The Wizard of Oz Returns To The West End This Summer

This new production of the beloved musical, based on the iconic story by L. Frank Baum,also announces initial casting for London today, as JLS star Aston Merrygold (The Tin Man) and RuPaul’s Drag Race UK winner and Dancing on Ice finalist The Vivienne (The Wicked Witch of the West) areboth confirmed to return to their celebrated roles. Further casting to be announced.

Aston Merrygold and The Vivienne will be joined in the West End by principal company members currently starring in the UK and Ireland touring production, including: Aviva Tulley (Book of Mormon, UK Tour) as Dorothy, Benjamin Yates (ITV’s Emmerdale; Jersey Boys, West End) as The Scarecrow, Nic Greenshields (Love Never Dies West End; Les Misérables West End, International Tour) as The Cowardly Lion and Abigail Matthews as Toto (Bleak Expectations, West End; War Horse, West End).

Producer, Michael Harrison says of today’s announcement: “The Wizard of Oz was seen by an incredible 185,000 people at the London Palladium last summer and is currently smashing box office records on its U.K. tour, so it feels absolutely appropriate that we return this spectacular production to the West End during the summer holidays for 38 performances only, with an incredible cast led by Aston Merrygold and The Vivienne.”

Aston Merrygold will perform at select dates, reprising his London Palladium and touring role as The Tin Man. Aston became known for his incredible stage presence during his time with X Factor-formed band JLS, who went on to sell out countless arena tours and sell over 10 million records, including five Number 1 hits and numerous awards. Whilst the band took a seven-year break, Aston made strides in his career appearing in the West End, on Strictly Come Dancing and releasing his platinum debut single Get Stupid and more recently Sweat, Right Here, Overboard and Share a Coke.

JLS made their comeback last year and performed to sold-out arenas all over the UK and Ireland. Aston has continued to remain at the forefront of entertainment, becoming a judge on the Sky 1 talent show, Got To Dance. He was also unmasked as Robin in the Semi Finals of the 2020/2021 series of Masked Singer UK and joined the cast of CBBC’s comedy-drama, Almost Never, playing Jordan, the new manager of The Wonderland, was a panellist on the Masked Singer Live tour across the UK and starred as Willard in Footloose the Musical. Most recently, Aston hosted Heart FM’s Saturday Night 00s Show and has also announced his Solo Tour HousePartyLove where he will be playing in Glasgow, Birmingham, London, Manchester and Belfast in October 2024. FemiAkinfolarin (Treason, UK Tour; Moulin Rouge! The Musical, West End) will appear as The Tin Man at all other dates (see notes to editors).

The Vivienne is set to wow the West End as The Wicked Witch of the West following her celebrated performances on tour. The Vivienne is without doubt the UK's No.1 drag superstar, after emerging as the original champion of the first season of RuPaul's Drag Race UK. Since then, she has become a huge star both in the UK and internationally appearing on TV regularly and releasing music for fans across the globe. 2022 saw The Vivienne's TV career go global when she appeared on 'RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars All Winners' on US TV.

2023 saw The Vivienne make history as the first drag star to appear on a major UK reality competition series, competing in 'Dancing On Ice' on ITV. Viv made it through the Top 3, with breathtaking performances in the final. 2023 also saw The Vivienne become the face and voice of the BBC's Eurovision Song Contest trailers. In addition, she performed 'Waterloo' at the massive Eurovision opening ceremony in Liverpool city centre.

The Wizard of Oz on tour is presented Michael Harrison, Gavin Kalin Productions, David Mirvish, Crossroads Live, Nick Thomas, Rupert Gavin and Mallory Factor, Jake Hine and Playing Field, by arrangement with the Really Useful Group Ltd. Originally produced at Curve.