Featuring the soulful music of Dusty Springfield, starring Diana Vickers, Ian Reddington and Debra Stephenson and directed and choreographed by Craig Revel Horwood, Son of a Preacher Man comes to the Assembly Hall Theatre, Tunbridge Wells from Tuesday 31st October to Saturday 4th November.
Three broken hearts, one Soho hang-out, and the only man who could ever help them was…
Welcome to the Preacher Man, the swinging 1960s Soho joint where the kids dance the night away to the latest crazes and dare to dream of love, while the legendary owner, The Preacher Man himself, dispenses advice to cure even the loneliest of hearts.
Only, that was a long time ago and all that remains are the memories, the stories and the myths. Until now, that is, when three random strangers, generations apart but all in need of help with their hopeless love lives, are inexplicably drawn to the site of the original venue. The Preacher Man is long gone, but his son, with help from the wonderful Cappuccino Sisters, might just find it in himself to channel the spirit of The Preacher Man and once more give these three lovesick strangers the look of love.
Featuring the greatest hits of Dusty Springfield, including The Look Of Love, I Only Want To Be With You, Spooky and of course, the classic Son Of A Preacher Man, this sparklingly funny and sweetly touching new musical play by internationally renowned writer Warner Brown will have you laughing, crying and singing your heart out to some of the greatest songs ever written.
Celebrated as the brusque dispenser of flattening put-downs, Director and Choreographer Strictly Come Dancing’s Craig Revel Horwood explains quite innocently…
I just react to what I’m seeing. If I’m watching bad dancing I’ll tell them the truth. They need to know. If you’re not getting corrections I think that would be wrong. I don’t think it’s fair to say you love something if you don’t.
Revel Horwood entered showbiz as a choreographer and worked on the likes of Miss Saigon. Not every show was quite such a mega-hit, and when they didn’t work it was his quarrelsome streak which triggered a decision to double up and become a director too…
I didn’t want to have a battle with the director and see the line where the director finishes his work and the choreography began. For me it’s a lot easier to have one concept of a piece applied. I did it so I could have arguments with myself rather than with someone else.
His latest show, Son of a Preacher Man, features 20 songs woven into the story of three people with romantic problems who seek solace in a Soho record store famous from the Sixties. There they each hope that a fabled love guru will help them, though things don’t turn out quite as fantasised.
It’s your first go at a jukebox musical. How are you finding the task of melding dialogue and tunes?
It’s a joy to work on. The Dusty music lends itself to good storytelling, and that’s really important: her stories always have beginning, a middle and an end. And they’re very soulful. A lot of people will be surprised when they see the songs come to life. Her lyrics are really quite poignant. She tells human stories with amazing rhythms that can be applied to men or women and crosses through to being gay as well. That’s why her music is universal.
His early successes as a director were at the Watermill Theatre in Newbury which pioneered the novelty of actors playing their own instruments. There he staged Hot Mikado and much the most successful version yet of Martin Guerre, a musical that Cameron Mackintosh had been trying to perfect for years. He took a stripped-down version of Sunset Boulevard into the West End, about which Andrew Lloyd Webber “had strong reservations until he came to see it”.
Alongside the full cast of actor/musicians, Son of a Preacher Man features a four-piece band and a three-strong girl group pumping out the hits of Dusty Springfield, and a cast that includes X Factor favourite Diana Vickers as the youngest of the lovelorn trio.
Is the Craig Revel Horwood the cast see on Saturday night television like that in the rehearsal room as well?
I have to give them notes, and tell them how I feel. I am quite direct. But when you go to work you’re a different person and when you knock off, you become yourself again.
Do you have a fantasy cast of celebs that you’d like to slap down on Strictly Come Dancing?
I’d love to see Simon Cowell on the show. The world would love that. Sharon Osborne would be good because she’s very mouthy. Prince Harry would be fantastic. Why not? I’d love to see royalty have a go.
That’ll have to wait. For now, the only royalty in his life is the queen of white soul, Dusty Springfield.
Son of a Preacher Man appears at the Assembly Hall Theatre, Tunbridge Wells from Tuesday 31st Oct to Saturday 4th Nov with evening performances at 7.30pm, and Wednesday and Saturday matinees at 2.30pm. There is a signed performance on Thusday 2nd Nov. Tickets can be purchased online at www.assemblyhalltheatre.co.uk or by calling the box office on 01892 530613.
