S Club 7’s Jon Lee and Hastings Funny Man Steve Furst in White Rock show

Former S Club 7 star and West End Actor Jon Lee will play Peter Pan, and Hastings funny man Steve Furst will play pirate Smee, in a brand new musical production which is being presented at the Hastings White Rock Theatre this Christmas.

The cast announcements were made by producers Julian Chenery and Jamie Wilson at a Press Launch at the White Rock Theatre on Monday.

The former star of Oliver! and Les Miserables, as well as the internationally famous pop group S Club 7, will play the “boy who never grew up” in the show which marks the first Christmas show from new production company JC & JW Theatre Productions.

Peter Pan will run for 40 performances from Wednesday 10th December 2008 to Sunday 4th January 2009.

Jon Lee is best known as a member of the pop sensation S Club 7 which enjoyed number one hits all over the world including four in the UK, and to this day remains massively popular with TV shows such as Miami 7, Hollywood 7 and Viva S Club. He is also an acclaimed West End musical theatre star appearing as Oliver Twist in Cameron Mackintosh’s original production of Oliver! at the London Palladium opposite Jonathan Pryce as Fagin; and as Marius in two long runs of Les Miserables at the Palace Theatre (which earned him a nomination for Best Newcomer in the What’s On Stage Awards) and at the Queen’s Theatre in London.

Steve Furst is one of Britain’s best known comedy faces appearing as Lenny Beige in The Lenny Beige Television Show on Channel 4 and then in then in The Lenny Beige Variety Pack for BBC. More recently he has appeared in all three seasons of the hugely successful Little Britain with Matt Lucas and David Walliams, and is recognised in cinemas across the land as one of the faces of Orange telecom’s awardwinning commercials.

Peter Pan, which is written by Julian Chenery and Colin Warnock, is a faithful adaptation of the JM Barrie story including original Chenery & Warnock songs, some famous musical theatre numbers as well as a sprinkling of hit songs from today.

Producer Julian Chenery (the JC of the team) is the creative force behind the worldacclaimed Shakespeare 4 Kidz Theatre Company, and has brought his Shakespeare musicals to the White Rock for over 10 years; while Jamie Wilson (JW) has been involved with many West End and touring productions.

Both of them are “passionate about pantomime” and together as JC & JW they have formed a company to produce Christmas shows of the highest quality. JC stated he was “absolutely determined to bring a five-star Christmas show to Hastings this Christmas” and that he was “thrilled that two superb actors had joined the cast.”

There are a number of original new ideas being introduced for the show including special preview performances for local schools, Peter Pan workshops and Office Christmas Party Nights for local businesses.

Another innovation is the dedicated website – www.peterpanhastings.com – where you can not only keep up to date with all the Peter Pan news but also find out about JM Barrie - the author of Peter Pan; a history of Peter Pan; how Peter Pan helps the world-famous Great Ormond Street Children's Hospital along with lots more fun things to do. You can also keep up to date with all the latest news via the show’s Facebook Group Page Peter Pan at The White Rock, Hastings.

JC & JW are delighted to welcome a number of sponsors and corporate partners who are supporting the show. The White Rock Hotel, Hastings, which is right next door to the theatre, has just completed a major refurbishment and is the Official Hotel Partner; Stagecoach Theatre Arts Hastings is the title sponsor of the Peter Pan Workshops; and Superbreak, the Hastings and St Leonards Observer, and the Priory Meadow Shopping Centre have all agreed to help support the production.

Information about local auditions for Johns and Michaels, as well as Lost Boys and, of course, dancers will appear via the website, at the theatre and in the local press. These will take place in Hastings during September.

White Rock Theatre manager Gareth Booker said “We’re delighted to be bringing this fabulous production of Peter Pan to the White Rock. The show has everything: a great story with characters we all know and love; superb sets and colourful costumes; wellknown songs mixed with musical classics; pirates, Indians, a crocodile and a Peter Pan that flies through the auditorium! There is only one word to describe it – magic!”

Peter Pan runs from Wednesday 10th December 2008 to Sunday 4th January 2009 at the White Rock Theatre. Tickets are on sale now 0870 145 11 33.

Further casting will be announced in the next few weeks.

All enquiries:

Carolyn Chenery: (T) 01883 723444; (e) This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

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