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Amanda Holden has won the fairy-tale prize of the lead role as Princess Fiona in the stage musical Shrek, proving she's got plenty of talent of her own.
Ms Holden, who is a household name as a judge on Britain's Got Talent, will start rehearsals in the spring.
The actress won over the directors and producers of the show, which will preview next may at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane and open officially in the first half of June.
It is hoped her grumpy green giant of a lover will be played by Nigel Lindsay, a gifted actor who has worked extensively in TV, films and on stage, including playing Nathan Detroit in Michael Grandage's production of Guys and Dolls.
Mr Lindsay is in the early stages of negotiations, although at the moment it's by no means a given that the role will go to him. I understand, though, that he is the front runner.
Nigel Harman, who was Sky Masterson in Guys and Dolls, is in preliminary discussions to play the diminutive despot Lord Farquaad, but once again, the deal is far from being done.
Richard Blackwood, the comic actor, will definitely play Donkey, the part created on screen in the Shrek movies by Eddie Murphy.
Amanda had hot competition for the role of Princess Fiona (Cameron Diaz voices the character in the movies), but her acting, singing and dancing convinced the audition panel - consisting of joint directors Rob Ashford and Jason Moore and executives from DreamWorks Theatricals and Neal Street Productions - that she should have the role.
She and Sshford worked together on the stage musical Thoroughly Modern Millie, which Ashford choreographed.
Another link was Jeanine Tesori, who composed the scores for both Thoroughly Modern Millie and Shrek.
In the seven years since Millie, Amanda has become a headline celebrity thanks to the TV drama Cutting It and as a judge with those rascals Simon Cowell and Piers Morgan on the highly popular Britain's Got Talent.
Shrek will sell a ton of seats on the strength of her name when bookings open in October.
Few, however, realise Amanda started her career on the stage. She certainly knows how to sing and kick up her heels.
Shrek, superbly designed by Tim Hatley, didn't fare too well on Broadway, but the show was put back together from scratch for a touring production. It just opened in Chicago and, by all accounts, is a hit over there.
Last edited by Halli; 07-08-2010 at 12:29 PM.
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Amanda Holden AND Nigel Harman in one show?!
THAT'LL BE SOME GREAT ACTING!
Not forgetting Richard Blackwood
This will SURELY be the biggest atrocity to hit the stage since Javine-vehicle Daddy Cool?
I DESPISE HER
She was SHIT in Thoroughly Modern Millie and ALWAYS OFF
Shrek the Musical is an abomination that makes Legally Blonde seem like THE MAGIC FLUTE
The casting for this is so appalling I highly doubt I'd last more than 5 MINUTES of watching it
I can only hope it repeats its Broadway "business" and bombs painfully
*10 year run*
I won't be going.
I hate Shrek anyway. The films are SOOOOOO BORING.
Oh oh, you say that BUT Nige was really quite splendid in Three Days of Rain. It was a lovely surprise after he never seemed to bother on Eastenders.Originally Posted by Whatevar
And let's not forget the time that condescending bitch Amanda Holden told Susan Boyle she looked good on one of the BGT finals, and it was almost believable.
I never ever want to see this though, unless it gets superb reviews and they cast someone amazing as Shrek (and it would have to be Dame Judi Dench).
Last edited by TurnerPrize; 12-08-2010 at 01:20 PM.
I'm now into my third consecutive minute of staring at that picture, and i still cannot tell if that's the real Paris or a quite decent drag queen version.
I'm not sure why Paris would invite a drag impersonator to an official event though, so i'm going with the real one.
Yes it's her and she looks awful!
Amanda Holden has announced that she is pregnant with a baby girl and will be leaving her role as Princess Fiona in Theatre Royal’s production of Shrek the Musical. Holden leaves on October 3rd, 8 weeks early.
More info on : Amanda Holden Leaving Shrek
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