EVERYBODY’S TALKING ABOUT JAMIE‘S OPENING
Casting has been announced and tickets are now on sale for Friends Ticket Presale & American Express ® Presale and, Nov. 17, the general public for the North American premiere of the West End hit musical Everybody’s Talking About Jamie at L.A.’s Ahmanson Theatre Jan 16 thru Febu 20, 2022. Layton Williams and Roy Haylock (also known as Bianca Del Rio, winner of RuPaul’s Drag Race) will be reprising their roles from the West End production as Jamie and Hugo/Loco Chanelle, respectively.
Roy Haylock as 'Hugo/Loco Chanelle' and Layton Williams as 'Jamie New'
with the cast of the West End production of Everybody’s Talking About Jamie.
Also on stage — all of whom were involved in the West End production: Melissa Jacques as Margaret, Shobna Gulati as Ray (also stars as Ray in the New Regency film), Gillian Ford as Miss Hedge, Hiba Elchikhe as Pritti Pasha, Marlon G. Day as Jamie’s Dad, James Gillan as Tray Sophisticay, David O’Reilly as Laika Virgin, Leon Craig as Sandra Bollock, Richard Appiah-Sarpong as Cy, Zion Battles as Levi, Ryan Hughes as Mickey, Jodie Knight as Fatimah, Harriet Payne as Bex, Adam Taylor as Sayid and Rachel Seirian as Swing.
The Los Angeles cast also features George Sampson as Dean, Kazmin Borrer as Vicki, Talia Palamathanan as Becca, Simeon Beckett as Swing/Dance Captain and Emma Robotham-Hunt as Swing/Assistant Dance Captain who were in the UK touring production.
Layton Williams as 'Jamie'.
Jamie New (played by Williams) is sixteen and lives in public housing in Sheffield, England. Jamie doesn’t quite fit in, he’s terrified about the future and he’s going to be a sensation. Supported by his loving mum (played Jacques); inspired by local legend Hugo and his alter ego Loco Chanelle (played by Haylock); and surrounded by his friends, Jamie overcomes prejudice, beats the bullies and steps out of the darkness, into the spotlight. “Everybody’s Talking About Jamie” features catchy songs by Dan Gillespie Sells, lead singer-songwriter of UK rock band The Feeling with book and lyrics by writer Tom MacRae.
Director Jonathan Butterell saw the Firecracker documentary film “Jamie: Drag Queen at 16” the true story of Jamie Campbell and his mother, Margaret. This inspired him to create this musical which is a dramatized portrayal of a period in Jamie’s life but is not a faithful account. Certain events and characters have been fictionalized. Fresh and contemporary with an extraordinary mother and son relationship at its center, Everybody’s Talking About Jamie celebrates acceptance, belonging, the power of unconditional love of a mother for her child and how good life is when everybody is the best they can be.
Layton Williams as 'Jamie New'.
photos by Johan Persson
Everybody’s Talking About Jamie
Ahmanson Theatre at The Music Center, 135 N. Grand Avenue in Downtown L.A.
Jan 16 – Feb 20, 2022
for tickets, call (213) 972-4400 or visit CTG
