West End musicals
The 'West End is London's theatreland - home to over forty theatres. London's plays, shows, and operas attract around 11 million visitors per year and, with tickets costing around £30 each, they bring a lot of income into the capital. The biggest West End attractions are always musicals. Cats ran for 21 years, and Les Miserables is currently celebrating its 18th year in the West End. Here are some of the hottest tickets in town today.
My Fair Lady is based on G. B. Shaw's 1916 play Pygmalion and tells the story of Eliza Doolittle, the Cockney flower-seller chosen from the streets by a professor of linguistics and transformed into a lady. This current production opened in 2001 starring Martine McCutcheon from the TV soap EastEnders. It features well-known songs such as "I'm getting married in the morning" and "On the street where you live".
Bombay Dreams is based in the Indian film industry and features an all-Asian cast. The story centers around Akaash, a poor boy played by Raza Jaffrey, who becomes a film star and falls in love with the daughter of one of Bombay's greatest film directors. The show features modern Indian pop music, such as "Shakalaka Baby", and dazzling costumes and choreography. It opened in 2002 and quickly became one of the most popular shows in London.
We Will Rock You opened in 2002. This musical, with a script by comedian Ben Elton, takes place in the future when rock music is illegal. The story is based on famous songs by Queen such as "Bohemian Rhapsody" and "I Want to Break Free", the set resembles a rock concert and there are plenty of special effects. And Tony Vincent, who plays the hero Galileo Figaro, sounds very like Queen's lead singer, Freddie Mercury.