as Elphaba, and became well known amongst Wicked fans for her iconic Defying Gravity riff! Patrice made her West End debut in 2016 as Fantine in Les Misérables, having also played the role in Australia,...

Claudia's West End credits include Mrs. Sheinkopf/understudy Rosalie in School Of Rock and Midwife/understudy Madame Morrible in Wicked. Prior to lockdown she was starring as a Diva in the UK tour in Priscilla Queen of the Desert. Her credits also include: Sonja in The Life (Frankfurt), Woman 2 in Edges (London Theatre Workshop), Oda Mae Brown in Ghost The Musical (Frankfurt), understudy Clara in Porgy & Bess (Regent's Park), Deloris in Sister Act (Wexford), Sister Chantelle in Bare...

Jenny has played Elphaba more times than any other actress in Wicked history, across seven productions and four countries. Jenny started out as a swing and emergency cover for Elphaba in the Chicago production of Wicked, later taking over as Standby Elphaba for the remainder of the run. She then transferred to the Broadway, Australian and Asian productions as Standby Elphaba. Jenny took over the role full-time to lead Wicked's 2nd US Tour before transferring to the West End in 2014 to lead...

This week we're off to LA to speak to Jye Frasca! After growing up in Australia, Jye trained in London and had an incredible West End career. He appeared in West Side Story, Mamma Mia, Cats, Anything Goes, Love’s Labour Lost, We Will Rock You, Thrill Me and Mary Poppins. He was also part of the original West End casts of Wicked and Jersey Boys. After moving to America, Jye took over as Frankie Valli in the Las Vegas production of Jersey Boys before making his Broadway debut as Boq in...

It's good to see her, isn't it! This week we're joined by Helen Woolf who has been part of Wicked for the past seven years. Helen originally understudied Glinda in Wicked's first UK & Ireland tour, before transferring to the London production where she also understudied Nessarose. In 2017 Helen stepped up to play Glinda in the UK & Ireland tour and then returned to the West End production in 2019, taking over from Sophie Evans as Glinda. In this episode, Helen discusses her unique path...

Having recently completed her run as the alternate Tina in Tina The Musical, Jenny Fitzpatrick is currently starring in The World Goes ‘Round at the Barn Theatre in Cirencester. She can also be seen in the upcoming online revival of Godspell for the Hope Mill Theatre. Jenny made her professional debut in Henry IV Part I, A Midsummer Night's Dream and Camelot at the Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre. Her credits also include Nala in Legend Of The Lion King (Disneyland Paris), Ronnette in...

This week we're crossing the pond to speak to Broadway's Josh Lamon! Most recently Josh played Sheldon and understudied Barry in The Prom on Broadway. He is also the host of Josh Swallows Broadway for the Broadway Podcast Network. Josh's Broadway credits also include: Groundhog Day, Finding Neverland, Elf The Musical, Into The Woods and Hair. He played Boq in the US tour of Wicked and, prior to lockdown, was appearing in Emojiland off-Broadway. Josh is the co-writer of Bloody Bloody...

Janie Dee is a theatrical icon, having worked extensively in both the UK and New York throughout her career. Just a few recent highlights from Janie's career include playing Phyllis Rogers Stone in Follies (National Theatre), title role in Linda (Talent Works NY), Margery in Hand To God (West End), Arkadina in The Seagull (Regent's Park), Essie in Ah Wilderness (Young Vic), Ruth in Blithe Spirit (West End, alongside Angela Lansbury), Putting It Together (St James), title role in Hello Dolly...

Prior to lockdown, Nick was playing Boq in the West End production of Wicked. He made his West End debut as Doctor in The Book of Mormon (Prince of Wales). His other credits include: Gary Coleman in Avenue Q (UK Tour), Benny/Puppeteer in The Pied Piper (Cornerstone), Pepper in Mamma Mia! (Abu Dhabi), Henri in South Pacific (St. James Concert Hall) and TJ in Sister Act (Gordon Craig Theatre). Nick discusses his path into the industry, funny drama school stories, highlights from his career...

Jerry's productions include Legally Blonde, Kinky Boots, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels and On Your Feet. Most recently his production of Pretty Woman opened in the West End following a run on Broadway. Jerry choreographed the original production of Hairspray which is returning to London next year, and he is also working on a stage adaptation of Becoming Nancy. This Sunday Jerry and West End performer Jed Berry are hosting Raise You Up, an online charity concert starring Angels In Lockdown from...

Asmeret has had an incredible career on both sides of the pond, most recently starring as Lorell in the West End production of Dreamgirls to huge acclaim. She made her West End debut as Nabulungi in The Book of Mormon, having played the role on Broadway after being part of the show's original ensemble. Her other Broadway credits include Legally Blonde, Footloose, Wicked, Spamalot and Elf. She was in the original cast of In The Heights and starred in Sweet Charity off-Broadway. Most...

Natalie Kassanga is currently covering Zoey and Alana in the West End production of Dear Evan Hansen (Noel Coward) and recently starred as Diana Ross in Motown The Musical (Shaftesbury Theatre). This weekend Natalie can be seen in Turn Up, a concert which is being streamed in response to the Black Lives Matter movement. The show was filmed with a live band at Cadogan Hall. As a child, Natalie played Young Nala in The Lion King (Lyceum) and appeared in Oliver! (Drury Lane) and Chitty Chitty...

Last year Samantha Pauly made her London theatre debut as Eva Peron in Jamie Lloyd's production of Evita at the Regent's Park Open Air Theatre. Prior to lockdown, she was starring as Katherine Howard in the Broadway production of SIX. Samantha also played Katherine Howard in the pre-Broadway regional runs of SIX, including the musical's US premiere in Chicago. She has also played Eva Peron at the Marriot Theatre and Westport Country Playhouse. Samantha's additional theatre credits include:...

Vicki Manser joins us following the release of her chart-topping debut single "Pick Me Up"! Vicki's theatre credits include the West End productions of Sunny Afternoon, Beautiful: The Carole King Musical and Bat Out Of Hell. She joined the West End production of SIX at the start of 2019 as an alternate, taking over as Katherine Howard nine months later. After leaving Six at the end of last year she returned to Beautiful, this time on tour as the alternate Carole. Alongside her performing...

We're back for a "virtual" series of In The Frame! Our first guest is Trevor Dion Nicholas who was playing George Washington in the West End production of Hamilton (Victoria Palace) before theatres closed. Trevor originated the role of Genie in the West End production of Disney's Aladdin, having been a standby for the role on Broadway. He played Genie for the duration of the London run, taking a short break to play the role on the US tour. He was a judge on All Star Musicals (ITV) and...

We're back for Series Three of In The Frame, kicking off Friday 19th June 2020!

Carly recently starred as Anita to huge acclaim in West Side Story at the Leicester Curve. Carly's West End credits include Rock of Ages, Dirty Dancing, Chicago, Memphis & Dreamgirls where she understudied and regularly played the role of Lorelle. She has also appeared in Hair, High School Musical, Dance Til Dawn and The Lorax. Over the past couple of years Carly has been taking theatreland by storm, taking on roles such as Helene in Sweet Charity (Nottingham Playhouse), Fate in Hadestown...

Lauren has been touring the UK as Catherine of Aragon in SIX. Lauren's theatre credits include: understudy Molly in Ghost (UK Tour), understudy Nicola in Kinky Boots (West End), New Wave Girl & understudy Heather Chandler in Heathers (The Other Palace/West End), Suzanne in Sweet Charity (Donmar Warehouse) and understudy Eva in Evita (Regent's Park Open Air Theatre). In this episode Lauren discusses what it has been like to play Catherine of Aragon and why SIX has been such a big moment in...

Jordan spent the last year touring internationally as Simba in The Lion King, marking his first major leading role. Jordan has appeared in the West End productions of Miss Saigon, Motown and Cats with his other credits including The Scotsborough Boys (Young Vic), Follies & Hadestown (National Theatre) and Tick Tick Boom (Park Theatre). In this episode, Jordan discusses life in The Lion King and why Simba was a dream role of his. We also discuss his path into the industry, some of the big...

We're back to continue with Series 2 of In The Frame! This week we chat to Evie Rose Lane. Evie has become well known for the covers/mashups and original music she has released online. She played a sold out solo show at Live at Zedel earlier this year to huge acclaim. Evie is due to star as Ariel in the 2020-21 UK tour of Footloose. Please note, this episode was recorded before theatres had closed and the UK was in lockdown. The start of Footloose's UK tour has since been postponed, but...