The Harder They Come - Playhouse Theatre

SYNOPSIS

The Harder They Come

The distinctive sound of reggae echoes out from the Playhouse Theatre on Northumberland Avenue in the West End during 2008. The Harder They Come - a stage adaptation of Perry Henzell's 1972 Jamaican crime movie of the same name - opened its doors to the public on 9 June. It is scheduled to run at the Playhouse Theatre through to November 2008, and represents Perry Henzell's last major contribution to the world of stage and screen - Henzell died in December 2006 at the age of 70.

Reggae reaches out

The Harder They Come brought the sound of reggae out into the wider world when it was released at the Venice Film Festival in 1972. It became an instant classic, spawning a string of legendary reggae tunes including "Higher and Higher", "You Can Get It If You Really Want" and "Rivers of Babylon". With the stage version of The Harder They Come Perry Henzell sought to recapture the groundbreaking vibrancy of those reggae classics, and transform them into a complete sensory package for theatre audiences. This he achieved in style during 2006 - just months before his death from cancer - when The Harder They Come opened at the Theatre Royal in Stratford on 25 March of that year. It ran through until May 2006, and returned again in the spring of 2007. Both runs were sell-outs.

In spring 2008 the production moved to the Barbican Arts Centre for a one-month run, ahead of a successful staging at the Birmingham Hippodrome. June 2008 saw the production return to London - this time to the Playhouse Theatre for a six-month residency in the West End.

The story of Ivan Martin

Ivan Martin is the central character in The Harder They Come. A singer who is down on his luck, Ivan heads out to Kingston, Jamaica with a dream - a dream of becoming a reggae star. It doesn't take Ivan long however to discover the painful truth - if you have what it takes to be a reggae star in the early 1970s, the only way to make it happen is to sign away the rights to your music. Half in despair, half in desperation to keep his dream alive, Ivan turns to a life of crime - one that becomes ever more dangerous as the clock ticks by on his life.

West End production

The West End production of The Harder They Come at the Playhouse Theatre features actor Rolan Bell as Ivan. It is a reprisal of the role he played with great success, both at the Barbican Arts Centre and at the Theatre Royal in Stratford. Actress Joanna Francis takes the female lead role of Elsa. The performance also features a live reggae band.

Artistic directors Kerry Michael and Dawn Reid oversee the production, just as they did at the Theatre Royal in Stratford. Jacki Guy choreographs the show.

The Playhouse Theatre is situated close to Embankment tube station. Visitors should take the Villiers Street exit from the station and turn left. The theatre is on the next right turn into Northumberland Avenue.