Pretty hot names to have atop a theater marquee, thats for sure.
Official dates are being determined.
I was told when I pushed for details from Sonia Friedman Productions, which is are producingLyonesse.
Kristin Scott Thomas, Lily James and Charlie StempGetty/Baz Bamigboye
That title intrigued me.
Something tells me we should be fastening our seatbelts at the Pinter!
Listen, I search for signs and meanings in almost every movie, TV show and play title.
Kristin Scott Thomas (Getty Images)Swan Gallet
Look at the millions of words that have been penned onSuccession!
Again, Ill just have to be patient.
Its good that Rickson and Scott Thomas are reuniting.
Theres a connection toLyonessein there somewhere.
I feel it in my bones.
Scott Thomas plays Diana Taverner, their devious boss.
James has Sean DunkinsThe Iron Clawin post.
Theres also Saverio CostanzosFinalmente lalba, in which James plays an unknown thrust into the world of cinema.
CHARLIE STEMP DANCES UP A STORM AND HES FUNNY!
Broadway legendSusan Stromanbeefed up her choreography for the Gershwin musicalCrazy for Youwhen she saw Charlie Stemp dance.
Cameron Mackintosh did the same when he watched Stemps moves during auditions for a revival ofHalf a Sixpence.
His efforts won him an Olivier Award nomination for best actor in a musical.
Stemp must surely be one of the best West End theater dancers of his generation.
But hes also a very funny guy.
Stroman stagedCrazy for Youlast year at Chichester Festival Theatre, and it was a gold-star treat.
The shows transferring to the Gillian Lynne Theatre in Covent Garden from June 24 for a six-month season.
The big surprise for me was Stemps comic timing as music-mad and dance-crazy Bobby Child.
His interactions with Tom Eddens impresario Bella Zangler are comic gold.
Stemp puts it all down to Edden.
In every way, in every sense, Eddens a comic genius, he says.
But a song-and-dance man whos funny too is more of a rarity.
Michael Crawford comes to mind.
The actor, now 30, thinks that his comic timing has improved with maturity and confidence.
Hed watch Wisdom in the movie comediesThe Square PegandOn the Beatover and over on repeat.
Stemp grew to love those kind of amazing, old-school, physical comedians.
Hed watchLee Evans: Big Live at the O2every night.
It was kind of a ritual for me growing up, he explains.
Later he progressed toLittle BritainandFriends.
And working with Edden and Ian Bartholomew inHalf a Sixpencehas been beneficial in honing his funny bone.
Those artists who are just so precise, and their understanding of comedy, its like dancing.
Its about timing, its about rhythm, he says.
An audience also can assist in sharpening your humor, Stemp believes.
His instinct then was if theyre quiet, it’s crucial that you give more.
But actually, its the opposite.
You have to sit back.
You have to let them come to you sometimes, rather than push harder.
Stemps first time on stage was at age 5.
His mum, a personal trainer, knew Cobra, and young Charlie blurted out My mum knows you!
To this day Stemp can remember the audience kind of being there, and the lights.
Wistfully, he adds: The fun is where the stage is.
His sibling would come home from gigs and tell young Charlie to watch Billy Connolly and other comics.
Dancing came much later, when he was 11, and initially he wasnt crazy about it.
Absolutely hated it, Stemp says.
It was ballet, he says.
This wasBilly ElliotbeforeBilly Elliot.
But then someone told him he was good at it.
Soon it became the main focus of my life.
I think by 13 I was doing judo, rugby, football and dancing.
His dance teacher told him that hed have to choose: sport or ballet?
Widdecombe would sit in the wings and wait for her next scene.
She was petrified about missing a cue.
She wrote saying how wonderful and professional and kind I was.
She saved me loads of trouble.
I think it was just a coincidence that she wrote it.
I never told her what was going on with me at the school.
I will be doing eight performances a week as much as I can, he says.
What he does instead of football and stuff is gardening.
I fell off my chair because I couldnt picture Charlie Stemp gardening.
He gives me a look and says hes obsessed.
At the moment Ive got 12 different vegetables in the garden.
Ive got five fruits six fruits if you count the lemons, he boasts.
Stemp admires Michael Ball, Michael Crawford and Hugh Jackman.
I can see Stemp in that lineup.
If he plays his cards right, he just could end up as the greatest showman.
