News: Brenda Edwards, Norman Pace and Alex Bourne to star in Hairspray UK and Ireland tour

Smash-hit musical Hairspray is set to embark on a new UK and Ireland tour, reopening at the Theatre Royal Plymouth on 24 June.

The production is set to star Brenda Edwards (Chicago, We Will Rock You) as Motormouth Maybelle, Norman Pace (The Hale and Pace Show) as Wilbur Turnblad and Alex Bourne (Annie, Mamma Mia!) as Edna Turnblad.

Further casting includes Katie Brace in her professional stage debut as Tracy Turnblad, alongside Rebecca Thornhill as Velma, Richard Meek as Corny Collins, Ross Clifton as Link Larkin, Jessica Croll as Amber Von Tussle, Rebecca Jane Davies as Penny Pingleton and Charlotte St. Croix as Little Inez.

Ensemble includes Elizabeth Armstrong, Bernadette Bangura, Natalia Brown, Shaquille Brush, Liam Dean, Andrew Dillion, Amandla Elynah, Zoe Heighton, Ceris Hine, Paul Hutton, Jamie Jonathan, Hayley Johnston, Joshua Nkemdilim, Rosie O’Hare, Alexanda O’Reilly, Joshua Pearson, Joseph Poulton and Elliotte Williams-N’Dure.

The Hairspray tour is directed by Paul Kerryson with choreography by Drew McOnie, designs by Takis, lighting design by Philip Gladwell and sound design by Ben Harrison.

The tour is set to arrive at multiple venues across the UK and Ireland, including Theatre Royal Plymouth, Cheltenham Everyman Theatre, Mayflower Theatre, Southampton, Manchester Palace Theatre, Sheffield Lyceum, Ipswich Regent Theatre, Aylesbury Waterside Theatre, Liverpool Empire, The Alhambra Theatre, Bradford, Brighton Theatre Royal, Birmingham Hippodrome, Leicester Curve, Nottingham Theatre Royal, Wolverhampton Grand Theatre, Bord Gáis Energy Theatre Dublin, Grand Opera House Belfast, New Victoria Theatre, Woking, Milton Keynes Theatre, Blackpool Winter Gardens, Sunderland Empire, Wycombe Swan, Royal and Derngate Theatre, Northampton, Churchill Theatre, Bromley, Cardiff New Theatre, Edinburgh Playhouse, The Orchard Theatre, Dartford and Glasgow Kings Theatre.

Based on the 1988 film of the same name, Hairspray originally opened to rave reviews on Broadway in 2002 and subsequently won eight Tony Awards

The production opened in London at the Shaftesbury Theatre in 2007 and won four Olivier Awards including Best New Musical.

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