'Madagascar the Musical' Will Sing and Dance Its Way Around Australia This Summer
DreamWorks' animated hit takes to the stage, complete with a lavish set, world-class puppets and colourful costumes.
Don't just smile and wave, musical fans. If you're fond of films turned into stage shows — animated hits making that leap, to be specific — then you'll want to scramble into the theatre to see the next smash-hit making its way around Australia. This time, a group of animals escape from their home in New York's Central Park Zoo, then find themselves washed ashore an island after a series of misadventures. Yes, it can only be Madagascar the Musical.
Adapted from the 2005 DreamWorks animated movie, this production will start doing the rounds from December 2022 with all the bells and whistles of the international touring production. After runs in the UK and New Zealand, the show will bring the screen-to-stage story to life, supported by a lavish set, world-class puppets and colourful costumes.
This'll be Madagascar the Musical's Australian debut, enjoying a two-week run from Friday, December 16–Sunday, January 1 at Sydney Coliseum Theatre to kick things off. Melbourne's Comedy Theatre will next do the honours from Wednesday, January 4–Sunday, January 15, 2023, then the Crown Theatre in Perth from Thursday, January 19–Thursday, January 26, 2023. Brisbane and Adelaide residents, fingers crossed it's your turn after that.
If you've seen the film, which also sparked 2008 sequel Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa, 2012's Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted and 2014 spinoff Penguins of Madagascar — as well as various TV shows and shorts, then this musical since 2018 — then you'l know the story. At the show's centre sits Alex the lion, Marty the zebra, Melman the giraffe, Gloria the hippo and a gang of penguins, who find their zoo routines shaken up and then some.
As set to an upbeat score featuring hits 'Copacabana', 'I Like to Move It', 'Best Friends' and 'Boogie Wonderland', this crew of critters leaves its comfortable zoo life behind, exploring the eponymous island ruled by King Julien.
Hijinks ensue, as brought to the stage in the musical's Aussie run by a cast that includes Andrew Papas (ex-Titanium) as Alex the lion, Joe Kalou (The Book of Mormon, In the Heights, Wolf Like Me) as Marty, Moniquewa Williams as Gloria, Devon Neiman (The Brief and Frightening Reign of Phil) as Melman and Jonathan Martin (the Pop Up Globe stage) as King Julien.
MADAGASCAR THE MUSICAL 2022–2023 AUSTRALIAN TOUR:
Friday, December 16, 2022–Sunday, January 1, 2023 — Sydney Coliseum Theatre, Sydney
Wednesday, January 4–Sunday, January 15, 2023 — Comedy Theatre, Melbourne
Thursday, January 19–Thursday, January 26, 2023 — Crown Theatre, Perth
Madagascar the Musical tours Australia from December 2022. For more information and tickets, head to the musical's website.
Images: LK Creative.
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