Dame Maureen Lipman will return to the West End stage this summer as she stars in Peter Quilter’s new comedy Allegra.
Tony Award-winner Quilter’s play, which is currently embarking on its UK tour, is set to take the stage in London this July following its widely-praised debut in Brighton earlier this month.
Dame Maureen, 80, stars in the production as titular character Allegra, who is full of irrepressible optimism which means she cannot stop herself from bursting into song, creating chaos in her village with her musical outbursts.
Olivier Award-winning actress Dame Maureen leads the cast, joined by soap actress Elizabeth Bowe, Emmerdale star John Middleton and London Kills’ Bailey Patrick.
Allegra kicked off its UK tour earlier this month and is currently being staged in Wycombe, with upcoming dates in Aberdeen, Malvern, London, Windsor, Glasgow and Bath before its West End run.
It marked Dame Maureen’s first UK tour in 20 years, while her return to the West End comes almost three years on from her performance in Martin Sherman’s one-woman play Rose – as an elderly Jewish woman reflecting on her survival from Nazi-occupied Europe.
Allegra has been produced by Thomas Hopkins Productions, an award-winning company founded in 2019, which has put on hit Broadway shows such as Oedipus and Liberation.
It is directed and choreographed by Stephen Mear, who last worked with Dame Maureen almost three decades ago on the National Theatre’s critically acclaimed production of Oklahoma! in 1998.
Dame Maureen has previously been hailed by playwright Quilter as “one of the great theatrical treasures of this country”, and he said: “To have her bring Allegra to life is a joy and an honour.”
Her lengthy CV includes everything from a comedy turn in a BT advert, to a supporting role in the acclaimed comedy-drama Educating Rita, alongside Sir Michael Caine and Dame Julie Walters.
A memorable role for her was in the hit ITV sitcom Agony from 1979 to 1981, playing an agony aunt who dished out advice to others while her personal life was a shambles.
Through her almost six-decade career, the actress has been nominated for seven Olivier Awards, having won one 1984 for Best Comedy Performance in See How They Run.
Allegra will open at London’s Harold Pinter Theatre on July 8 for a month-long run until August 8.
