We Will Rock You for new Aussie tour
The worldwide smash hit musical We Will Rock You will return to Australia for a national tour next year.
Since 2002 more than 15 million theatregoers in 17 countries have seen this production which is based on the songs of Queen with a book by Ben Elton (The Young Ones, Blackadder, Popcorn). Elton fashioned this futurist comedy around more than 24 of Queen’s biggest hit songs including We are the Champions, Radio Ga Ga, I Want To Break Free, Somebody To Love, Killer Queen, Don’t Stop Me Now, Under Pressure, Bohemian Rhapsody, Another One Bites The Dust and of course, We Will Rock You.
With Queen’s Brian May and Roger Taylor as music supervisors and “a band without parallel in the theatre” behind the cast, the audience can expect We Will Rock You to rock as fiercely as the best of Queen’s concerts.
“This show is all about legend,” says Ben Elton, who will direct the new Australian production. “We take the legend of Queen and create our own fantastical story of young kids battling the mighty corporations who want to suppress their individuality and their love of music. They need a hero who can help them in their struggle, and we have two – the dreamer Galileo and the sassy rock chick Scaramouche.”
Brian May said, “The amazing bonus of this show is that Ben’s script subtly works as a metaphor too. People definitely come out of the theatre feeling that in a strange way they now know us, Queen, and our struggle, our journey.”
The original Australian tour of We Will Rock You opened at Melbourne’s Regent Theatre on 7 August, 2003 with a record advance, and Brian May and Roger Taylor in attendance. Australia was the first country outside the UK to produce a local version of the mega-hit musical, and the production dominated the 2004 Helpmann Awards, receiving five Awards.
The 2016 Australian tour of We Will Rock You will be produced by John Frost, in association with Queen Theatrical Productions, Phil McIntyre Entertainment and Tribeca Theatrical Productions.
More stories in Shiowbiz News