The 2014 cast of Avenue Q. Photo: Darren Bell Casting and further dates are announced today for award-winning comedy musical Avenue Q, which will bring a host of fuzzy friends to theatres across the country in a new 2015/16 UK Tour. A smash hit on Broadway, in the West End and most recently in a critically-acclaimed 2014 UK Tour, Avenue Q opens at the Mercury Theatre, Colchester on Wednesday 22 April 2015. Featuring the naughtiest puppets in town, brought hilariously to life by an ensemble cast of 11 performers, Avenue Q is a Tony Award-winning musical about growing up, dreaming big, and finding your purpose in life. Meet Princeton, a bright-eyed graduate who comes to New York City with big dreams and a tiny bank account. Soon discovering that the only neighborhood in his price range is Avenue Q, he finds himself moving in with some truly quirky characters. There’s Brian the out-of-work comedian and his therapist fiancée Christmas Eve; Nicky the good-hearted slacker and his closet gay Republican roommate Rod, an Internet ‘sexpert’ called Trekkie Monster and a very cute kindergarten teacher named Kate Monster. And would you believe the building’s superintendent is Gary Coleman?! Featuring hysterically funny songs including The Internet is for Porn and Everyone’s A Little Bit Racist, Avenue Q is a hilarious musical with a warm (and very fuzzy) heart.

The cast features Sarah Harlington as Kate Monster/Lucy the Slut, Richard Lowe as Princeton/Rod and Arina II as Christmas Eve. Returning to the show following last year’s tour are Stephen Arden as Nicky/Trekkie Monster, Richard Morse as Brian, Etisyai Philip as Gary Coleman and Jessica Parker as Mrs T/ Bad Idea Bear. The cast also includes Michael Woolston-Thomas, Douglas Walker and Cleopatra Joseph.

Avenue Q first opened Off-Broadway at the Vineyard Theatre in 2003, before transferring to Broadway later that year where it won three Tony Awards for Best Musical, Best Score and Best Book. In 2006 it transferred to the West End produced by Cameron Mackintosh, where it ran for five years before touring the UK. It has appeared in more than ten countries all over the world. Avenue Q is co-created by Tony, Grammy and Emmy Award-winner Robert Lopez, who also co-created the smash-hit Broadway and West End musical The Book of Mormon. With his wife Kristen Anderson-Lopez, Robert also co-wrote the songs for Disney’s recent animated feature Frozen, with his work also seen on television in Scrubs, The Simpsons and Southpark. Avenue Q is produced by Sell a Door Theatre Company, who first presented this new production in a 6 month tour in 2014. Formed in 2007, Sell a Door creates touring productions aimed at engaging young adults in live theatre. Productions include current UK Tours of The History Boys and Jekyll and Hyde, Seussical in the West End and the debut UK tour of Spring Awakening. Their co-producer is Richard Darbourne Ltd whose work includes the current 25th Anniversary tour of Return to the Forbidden Planet. Avenue Q has a book by Jeff Whitty and music and lyrics by Robert Lopez and Jeff Marx. It is directed and choreographed by Cressida Carré, with set design by Richard Evans, lighting design by Charlie Morgan Jones and sound design by Chris Bogg and DBS Solutions. Orchestrations and arrangements are by Stephen Oremus. It is produced by Sell a Door Theatre Co and Richard Darbourne Ltd. Puppets are designed by Paul Jomain for Q Puppets (www.Qpuppets.co.uk). AVENUE Q TOUR DATES HERE