Nicole Scherzinger will make her West End stage debut later this year when she stars in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s iconic musical Cats at the London Palladium.
The recording artist and former X Factor judge will play Grizabella, a feline struggling with rejection and loneliness, in the hit musical, which returns to the London stage from 6 December to 28 February. Scherzinger will appear from a limited time only, performing from 6 December to 7 February.
Scherzinger is best known as the lead singer of American pop group The Pussycat Dolls, whose singles include Don’t Cha, Stickwitu, When I Grow Up and I Hate This Part. After leaving the group in 2010 she found success as a solo artist with hits including Don’t Hold Your Breath and Right There before being appointed as a judge on ITV series The X Factor on which she coached James Arthur to victory.
Talking about the role, Scherzinger said: “I am really thrilled to be making my West End debut in such an iconic show and I couldn’t be more excited. To have the opportunity to work with Andrew, Trevor and Gillian is a dream come true. I grew up listening to Andrew’s extraordinary music and was lucky enough, a couple of years ago, to record Cats’ beautiful song Memory. Andrew’s score is breathtaking and I am truly honoured to have been asked to take part in what I know will be a very special time in my career. I can’t wait to begin rehearsals.”
Cats, which has been staged in more than 30 countries and seen by more than 50 million people, is based on T S Elliot’s Old Possum’s Book Of Practical Cats. It tells the story of the Jellicle cats who meet annually at the Jellicle Ball where their leader, Old Deuteronomy, chooses one of them to go to the fabled Heavyside Layer and be reborn.
Scherzinger is joined in the production’s cast by Cameron Ball, Kathryn Barnes, Cassie Clare, Ross Finnie, Charlene Ford, Adam Lake, Paul F Monaghan, Joel Morris, Natasha Mould, Benjamin Mundy, Joseph Poulton, Nicholas Pound, Sophie Ragavelas, Clare Rickard, Adam Salter, Laurie Scarth, Hannah Kenna Thomas, Callum Train, Zizi Strallen, Dawn Williams, Ryan Gover, Barry Haywood, Alice Jane, Grace McKee, Dane Quixall and Libby Watts.
Lloyd Webber’s hit show, which is currently on tour, will open at the London Palladium following Michael Flatley’s Irish dance phenomenon Lord Of The Dance: Dangerous Games, which closes on 25 October.