Video: Why is British musical Maggie May being revived for the first time in 50 years?
It may not be known for staging musical revivals with double-figure casts - more so championing new writers such as James Graham - but at the Finborough Theatre, a special British musical is being revived at the pub theatre space.
Lionel Bart and Alun Owen's musical Maggie May is set on the docks in Liverpool focussing on the life of streetwalker Margaret Duffy and her sweetheart sailor Patrick Casey. First staged at the Adelphi in 1964, where it ran for over 500 performances, the Novello Award-winning musical hasn't been professionally staged in over 50 years.
That is until now. Matthew Iliffe giving the show a new life in the intimate space, which has a capacity of around 50 seats. Critic Mark Shenton said he was "profoundly grateful to have had the opportunity to see this show", which he said was "full of rousing melodies and darker notes" in his four-star review for LondonTheatre.co.uk.
As the show opened in London, we asked to cast members Kara Lily Hayworth and James Darch why the show is a timely one to revive in 2019.
Maggie May is at the Finborough Theatre until 20th April.
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