SOMETHING ROTTEN! Full cast announced

FULL CAST CONFIRMED

JOINING THE PREVIOUSLY ANNOUNCED

JASON MANFORD, RICHARD FLEESHMAN
AND MARISHA WALLACE

IN

SOMETHING ROTTEN!

THE UK PREMIERE OF AWARD-WINNING COMEDY MUSICAL

OPENING IN MANCHESTER THIS JUNE

Full casting is now revealed for the highly anticipated UK premiere of award-winning comedy musical Something Rotten! which will open at the Manchester Opera House from 16 June to 19 July 2026, ahead of a West End run.

As previously announced, the side-splitting mash-up of song, dance and Elizabethan absurdity that tells the story behind the creation of the world’s very first musical will star comedy, TV and musical theatre icon Jason Manford (Sweeney Todd, The Producers, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang) as Nick Bottom, star of stage and screen Richard Fleeshman (Company, Ghost the Musical, Legally Blonde The Musical, Coronation Street) as William Shakespeare, and Actress and singer Marisha Wallace (Guys and Dolls, Oklahoma!, Waitress and Dreamgirls) as Bea.

Joining them will be Cory English as Nostradamus, Cassius Hackforth as Nigel Bottom, Carla Dixon-Hernandez as Portia, Gareth Davies as Shylock, Chad Saint Louis as Troubadour, Paul Ryan as Brother Jeremiah and Elliotte Williams-N’Dure as Lady C with Andrew Davison, Dylan Collymore, Jordan Cambridge-Taylor, Richard James-Neale and Paul Kemble as Troupe.

The cast is completed by Stephanie Costi, Robert Donnelly, Zac Frieze, Samuel How, Bailey Johnson, Jessica Keable, Rhys Lambert, Sara Morley, Indiya Payne, Hannah Petley, and Rina Punwani.

The ‘90s are back! The 1590s, that is. Brothers Nick and Nigel Bottom are desperate to write a hit play but remain stuck in the shadow of that pompous Renaissance rockstar Will Shakespeare. When a quirky soothsayer foretells an outlandish future for theatre – full of acting, singing and dancing all at the same time – Nick and Nigel set out to write this strange new creation called A MUSICAL! But amidst the scandalous excitement of Opening Night, the Bottom Brothers discover that reaching the top means being true to thine own self… and all that jazz.

Created by the award-winning team behind Mrs. Doubtfire: The Musical: Grammy award-winning songwriter Wayne Kirkpatrick (Change the World, Every Heartbeat), screenwriter Karey Kirkpatrick (Chicken Run, Over the Hedge,  James and the Giant Peach) and best-selling author and comedy scriptwriter John O’Farrell (Spitting Image, Have I Got News for You, Just For One Day), Something Rotten! was the toast of Broadway where it received 10 Tony Award nominations.  

This new production, which follows the acclaimed 2023 WhatsOnStage Award-winning concert version, is directed and choreographed by Tim Jackson (Merrily We Roll Along, Two Strangers Carry a Cake Across New York). The creative team is completed by Set Designer Colin Richmond, Costume Designer Rebecca Brower, Lighting Designer Howard Hudson, Audio Production & Sounder Designer Paul Gatehouse, Co-choreographer Claira Vaughan, Musical Supervisor Nick Finlow, Hair, Wigs and Make Up Designer Carole Hancock, Casting by Jill Green Casting and Production Management by Patrick Molony and Chris Easton.

Something Rotten! is presented by Broadway and West End producers, Kevin McCollum of Alchemation and JAS Theatricals. This production is licensed by Music Theatre International. 

Manchester Abid has supported the Opera House’s Manchester Gets it First programme to help bring Something Rotten! to Manchester.

Tickets

somethingrottenthemusical.com