City of Angels
Hayes Theatre Co
Joshua Robson Productions (Bonnie & Clyde, In the Heights) today announced their 2023 production of the smart and stylish film noir musical, City of Angels. Playing at Hayes Theatre Co from 23 June 2023, the Tony Award winner captures the gritty sights and sounds of Hollywood’s classic detective movies, set to a brilliant, jazzy Hollywood score.
In the late 1940s, Stine, a bookish writer of detective stories, struggles to adapt his crime novel into a workable screenplay. As Stine tries to maintain some integrity in the backstabbing world of Hollywood, his protagonist, a hardboiled private eye named Stone, fights for survival in a city full of criminals and opportunists. In a clever design choice, the stories are told on a split stage: Stine’s world is in full colour, while Stone’s appears in black and white.
Sam Hooper (Bonnie & Clyde, In Loving Memory) who will lead the team as director/choreographer said, “City of Angels has always been a favourite show of mine. The lyrics are incredibly witty and fast paced, and the dialogue and wordplay of the script is a step above all other books in music theatre. I intend to pay tribute to the traditional blueprint of the “split stage” but working with our design team to create a fresh creative interpretation of the two worlds within this multi-Tony award-winning musical. I can’t wait for audiences to be blown away by the design transformations we make and to hear the amazing jazz orchestrations of Cy Coleman”
“One of the wittiest books ever written… [and] an effervescent score by Cy Coleman.”
– Michael Billington, The Guardian
“One would have to travel back to the 1960’s (…) to find a musical as flat-out funny as City of Angels.” – Frank Rich, The New York Times
With wit, humour and a fantastic Cy Coleman score, City of Angels captures the snappy dialogue of a Raymond Chandler novel and the glitzy showmanship of classic Hollywood; the result is a crowd-pleasing musical unlike any other.
City of Angels
Sydney – Hayes Theatre Co
From 23 June 2023
Bookings: www.hayestheatre.com.au
