''Sunny Afternoon'' is a

jukebox A jukebox is a partially automated music-playing device, usually a coin-operated machine, that will play a patron's selection from self-contained media. The classic jukebox has buttons, with letters and numbers on them, which are used to selec ...

musical Musical is the adjective of music. Musical may also refer to: * Musical theatre, a performance art that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance * Musical film and television, a genre of film and television that incorporates into the narr ...

with music and lyrics by

Ray Davies Sir Raymond Douglas Davies ( ; born 21 June 1944) is an English musician. He was the lead vocalist, rhythm guitarist, and main songwriter for the rock band the Kinks, which he led with his younger brother Dave on lead guitar and backing voca ...

and a

book A book is a medium for recording information in the form of writing or images, typically composed of many pages (made of papyrus, parchment, vellum, or paper) bound together and protected by a cover. The technical term for this physical arr ...

Joe Penhall Joe Scott Penhall (born 1967) is an English-Australian playwright and screenwriter, best known for his award-winning stage play ''Blue/Orange'', the award-winning West End musical ''Sunny Afternoon'' and creating the Netflix original series '' ...

. Based on the formation and career of the English rock band

The Kinks The Kinks were an English rock band formed in Muswell Hill, north London, in 1963 by brothers Ray and Dave Davies. They are regarded as one of the most influential rock bands of the 1960s. The band emerged during the height of British rhythm ...

, the musical was commissioned and produced by

Sonia Friedman Sonia Anne Primrose Friedman (born Freedman; born April 1965) is a British West End and Broadway theatre producer. On 27 January 2017, Friedman was named Producer of the Year for the third year running at The Stage Awards, becoming the first ...

and made its world premiere in 2014 at the

Hampstead Theatre Hampstead Theatre is a theatre in South Hampstead in the London Borough of Camden. It specialises in commissioning and producing new writing, supporting and developing the work of new writers. Roxana Silbert has been the artistic director since ...

, London, before transferring to the West End's

Harold Pinter Theatre The Harold Pinter Theatre, known as the Comedy Theatre until 2011,

. Featuring songs by The Kinks, ''Sunny Afternoon'' includes their hits such as "

Lola Lola may refer to: Places * Lolá, a or subdistrict of Panama * Lola Township, Cherokee County, Kansas, United States * Lola Prefecture, Guinea * Lola, Guinea, a town in Lola Prefecture * Lola Island, in the Solomon Islands People * Lola (fo ...

", "

Waterloo Sunset "Waterloo Sunset" is a song by British rock band the Kinks. It was released as a single in 1967, and featured on their album '' Something Else by the Kinks''. Composed and produced by Kinks frontman Ray Davies, "Waterloo Sunset" is one of the ...

", "

You Really Got Me "You Really Got Me" is a song written by Ray Davies for English rock band the Kinks. The song, originally performed in a more blues-oriented style, was inspired by artists such as Lead Belly and Big Bill Broonzy. Two versions of the song wer ...

" and the musical's title song, "

Sunny Afternoon "Sunny Afternoon" is a song by the Kinks, written by chief songwriter Ray Davies. The track later featured on the '' Face to Face'' album as well as being the title track for their 1967 compilation album. Like its contemporary "Taxman" by the B ...

Background

On 13 December 2013, producer Sonia Friedman officially confirmed that a musical based around the early life of

and the formation of the band The Kinks would receive its world premiere at the

in spring 2014. The musical was named after the band's 1966 hit single "

," and features songs from the band's back catalogue. The musical has a book by

and is directed by

Edward Hall Edward Hall ( – ) was an English lawyer and historian, best known for his ''The Union of the Two Noble and Illustre Families of Lancastre and Yorke''—commonly known as ''Hall's Chronicle''—first published in 1548. He was also sever ...

, with choreography by Adam Cooper, set and costume design by

Miriam Buether Miriam Buether is a German stage designer who primarily works in London theatre. She was born in Germany and studied stage design at Central Saint Martin’s College of Art and Design in London and costume design at the Akademie für Kostüm Des ...

, lighting design by Rick Fisher, sound design by Matt McKenzie and musical direction by Elliott Ware.

Production history

Original London production (2014-16)

The show's premiere production began previews at the Hampstead Theatre in London, on 14 April 2014, with its official opening night on 1 May, booking for a limited run until 24 May 2014. In late June, it was confirmed that the production would transfer to the West End, beginning previews at the

Harold Pinter Theatre The Harold Pinter Theatre, known as the Comedy Theatre until 2011,

on 4 October, with an official opening night on 28 October 2014. Tickets for the transfer went on sale on 30 June. Shortly after beginning previews the show extended booking to January, before quickly announcing another extension to 23 May 2015. On 14 November 2014, the cast appeared on the

BBC's #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board ex ...

'' Children In Need'', closing the show. The musical closed on 29 October 2016. A typical performance runs two hours and 45 minutes, including one interval.

UK and Ireland tour (2016-17)

The production embarked on its first UK and Ireland tour opening at the

Manchester Opera House The Opera House in Quay Street, Manchester, England, is a 1,920-seater commercial touring theatre that plays host to touring musicals, ballet, concerts and a Christmas pantomime. It is a Grade II listed building. The Opera House is one of the mai ...

in August 2016 ending at the

Grand Opera House, Belfast The Grand Opera House is a theatre in Belfast, Northern Ireland, designed by the most prolific theatre architect of the period, Frank Matcham. It opened on 23 December 1895. According to the Theatres Trust, the "magnificent auditorium is probabl ...

in June 2017. A second UK and Ireland tour was due to open again at the Manchester Opera House in August 2020, however due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

was cancelled.

Synopsis

The semi-biographical story is set against the background of political and social change of the 1960s. The musical examines the early years of the Muswell Hill, London-based

group A group is a number of persons or things that are located, gathered, or classed together. Groups of people * Cultural group, a group whose members share the same cultural identity * Ethnic group, a group whose members share the same ethnic ide ...

The Kinks. After initial failure, the band's lead guitarist

Dave Davies David Russell Gordon Davies (born 3 February 1947) is an English guitarist, singer and songwriter. He was the lead guitarist and backing vocalist for the English rock band the Kinks, which also featured his elder brother Ray Davies. He was ind ...

experimented and created a distorted

power chord A power chord (also fifth chord) is a colloquial name for a chord in guitar music, especially electric guitar, that consists of the root note and the fifth, as well as possibly octaves of those notes. Power chords are commonly played on am ...

sound on the group's third single, "You Really Got Me". The song, written by Dave's older brother Ray, went to No 1 in the UK charts and preceded a string of hits. Woven into the musical are the themes of the Davies brothers' sibling rivalry, management problems, their sister's untimely death, Ray's doomed marriage and their subsequent banning from the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

following a dispute with the musicians' union.

Music

Musical numbers

;Act I *" You Still Want Me" *"I Gotta Move/

" *"Just Can't Go To Sleep" *"Denmark Street" *"

A Well Respected Man "A Well Respected Man" is a song by the British band the Kinks, written by the group's lead singer and rhythm guitarist Ray Davies, and originally released in the United Kingdom on the EP '' Kwyet Kinks'' in September 1965. The song was relea ...

" *"

Dead End Street A dead end, also known as a cul-de-sac (, from French for 'bag-bottom'), no through road or no exit road, is a street with only one inlet or outlet. The term "dead end" is understood in all varieties of English, but the official terminology ...

" *"

Dedicated Follower of Fashion "Dedicated Follower of Fashion" is a 1966 song by British band the Kinks. It lampoons the contemporary British fashion scene and mod culture in general. Originally released as a single, it has been included on many of the band's later albums. ...

" *"

" *"( This Time Tomorrow into) Set Me Free" *"

Till the End of the Day "Till the End of the Day" is a song by the Kinks, written by Ray Davies and released as a single in 1965 and later on their album '' The Kink Kontroversy''. It centres on a power chord, like many of the group's early hits, and was similarly succe ...

" *"

This Strange Effect "This Strange Effect" is a song written by Ray Davies of The Kinks, and released first by Dave Berry in July 1965. The single was released in the United States in September 1965. It reached No.1 in the Netherlands, but peaked at No.37 on the UK ...

" *"Tell Me Now So I'll Know" (Instrumental) *"

Stop Your Sobbing "Stop Your Sobbing" is a song written by Ray Davies for the Kinks' debut album, ''Kinks''. It was later covered by the Pretenders as their first single. Background The Kinks recorded "Stop Your Sobbing" on ''Kinks'', which was rushed out in or ...

" *"This is Where I Belong" *" Where Have All the Good Times Gone/ All Day and All of the Night" ;Act II *" This Time Tomorrow" * "Maximum Consumption" *"

Sitting in My Hotel "Sitting in My Hotel" is a song written by Ray Davies that was first released on The Kinks' 1972 album ''Everybody's in Show-Biz''. It was also released on several compilation albums and as the B-side of the "Sweet Lady Genevieve" single. It is ...

" *"

I Go to Sleep "I Go to Sleep" is a song written by Ray Davies, main songwriter for The Kinks, and first released by The Applejacks. It was never recorded by The Kinks, but Ray Davies's demo can be found in reissue bonus tracks of their second studio album ' ...

" *"

I'm Not Like Everybody Else "I'm Not Like Everybody Else" is a song written by Ray Davies and first recorded by the Kinks in 1966 and released that year as the B-side of "Sunny Afternoon". The lead vocal is sung by Dave Davies, with occasional parts vocalized by his brother R ...

" *"Too Much On My Mind/ Tired of Waiting" *"The Moneygoround" *"

" *"

A Rock 'N' Roll Fantasy "A Rock 'n' Roll Fantasy" is the lead single and fourth track from The Kinks' 1978 album ''Misfits''. Written by Ray Davies, the song was inspired by the band's then-tumultuous state at the time, with two members leaving the band during the rec ...

" *"

Days A day is the time period of a full rotation of the Earth with respect to the Sun. On average, this is 24 hours, 1440 minutes, or 86,400 seconds. In everyday life, the word "day" often refers to a solar day, which is the length between two solar ...

" *"A Long Way From Home" *"

" *"

" *" All Day and All of the Night/

Recordings

On 21 October 2014, four preview tracks from the album, "

", "

", "Too Much On My Mind/ Tired of Waiting" and the show's title song "

" were released via

SoundCloud SoundCloud is an online audio distribution platform and music sharing website that enables its users to upload, promote, and share audio. Founded in 2007 by Alexander Ljung and Eric Wahlforss, SoundCloud is one of the largest music streaming se ...

. Recorded at

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

's Konk Studio's, which was established by

, the album featuring 29 songs, was released on 27 October via

BMG Chrysalis Chrysalis Group was a UK media company that was founded by Chris Wright, chairman, and Terry Ellis. Wright was named in '' Sunday Times Rich List 2009'' of the 1,000 richest persons in the UK. Previously having interests in television, books a ...

Principal roles and original cast

Awards and nominations

Original London production

References

External links

* {{OlivierAward Musical 2001–2025 2014 musicals West End musicals The Kinks Laurence Olivier Award-winning musicals Musicals inspired by real-life events British musicals Jukebox musicals Rock musicals Musicals set in London