Daniel Boys

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Daniel Boys (born 26 March 1979 in Greenwich, London[1]) is a British musical theatre actor, best known for his popular appearance in the BBC series Any Dream Will Do in 2007.

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[edit] Early career

Boys won a Cameron Mackintosh scholarship to study at the Guildford School of Acting, where he graduated with a B.A. Hons, 2001.[2] He was selected to perform in the first UK tour of Jonathan Larson's Rent, which meant leaving college early. He understudied the character of Mark (played by Adam Rickitt) and Angel, eventually taking over the starring role, performing on alternate nights at the Prince of Wales Theatre, in London's West End. He has also played Morino in the UK tour of Sunset Boulevard, which starred Faith Brown.[3]

[edit] Theatre Work

Released from college six months early, he joined the first UK national tour of the musical Rent. During its run he played both the leading roles of Angel and Mark and was also the understudy. He was the alternate Mark for two shows a week when Rent ran at the Prince of Wales Theatre, London (4 December 2001 - 26 January 2002).

Boys appeared as Roger, one of the T-birds, in Grease at the Victoria Palace for its twelve month run. This led to him travelling with the production to Japan, and playing the role of Doody in Scandinavia and Cyprus. He also performed at Party in the Park with the company of Grease.[4] Guest appearances with Grease also included Blue Peter and The Graham Norton Show.

European tours have included playing Tony in West Side Story (2004) and the leading role of Mark in Rent (2006).[5]

He has appeared in several pantomimes including Snow White (Buxton Opera House) as Muddles, Jack and the Beanstalk (Wyvern Theatre, Swindon) as Jack and in Peter Pan (Wyvern Theatre, Swindon), playing Peter.[6]

In September 2007, Daniel took the lead as Austin Bennet in the UK premiere of the 2006 off-Broadway hit I Love You Because which was staged at the Landor Theatre, Clapham. The show ran from 19 September til 20 October.

Daniel is currently appearing the musical Avenue Q, playing the lead role of Princeton and Rod at the Noel Coward Theatre in London's West End until approximately November 2008.[7]

[edit] Concerts

He was a featured soloist in the Disney's Enchanted Evening series of concerts, performed all over the UK in Summer 2004, with the final concert being televised on BBC1 as the BBC Family Prom in the Park.[8] He has appeared in many other high profile concerts in the UK as a featured vocalist, such as The Best of The West End.[citation needed]

In 2005, Boys took part in BBC London's Children in Need - The Musical.[9]

To much critical acclaim, Boys understudied all male roles in the 2006 UK tour of Jeff Wayne's Musical Version of The War of the Worlds.[10] He can be seen on the live tour DVD special features, performing in place of Russell Watson in the dress rehearsal.

Daniel appeared as Anthony Hope in Stephen Sondheim's Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street which was one of the first shows to open at the newly restored Royal Festival Hall in July 2007. Daniel was a featured guest on Radio 2's Friday Night is Music Night which was recorded live at LSO St Lukes, London. He also took part in three concerts, West End Comes to Walden: An Afternoon of Show Songs, When You've Got It, Flaunt It! and Georgia Stitt and Friends in Concert.

Boys was a special guest in John Barrowman's Another Side Tour 2008 at the Hammersmith Apollo on 13 April 2008, alongside Ben James-Ellis and Keith Jack. He was a solo guest at the concerts held in Brighton (17 April) and Brighton (18 April).

[edit] Any Dream Will Do

In 2007, Boys took part in the BBC reality show Any Dream Will Do. He was 7th to be eliminated, leaving the series on May 19, 2007.[11] His vocals were tested on a wide variety of music genres including rock, swing, ballads, and pop, but his only opportunity to sing a musical theatre number was in the sing-off, when he performed "Bring Him Home" from Les Misérables against Lewis Bradley in the Sing Off, where Daniel had received the least number of votes, and was chosen to leave the show by Andrew Lloyd Webber.

[edit] Personal life

Boys is openly gay, stating, "I've never been in. It's never been an issue for me. Everyone knows."[1] He added that, whilst on Any Dream Will Do, "The Sun misquoted me and said that I was looking forward to meeting women, which really annoyed me. It wound me up, because it made it look as if I was trying to hide who I am and I'm a firm believer in not doing that."[1] Commenting on his work in musical theatre, he stated, "I don't mean to be stereotypical, but gay men do like to express themselves, which is what acting, singing and dancing are all about."[1]

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b c d "Dream Boy". attitude (October 2007). Retrieved on 2008-05-12.
  2. ^ The Cast, Jeff Wayne's Musical Version of The War of the Worlds tour programme, 2006
  3. ^ Career. DanielBoys.net. Retrieved on 2007-06-13.
  4. ^ Daniel Boys CV. Gavin Barker Associates. Retrieved on 2007-06-13.
  5. ^ Daniel Boys CV. Spotlight Casting Directory. Retrieved on 2007-06-13.
  6. ^ Pantomime. DanielBoys.net. Retrieved on 2007-06-13.
  7. ^ Avenue Q. DanielBoys.net. Retrieved on 2007-11-01.
  8. ^ Disney Enchanted Evenings. DanielBoys.net. Retrieved on 2007-06-13.
  9. ^ Children in Need - The Musical photo gallery. BBC London. Retrieved on 2007-06-13.
  10. ^ The Cast, Jeff Wayne's Musical Version of The War of the Worlds tour programme, 2006
  11. ^ "Show Six Result", Any Dream Will Do, BBC, 2007-05-19. Retrieved on 2007-06-13. 

[edit] External links