The U.K. premiere of The Secret Life of Bees is currently in rehearsal.
The production, which will open at the Almeida Theatre April 19 after beginning previews April 8, is an adaption of Sue Monk Kidd’s bestselling novel of the same name. Featuring a book by Pulitzer Prize winner Lynn Nottage, music by Duncan Sheik, and lyrics by Susan Birkenhead, the U.K. premiere is directed by Whitney White.
Set against the backdrop of 1960s South Carolina, the story follows the journey of Rosaleen, a Black caregiver who is beaten and jailed for asserting her right to vote, and the young Lily, a restless teenager haunted by her mother's death.
Flip through rehearsal photos below:
Whitney White
Shekinah McFarlane
Shekinah McFarlane, Chrystine Symone, and Madeline Charlemagne
Richard James Neale and Tarinn Callender
Richard James Neale and Daniel Krikler
Rachel John
Company of The Secret Life of Bees
Company of The Secret Life of Bees
Company of The Secret Life of Bees
Company of The Secret Life of Bees
Company of The Secret Life of Bees
Mark Meadows
Danielle Fiamanya
Ava Brennan
Ava Brennan, Shekinah McFarlane, and Eleanor Worthington Cox
Ava Brennan and Shekinah McFarlane
Abiona Omonua
Abiona Omonua and Eleanor Worthington Cox
Abiona Omonua and Eleanor Worthington Cox
Abiona Omonua and Eleanor Worthington Cox
Abiona Omonua and Company
Company of The Secret Life of Bees
The company for The Secret Life of Bees includes Ava Brennan as June, Tarinn Callender as Neil, Eleanor Worthington-Cox as Lily, Madeline Charlemagne as Daughter of Mary/understudy August, Danielle Fiamanya as May, Eleanor House as understudy Lily, Rachel John as August, Daniel Krikler as Ensemble, Shekinah McFarlane as Daughter of Mary/understudy June, Mark Meadows as T Ray, Richard James-Neale as Ensemble/understudy T Ray, Abiona Omonua as Rosaleen, Chrystine Symone as Daughter of Mary/understudy Rosaleen and May, Noah Thomas as Zachary, and Marcellus Whyte as understudy Neil and Zach.
The Secret Life of Bees also has choreography by Shelley Maxwell, set design by Soutra Gilmour, costume design by Qween Jean, lighting design by Neil Austin, sound design by Simon Baker, music supervision and direction by Nigel Lilley, casting by Charlotte Sutton, orchestrations by John Clancy, and vocal arrangements by Jason Hart. The production's WHAM designer is Cynthia De La Rosa.
The Secret Life of Bees is presented in association with Sonia Friedman Productions, Lauren Shuler Donner, Marianne Mills, Bob Cohen, Hugo Six, and Atlantic Theater Company.
A workshop production of The Secret Life of Bees was presented by New York Stage and Film & Vassar in 2017, and the production premiered Off-Broadway at the Atlantic Theatre Company in 2019.
