FIBS & FAIRYTALES? Graphics :)

The graphics for FIBS AND FAIRYTALES? are here:

 Press release to follow - watch this space!

Jubilation

ROYALTY AT THE JUBILEE - What a wonderful day, and such quintessentially British weather...

However, unlike the (undeniably gorgeous) Thames River Pageant, we were indoors in the warmth with music and refreshments, and - most importantly - high spirits.

It was an honour to headline the event on such a momentous occasion, and I am pleased to say that the first video is up!

This was from my music royalty section. My first royal was Eva Cassidy - the Queen of the singer-songwriter tradition.

This is I Know You By Heart; More to follow!

Royalty at the Jubilee

Three weeks to go till my jubilee performance,  ROYALTY AT THE JUBILEE, on Sunday July 3rd.

I'll be cracking out those old patriotic favourites - Land of Hope and Glory, Jerusalem and of course our beloved national anthem, God Save the Queen - alongside some more unusual choices, and lesser known songs (when I perform, new writing is never far away...)

It is a great honour to be invited back to perform after the success of FROM WORKSOP TO THE WEST END, and will be a great opportunity to plug my next one-woman show:

FIBS AND FAIRYTALES? 

Stay tuned for more info!

Today was the first of a series of open days we will be running at LEDDA (Leanne Elms Drama and Dance Academy) and it was a rip-roaring success!

This was my first real milestone in my role as Head of Singing - obviously I have been Musically Directing LEDDA's upcoming show MUSICAL MADNESS, and nurturing my gorgeous students week by week.

BUT: within the context of the open day I had less that 30 minutes with each age group to inspire a completely new group of students, whose confidence, experience, background and skillset were a completely unknown quantity!

I am pleased to say the day itself was fantastic, and it filled me with pride to see my LEDDA kids rising to the challenge, setting a good example for the visitors and taking them under their wing.

Singing-wise I did a few versions of my own glee-style mash-up (or medley, for us old-fashioned types); increasing the complexity with the age group.

The mash-up was to a piano-ballad arrangement of Firework by Katy Perry, mixed with I Gotta Feeling by the Black-Eyed Peas, mixed with Paparazzi by Lady Gaga

Amazingly everybody, picked it up so quickly, and it was hugely rewarding to see how much they enjoyed putting a new slant on tunes they know and love. Best of all was hearing them singing it as they left to go home. All in all, a highly creative and rewarding day.

God Give Me a Fairytale!

I have just received the next two songs from Cabaret Confidential - the first being the BEAUTIFUL God Give Me Strength by Elvis Costello and Burt Bacharach:

My Simple CabCon Request...

So the first of the footage from Cabaret Confidential has arrived; this is my (personalised, Anglicised, Northernised) rendition of My Simple Request by Joey Contreras.

There's nothing quite like a warm audience :)

Tonight's the night; Cabaret Confidential

Tonight's cabaret confidential was absolutely fabulous!

I was so blessed to share the stage with a host of fantastic performers:

First was the emcee Jamie Anderson, who, despite being horrendously poorly, conducted the night smoothly, warming up the audience and keeping them in stitches, with his warm-hearted (if a little risque) humour and gorgeous voice.

Next was Greek God, the Delectible Diva Constantine Andrews (or Andronikou in the Greek) who managed to convince the audience he'd forgotten his rep folder and borrowed mine! In truth he cracks out a fantastic diva ballad, and sings the socks off most women, so his set was a parody-filled parade of women's songs.

Then came yours truly - the irony being that my professional debut on the London stage was in a new musical theatre writing revue called APRIL REVUE, and I followed Constantine in that show too, with the very song with which I opened my CabCon set! This wasn't at all planned, I didn't know who else was on the lineup when I picked my set, and so I think it's a lovely tribute to just how small the theatre world really is!

After the interval was the lovely Claire Marlowe singing a group of fantastic songs, including Is There A Straight Guy In The House? Claire tells me she considers herself an actress who occasionally sings, which surprised me as she has a cracking voice!

Finally the lovely Sara Cluderay and the Ismena Trio, who have  invited me to guest at their residency at Cafe Koha just around the corner from Leicester Square.

The promised panto photos

CAROLINE HARDMAN as MRS LUMPKIN
(never have I worn so much padding in my life! Fake boobs, fake bum, the works!)

Panto Progress...

We're into the final stretch of our Jack and the Beanstalk tour, and our production is constantly growing and changing, with more and more ad libs and general jollity!

As our shows and get-ins and -outs get slicker, so we have been entrusted with more important clients. Jim Holmes, our director and co-owner of Chaplins as a whole, arrived unannounced to review one of our shows and check up on us, and had nothing but good things to say. He is a joy to work with, and has a great deal of confidence in our troupe.

J&B has been a great experience, and the Chaplins tour is good honest hard work, but I am looking forward to my first Christmas with my in-laws!

I know full well how blessed I am that since graduating I have never yet had a time where I don't know what my next theatrical engagement will be.

As for the new year, I look forward to performing in my one-woman charity cabaret WORKSOP TO THE WEST END - watch this space!

Jack and the Beanstalk

So after a week of intense rehearsals, we performed our first show today. The hosts were delighted, saying that we had easily topped last year's panto!

Also, an exciting development for my troupe; we have been hand selected to perform at Chaplins' most important corporate event - a major industry gathering at the Union Club, deep in the heart of London’s media and theatre land. This is doubly complimentary, as my troupe is based in deepest, darkest, rural oxfordshire, which means we've been chosen over all of the London-based troupes!

I am very blessed to have extremely talented, funny and friendly cast-mates:

Emma Corboz

Chris Townsend

Dominic Parker

UPDATE: Cast list for SONG BY SONG at the White Bear

Exciting stuff,

So don't be fooled into thinking that SONG BY SONG will be the same show at the White Bear as it was at the Canal Cafe Theatre...

We have TWO new cast members!

The charming Jonny Muir, and our musical maestro Katy Lipson herself!

So, this is the team:

 Charlotte Bradford is passionate about storytelling, pioneering new music and writing and cabaret. Recent credits include, Bitesize, April Review and Feast of Snacks at The Kings Head and The Space. In 2010, Charlotte appeared in the Sondheim at 80 prom in The Royal Albert Hall and has recently started to branch out into Cabaret. She has written and performed her one woman show Songs my Dad said I should Sing at The Battersea Barge and the Leicester Square Theatre. Charlotte's singing talent has been recognised by The Haymarket Masterclass Scheme (she has been mentored by West End and Broadway stars Janie Dee and Clive Rowe) and also by the BBC. Charlotte trained at East 15 Acting School, and studied music with Colin Sell (of "I'm Sorry I haven't a Clue" fame) and Stephen Douse.

Caroline Hardman is pleased to be performing with Aria Entertainment in her first production as a newly-wed! A 2011 Italia Conti graduate, Caroline's theatre credits include, amongst others: Bette Midler in Burlesque; IC Centenary at the new Wimbledon theatre, April Revue at the Kings Head and The Space,  Glee S’Cool 2, directed by Paul Taylor-Mills, Joanne in company at the Avondale Theatre, Baptista in complete works theatre company's TIE tour of The Taming of the Shrew, and Holly in The Wedding Singer; Countdown at the New Wimbledon Theatre. Recent film credits include: Taboo, a wax productions film and mission, written and directed by Nadia Barbu. When not performing, Caroline is a composer and lyricist both individually and in collaboration with other writers such as Christopher Burr, and Framelight Media's Doug Berwick.

 

Jonny Muir was born in South East London and now lives in Chichester. An early passion for acting and singing led Jonny to study Musical Theatre at The Arden School of Theatre in Manchester, where he graduated with a 1^st class Honours degree. Roles at The Arden include: Paul in Red, Hot and Cole, understudy Frederic in The Pirates of Penzance and Twimble in How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying. Since graduation in July this year, he has worked as an assistant on projects for Chichester Festival Youth Theatre. Jonny’s ambition is a career in Musical Theatre, and welcomes this opportunity to perform with Aria Entertainment. 

 Katy’s diverse experiences in the arts include, theatre production; working as a Musical Director, accompanist, vocal coach, composer, singer and piano vocalist. As well as running Aria Entertainment, a promotion, management and production company, Katy also runs the A STAGE KINDLY new musical theatre initiative which has brought to life the music from over 50 new International musicals. As a Musical Director Katy has worked on, News-Revue, Bitesize, The April Revue, Glee-S’cool, The 12 Tenors, No 1 UK Tour Hot Flush, Don't Cry Butterfly, Debut, Encore, Bravo, Ballets Russes, Once On This Island, Cinderella, Soviet Zion and Turkish Delight - The Opera. She has produced over 10 shows with A STAGE KINDLY; most recently a 7 week run of new musical SLAY IT WITH MUSIC. With Aria, she is currently making preparations for a production of The Best Little Whorehouse In Texas at The Union Theatre and with A STAGE KINDLY a one off concert GALA which will play on October 9th at Greenwich Theatre. She will then go on to Musically Direct the UK Tour of It's A Wonderful Life and Puss in Boots in Scotland. She is thrilled to launch Aria Entertainment with these showcases and it is an honour to work with so many talented performers. 

Finally, allow me to introduce our fabulous staging director:

 

Matthew Gould - Director

Matthew spent many years as a performer in shows like Les Miserablés, Cats, Joseph, Sweet Charity and Tommy. For the last 15 months he has focused primarily on Directing and Choreographing. Recently he has had plays in London, Manchester, Leeds and Preston. The play The Fan starring Jenny Logan and Janice Day closed recently having been at the John Gielgud Theatre, RADA as part of the Camden Fringe Festival. In July of this year he was asked to Direct and Choreograph a promotional DVD for a new Martial Arts stage show In the Gutter looking up at the Stars. This will go into full production next year. Also he is director on a new musical being created about the Colombian community in Elephant and Castle by Eminor Productions and is also the Director / Choreographer on a new musical called Heroes which features the music of David Bowie. Heroes will be going into production in early 2012. 
Matthew has recently been at The Landor Theatre choreographing the critically acclaimed production of Ragtime. He is also looking forward to many productions with Aria and Katy Lipson. 

Song by SUNG - Canal Cafe down, White Bear to go!

Last night's performance of SONG BY SONG was greeted by a warm and receptive audience, and what a lovely, intimate venue to perform in!

I was glad to catch up with a number of friends who were in the audience, including the composer of HUNGRY SEA, the lovely Teresa Howard.

"Teresa’s writing career has crossed media as a playwright, scriptwriter, librettist and lyricist. She received a prestigious Writing Fellowship at Winchester School of Art and has worked for the Literary Department of the Royal Court Theatre.
Teresa created and wrote a TV drama series for Talisman Films, London. Her plays have been performed across the UK, including GROCK at Chichester Festival Theatre.
Her focus over the last few years has mainly been musical theatre, collaborating with the award winning composer and orchestrator Steven Edis. Their Pre-Raphaelite musical POSSESSED, has had workshops and showcases at Greenwich Theatre, The Arts Theatre London and Oxford Playhouse, featuring star performers Peter Polycarpou, Anna Francolini and Joseph Millson. Songs from this show have also been performed at international festivals and cabaret shows, including Josie Lawrence’s TRYING IT ON at the Menier Chocolate Factory and A Stage Kindly’s APRIL REVUE at the Kings Head.
Her most recent show is a musical theatre adaptation of Dodie Smith’s I CAPTURE THE CASTLE with Steven Edis, which had a workshop and concert reading at the Royal Academy of Music in 2011, directed by Karen Rabinowitz, and there are now plans to produce the show in 2013 at a regional theatre in the UK. Teresa is also in the process of creating an Anglo/Indian musical theatre show.

Teresa is a member of MMD and the Book, Music and Lyrics (BML) Workshop facilitated by David James, Tim Sutton and David Firman."

 As well as a good chin-wag, Teresa had brought a wedding present! So now my husband and I have a beautiful set of teacups and saucers, for Sunday tea! 

To find out more about HUNGRY SEA, its musical POSSESSED, or its composers Teresa Howard and Steven Edis, why not follow Teresa's Blog PUTTING IT TOGETHER

Watch out for SONG BY SONG's transfer to The White Bear Theatre, Kennington.

Song By Song cast and preview of set list!

So here's the cast for the Saturday Night performance of SONG BY SONG:

CAROLINE HARDMAN

CHARLOTTE BRADFORD

VICTORIA BODEN

FRANK LOMAN

Song By Song

Aria Entertainment presents 'Song By Song' - 5 nights, 16 singers, 50 great songs with a new show each night!
Featuring work by Jonathan Larson, Flaherty and Ahrens, Maltby and Shire, Stephen Sondheim, Rodgers and Hammerstein, Pasek and Paul this evening will showcase a unique group of performers each night.

Tuesday 13th - Dom Hodson, Ben Vivian-Jones, Kimberly Blake
Wednesday 14th - Kendra McMillan, David O'Mahony, Victoria Butler
Thursday 15th - Constantine Andrews, Hayley Sheldon, Rhys Owen
Friday 16th - Rebecca Cole, Adam Bayjou, Ross Barnes
Saturday 17th - Frank Loman, CAROLINE HARDMAN, Victoria Boden, Charlotte Bradford

With Direction by Matthew Gould and Musical Direction by Katy Lipson
13th-17th September, 7.30pm £12/£10

Aria Entertainment was set up by Theatre Producer and Musical Director Katy Lipson, in order to present high caliber pieces of theatre. One of Aria’s visions is to support artistes and provide a platform for them to develop their talents.
Visit them online at: www.aria-entertainment.com

Graduation and the New Wimbledon Theatre

So the end of a three-year marathon is drawing near, but thoughts of graduation are dwarfed by the Centenary show which is looming!

I am lucky to have a wide spectrum of performance opportunities within this show, from being a dead ancestor in ADDAMS FAMILY, to a Beverly Sister in SINATRA, and, most excitingly, embodying Bette Midler herself in her show-stopping number 'Showgirl Must Go On' from the BURLESQUE section!

I have got to say my favourite part was Bette - with a gorgeous white chiffon dressing gown, with feathered neckline and flowing sleeves, complete with a pink boa and gold turban to boot. Fabulous does not even begin to cover it!

Add to that the indulgence of having a stage full of Las Vegas showgirls framing you and providing sterling BVs and you can see how this number is a performer's dream.

I count myself very blessed to have been a part of this show, and am so grateful for my time at IC - I have improved ten-fold, discovered my identity as a performer and made some solid-gold friendships.

Photos to follow!

Production Assistant

Some interesting news; I've been invited to snatch a glimpse of the world on the other side of the casting table, and as such am currently acting as production assistant for A Stage Kindly (primarily their upcoming production of SLAY IT WITH MUSIC this August!)

So far it's an enlightening experience; I have been dealing with PR companies, press releases, listings, reviewers and 'spreading the buzz'.

This promises to be an epic show, so remember to book early, as tickets are selling fast!

SLAY IT WITH MUSIC
Written by Paul Katz and Michael Colby
Produced by A Stage Kindly Ltd.
The Space - www.thespace.org.uk / 020 7515 7799
19th July – 7th August , 7:30pm
Matinees Sat & Sun at 3pm
(no Mondays)
£13/£11

What a GLEEful show

Last night's show at the Lost Theatre, Vauxhall, was a rip-roaring success. With an incredibly warm and enthusiastic audience, a whole bunch of fresh talent, and a few new friends, I found GLEE S-COOL 2; BACK TO COOL a thoroughly enjoyable experience.

Some of the mash-up highlights were Hallelujah/Telephone by Kimberly Blake, and Respect/Someone Like You by Zara Kadir.

Of the 3 MDs, I was lucky to have Katy Lipson to arrange my mash-up of Save Tonight and She Will Be Loved.

Also worth noting was Lillie Collier, who as an emcee has great warmth and a quick wit!

Workshop of our new musical play...

The information about the new kids' musical play 'The Rainbow Collector' by myself and the charming Christopher Burr is largely hush-hush - it's very early days yet.

HOWEVER, I can let slip one tasty tidbit:
The Rainow Primary School has expressed interest in hosting the workshop premiere of our musical play sometime in 2012...


Watch this space!

GLEE S-COOL is back with a vengance!

After a brief rain-check, I'm pleased to announce that the sequel to Paul Taylor-Mills' smash hit show GLEE S-COOL will be staged at Lost Theatre, Vauxhall this coming Sunday.

The show, named GLEE S-COOL 2; BACK TO COOL? is a Glee extravaganza;
Have you ever wondered what school would be like if P-O-P was the new P.E and G.L.E.E is the equivalent to a G.C.S.E? Set in the fictional halls of Glee School, students and their stunning headmistress reflect on their time a Glee School, now that the end of term is fast approaching.

With a 30-strong cast, some awesome chorus numbers, and a whole bunch of iconic songs of the last 30 years mashed up in original and exciting ways, The Lost Theatre is the place to be this Sunday Evening! I'm pleased to be performing, as a part of the '3rd Year', a unique arrangement of Save Tonight (by Eagle-Eye Cherry) and She Will Be Loved (by Maroon 5) - MD'd by the beautiful and talented Katy Lipson.

Come and meet the class of 2011 and let them treat you to some of pops most iconic songs presented in a way that you never thought they could work. With a host of over 20 West Ends stars and a few cheeky surprises, this is an evening not to be missed! By the time class is dismissed, everyone will want to stay for detention!

Director: Paul Taylor-Mills
Musical Directors: Katy Lipson, Steven Luke Walker and Ross Leadbeater
Choreographer: Jodie-Lee Wilde

Tickets are £12/£15 and are available from: www.ticketweb.co.uk or on 0844 847 1680


See you all there!

Glee S-Cool postponed...

I've just been informed that Paul Taylor-Mills' smash hit run of LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS has been extended, and the whole production moves to the Landor in Clapham North in just 12 days.

However, this happy news means he's completely tied up with restaging and, indeed, re-casting the show, so he's given Glee a raincheck until he can give it his full attention.

Watch this space...