Dana Al Fardan and Nadim Naaman's Rumi: The Musical makes its world premiere at the London Coliseum November 23 and 24.
Directed by Bronagh Lagan with choreography by Anjali Mehra, the cast features performers of Middle Eastern, North African, and South Asian descent, including Tony nominee Ramin Karimloo as Shams Tabrizi, Naaman as Rumi, Casey Al-Shaqsy as Kimya, and Soophia Foroughi as Kara.
The cast also features Ahmed Hamad, Yazdan Qafouri, Johan Munir, and Benjamin Armstrong, with ensemble members Roshani Abbey, Amira Al Shanti, Eva-Theresa Chokarian, Maëva Feitelson, Sasha Ghoshal, Blythe Jandoo, Ediz Mahmut, Zara Naeem, Mark Samaras, and Aliza Vakil.
The artists are backed by a 29-piece orchestra, conducted by orchestrator and arranger Joe Davison. Vocal arrangements are by Nikki Davison.
Rumi: The Musical, with lyrics derived from the poetry of the 13th century philosopher, is based on a story by Evren Sharma.
The concerts also have musical direction and supervision by Joe and Davison and Middle Eastern musical supervision by Maias Alyamani, set and costume design by Gregor Donnelly, lighting design by Nic Farman, sound design by Simon Hendry, and video design by Matt Powell. Aran Cherkez is assistant director, Natalie Pound is assistant musical director, and Mark Samaras is assistant choreographer.
The live premiere, produced by Ali Matar, follows the full-length concept album on Broadway Records. Tickets are available at the London Coliseum website.
