Nicole Scherzinger will to star in a brand new production of Andrew Lloyd-Webber's Sunset Boulevard in the West End. The revival will be directed by Jamie Lloyd and run for a limited 16-week season at the Savoy Theatre, beginning this September.
In a statement announcing the revival of the musical, Lloyd said, “After our reappraisal of Evita at the Open Air Theatre, Regent’s Park, I’m very excited to rediscover another iconic Lloyd Webber musical — and Sunset Boulevard is one of his most thrilling, complex and atmospheric scores. We are so fortunate to have the opportunity to create a new production of this fascinating piece with the extraordinary Nicole Scherzinger.”
Scherzinger is perhaps best known as a judge on X Factor and as the lead singer of the girl group The Pussycat Dolls. Her credentials also include multiple stage and screen musicals, including roles in the West End revival and movie adaptation of Webber's 'Cats'.
Webber commented on the appointment in a statement, “Nicole is one of the finest singers I have worked with, and I can’t wait to get started on this exciting show with her and the rest of this brilliant team.”
Scherzinger will star in the musical as aging film star Norma Desmond who gets close with an up-and-coming Hollywood screenwriter in the hope of reviving her flagging career, but their relationship takes a turn for the worse with disastrous results. Sunset Boulevard has a book and lyrics by Don Black and Christopher Hampton, with songs, composed by Lloyd-Webber, that include "With One Look and "As If We Never Said Goodbye."
The production is being staged by Lloyd Webber Harrison Musicals and The Jamie Lloyd Company, which celebrates its 10th anniversary this year. The company's other productions this year include 'The Effect' starring Taylor Russell and Paapa Essiedu, which will open at the Lyttelton Theatre in August 2023.