Marie and Rosetta

Marie and Rosetta photos

Marie and Rosetta description

West End legend Beverly Knight stars with Ntombizodwa Ndlovu in Marie and Rosetta.

Written by George Brant (Grounded, The Land of Oz), Marie & Rosetta is a critically acclaimed play-with-music stacked with gorgeous gospel and blues hits. It tells the story of US singer and songwriter Rosetta Tharpe, known as the godmother of rock 'n' roll, and her star student Marie Knight.

The action is set in Mississippi, the year after World War II ended, when Sister Rosetta's brilliant electric guitar playing got her into all sorts of trouble with her church-going community. When she persuades the pure young singer Marie Knight to join her on a tour of the American South, her first task is to bring more swing and soul to Marie's traditional Sunday sound.

This isn't just a compelling story. Sister Rosetta Tharpe was a real person, a pioneering singer, songwriter and guitarist nicknamed the Godmother of Rock 'n' Roll, a woman whose talent influenced countless bands and singers and helped make contemporary music what it is today.

Marie & Rosetta stars the dazzling multi-award-winning singer and actor Beverley Knight (Memphis, The Drifters' Girl, Sylvia, Sister Act) as Rosetta, accompanied by Ntombizodwa Ndlovu (Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, The Space Between Us, Mixtape, Nothing, The Mountaintop) as Marie Knight. The show is directed by Monique Touko (The Boy at the Back of the Class, School Girls aka The African Mean Girls Play). The creative team includes Set Designer Lily Arnold, Costume Designer Jodie-Simone Howe, Movement Director Kloé Dean, Music Supervisor, Arranger and Orchestrator Liam Godwin, and Lighting Designer Matt Haskins. Sound Designer Tony Gayle, Intimacy Director Bethan Clark, Voice and Dialect Coach Joel Trill, Casting Director Jacob Sparrow, Associate Director Jordi M. Carter, and Associate Lighting Designer Teresa Nagel complete an impressive creative team.

Having opened at the Rose Theatre in London to great reviews, then wowed audiences in Wolverhampton and Chichester, Marie and Rosetta tickets are set to be hot property.

Starring:

Beverley Knight

Playing at Soho Place Theatre (@sohoplace)

2 Soho Place, London, WC2H 8LS GB (venue info)

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Marie and Rosetta video