A dancer who auditioned for a background role in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s new musical Cinderella was plucked from obscurity by the West End theatre creator to play a lead role in the show.
Ivano Turco, 21, is to play Prince Sebastian in the upcoming production of Cinderella. The show, which will open in spring 2021 at The Gillian Lynne Theatre, is a new take on the classic tale, written by Emerald Fennell - the Emmy-nominated writer of the second series of Killing Eve.
Fennell, who recently played Camilla Parker Bowles in the fourth series of The Crown, is also the writer and director of A Promising Young Woman - the latest Carey Mulligan movie.
Les Miserables and Mary Poppins star Carrie Hope Fletcher will play Cinderella in the production. Director Laurence Connor and choreographer JoAnn M Hunter are also part of the creative team. Both previously worked on School of Rock and Joseph & the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat at The London Palladium.
Turco, a graduate of Urdang Academy in Islington, will make his West End debut in the role - having only starred in a handful of productions until now.
He was due to appear in West Side Story at the Royal Exchange, Manchester, but the run was cancelled due to the pandemic.
The Zimbabwe-born dancer, who grew up in Milton Keynes, went to his first audition back in July for an ensemble part. After getting through the first rounds, he performed in front of Lloyd Webber - who asked him to stay for further auditions.
Turco said: “I was asked to stay behind and I remember being in the dressing room pacing nervously. I had to dance and sing in front of the creative team and then... two days later I got the call.”
About the moment he found out he was playing Prince Sebastian, he said: “It was surreal. I had to keep looking at my phone to make sure the call had happened and I didn’t dream it. It still feels weird now saying: ‘My role’. I can’t believe it. It really is the stuff of fairy tales. It is a magical story.”
He performed with Fletcher just days after his casting - adding: “She is everything that you would expect. She is really lovely. It can be quite intimidating meeting people like her and singing with her - but she was just wonderful.”
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Speaking about Turco, Lloyd Webber said: “I’m overjoyed to introduce Ivano Turco as our Prince Sebastian in Cinderella. I’m convinced audiences will fall in love with him, as we did. Straight out of college, Ivano initially came in to audition as a dancer but has a natural acting talent, a wonderful voice and an innate charm and warmth and from the day we met I just knew I’d found our Prince!”
On Friday, the cast will release the second track - Only You, Lonely You - from the forthcoming album from the show.
It follows the release of Bad Cinderella sung by Fletcher, which came out in October.
All further information at www.andrewlloydwebberscinderella.com
