Wikipedia

Disco Inferno (musical)

Disco Inferno is a 1970s jukebox musical written by Jai Sepple. Set in the East End of London in 1976, the show features songs from the era and is loosely based on the story of Faust.

Disco Inferno
MusicVarious
LyricsVarious
BookJai Sepple
Premiere2004: Harlow Playhouse, Harlow
Productions
  • 2004 London Premiere
  • 2006 London Revival
  • 2012 UK Tour

Original productions

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The musical debuted at the Queens Theatre, Hornchurch in 1999 with revised revivals at the Towngate Theatre, Basildon in 2004 the Kenneth More Theatre, Ilford in 2006.

Character list

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The characters in Disco Inferno were named after well-known characters from songs of the era, such as "Jumpin' Jack Flash", "Wuthering Heights" and "Lady Marmalade".

  • Jack - A young and impressionable wannabe 'superstar'
  • Jane - A kind and devoted frequent at the ‘Disco Inferno’ and Jack’s long suffering girlfriend
  • Tom - Jack's awkward, nerdish best friend and boyfriend of Maggie
  • Maggie - Jane’s clumsy, funny and kind best friend, and girlfriend of Tom
  • Heathcliffe - An egotistical, malevolent singer in the 'Disco Inferno' and Kathy’s tiresome and unpleasant boyfriend
  • Kathy - A flirtatious frequent at the ‘Disco Inferno’ and Heathecliffes forbearing girlfriend
  • Terry - Smooth talking DJ and friend to Jack and Tom
  • Duke - An aging rocker and owner of the nightclub
  • Lady Marmalade - The femme fatale
  • Nick Diablo - Eccentric English fashion guru
  • Lily - A flirtatious barman

The character of Nick Diablo was omitted from both the 2006 and 2012 productions and Lily were omitted from the 2012 UK tour. Some of the characters names' were changed in the 2012 UK tour: Lady Marmalade was renamed Lucretia MacEvil, Kathy was renamed Roxanne and Terry was renamed Billy.

Original casts

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Characters London Premiere
(2004) 		London Revival
(2006) 		UK Tour
(2012)
Jack Jai Sepple Sam Attwater
Jane Jude Stoughton Caroline Koutsoudes Dani Harmer
Tom Richard Stoughton Dan Peek Johnathan Tweedie
Maggie TBC Robyn Gowers Joanna O'Hare
Heathcliffe Nick Lupton Steve Taylor Matthew Goodgame
Kathy / Roxanne TBC Sherona Knight Jennifer Potts
Lady Marmalade Harri Sepple Javine Hylton
Duke Steve Taylor Mark Brock Joe Connors
Terry / Billy Simon Prynn Damien Lewis Michael Watson
Lily Dave Roberts Jamie Riley —
Nick Diablo Dave Adams — —

Plot synopsis

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The show is set in London in 1976; the hottest summer on record. Disco Inferno tells the story of an ambitious and talented hopeful, Jack, and his "burning" desire to make it in the music industry. Working late in a London nightclub, Jack meets Lucretia McEvil – a femme fatale and incarnation of the Devil. Dreaming of becoming successful, he makes a Faustian pact with her, trading his soul to fulfill his wildest fantasies.

Jack soon becomes an international success, making appearances on radio and television shows, but success proves hollow. He has the fame and fortune he's always dreamed of but is losing something far more important – his devoted girlfriend, Jane. One disaster quickly follows another. If only he could turn back time... If only he could make one more deal, trading all he now has for something far more important... the love of his life.

Performances

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Disco Inferno has been performed around the world since it initial debut, countries have included the United Kingdom, Hong Kong, Singapore, China, Jamaica, Sweden, New Zealand, Australia, Pakistan and Norway.

Music

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Generally due to copyright restrictions in different countries songs have varied from production to production. The 2012 UK Tour version of the script was considerably revised.

2004 London premiere

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2006 London revival

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2012 UK Tour

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Publishing and representation

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Disco Inferno is published by various Musical Theatre publishers worldwide.

  • UK - Musical Theatre International, MTI Europe
  • US - Musical Theatre International, MTI
  • Europe - Gallissas Verlag
  • Australia / New Zealand - David Spicer Productions

Cancelled UK tour

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A new version of Disco Inferno began a tour of the UK in the autumn of 2012. The cast included Sam Attwater as 'Jack', Dani Harmer as 'Jane' and Javine Hylton as 'Lucretia MacEvil'. The tour closed after the first week, with the producer citing 'financial problems'.[1]

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References

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  1. ^ Hemley, Matthew (2012-09-05). "Cast owed thousands as Disco Inferno folds". The Stage. Archived from the original on 2019-04-28. Retrieved 2019-04-28.
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