Message in a Bottle | Sadler's Wells Blog

Message In A Bottle: announcing the cast and creatives

An exceptional cast of dancers and a multi-award winning creative team come together for Message In A Bottle, the hotly anticipated new dance theatre show by Sadler’s Wells Associate Artist Kate Prince, set to the music of 17-time Grammy Award-winning artist Sting.

A Sadler’s Wells and Universal Music UK production, Message In A Bottle receives its world premiere at The Peacock from 6 February – 21 March 2020, followed by a UK and international tour (more dates to be announced).

The cast

Message In A Bottle sees a village alive with joyous celebrations suddenly come under siege. In the chaos, three siblings, Leto, Mati and Tana are separated from their parents; they undertake a perilous journey to new lands and step out on their own extraordinary adventures.

Message In A Bottle is performed by an extraordinary ensemble of dancers from ZooNation: The Kate Prince Company. Lukas McFarlane, a winner of Sky 1’s Got to Dance, plays Leto; Tommy Franzen, who stars in the new Tom Hooper-directed CATS, is Mati; and Natasha Gooden – whose credits include Blak Whyte Gray with Boy Blue and Strictly Come Dancing – performs the role of Tana.

Natasha Gooden, who plays Tana in Message In A Bottle. Rehearsal image (c) Johan Persson

Joining them are Lizzie Gough, a finalist on So You Think You Can Dance and judge on CBBC’s Alesha’s Street Dance Stars; and Nafisah Baba, winner of BBC Young Dancer in 2017.

Making their ZooNation debut in this production are Samuel Baxter, Onyemachi Ejimofor, Anna Holmström, Emma ‘Shortbread’ Houston, Ajani Johnson-Goffe, Daniella May, Daniel Phung and Hannah Sandilands. Completing the company is Kino McHugh, Michael Naylor, Aaron Nuttall, Delano Spenrath, Annie Edwards, Nestor Garcia Gonzalez and Gavin L Vincent.

“I am so inspired by this incredible international company of ZooNation dancers. Their skill and ability is insane” explains Kate Prince. “The company has some of the best breakers and contemporary movers I’ve encountered during my 20 years of working in professional dance. Their dedication and discipline, agility, strength, stamina and their ability to tell stories through dance are both mind blowing and exhilarating. I feel very fortunate that I get to tell this very important story with them and to create movement with their fantastically talented and expressive bodies.”

Lukas McFarlane, who plays Leto in Message In A Bottle. Rehearsal image (c) Johan Persson

The creative team

Message In A Bottle includes new musical arrangements by Alex Lacamoire, the celebrated Grammy and Tony Award-winning musical director known for his work on Hamilton (2016), In The Heights (2008), Dear Evan Hansen (2017), The Greatest Showman (2017), Fosse/Verdon (2019) and Carmen La Cubana (2016). Music production and additional arrangements for the show come from multi-Grammy Award winner Martin Terefe, who has written and produced for artists including Jason Mraz, Sean Mendes, KT Tunstall, Tom Odell and Train.

Alex Lacamoire provides new musical arrangements for the show

Message In A Bottle has set design by Ben Stones (MEN 2011 Award winner for Best Design for Doctor Faustus at the Royal Exchange); video design by Andrzej Goulding (winner of the inaugural Theatre and Technology Award for Creative Innovation in Video Design for Room in 2017); costume design by Anna Fleischle (Olivier Award winner, 2016 for Hangmen); and lighting design by Natasha Chivers (Olivier Award winner, 2007 for Sunday in the Park with George).

Sound design is by David McEwan (Music Producers Guild award winner); music co-production and mixing is by Grammy Award-winning Oskar Winberg; and dramaturgy is by Lolita Chakrabarti, whose writing credits include Life Of Pi and Red Velvet. The Associate Choreographer is Lukas McFarlane (Strictly Come Dancing).

Message In A Bottle makes its world premiere at Sadler’s Wells’ West End theatre, The Peacock, from 6 Feb – 21 Mar 2020. To book, call the ticket office on 020 7863 8000 or book online.

A Sadler’s Wells and Universal Music UK production co-produced with Birmingham Hippodrome and The Lowry, Salford. Research and development supported by The Movement.

Everything you need to know about the new production choreographed by Kate Prince, set to the music of Sting

Sadler’s Wells and Universal Music UK have announced a new dance theatre production by Associate Artist Kate Prince, set to the iconic music of multi-Grammy award-winning artist, Sting, and co-produced with Birmingham Hippodrome and The Lowry.

The spectacular production will include hits from across Sting’s catalogue, including Every Breath You Take, Roxanne, Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic, Walking On The Moon, Englishman in New York, Shape of My Heart and Fields of Gold.

Sting said: “It’s an intriguing idea to align my songs and music with the work of a successful and highly esteemed choreographer of Kate’s standing. I witnessed one of the first workshops and was very excited by the potential. It’s always interesting when someone from another field offers a fresh and unexpected perspective on your work and I’m so looking forward to seeing the piece.”

This production is the latest work from the creator behind Some Like it Hip Hop; Into The Hoods; Everybody’s Talking About Jamie (choreography) and SYLVIA, and features the astonishing talents of dance storytelling troupe, ZooNation: The Kate Prince Company.

The story follows the determined and daring adventures of three parted siblings in the aftermath of a tragic siege. Timely, moving and vital, an uplifting story of hope will be told with Kate Prince’s trademark spirited choreography.

“I’ve been a fan of Sting and The Police all my life and have seen him play live four times,” said Kate. “As a choreographer, when I listen to any music, I am always inspired to create dance, and Sting’s music, which has been playing in my headphones for over 30 years, kept bringing me to the same thought, ‘I want to choreograph to this’. As a body of work it is a choreographer’s dream. I mentioned the idea in passing to Alistair Spalding, who has been supporting my career and ZooNation for 15 years. Pretty soon I found myself nervously entering the lobby of a swanky London hotel to pitch the idea to Sting himself. Much to my complete surprise but complete delight, it is actually happening! All of my work has a narrative. I love stories, and you can expect this to be no different. Sting’s lyrics draw on so many themes, from political to the tragic, from death and heartache to love and hope.”

Alistair Spalding, Artistic Director and Chief Executive of Sadler’s Wells, said: “We have supported Kate Prince and her company ZooNation for 15 years and Kate became an Associate Artist at Sadler’s Wells in 2010. A little while ago she mentioned to me that she had always been a fan of the music of The Police and Sting – this coincided with Universal Music and Sadler’s Wells discussing possible joint projects and the synchronicity has led to this wonderful project becoming a reality for our Peacock stage and beyond. The meeting of this rich catalogue of music and Kate Prince’s inventive and energy-filled choreography in the rehearsal studios has proven the incredible potential of this collaboration.”

Full cast to be announced following national auditions.

Message In A Bottle makes its world premiere at Sadler’s Wells’ West End theatre, The Peacock, from 6 Feb – 21 Mar 2020. Tickets go on sale from 25 Feb 2019. To book, call the ticket office on 020 7863 8000 or book online. Priority booking is open to members from 22 Feb 2019. Find out more and become a member today.

Images: Johan Persson