Olivier winner Eleanor Worthington-Cox is starring as Cilla Black and Cynthia Powell, John Lennon’s first wife, in the world premiere of Tom Wright’s play Please Please Me at the Kiln Theatre.
Directed by Amit Sharma, the play tells the story of Brian Epstein, the influential manager often described as the “fifth Beatle”.
Eleanor won an Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Musical when she was one of the original Matilda Wormwoods in the West End production of Matilda The Musical.
As a child, her credits also include: Chorus in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat (Liverpool Empire), Jean Louise “Scout” Finch in To Kill a Mockingbird (Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre), Blousey Brown in Bugsy Malone (Lyric Hammersmith) and Jess in Tomcat (Southwark Playhouse).
More recently her theatre credits have included: Phaedra Cox in Jerusalem (Apollo Theatre), Lily in The Secret Life of Bees (Almeida Theatre), Alexandra Giddens in The Little Foxes (Young Vic), Hero in Much Ado About Nothing (Royal Shakespeare Theatre, Royal Shakespeare Company) and Mary Page Marlowe in Mary Page Marlowe (The Old Vic).
Eleanor starred as Natalie Goodman in Next to Normal at the Donmar Warehouse and in the West End at the Wyndham’s Theatre, receiving an Olivier nomination for Best Actress in a Supporting Role In a Musical. The production was filmed and has been released internationally to huge acclaim.
She has worked across film and television too, with projects including Maleficent, Cucumber, The Enfield Haunting, Hetty Feather, Action Point, Britannia, Gwen, The Irregulars and About A Bell.
Recorded during a break from rehearsals, in this episode Eleanor discusses all-things Please Please Me including how she’s perfecting her portrayal of Cilla and why it's important for her to champion queer storytelling. She also reflects on the impact of Next To Normal, and her journey from Matilda to sustaining a career across stage and screen.
Please Please Me runs at the Kiln Theatre until 29th May. Visit www.kilntheatre.com for info and tickets.
This podcast is hosted by Andrew Tomlins
Thanks for listening!
Email: andrew@westendframe.co.uk
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