No hols for the Dolly stars

Actors joining the eagerly awaited Hello, Dolly!, starring Imelda staunton (below left) in the title role, have been told that there will be no holidays for the cast during the 30-week run.

Instead, producers Michael Harrison and David Ian will pay the cast in lieu of holiday entitlements, plus they will perform only seven (rather than the usual eight) performances a week.

‘Imelda was very keen to do 30 weeks with the actors she would have been with from day one,’ said Harrison, who explained that staunton did not want to perform with people with whom she hadn’t properly rehearsed. He said that Andy Nyman, who plays Horace Vandergelder, agreed with her.

‘We will have swings, covers and understudies because it can’t be helped if people become ill. But everyone who has signed on to this Hello, Dolly! won’t be taking holidays,’ Harrison added.

‘Imelda will be doing every performance. she won’t have someone else on for the weekday or saturday matinee or the Monday night performance. to balance it out for her and everyone, there will be seven performances, otherwise it’s a lot to ask.’ He added that it showed no ‘disrespect’ to understudies ‘who are valued by all’. Joining the already announced staunton, Nyman and Jenna russell (as Irene Molloy) will be Harry Hepple (of Follies and rutherford And son, both at the National theatre) and tyrone Huntley (pictured top, from Dreamgirls and Jesus christ superstar) as store clerks cornelius Hackl and Barnaby tucker. clare Halse, so good in the recent 42nd street, will play hat shop assistant Minnie Fay. the production, directed by Dominic cooke, will run at the Adelphi theatre from August 11.

Bill Deamer, who worked with cooke on Follies at the National, will do the choreography, and rae smith has been hired to create the sets.