| We Will Rock You | |
|---|---|
The Japanese We Will Rock You placard. |
|
| Music | Queen |
| Lyrics | Queen and Ben Elton |
| Book | Ben Elton |
| Productions | 2002 West End 2003 Melbourne 2003 Madrid 2004 Australia tour 2004 Las Vegas 2004 Moscow 2004 Spain tour 2005 Cologne 2005 Tokyo 2006 South Africa 2006 Japan tour 2006 Zürich 2007 Madrid revival 2007 Toronto 2007 Australasian tour 2008 Vienna 2008 Stuttgart 2009 UK tour 2010 Berlin 2010 Italy tour 2010 Netherlands 2010 Sweden (Stockholm) 2011 Denmark (Copenhagen and Herning) 2011 Norway (Oslo) 2011 Belgium (Antwerp) |
We Will Rock You (often abbreviated as WWRY) is a jukebox musical, based on the songs of Queen and named after their hit single of the same name. The musical was written by British comedian and author Ben Elton in collaboration with Queen members Brian May and Roger Taylor. The musical was first produced in London by Queen Theatrical Productions, Phil McIntyre Entertainment and Tribeca Theatrical Productions, with Christopher Renshaw as director, Mark Fisher as the production designer, Willie Williams as the lighting designer, Williams & Fisher as co-video directors, Tim Goodchild as the costume designer, Arlene Phillips as choreographer and Bobby Aitken as sound designer.
The musical opened in the West End at the Dominion Theatre on 14 May 2002, with Tony Vincent, Hannah Jane Fox, Sharon D. Clarke and Kerry Ellis in principal roles. The musical was panned by critics, but was an audience favourite, and has since been played to packed houses around the world, and has become the longest-running musical at the Dominion Theatre.[1] The story takes place in a tongue-in-cheek dystopian future where originality and individualism are shunned, and a lone "Dreamer" appears who can fulfill a prophecy that will enable the return of rock 'n roll.
A number of international productions have followed the original, and We Will Rock You has been seen in Ireland, Australia, Canada, Russia, Spain, Japan, South Africa, Zürich, Vienna, New Zealand, South Korea, Singapore, Bangkok and Hong Kong. As of July 2009, productions are still active in Great Britain, Italy and Germany. The Dutch production premiered at the end of summer 2010 and the Swedish production in autumn 2010.
A sequel is currently in the works, and as of March 2009 a draft has been completed.[2][3]
Contents |
According to Brian May, Queen's manager Jim Beach had spoken with the band about creating a jukebox musical with Queen's songs since the mid-1990s. Initially, the intent was to create a biographical story of Freddie Mercury. About this time, Robert De Niro's production company Tribeca expressed interest in a Queen musical, but it found the original idea difficult to work with.[4]
In the year 2000, Ben Elton was approached to start talks with May and Queen drummer Roger Taylor on the project. Elton suggested taking the musical down a different path than initially imagined, creating an original story that would "capture the spirit of much of [their] music". He worked closely with May and Taylor to incorporate Queen's songs into the story. Elton has also stated that he was in part inspired by the computer-controlled dystopia of the science-fiction film The Matrix. The script was eventually completed midway through 2001.[4] Before working on We Will Rock You, neither May nor Taylor liked the musical genre.[4]
The original London production began previews on 26 April 2002 and opened on 14 May 2002 at the Dominion Theatre. The show is currently still playing there, and on 31 May 2011 celebrated its 9th anniversary.
London's critics almost uniformly panned the show, criticising the concept and direction. The Guardian wrote that the premise "really is as sixth form as it sounds", called the production "ruthlessly packaged and manufactured" and opined that the "sometimes funny" libretto exists mainly to "devise more unlikely ways to wring out another Queen song."[5] The Daily Mirror wrote that "Ben Elton should be shot for this risible story."[6] However, some individual performances received praise[6] and the production remains a popular success. In their popular book Is It Just Me Or Is Everything Shit, Steve Lowe and Alan MacArthur derided the show as having "a plot similar to a Yes concept album".
The original production of We Will Rock You opened on 12 May 2002 at the Dominion Theatre in London, England. Tony Vincent played the lead role of Galileo, with Hannah Jane Fox as Scaramouche, Sharon D. Clarke as Killer Queen, Nigel Planer as Pop and Kerry Ellis as Meat. For her performance, Clarke was nominated for "Best Performance in a Supporting Role in a Musical or Entertainment" at the 2003 Olivier Awards.
On 17 August 2005 We Will Rock You became the longest running musical at that venue, surpassing the previous record-holder Grease.[7] This is notable because the Dominion Theatre is one of the largest theatrical venues in West End, with a seating a capacity of 2,000 people. The show recently extended its booking date, meaning that it is now set to run until March 2012.
Notable cast replacements include Mig Ayesa, who played Galileo; Mazz Murray, who took over the role of Killer Queen from Sharon D. Clarke in April 2004 and left it in August 2011, making her the longest running principal cast member, though she went on maternity leave in September 2010. Brenda Edwards (semi-finalist in X-Factor in 2005) is currently covering for a limited season in the West End. Rachel Tucker, a semi-finalist in BBC's I'd Do Anything, played the role of Meat from 22 September 2008 until 19 September 2009, this role was taken over in September 2009 by Irish born Louise Bowden (Mama Mia /Guys and Dolls / Mary Poppins).[8] However, an unexpected departure of Bowden in May 2010 led to the role of Meat being taken over by Amanda Coutts who was previously understudying the part. The show features a live band with Elliott Ware as musical director.[9]
A national UK tour was launched in 2009 at the Palace Theatre, Manchester.[10][11] The 2009 tour cast initially included, Alex Gaumond as Galileo, Sarah French-Ellis as Scaramouche, Brenda Edwards as Killer Queen, Georgina Hagen as Meat, Jonathan Wilkes as Khashoggi, Kevin Kennedy as Pop. Gaumond and French-Ellis returned to play their characters in the West End and are the current Galileo and Scaramouche. [12]
A second UK tour launched in December 2010 starting at the Palace Theatre, Manchester and is currently due to run through until early 2012.[13]
The first international production premiered at the Regent Theatre in Melbourne, Australia on 7 August 2003.[14] The cast included Michael Falzon as Galileo, Kate Hoolihan as Scaramouche and Annie Crummer as Killer Queen. Amanda Harrison, who originated Oz in this Melbourne production, had previously been in the ensemble of the original London production. The production closed at this venue on 4 March 2004 to make way for Australian tour stops at Burswood Theatre, Perth (27 April to June 2004), Queensland Performing Arts Centre, Brisbane (27 July to 25 September 2005), and Star City Lyric Theatre, Sydney (9 October 2004 to 13 March 2005).[14][15] The same production then made an international tour stop at the Shinjuku Koma Theater in Tokyo, Japan where it ran from 27 May to 24 August 2005.[16][17]
Due to the success of the Japan tour stop, another Australian tour group was put together in 2006. They performed at the same venue: the Shinjuku Koma Theatre in Tokyo, from 14 November to 17 December 2006.[18] Some of the actors of the 2005 tour returned for the 2006 tour, including Peter Murphy as Galileo, Daniel Fletcher as Brit, Ross Givern as Khashoggi and Robert Grubb as Pop. Kate Hoolihan, who had played Scaramouche in the 2005 tour, chose to switch to the role of Oz in the 2006 tour.[19] The tour group then performed in Osaka from 5 January 2007 at the Umeda Arts Theater.[20]
A Spanish production ran from 3 November 2003 to 30 May 2004 at Teatro Calderón, Madrid. The lead role of Galileo was shared by José Luis Cortés and Miguel Fernández. The rest of the cast included María Blanco as Scaramouche, Sheilah Cuffey as Killer Queen and Eva María Cortés (sister of José Luis Cortés) as Meat.[21] The Madrid production had all spoken dialogue and the lyrics translated into Spanish, except for the songs "We Will Rock You", "We Are the Champions" and "Bohemian Rhapsody", which retained their English lyrics.[22] After closing at Teatro Calderón, the show began a tour through Spain with stops at Barcelona (12 November to 12 December 2004), Bilbao (17 December 2004 to 16 January 2005) and Valencia (3 February to 27 February 2005).
In 2007 the production returned to Calderón Theatre, Madrid with previews from 23 January and an official opening on 12 February.[23] This stage featured an entirely new cast, with Daniel Diges and Julian Fontalvo sharing the role of Galileo, Ruth Calvo and Elena Medina sharing the role of Scaramouche, Maria Lopez and Lara Alcazar sharing the role of Meat, as well as Nieves Val and Tessa sharing the role of Killer Queen.[23] The production finally closed on 6 January 2008.
A US tour had originally been planned for 2004, with initially announced stops in Connecticut and Seattle.[24] However, due to scheduling conflicts of the creative team, the US tour was scrapped and replaced with a production housed at the Paris Las Vegas hotel and casino in Las Vegas, Nevada, which is the musical's first North American venue.
The Las Vegas production had previews from 4 August and officially opened on 8 September 2004.[24][25] Tony Vincent, who had originated the role of Galileo in the London production, reprised the role, which he alternated with Jason Wooten. Aspen Miller and Kacie Sheik shared the role of Scaramouche, Patti Russo was Killer Queen, and Ty Taylor was Brit.[26] The Las Vegas production "trimmed" down the book into a single act show.[24] This production closed on 27 November 2005.[27]
A Russian production opened in the Estrada Theatre, Moscow on 17 October 2004. The production's dialogue and all songs but three were translated into Russian, by Evgeny Margulis of Mashina Vremeni.[28] This production closed only four months after its opening due to disagreements between the show's producers, despite fan protests to keep the show going.[28]
A German production opened in the Musical Dome, Cologne on 12 December 2004. The Cologne production had the spoken dialogue translated to German, but the musical numbers consisted of a mix of translated German language lyrics and the original English language lyrics. According to Brian May, the language combination was intentional by writer Ben Elton, with German representing the show's "present day" and English representing the distant past.[29] The production closed at this venue on 30 September 2008 to be transferred to Stuttgart.[30] The Stuttgart transfer opened at the Apollo Theatre on 13 November 2008 after previews from 7 November 2008.[31][32] The production opened in Berlin on 21 October 2010.
A South African production opened at the Civic Theatre in Johannesburg on 9 May 2006.[33] The production starred Francois Schreuder as Galileo, Helen Burger as Scaramouche, Vicky Sampson as Killer Queen, and Helen Goldberg as Oz.[34] This production made tour stops at the Artscape in Cape Town (from 25 July) and the Playhouse Opera in Durban (29 September to 29 October 2006) before closing.[33][35]
A German-language production opened in Zürich, Switzerland on 3 December 2006 at Theatre Stadthof 11, Oerlikon using the book of the bilingual Cologne production.[36] The Swiss production starred Jessica Kessler as Scaramouche, Brigitte Oelke as Killer Queen and Rachel Fischer as Ozzy. This production closed at the end of 2007 to be transferred to Vienna.[37] The transfer opened in Vienna, Austria on 24 January 2008, at the Raimund Theatre where it ran until 13 July 2008.[38]
A Canadian production began previews on 14 March and officially opened on 10 April 2007 at the Canon Theatre, Toronto.[39][40] Mig Ayesa, who played the lead role in the London production, had been offered the role in the Canadian production by Brian May and Ben Elton, but the Canadian producers wanted an all-Canadian cast and Quebec native Yvan Pednault was given the role.[41] The rest of the cast included Erica Peck as Scaramouche, Alana Bridgewater as Killer Queen, Suzie McNeil as Oz and Evan Buliung as Khashoggi. McNeil had been a participant of the reality show Rockstar: INXS, in which she had competed against Ayesa and former Las Vegas We Will Rock You cast member Ty Taylor.
This production closed at the Canon Theatre on 11 May 2008[42] to be transferred to the Panasonic Theatre, where it opened on 16 July 2008.[43] The new Toronto production underwent major rewrites in order to trim the show before its reopening. Changes include: there is no longer any dialogue between "Ga-Ga" and "I Want to Break Free"; "One Vision" has been cut; the Act Two song sequence is now "Fat Bottomed Girls", "Who Wants to Live Forever", "Seven Seas of Rhye", "Hammer to Fall" and then "Another One Bites the Dust" before leading to the finale. In October 2008, Camilla Scott took over the role of Khashoggi, a character that had previously been portrayed as a male, though her understudies remain male. Erica Peck, who originated the role of Scaramouche in this production, is scheduled to reprise her role from 29 May.[44] This production closed on 28 June 2009.[45]
An Australasian tour was launched on at the end of 2007 in New Zealand, in which previous We Will Rock You cast members MiG Ayesa (London cast), Annie Crummer (original Australian cast), Neels Clasen (original South African cast) and Malcolm Terry (original South African cast) reprise their roles as Galileo, Killer Queen, Khashoggi and Pop respectively.[46] Talia Kodesh, who had played Oz in the South African production, played the role of Scaramouche in the New Zealand tour stop.[47] After the tour left New Zealand, the role was taken over by Sivan Raphaely, who had been in the ensemble of the original South African production.
The tour performed in Auckland, New Zealand at The Civic, The Edge (26 October to 2 December 2007), in Seoul, South Korea at the Seongnam Arts Centre (2 February to 24 February 2008),[48][49] in Singapore at the Esplanade Theatre (28 March to 27 April 2008),[50] in Hong Kong at The Lyric Theatre of The Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts (16 May to 22 June 2008)[51] and in Bangkok, Thailand at the Muangthai Ratchadalai Theatre (12 July to 27 July 2008).[52]
An Italian production opened on 4 December 2009 at the Allianz Teatro in Milan, Italy. Starring Gianluca Merolli and Salvo Vinci as Galileo, Marta Rossi and Martina Ciabatti as Scaramouche, Valentina Ferrari as Killer Queen, Salvo Bruno and Carlo Spano as Khashoggi, Paolo Barillari as Brit, Loredana Fadda and Mary Dima as Oz and Massimiliano Colonna as Pop. WWRY Italy is produced by Barley Arts and directed by Maurizio Colombi. The musical director is Roberto Zanaboni followed by Davide Magnabosco (keyboard), Giovanni Maria Lori (keyboard), Linda Pinelli (bass), Alex Polifrone (drums), Marco Scazzetta (percussions), Andrea Cervetto (guitar) and the lead guitarist is Tristan Avakian, who had a successful run with WWRY Toronto. All the dialogues are in Italian and almost all the songs are in English expect for Radio Ga Ga and Noone but you. The translation and adaptation of the Italian script were made by Raffaella Rolla with the cooperation of Alice Mistroni. The show is scheduled to tour across Italy over the year, so far visiting Milan, Bologna, Trieste and Rome .[53] The second season is due to start in Bergamo on 4 November and it will be on tour until March 2011. The double cast has been dropped therefore this year the leading roles are : Galileo (Salvo Vinci), Scaramouche (Martha Rossi), Oz (Loredana Fadda), Brit (Paolo Barillari), Khashoggi (Salvo Bruno), Killer Queen (Valentina), Pop (Massimiliano Colonna). The new lead guitarist is Marco Gerace.
12 September through 18 December 2010 a big production of WWRY were played in Stockholm, Sweden at the venue Cirkus. The spoken dialogue is translated to Swedish by Anders Albien. Cast: Killer Queen: Tina Lejonberg, Galileo: Bruno Mitsogiannis, Scaramouche: Marie Haugen Smistad, Ozzy: Anna Lidman, Brit: Henrik Orwander, Khashoggi: Daniel Engman, Peps: Simon Bengtsson Tibblin, Teacher: Linda Holmgren, Christer: Tomas Marcotte.[54]
January 2011, the Stockholm Production of WWRY moved to Oslo, Norway. The production opened 23 January at Folketeateret. The spoken dialogue (and some of the songs) was translated to Norwegian by Kjetil Indregard. Cast: Killer Queen: Reidun Sæther, Galileo: Espen Grjotheim, Scaramouche: Marie Haugen Smistad, Ozzy: Anna Lidman, Brit: Eivind Dundas, Khashoggi: Daniel Engman, Oddi (Pop): Mads Henning Jørgensen, Big Macca: Håvard Bakke, Teacher: Linda Holmgren.[55] The production closed 16 April 2011.
On the first of september 2011 WWRY opened in Antwerp. It was an amazing spectacle and they are still playing every single day for a full theatre. A big part of the cast already played the musical in the Netherlands, but the challenge was that they had to learn the 'Belgian language'. But there was a small change in the cast:
Cast
From 2006, the show has been licensed for amateur productions in the UK, with proceeds going to the Mercury Phoenix Trust.[56] This license also extends to school performances, under the title "Schools Will Rock You".
In early 2007 Queen Theatrical granted the rights for a non-equity production of We Will Rock You at the Jedlicka Performing Art Centre in Chicago from April, making it the first North American production since the Las Vegas show closed.[57]
An externally-licensed production was staged in Varberg, Sweden from February to July 2007. A Dutch production was opened at 3 December 2010.
The story is set exactly 300 years in the future in a vaguely Orwellian world. Earth has been renamed as "Planet Mall" (the "iPlanet" as of October 2011), and is controlled by the Globalsoft Corporation. ("Innuendo") On Planet Mall, mainstream commercial conformity reigns, in which Ga Ga Kids watch the same movies, listen to computer-generated music, wear the same clothes and hold the same thoughts and opinions. Musical instruments are forbidden, and rock music is unknown. ("Radio Ga Ga")
In the newest graduating class is black sheep Galileo, who has dreams and hears strange words in his head, most of which are lyrics of songs long since lost, though he does not understand their significance. Despite his teacher's advice, Galileo refuses to conform like the rest of his classmates. ("I Want to Break Free") Galileo is captured by Khashoggi, commander of Globalsoft's police. The teacher also reveals a second anomaly, a young goth woman who is openly mocked and derided by her peers ("Somebody to Love"). She too is arrested by Khashoggi.
Ruling Globalsoft Corporation is the Killer Queen. ("Killer Queen") She has heard of a prophecy that instruments have been hidden somewhere on Planet Mall in the "place of living rock", and a "bright star" will show the way to them. She orders Khashoggi to get to the bottom of the matter and crush the rebel Bohemians who believe in the prophecy. Killer Queen then basks in her power over Planet Mall. ("Play the Game")
Galileo and the young woman wake up in a hospital ("Death on Two Legs" (intro)). They realize that they are kindred spirits, feared by the rest of their society. ("Under Pressure") They flee together from the hospital.
Killer Queen has blown up all the rocks on Planet Mall, but cannot find any supposed hidden instruments. She insists that they have won, and the prophecy will not come to pass. ("A Kind of Magic")
On the streets, Bohemians Brit and Meat climb out of the sewers, where they have been gathering materials to make musical instruments. Brit is a believer in the Dreamer who will fulfil the prophecy, and insists to the cynical Meat that it's the key to bringing real music back into the world. ("I Want It All") Brit and Meat hear footsteps approaching, and hide.
Galileo and the woman arrive, with Galileo talking about his belief that he has a destiny. He says that he has a name for the woman: "Scaramouche". Brit and Meat reveal themselves, and accuse Galileo and Scaramouche of being spies, because Galileo keeps spouting words of the "sacred text". Galileo insists that he only hears those words in his head. Brit tests Galileo, singing the first few lines of "Bohemian Rhapsody". Galileo responds correctly with the subsequent lines, and Brit realises that he is the Dreamer of the prophecy. They bring Galileo and Scaramouche to the Heartbreak Hotel, which is located at the ruins of the Tottenham Court Road tube station, where the Bohemians have made their home. ("Headlong") Of note, the original London production is staged at the Dominion Theatre, which is located above the real Tottenham Court Road tube station.
The Bohemians explain that they take their names after singers long gone, and mourn the deaths of those who died young. ("No-One but You (Only the Good Die Young)") The group then celebrate the reason rock bands started playing music in the first place, which was for love. ("Crazy Little Thing Called Love")
Khashoggi and his police suddenly arrive at the Heartbreak Hotel, where they round up the Bohemians for capture. Brit breaks free and battles the police in order to enable Galileo and Scaramouche to escape, but in the process is killed. ("Ogre Battle")
The Ga Ga Kids of Planet Mall move on in their regular fashion. ("One Vision")
Galileo and Scaramouche have escaped the Heartbreak Hotel, and realise that back at the hospital, tracking devices were installed in their heads. They remove them, and upon realizing that they are all that's left of the rebels, they confess their love for each other. ("Who Wants to Live Forever")
The surviving Bohemians have been rounded up by Khashoggi to be tortured. ("Flash") When he cannot get any information from them about the prophecy, he has them brain-drained. ("Seven Seas of Rhye"—interpolating "Lazing on a Sunday Afternoon")
Galileo wakes up, and tells Scaramouche that he had a dream that the Bohemians were sent to the Seven Seas of Rhye. Scaramouche agrees they have to go there, but then Galileo insists that she stay because she's a "chick", to which Scaramouche takes offense. They argue, and decide that both of them will go to the Seven Seas of Rhye, but their relationship will be purely professional.
Back at Globalsoft headquarters ("Fat Bottomed Girls") Khashoggi reports that the Bohemians are no longer a problem. Killer Queen prematurely starts to celebrate. ("Don't Stop Me Now") Khashoggi interrupts her, explaining that Galileo and Scaramouche escaped. Killer Queen declares this is the last time Khashoggi has disappointed her, and has him brain-drained. ("Another One Bites the Dust")
Galileo and Scaramouche are making their way to the Seven Seas of Rhye, arguing all the way. ("Hammer to Fall") At the Seven Seas of Rhye pub, Pop the librarian is serving drinks to the lifeless Bohemians. ("These Are the Days of Our Lives") When Galileo and Scaramouche arrive, Pop explains the full nature of the prophecy to them as inscribed by the three remaining members of the band Queen just before they were sentenced to death. Scaramouche figures out that the bright shining star of the prophecy is rock star Freddie Mercury's statue, and that it's pointing to Wembley Stadium, the "place of living rock". After initially preparing to travel by bicycle, (opening of "Bicycle Race")Scaramouche protests that the method "isn't very cool", and so they travel there by motorcycle. ("Headlong (reprise)")
Wembley Stadium is in ruin, with no instruments to be found. Reconciling and their love for each other rekindled ("Love of My Life"), Scaramouche inspires Galileo to perform the opening of "We Will Rock You", and an electric guitar is revealed. Galileo cannot play it, but Scaramouche can. ("Brighton Rock solo") Pop hacks into Globalsoft's network so their music can be heard by everyone on Planet Mall, and Killer Queen is defeated. ("Tie Your Mother Down", "We Will Rock You / We Are the Champions")
After the curtain calls ("We Will Rock You (fast version)"), a question appears that says "Do you want "Bohemian Rhapsody"?" Everybody in the audience is supposed to shout yes, and the answer appears as "Oh...alright then" and the entire cast perform "Bohemian Rhapsody" as an encore.
International productions of the musical feature changes in the story and song line-up in order to better reach target audiences. All the main characters retain their general personalities across productions, but the names vary depending on the production. (See characters section below).
The dialogue contains many references to popular culture, with lyrics from numerous non-Queen songs and albums inserted into the text. These references are constantly changing, and according to writer Elton, this is to keep the show "fresh".[4] Songs that have been referenced include The Beatles' "Help!", "Strawberry Fields Forever", "Penny Lane", "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds", "I Am the Walrus" and "Hello, Goodbye", Little Richard's "Tutti Fruitti" and "Long Tall Sally", the theme from The Wombles, The Goodies' "Funky Gibbon", Bruce Springsteen's "Born to Run", David Bowie's "Rebel Rebel" and "Space Oddity", The Wild Ones' "Wild Thing", Rolling Stones' "Honky Tonk Women", Bob Dylan's "Mr. Tambourine Man", ABBA's "Dancing Queen" and "Fernando", Oasis' "(What's the Story) Morning Glory?", Eminem's "The Real Slim Shady", Spice Girls' "Wannabe", Elton John's "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road", Black Lace's "Agadoo", The Clash's "Complete Control", Teletubbies,"Amy Winehouse" and "Michael Jackson"
May often performs with the London production on special occasions such as anniversaries[58] and Freddie Mercury's birthday.[59]
Hannah Jane Fox, who originated Scaramouche, was the last original principal cast member to remain with the show. She gave her final performance on 28 January 2006, four years after the musical opened at the Dominion Theatre, and the event was celebrated with May appearing on stage to perform the guitar solo during the "Bohemian Rhapsody" encore.[60]
On 5 September 2006, the London show celebrated what would have been Freddie Mercury's 60th birthday. During the song "Don't Stop Me Now", ordinarily sung by Killer Queen, the band "McFly" (who were at #1 with the song on the singles charts the previous week) emerged onto the stage to sing it instead.[61] Brian May and Roger Taylor joined the encore, performing Taylor's "Say It's Not True" as a duo. Ben Elton also addressed the audience on this special occasion. The following week, tickets to the London show were sold from £19.46, Mercury's birth year.
On 14 May 2007, the London show celebrated its fifth anniversary with a special show featuring both May and Taylor playing in the final section of the show. Writer Ben Elton also made an appearance to present a special plaque to the cast, May and Taylor. During the portion of the show based in Pop's bar, the line "But the Pub Landlord has a Bike" was followed by a cameo appearance of British comedian Al Murray, who came up through the stage on a motorcycle.[62]
The London show's sixth anniversary performance was held on 21 May 2008, a week after its actual anniversary due to the unavailability of Brian May. For the first time since the show opened, the Killer Queen character performed the entire song "Don't Stop Me Now", a musical number which is normally interrupted by the Khashoggi character. This unique performance is acknowledged by Killer Queen's dialogue: "No, you didn't let me finish, you never let me finish. For six long years, night after night, week after week, year after year. Well, tonight, I'm going to finish." To which Khashoggi replied: "It's not in the script?" Additionally, May joined Killer Queen and the dancers on stage for the performance. After the encore, Elton made a thank you speech, after which the entire cast performed "The Show Must Go On", accompanied by May on guitar.
The seventh anniversary of the London Show was celebrated on Monday 18 May 2009. The show contained a special appearance from Brian May and Ben Elton who emerged together in a cloud of smoke during the encore rendition of "Bohemian Rhapsody" with May playing guitar. As with the year before, Elton gave a thank you speech and the entire cast performed "The Show Must Go On", accompanied by May on guitar.
On Saturday 12 September 2009 at the early matinee performance Brian May again emerged in a cloud of smoke playing the guitar in "Bohemian Rhapsody". What was the occasion for this appearance is not clear. He did the same again on Saturday 14 November 2009 (Brian May's birthday) at the matinee.
On Sunday 31 January 2010 in The O2 Dublin, Brian May once again played Bohemian Rhapsody with the company during the finale of both the matinee and evening shows to celebrate the end of their year long tour.
On Saturday 5 September 2010 Brian also appeared though a cloud of smoke, again to play "Bohemian Rhapsody". This was due to the annual cast change, as well as a celebration of what would have been Freddie Mercury's 64th birthday, and afterwards Brian gave a farewell speech to the cast that were leaving.
Galileo Figaro - The central character of the musical; a dreamer who hears strange words in his head. He is eventually revealed to be a reincarnation of Freddie Mercury. The character's name is a reference to the lyrics in the Queen song "Bohemian Rhapsody".
Scaramouche – A sarcastic, cynical character and Galileo's love interest. In the finale she shows talent playing the electric guitar, and Galileo declares that she is a reincarnation of Brian May, only this time "he's a babe". The character's name is a reference to the lyrics in the Queen song "Bohemian Rhapsody".
Killer Queen – The villain of the musical, she rules over Planet Mall with an iron fist. The character's name is a reference to the Queen song "Killer Queen".
Brit (alternately Paris, Duff, Vic and J.B.) – Brit, short for Britney Spears, is the main male Bohemian rebel. In other productions, his name is either Paris (short for Paris Hilton), Duff (short for Hilary Duff), Vic (short for Victoria Beckham) or J.B. (short for Jeanette Biedermann).
Meat (alternately Oz, Ozzy) – Meat, short for Meat Loaf, is the main female Bohemian. In some productions, the character is named Oz after Ozzy Osbourne.
Commander Khashoggi – Killer Queen's second-in-command, he is head of Globalsoft's police and carries out Killer Queen's dirty work. The character's name is a reference to the Queen song "Khashoggi's Ship" (which is about the real life Saudi arms dealer Adnan Khashoggi).
Pop (alternately Polo, Bap, DJ) – An elderly librarian trying to figure out the "exact date the music died", in some productions in love with Scaramouche, believed to be named after the creation of reality television talent shows (the example given varies depending on the production, but includes Popstars, Pop Idol, The X Factor, or the relevant regional variant). Probably named for Iggy Pop or simply a diminutive for "Grandfather".
Other Bohemians – The other Bohemians have constantly changing names following media trends. These are usually music-related, and have included Paul McCartney, Bruce Springsteen, Robbie Williams, Beyoncé, Madonna, Amy Winehouse, Bob the Builder, Cheeky Fairy, Boy George, Cliff Richard, Spice Girls, Elton John, Jackson Five, Prince, Burton Cummings, John Farnham, Charlotte Church, Crazy Frog, Eddie Cochran, Avril Lavigne, Shania Twain, Lily Allen, Kelly Osbourne and Clay Aiken, Cheeky Girls, Kurt Cobain and recently Michael Jackson.
As a jukebox musical, the show's music consists entirely of Queen material. The musical numbers of the original London production are as follows.
|
|
Later in the London production, the "One Vision" sequence was changed to include Freddie Mercury's recorded vocals for the bridge. Previously, the bridge had been sung by the ensemble.
In the original London production, "Fat-Bottomed Girls" was a short instrumental interlude prior to "Another One Bites the Dust". Subsequent international productions expanded the song into a full song and dance sequence. Due to the positive response, the change was transferred back to the London production.
For the single-act Las Vegas production, "Who Wants to Live Forever" is replaced by "You're My Best Friend".
For the Australasian tour and Canadian production, "Play the Game" is replaced by "Now I'm Here".
For the revamped Canadian production, "One Vision" is removed.
On special occasions, "The Show Must Go On" is added to the encore.[58][62]
A cast recording of the original London production was released in November 2002.[63] Not all songs in the show were included in the album, the omitted tracks have been marked* in the above list. In August 2003, the London cast recording was given an Australian edition re-release, containing a bonus track of the original Australian Killer Queen, Annie Crummer, singing a studio version of "Another One Bites the Dust".
In 2004, Kerry Ellis, who was the original Meat in the London production, worked with Brian May to record an instrumental studio version of "No One but You (Only the Good Die Young)". This version is available through the official Queen website and in Ellis' limited-release CD single titled Wicked in Rock.[64][65]
A Madrid cast recording was released in 2004. The recording includes a bonus second disc containing an extended Spanish-translated studio version of "No-One But You" ("Solo Por Ti") sung by the original Meat, Eva María Cortés, and video clips of the original Madrid production.
A Cologne cast recording was released in 2005. It is the only We Will Rock You cast recording to contain "Fat Bottomed Girls".
| Year | Release | Format | Peak chart positions | Certifications (sales thresholds) |
Album | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK |
AUS |
AUT |
FRA |
GER |
IRE |
NL |
US |
|||||
| 2002 | "We Will Rock You" (The Original London Cast) |
Album | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2003 | We Will Rock You: Australasian Edition (The Origninal London Cast, Queen & Annie Crummer) |
Album | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2003 | "Another One Bites The Dust" (Queen + Annie Crummer) |
Single | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | We Will Rock You: Australasian Edition | |
| 2004 | We Will Rock You: Spanish Cast (The Spanish Cast) |
Album | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2004 | "Solo Por Ti (No One But You)" (Queen + Eva Maria) |
Single | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | We Will Rock You: Spanish Cast | |
| 2005 | We Will Rock You: German Cast (The Köln Cast) |
Album | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
Alana Bridgewater recorded version of Fat Bottomed Girl on her debut album "Horizon".
At the time of launching the musical, Robert De Niro referred to the possibility of a film version.[66]
In a 2009 interview with the BBC, Brian May said that a film version was proposed, and that Ben Elton had written a full script with a "grittier" storyline. He emphasised that a lot more action can be included during the songs in a film than in a stage musical.[67][68][69]
| Year | Award Ceremony | Category | Nominee | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | Laurence Olivier Award | Best Performance in a Supporting Role in a Musical | Sharon D. Clarke | Nominated |
| Whatsonstage.com Theatregoers' Choice Award[70] | Best New Musical | Won | ||
| Best Actor in a Musical | Tony Vincent | Won | ||
| Best Actress in a Musical | Hannah Jane Fox | Won | ||
| Best Supporting Actress in a Musical | Sharon D. Clarke | Won | ||
| Best Director | Christopher Renshaw | Won | ||
| 2010 | Laurence Olivier Award[71][72] | Audience Award for Most Popular Show | Nominated | |
| 2011 | Won | |||
| Year | Award Ceremony | Category | Nominee | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | Helpmann Award | Best Musical | Nominated | |
| Best Male Actor in a Musical | Michael Falzon | Nominated | ||
| Best Female Actor in a Musical | Kate Hoolihan | Won | ||
| Best Male Actor in a Supporting Role in a Musical | Robert Grubb | Won | ||
| Best Female Actor in a Supporting Role in a Musical | Amanda Harrison | Won | ||
| Best Direction of a Musical | Ben Elton | Nominated | ||
| Best Choreography in a Musical | Arlene Phillips | Nominated | ||
| Best Music Direction | Mike Dixon, Brian May and Roger Taylor | Won | ||
| Best Sound Design | Bobby Aitken | Won | ||
| Year | Award Ceremony | Category | Nominee | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Naledi Theatre Award[73][74] | Best Male Performance in a Musical | Neels Calsen | Nominated |
| Best Female Performance in a Musical | Helen Burger | Nominated | ||
| Best Comedy Performance (Male) - Play, Musical or Revue | Malcolm Terrey | Nominated | ||
| Best Musical Director / Score / Arrangement | Bryan Schimmel | Nominated | ||
| Best Theatre Sound Design | Mark Malherbe | Won |
| Year | Award Ceremony | Category | Nominee | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | Dora Mavor Moore Award[75] | Outstanding Production of a Musical | Won | |
| Outstanding Performance by a Male in a Principal Role - Musical | Yvan Pedneault | Nominated | ||
| Outstanding Performance by a Female in a Principal Role - Musical | Erica Peck | Nominated | ||
| Outstanding Direction of a Musical | Ben Elton | Nominated | ||
| Outstanding Choreography in a Play or Musical | Arlene Phillips | Nominated | ||
| Outstanding Musical Direction | Rick Fox | Nominated | ||
| Outstanding Costume Design | Tim Goodchild | Nominated | ||
| Outstanding Sound Design/Composition | Bobby Aitken | Nominated | ||
|
||||||||||||||