Last Updated on 28 June 2021 by Showcall Editorial Team
The Best of the West End returns to the Royal Albert Hall with a spectacular line-up of musical theatre stars
West End stars including Ruthie Henshall, Kerry Ellis and John Owen-Jones will be part of a stellar line-up in The Best of the West End at the Royal Albert Hall – a night of musical theatre to raise money for charity.
The show on Wednesday 21 July is being put together for business services group The Alpha Family by creative director Ben Forster, the actor and singer who won TV’s Superstar competition in 2012.
It will boast performances by other stars such as Mica Paris, Layton Williams, Matt Henry, Sophie Evans, Lauren Samuels, Matthew Croke and mezzo-soprano Friederike Krum as well as Forster, Henshall and Owen-Jones.
It will also feature female supergroup Woman, made up of performers Mazz Murray, Kerry Ellis, Anna-Jane Casey and Gina Murray. They will sing their charity singer, “I’m A Woman”.
The evening will cover the breadth of musical theatre from classic hits to ground-breaking new musicals, including Chicago, Wicked, West Side Story, 42nd Street, Jesus Christ Superstar, Les Miserables and Sister Act.
The creative team includes award-winning choreographer Stephen Mear, lighting designer Tim Lutkin and musical director Dr Stuart Morley.
The performances will be supported by the MX Masterclass Choir and an orchestra.
The Best of the West End will raise money for Acting for Others, a network of 14 charities providing financial and emotional support to all theatre workers in times of need, whether they are backstage, on stage or front of house.
Alpha will donate £5 from every ticket sold, together with all profits made, to the charity.
Dame Judi Dench, president of Acting for Others, said: “We are incredibly grateful to be the chosen charity for Alpha’s The Best of the West End at the Royal Albert Hall. Thank you to the wonderful creative team, Alpha Solutions and this spectacular cast. We hope you enjoy this special event and can join us in celebrating the reopening of this iconic venue in its 150th year.”
Forster added: “This is no ordinary concert and I am so excited to be part of the team creating what will be the most spectacular event, all in aid of a charity so close to my heart, Acting for Others.”
It will be the third of Alpha’s Best of the West End productions at the Royal Albert Hall after sell-out shows in 2018 and 2019.
Emma Longley, Alpha’s group brand director and show producer, said: “We are delighted to head back to the Royal Albert Hall on 21 July for the third time with our latest breath-taking Best of the West End production. It is a privilege to be working alongside some of the UK’s most spectacular West End performers and creative team.
“The Alpha Family are so excited to be back doing what we love after such a challenging time for us all. This production means so much to so many as it’s not only the celebration that we have all been waiting for but it also supports so many artists on the day and into the future. I am extremely grateful to the commitment and support from all involved.”
