Theatre Royal Stratford East is back with a ground-breaking new show with RIFCO Arts – Britain’s Got Bhangra - The first British Bhangra musical of its kind
BY RAJIB RAHMAN | MAR 22, 2010
With Theatre Royal Stratford East’s rich experience in successfully developing new musicals for the stage (The Harder They Come, The Big Life and Come Dancing) and RIFCO’s skill in creating work that celebrates and reflects the contemporary British-Asian experience, these two powerhouses have joined forces to produce this exciting fusion of music, dance and theatre.
A creative team like no other has been harnessed to bring an authentic Bhangra flavour to this explosive production. Known to many in the music industry as the Beat Guru Sumeet Chopra is the composer for 'Britain’s Got Bhangra', bringing his unique flavour and distinctive style to the soundtrack of this show.
The legendary composer has written music for many Bollywood movies and collaborated with several bhangra stars including the Dhol Foundation and Punjabi MC. Most recently Sumeet has been composing for The Panjabi Hit Squad who are regarded by many as the originators of the modern "Urban Asian Fusion" sound.
Plucked from the glamorous world of Bollywood, critically acclaimed choreographer Andy Kumar has flown in to the UK especially to work on 'Britain’s Got Bhangra' taking time out from filming his hit TV shows in India, Dare 2 Date and Get Gorgeous. He has choreographed epic dance sequences for several Bollywood films including 'Page 3' (Directed by Madhur Bhandarkar) and 'Aloo Chat' and is now bringing his flamboyant style to this unique production.
Completing this talented creative team are Dougal Irvine (Lyrics) whose award-winning musical Departure Lounge was recently performed in New York and Pravesh Kumar (Writer and Director), Artistic Director of RIFCO Arts and the talent behind numerous hit shows including 'There’s Something About Simmy' and 'The Deranged Marriage'. They are joined by Simon Lima Holdsworth (Designer); Douglas Kuhrt (Lighting Designer) and Mark Collins (Musical Director).
'Britain’s Got Bhangra' charts the huge success of Bhangra music and its influence on British culture - from traditional dohl drums to RnB mash-ups. Featuring a live five-piece band, this funny, heart-warming story will have you tapping your toes and dancing in your seats with its original, high energy soundtrack.
It’s the early 80s, Margaret Thatcher’s in power and a new soap called EastEnders is on the TV. Twinkle has just arrived in London fresh from the fields of the Punjab and isn’t too impressed with the cold weather and unfriendly people that he’s met with but none of that is going to stop this star from shining - he’s determined to rise to the top with his original brand of Bhangra.
But times change and you can only be number one for so long. Flash forward to the 90s and its all about baggy jeans and hip-hop beats. Will Twinkle be able to make a comeback or will his dreams of stardom be crushed forever. (Most importantly, will he still be able to prove to the world that Britain’s Got Bhangra?)
'Britain’s Got Bhangra' stars Shin, the lead vocalist for double platinum disk award-winning band DCS who are arguably the biggest live Bhangra band in the UK. Shin leads a vibrant cast featuring: Ankur Bahl (Ensemble); Arun Blair-Mangat (Jason); Rakesh Boury (DJ Lovely); Keeza Farhan (Ensemble); Rina Fatania (Bibiji); Sophia Haque (Shinde); Natasha Lewis (Jussi); Harveen Mann (Ensemble); Davina Perera (Ensemble); and Sunil Pramanik (Rocky).
Theatre Royal Stratford East will be the first stop in a UK tour of 'Britain’s Got Bhangra'. The show will also be visiting Warwick Arts Centre, Coventry, Oxford Playhouse and Watford Palace Theatre amongst others.
TOUR DATES
Theatre Royal Stratford East, London 17th April - 16th May
Warwick Arts Centre, Coventry 24th May - 6th June
Oxford Playhouse 7th -12th June
Watford Palace Theatre 15th -19th June
The Lowry, Salford Quays 21st -26th June
Theatre Royal Windsor 28th June- 3rd July
West Yorkshire Playhouse, Leeds 12th -17th July
