Fatal Attraction star Glenn Close is to star as Norma Desmond in the English National Opera and GradeLinnit Company’s production of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Sunset Boulevard.
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The 1991 musical was written by Don Black and Christopher Hampton, with music by Andrew Lloyd Webber and played all over the world. Directed by Lonny Price, the semi-staged production will feature the full ENO orchestra. Johnny Hon will be executive producer.
She first played washed-up silent screen star Norma Desmond in musical Sunset Boulevard on Broadway 20 years ago and it’s safe to assume Glenn Close loved every minute of it.
The show is being mounted as part of the partnership between English National Opera and the GradeLinnit Company, under which this year’s staging of Sweeney Todd starring Emma Thompson and Bryn Terfel was produced.
“I am thrilled that London audiences will at last get a chance to see Glenn’s performance in the role of Norma Desmond, which was so hugely acclaimed in the US “.
Tickets will range from £12 – 100 of these will be available for each performance – to £105. When she encounters a young screenwriter named Joe Gillis, she sees him as her opportunity to make a comeback to the silver screen.
The 43-performance run will be based on the original 1950 film by Billy Wilder which featured Gloria Swanson in the role. Her other early stage credits include The Crucifer of Blood and The Singular Life of Albert Nobbs, for which she won an Obie Award. Faye Dunaway, who was to replace Close in the L.A. production, was also dismissed before she began performances, and the production closed there.
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Close originated the role of Norma Desmond on Broadway in 1995 to Tony-winning acclaim.
