ANNOUNCING OUR FULL CAST AND CREATIVE TEAM FOR ALADDIN – THE FIRST PANTOMIME IN OUR NEWLY REFURBISHED BUILDING
We are pleased to announce our full cast and creative team for Aladdin, written by Andrew Pollard with direction from our Creative Director Ryan McBryde; the team behind the Great British Pantomime award-winning Cinderella. David Djemal (Constable Naw), James Hameed (Aladdin), Marisa Harris (Sergeant Nee), Danielle Kassaraté (Princess Jasmine), Sasha Latoya (Genie of the Lamp), Minal Patel (The Emperor of Colchestaria) and Leonie Spilsbury (Fabra Cadabra) join previously announced Antony Stuart-Hicks (Widow Twankey) and Dale Superville (Humphrey the Camel). Forming the panto chorus are Polly Clarke, Ellie Donaldson, Mea Ferrari, Lucie Henderson, Albie Keeble, Saanvi Kumar, Annabel Nottage, Olivia Osborne, Davida Adekanle, Amy Bennett, Sasha Buxton, Niamh Butcher, Jonny Ford, Maddison Hawes, Isaac Lock and Sophie Parton.
Completing the creative team are David W Kidd (Lighting Designer), Ed Clarke (Sound Designer), Nick Barstow (Musical Director), Donna Berlin (Choreographer), Michael J Fitch (Magic Advisor), and Marc Frankum (Casting Director CDG). The production opens on 4 December, with previews from 27 November, and runs until 16 January 2022.
Creative Director Ryan McBryde said “This will be our first pantomime in the new building after a three-year hiatus and we just can’t wait to welcome audiences back. Pantomime is our biggest, brightest show of the year, where our local community comes together to experience the magic collectively. This Christmas we’re presenting Aladdin, a story of joy and transformation to delight and warm the hearts of our audiences at this festive time of year. In this version of the story, Aladdin is a street busker with aspirations to be a rock star so there’ll be music from Queen, Journey, Bon Jovi and The Script!”
Journey with us to distant shores where the penniless Aladdin dreams of winning the heart of the rebellious Princess Jasmine. When he is tempted by an evil sorceress with the promise of untold riches, our young hero finds himself trapped in the Cave of Wonders with nothing but his wits and a battered old lamp. Little does he know that its contents will change his life for ever.
Will Aladdin defeat the wicked sorceress? Will the Princess Jasmine ever notice him? And will the Genie of the Lamp make all his wishes come true?
Hop aboard your magic carpet for a hilarious, fun packed adventure full of song, dance and all the usual Mercury magical mayhem!
David Djemal plays Constable Naw. His theatre credits include Aladdin (Theatre Chipping Norton), Citizen (The Space Theatre), God/Woody Allen (Way Off Productions), Romeo and Juliet (Theatre in the Rough) and Horizon of the Irreversible Night (Arcola Theatre).
James Hameed pays Aladdin. His theatre credits include Gaddafi: A Living Myth (London Coliseum), Spamilton, Fiddler on the Roof (Menier Chocolate Factory), Asylum (Red Lion Theatre), and Be More Chill (The Other Palace/Shaftesbury Theatre). His television credits include Ball and Boe: Back Together Again and Song for Nature.
Marisa Harris is a recent graduate from The London School of Musical Theatre. Aladdin marks her professional debut as Sergeant Nee.
Danielle Kassaraté plays Princess Jasmine. Her theatre credits include …Cake (Theatre Peckham), The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time (Gielgud Theatre/international tour), The Color Purple (Birmingham Hippodrome/Curve, Leicester), Macbeth (Queen’s Theatre Hornchurch), Wildfire (Hampstead Theatre), Guys and Dolls (Royal Exchange Theatre), Little Shop of Horrors (Theatr Clwyd), One Hundred Trillion (The Old Vic) and Dusty (Charing Cross Theatre).
Sasha Latoya plays Genie of the Lamp. Her theatre credits include Accidental Song (Canal Café Theatre), Flashdance, Little Shop of Horrors, The Story of Buddy Holly (UK tours), Rent (Greenwich Theatre/Tabard), Page to Stage and Clause – The Musical (Landor Theatre) and Voices and Lyrics (Octagon Theatre).
Minal Patel plays The Emperor of Colchestaria. His theatre credits include Curtains (Wyndham’s Theatre/UK tour), Man of La Mancha (London Coliseum), Cereal Café (The Other Palace), Aspects of Love (Southwark Playhouse/Hope Theatre Manchester), Dialetikon (Park Theatre), The Secret Garden (The Barn Theatre), A Midsummer Night’s Dream (New Wolsley Theatre), The Queen and I (Arcola Theatre), As You Like It (Southwark Playhouse), and Beauty and the Beast (Theatre Royal Stratford East).
Leonie Spilsbury plays Fabra Cadabra. Her theatre credits include Dagny Wants To Dance (Manga), Dream Catcher (Blue Moon Productions), Sleeping Beauty, The Good Soul of Szechuan (Watford Palace), An Enemy of the People, Last Words (Fintlock Theatre), A New Coat, Robin Hood, What To Do When You Find A Dinosaur (Oxford Playhouse), Four Score Years, and Ten (Winchester Theatre Royal), Tiddler and Other Terrific Tales (Freckle Productions), Beauty and the Beast, Mansfield Park and Jack and the Beanstalk (Theatre Royal Bury St Edmunds).
Antony Stuart-Hicks returns to Mercury Theatre Colchester to play Widow Twankey – he previously appeared in Cinderella (Winner of 2020 Best Ugly Sisters – Great British Pantomime Awards), Jack and The Beanstalk, Snow White and Dick Whittington. His other theatre credits include: Your Nation Loves You (Delirium/The Old Vic), The Hound of the Baskervilles, Romeo and Juliet The Musical, Alice in Wonderland, The Snow Queen, The Ugly Duckling (UK tours), Elegies for Angels, Punks and Raging Queens (Criterion Theatre), and Hamlet, The Tempest, A Midsummer Night’s Dream (UK and international Tour). For television, his credits include Liverpool One, And the Beat Goes On, David Copperfield, In His Life and Fan and Friend.
Dale Superville returns to Mercury Theatre Colchester to play Humphrey the Camel. His theatre credits include Dick Whittington, Spamalot, James and the Giant Peach, Wind in the Willows, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Cinderella (Winner of 2020 Best Ugly Sisters – Great British Pantomime Awards), Habeas Corpus, Oh What a Lovely War and The Knight of The Burning Pestle (Mercury Theatre), The Wolves of Willoughby Chase (The Minack Theatre), Alice in Wonderland (APL Theatre), Forever Young and Grandpa in My Pocket (Nottingham Playhouse/UK Tour), Absent Friends and Dick Whittington (Watford Palace Theatre), Midsummer Night’s Dream, Romeo and Juliet, Pinocchio (Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre), Big Nose (Belgrade Theatre), Jungle Book (Redgrave Theatre), Puss-In-Boots, The Last Noo-Noo, Stardog, Charlotte’s Web (Polka Theatre) and A Song from the Sea (Wolsley Theatre). His television credits include Way to Go, The World At Their Feet, Tick Tok and Bill’s New Frock.
Andrew Pollard is a writer and actor. His writing credits include Cinderella, Peter Pan: A New Adventure, Puss in Boots (Greenwich Theatre) and Beauty and the Beast (Salisbury Playhouse). His acting credits include Educating Rita (Duke’s Theatre/New Vic Theatre), Around the World in 80 Days (New Vic Theatre/Cadogan Hall), Diana of Dobson’s, Talent, Ghosts, Far From the Madding Crowd, Where Have I Been All My Life, Spring and Port Wine, The Admirable Crichton, The Rivals, Alphabetical Order (New Vic Theatre), Life’s a Drag (Contact Theatre), Peter Pan in Scarlett (New Vic Theatre/Oxford Playhouse), The Ladykillers (Hull Truck Theatre/New Vic Theatre), Hay Fever and Perfect Days (Oldham Coliseum).
Ryan McBryde is the Creative Director of Mercury Theatre. His productions for the Mercury include Baskerville, Oliver, Moll Flanders and Pieces of String (the latter was nominated for UK Theatre Award for Best Musical Production and won Best New Musical at the Stage Debut Awards). Other recent credits include Romeo and Juliet (Theatre Trier, Germany), Faust, 1984 (Alte Schauspielhaus Stuttgart), Love on the Links, Before the Party, Beauty and the Beast, Cinderella, Aladdin, Jack an the Beanstalk (Salisbury Playhouse), The Invisible Man (Queens Theatre, Hornchurch), Saturday Night Fever, Angus, Thongs and Even More Snogging (West Yorkshire Playhouse), The Who’s Tommy (European tour), A Day at the Racists (Finborough Theatre/Barking Broadway), The House of Mirrors and Hearts (Arcola Theatre), Lia’s Guide to Winning the Lottery (Bridewell Theatre), and Terie Vigen (Royal Concert Hall).
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