Charlie and the Chocolate Factory rehearsals

The last few months I have been busy working on the new West End musical Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. With some productions I am in and out, taking rehearsal and production photographs in an afternoon or evening, but every so often I get to properly immerse myself in a show. This has been the case with Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, who asked me to come in from the very beginning to cover the first rehearsal, and a good number of rehearsals subsequently. With any production there is a careful distribution of images, many photographs aren't released until after the show opens in case it gives too much of the plot away for example. Here are a few images that have been published, they have been used in the Guardian, Times and Evening Standard, and in the coming months I will be able to blog more.

The show is directed by Sam Mendes and stars Douglas Hodge as Willy Wonka. Please click on the the thumbnails to see larger images.

I was also asked to go behind the scenes and photograph the building of the set at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane. It is fascinating to go into the theatre as a set is being built - the sheer scale of the production is huge and seeing it all being put together is fascinating. Plus I got to wear a hard hat, and climb high ladders, which always adds a bit of excitement to a cold grey morning. As the production photographer I have to admit to bias, however I can honestly say it looks fantastic - the stage is amazing, the choreography is inventive and the cast are excellent. The show opens next week and I would recommend you buy tickets now before they sell out.