Sunset Boulevard at ENO London

Performance Dates 01 April 2016 – 7th May 2016 Only

Andrew Lloyd Webber’s hit musical Sunset Boulevard comes to the London Coliseum, with Glenn Close reprising her Tony Award-winning role as Norma Desmond.

Sunset Boulevard is a compelling story of romance and obsession, based on Billy Wilder’s classic film, with celebrated book and lyrics by Don Black and Christopher Hampton.

When impoverished screenwriter Joe Gillis stumbles into the reclusive world of faded silent-screen goddess Norma Desmond, she sees the opportunity to make a comeback and rise to her former glory. He by turn is seduced by the actress and her luxurious lifestyle. But the entanglement between the pair is to have dramatic and tragic consequences. With the lush melodies of this much-loved score (including Sunset Boulevard, With One Look and The Perfect Year) performed by ENO’s acclaimed orchestra, this semi-staged production promises to be a spectacular evening. Lonny Price (Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street) returns to the London Coliseum to direct the strictly limited run of 43 performances.

Sunset Boulevard is a musical with book and lyrics by Don Black and Christopher Hampton and music by Andrew Lloyd Webber. Based on Billy Wilder’s Academy Award-winning 1950 film of the same title, the plot revolves around Norma Desmond, a faded star of the silent screen era, living in the past in her decaying mansion on the fabled Los Angeles street. When young screenwriter Joe Gillis accidentally crosses her path, she sees in him an opportunity to make her comeback to the big screen. Romance and tragedy follow.

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Highlights from the Musical “Sunset Boulevard” (US 1994) Glen Close – Adam Campbell

 

Close reprises the role of faded silent movie star Norma Desmond, for which she has previously won a Tony Award, a Drama Desk Award, a Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Award and a Dramalogue Award for the original Broadway production directed byTrevor Nunn just over two decades ago.

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Musical Numbers

Act I “Overture” / “I Guess It Was 5 am Joe “Let’s Have Lunch”  Joe, Actors, actress, scriptwriters, Artie, Sheldrake, Betty “Every Movie’s A Circus”  Betty, Joe “Car Chase”  orchestra “At the House on Sunset”  Joe “Surrender”  Norma “With One Look”  Norma “Salome”  Norma, Joe “Greatest Star of All”  Max “Every Movie’s a Circus (Reprise)”  Actors, Actress, Waiters, Artie, Joe, Betty, Barman “Girl Meets Boy”  Joe, Betty “Back at the House” on Sunset  Joe, Max “New Ways to Dream”  Norma, Joe “Completion of the Script”  Norma, Joe “The Lady’s Paying” Norma, Manfred, Joe, Ensemble “New Year’s Eve”  Joe, Max “The Perfect Year”  Norma, Joe “This Time Next Year” Ensemble, Artie, Betty, Joe, Cecil B. DeMile New Year’s Eve (Back at the House on Sunset) – Joe, Norma

Act II “Entr’acte”  orchestra “Sunset Boulevard”  Joe “There’s Been a Call (Perfect year [Reprise])Norma “Journey to Paramount”  Joe, Norma “As If We Never Said Goodbye”  Norma “Paramount Conversations”  Betty, Joe, Norma, Cecil B. DeMile, Sheldrake, Max “Surrender (Reprise)”  Cecil B. DeMile “Girl Meets Boy (Reprise)”  Joe, Betty “Eternal Youth Is Worth a Little Suffering”  Norma, Astrologer, Beauticians “Who’s Betty Schaefer?”  Norma, Joe “Betty’s Office at Paramount”  Joe, Betty “Too Much in Love to Care”  Betty, Joe “New Ways to Dream (Reprise)”  Max “The Phone Call”  Norma “The Final Scene”  Joe, Betty, Norma, Max

This is not included on the Original London Production or in the World Premiere recording.

Originally a reprise of “Let’s Have Lunch”

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