''The Magician's Elephant'' is a

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 Musical film is a film genre in which songs by the Character (arts), charac ...

with book and lyrics by

Nancy Harris Nancy Harris is an Irish playwright and screenwriter. She was awarded the Rooney Prize for Irish Literature in 2012. Early life and education Harris is the daughter of Anne and Eoghan Harris. She was educated at Trinity College Dublin, earnin ...

and music and lyrics by Marc Teitler, based on the 2009 children's novel of the same name by

Kate DiCamillo Katrina Elizabeth DiCamillo (born March 25, 1964) is an American author of children's fiction. She has published over 25 novels, including '' Because of Winn-Dixie'' (2000), '' The Tiger Rising'' (2001), '' The Tale of Despereaux'' (2003), '' T ...

Production history

Stratford-upon-Avon (2021)

The musical was announced to make its world premiere as part of the

Royal Shakespeare Company The Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) is a major British theatre company, based in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England. The company employs over 1,000 staff and opens around 20 productions a year. The RSC plays regularly in London, Stratf ...

's winter 2020 season, running in the

Royal Shakespeare Theatre The Royal Shakespeare Theatre (RST) (originally called the Shakespeare Memorial Theatre) is a Grade II* listed 1,040+ seat thrust stage theatre owned by the Royal Shakespeare Company dedicated to the English playwright and poet William Shakespea ...

Stratford-upon-Avon Stratford-upon-Avon ( ), commonly known as Stratford, is a market town and civil parish in the Stratford-on-Avon (district), Stratford-on-Avon district, in the county of Warwickshire, in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands region of Engl ...

. However, due to the ongoing

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

, the production was postponed to run over the 2021 winter season running from 18 October 2021 to 1 January 2022. The production is directed by Sarah Tipple, designed by Colin Richmond with lighting design by Oliver Fenwick. On 9 July 2021, initial casting was announced and a recording of a song from the show "If This Is True" was released on YouTube, followed by another song "A Lot Like Me" released on 26 July 2021.

Sandy, Utah (2024)

The musical made its United States premiere at Hale Center Theatre in

Sandy, Utah Sandy is a city in the Salt Lake City metropolitan area, located in Salt Lake County, Utah, United States. The population was 96,904 according to the 2020 United States census. Sandy is home to the Shops at South Town shopping mall; the Jord ...

during their 2024 season, running from September 16 to October 19 2024. The production was directed by Dave Tinney with scenic design by Jenn Taylor and puppetry design, fabrication and direction by AchesonWalsh Studios, lighting design by Jaron Kent Hermansen.

Cast and characters

Musical Numbers

; Act I * "Welcome To the Town of Baltese" – Narrator * "Discipline, Control, Routine" – Lutz * "If This Is True" – Peter * "What If Why No Could It Be" – Leo Matienne * "No One Must Know" – Police Chief and Police * "Your Mind Is Playing Tricks On You" – Police Chief and Police * "Discipline, Control Routine" (reprise) – Lutz * "I Intended Only Lilies" – Magician and Madame LaVaughn * "Secrets" – Company * "Follow The Elephant" – Company * "Elephant Messiah" – Company * "If This Is True" (reprise) – Peter ; Act II * "The Sight Of An Elephant" – Company * "Adele The Brave" – Adele * "A Lot Like Me" – Peter * "Two Of a Kind" – Company * "Don’t Spoil It Pt. 1" – Company * "Don’t Spoil It Pt. 2" – Company * "Real Magic" – Company * "Count Who Doesn’t Count" – Count and Adele * "What Good Are Dreams" – Company * "If This Is True" – Peter * "A Lot Like Me" – Peter * "Anything Could Happen" – Company

Reception

The Stratford-upon-Avon production received positive reviews from the critics and audiences receiving mostly four star reviews.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Magician's Elephant Musical Musicals based on novels British musicals 2021 musicals