Be prepared to get “In The Mood” when The Glenn Miller Story, starring legendary song and dance man Tommy Steele, comes to Eastbourne’s Congress Theatre from Tuesday 16th to Saturday 20th February with a toe-tapping score including thirty songs such as Moonlight Serenade, Chattanooga Choo Choo, Pennsylvania 6-5000, String Of Pearls, St Louis Blues March, American Patrol, Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy and In The Mood.
Tracing the life and music of 1940s jazz trombonist and bandleader Glenn Miller, this spectacular musical comes to the Congress Theatre for the first time ever. However Eastbourne has a special, if slightly chilling, connection to the big band icon Glenn as it was a foggy, dank December afternoon when Glenn Miller’s plane was last spotted flying over Beachy Head and into a mystery which is still yet to be solved over 70 years on.
After flying over the white cliffs at 14.37 precisely, on course and on schedule for the final destination – Paris to entertain the troops – the aircraft simply disappeared, forever. No sign of the plane was ever found and Miller’s disappearance remains one of World War II’s most enduring mysteries.
This new production charts the life, fame and vanishing of America’s most famous big band leader. Featuring a live 16 piece orchestra this show is the story of one man’s sheer determination to find a unique sound, a quest that became his musical Holy Grail.
The talented cast is led by Tommy Steele, Britain’s first Rock and Roll icon who has enjoyed a long and varied career with numerous hit singles, movies and award-winning stage performances.
Glenn Miller, the son of an Iowa schoolteacher, was a minor player in the Big Band era and a touring musician for 20 years. It wasn’t until 1937 that he was finally able to make his music so distinctive – by using clarinets to replace the trumpets which were so commonplace in big band music, and the new sound was born!
Don’t miss The Glenn Miller Story at Congress Theatre from 16th – 20th February, with nightly performances at 7.30pm and Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday matinees at 2.30pm. Tickets are priced £18.50 – £38.50, concessions and group discounts available. To book or for more information call the box office on 01323 412000 or go online at www.eastbournetheatres.co.uk.
