Tammy Faye
Original London production poster
MusicElton John
LyricsJake Shears
BookJames Graham
BasisThe life of Tammy Faye Messner
Premiere13 October 2022: Almeida Theatre, London
Productions2022 London

Tammy Faye is a biographic stage musical with music by Elton John, lyrics by Jake Shears and a book by James Graham, based on the life of Tammy Faye Messner. [1]

Production history

Off-West End (2022)

Tammy Faye had its world premiere production at the Almeida Theatre in London, previewing from 13 October 2022 (with an official press night on 26 October) running until 2 December. The production was due to close on the 3 December, however due to illness in the cast the final performances were cancelled.[2] The production is directed by the Almeida's artistic director Rupert Goold with choreography by Lynne Page, design by Bunny Christie, costume design by Katrina Lindsay and lighting design by Neil Austin.

The cast included Katie Brayben as Tammy Faye and Andrew Rannells as Jim Bakker.[3]

Broadway (2024)

In November 2023, it was announced that the show will transfer to a Nederlander Theatre on Broadway during the 2024-25 season. Specific dates and casting are still to be announced.[4]

Cast and characters

Character Off-West End (2022)
Tammy Faye Messner Katie Brayben
Jim Bakker Andrew Rannells
Nurse / PTL Singer / Heritage Partner / Prime Time Girl / FBI Agent / Letter Writer Kelly Agbowu
Jan Crouch / Susie Moppet / Lori Beth Amy Booth-Steel
PTL Singer / Jesus Colin Burnicle
PTL Singer / Oral Roberts / Reggie / Steve Pieters / Charles Shepherd Ashley Campbell
Billy Graham / Larry Flint / Pontius Pilate / Judge Peter Caulfield
PTL Singer / FBI / Letter Writer Danny Collins
Paul Crouch / Ally the Alligator / Colonel Sanders Richard Dempsey
Proctologist / Marvin Gorman / Monson / TV Ad Voice Fred Haig
PTL Singer / Jim's Mom / Production Manager / Heritage Partner / Prime Time Girl Georgia Louise
Nurse / PTL Singer / Heritage Waitress / Newsreader / Prime Time Girl / Linda Robyn Rose
Ted Turner / Pat Robertson / The Pope Nicholas Rowe
John Fletcher Martin Sarreal
Jimmy Swaggart / Archbishop of Canterbury / Reagan Steve John Shepherd
Nurse / Receptionist / Announcer / Jessica Hahn Gemma Sutton
Jerry Falwell Zubin Varla

Musical numbers

Critical reception

The musical received positive reviews from audiences and critics including four star reviews from The Guardian,[5] Time Out,[6] The Independent,[7] Financial Times,[8] WhatsOnStage,[9] and The Sunday Times.[10]

Awards

Year Award Category Nominee Result
2023 Laurence Olivier Awards[11][12] Best New Musical Nominated
Best Actress in a Musical Katie Brayben Won
Best Actor in a Musical Andrew Rannells Nominated
Best Actor in a Supporting Role in a Musical Zubin Varla Won

References

  1. ^ Wolf, Matt (27 October 2022). "Review: Praise the Lord for 'Tammy Faye'". New York Times.
  2. ^ "Musical Tammy Faye tells gay icon's life story with score by Elton John". the Guardian. 2022-08-23. Retrieved 2022-08-25.
  3. ^ "Full cast for Tammy Faye musical at the Almeida announced | WhatsOnStage". www.whatsonstage.com. 23 August 2022. Retrieved 2022-08-25.
  4. ^ Rabinowitz, Chloe. "New Musical TAMMY FAYE is Coming to Broadway During 2024-25 Season". BroadwayWorld.com. Retrieved 2023-11-17.
  5. ^ "Tammy Faye: A New Musical review – Elton John's hymn to biblical kitsch". the Guardian. 2022-10-27. Retrieved 2022-11-13.
  6. ^ Lukowski, Andrzej (27 October 2022). "Elton John's new London musical 'Tammy Faye' is a joyously camp tribute to the oddball US televangelist". Time Out London. Retrieved 2022-11-13.
  7. ^ "New show Tammy Faye is camp, cutesy and hard to resist – review". The Independent. 2022-10-27. Retrieved 2022-11-13.
  8. ^ "Tammy Faye, Almeida Theatre review — Elton John's delirious glitz-bomb of a musical". Financial Times. 2022-10-27. Retrieved 2022-11-13.
  9. ^ "Tammy Faye review – divine work from Elton John, Jake Shears and James Graham in new musical | WhatsOnStage". www.whatsonstage.com. 26 October 2022. Retrieved 2022-11-13.
  10. ^ Letts, Quentin. "Tammy Faye: Elton John helps put the fun into fundamentalism". The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 2022-11-13.
  11. ^ Stage, Guardian (2023-02-28). "Olivier awards 2023: complete list of nominations". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2023-03-16.
  12. ^ "Olivier awards 2023: full list of winners". The Guardian. 2 April 2023. Retrieved 17 September 2023.
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