Tina Turner, Adrienne Warren & Phyllida Lloyd

Today, 17 October 2017, Adrienne Warren was announced by Tina Turner as the actor who will portray her in the world premiere of the new musical TINA.  Directed by Phyllida Lloyd, TINA will open at the Aldwych Theatre in April 2018.  Performances will begin on 21 March 2018 with press night on 17 April 2018.  Produced by Stage Entertainment, TINA is currently booking to 16 June 2018.

Written by Katori Hall with Frank Ketelaar and Kees Prins and directed by Phyllida Lloyd, with choreography by Anthony van Laast, set and costume designs are by Mark Thompson, musical supervision by Nicholas Skilbeck, lighting by Bruno Poet sound by Nevin Steinberg and orchestrations by Ethan Popp.  Further casting for TINA will be announced in due course.

Adrienne Warren said: “Growing up watching Tina, I knew how to shake my hips before I could tie my shoes!  I am so grateful to our creative team and producers for entrusting me with this responsibility.  I say responsibility, because I am a Tina Turner fan first. I am elated, honoured and humbled.  Meeting and working with Tina is and will always be one of the great moments of my life.  Can’t wait to see you in London!”

Tina Turner said:  “It has been my joy to introduce Adrienne today.  From the moment I met her at our last workshop I saw her exceptional talent. Playing this role will require immense physical and emotional commitment, and bravery too. We are thrilled to have found Adrienne, and I very much look forward to spending more time together and developing a special friendship I know will grow even stronger as we prepare the production for the Aldwych Theatre. We can’t wait to welcome her to the show.”

From humble beginnings in Nutbush, Tennessee, to her transformation into the global Queen of Rock ‘n’ Roll, Tina Turner didn’t just break the rules, she rewrote them. This new stage musical, presented in association with Tina Turner herself, reveals the untold story of a woman who dared to defy the bounds of her age, gender and race.

Adrienne Warren will make her West End stage debut as Tina.  Her most recent theatre credit was in Shuffle Along at the Music Box Theatre on Broadway, for which she received a Tony nomination.  Her other US theatre credits include Bring it On the Musical at St. James Theatre, Dreamgirls at the Apollo Theater, which was followed by a National Tour, andThe Wiz at Encores City Center.  She has toured and recorded with the multi-platinum selling Trans Siberian Orchestra in which she received her first Platinum and Gold records.  Her television credits include the Amazon Pilot Point of Honor, Orange is the New Black, Blue Bloods, Royal Pains, People in New Jersey, Irreversible, and Black Box.  In March this year, she made her Carnegie Hall debut with the New York Pops.

With a career that has spanned more than half a century, the legendary rock performer Tina Turner is one of the world’s best-selling artists of all time.  She first rose to fame in the 1960s partnering with her then-husband Ike Turner, achieving great acclaim for their live performances and catalogue of hits.  Later, Turner enjoyed an international solo career with her 1984 album Private Dancer earning her widespread recognition and numerous awards, including three Grammys.  She went on to deliver more chart-topping albums and hits,receiving a further eight Grammy Awards and reportedly selling more concert tickets than any other solo performer in history. The revered singer was introduced into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1991 and has often been voted as one of the most successful female Rock ‘n’ Roll artists of all time.

Katori Hall is a writer and performer from Memphis, Tennessee.  In 2016, her play Children of Killers was performed as part of the National Theatre’s Connections Festival.  Her play The Mountaintop, premiering at Theatre503 in 2009, received a transfer to Trafalgar Studios and became the winner of the 2010 Olivier Award for Best New Play, and following the West End run the play opened on Broadway in October 2011 starring Samuel L Jackson and Angela Bassett.  Hall’s other writing includes the award-winning Hurt Villagecurrently in development for a feature film, Hoodoo Love, Remembrance, Saturday Night/Sunday Morning, WHADDABLOODCLOT!!!, Our Lady of Kibeho, Pussy Valley and The Blood Quilt.  Earlier this month Hall was named Artistic Director of the Hattiloo Theatre in Memphis.

Phyllida Lloyd returns to the West End where she has previously directed the world premiere of MAMMA MIA!, currently still running in London after 18 years.  Her production subsequently opened on Broadway and worldwide becoming a global phenomenon before she directed a film version for Universal Pictures.  More recently she has directed a Shakespeare Trilogy for the Donmar at King’s Cross – Henry IV, Julius Caesar and The Tempest, all of which were also seen in New York where she has previously directed Taming of the Shrew at the Public Theatre and Josephine and I at Joe’s Pub at The Public, a transfer from The Bush.  Previously for the Donmar Warehouse she directed Mary Stuart which transferred to the Apollo Theatre and then Broadway, The Threepenny Opera and Boston Marriage.  She directed Six Degrees of Separation, Hysteria and Wild East all for the Royal Court, The Rime of the Ancient Mariner with Fiona Shaw at the Old Vic Tunnels, Brooklyn Academy of Music and Epidaurus, The Way of the World, Pericles, What the Butler Saw, The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie and The Duchess of Malfi all for the National Theatre, Artists and Admirers and The Virtuoso for the Royal Shakespeare Company.  Her other film credits include The Iron Lady, starring Meryl Streep in the role of Margaret Thatcher, and Gloriana.  Lloyd has directed many productions for the Royal Opera House and English National Opera and as well as winning multiple awards for her work, in 2012 she was awarded a CBE.

TINA is produced by Stage Entertainment, Joop van den Ende and Tali Pelman, in association with Tina Turner.

Adrienne Warren is appearing with the support of UK Equity, incorporating the Variety Artistes’ Federation, pursuant to an exchange program between American Equity and UK Equity.