DADDY COOL Co-Producer Surprised by Cancellation of UK Tour

In response to the news that the UK touring production of DADDY COOL was cancelled, the tour's co-producer Albert Verlinde Entertainment (AVE) has stated it was "surprised by the late decision of the English producers". AVE created this new version of the show for a tour in the Netherlands in the 2011-2012 season and was aiming to present it abroad in cooperation with local producers.

What was to be the first international adventure by AVE has been haunted by setbacks. The show's first stop on the island of Mallorca for the holiday season was cancelled after less than two weeks when co-producer Sunny Music Entertainment went bust. The cast, consisting mostly of original Dutch cast members reprising their roles and Sheila Ferguson (of Three Degrees fame) were sent home.

As announced by BroadwayWorld previously, after Mallorca the show would tour the UK with British TV presenter Jane McDonald in the role of Ma Baker. It was due to open early October 2012 with performances scheduled through to early December.

McDonald confirmed the cancellation of the UK tour on her Facebook page, stating "I've just received a call to say that the DADDY COOL UK Tour has now been officially cancelled. I'm really disappointed it will not be going ahead and sorry to so many of you that had been looking forward to seeing me at the shows."

The English co-producers, notably Robert Mackintosh for Robert Mackintosh International and Maximum Entertainment Group have not yet commented on their decision. A statement on the show's Mallorca website has been misinterpreted by some websites as a statement on the UK tour. One venue where the UK tour was supposed to call, announced that the tour was cancelled due to "financial difficulties".

AVE stated in April 2012 that it was in talks to present DADDY COOL in other countries as well, naming Scandinavia, Germany, Switzerland and Austria. It is unclear at this time if these plans will be more successful or even realized at all.

DADDY COOL features music of Boney M and a story loosely based on Romeo and Juliet. Among its score are classic songs from the 70s and 80s such as "Rivers of Babylon", "Ma Baker", "Can't Stand the Rain", and the title number. The original West End production of 2006 closed early and plans to launch a UK tour of the original production the next year were scrapped.

The Dutch revised version of the show, presented by AVE as "Musical meets So You Think You Can Dance" featured street dance battles and a LED-heavy set. The show's director, Eddy Habbema, previously directed an ill-fated musical version of Cyrano de Bergerac on Broadway in 1993.

As happened recently with the Dutch production of GHOST (by Joop Van Den Ende's Stage Entertainment), Dutch news outlets did not report that DADDY COOL was cancelled. Instead both shows were said to be "postponed".

AVE is the second largest Production Company in the Netherlands, after Stage Entertainment, focusing on musicals. It is currently preparing to open a Dutch production of SHREK in Amsterdam and touring productions of ANNIE and THE Buddy Holly STORY.

As a writer and theatre enthusiast living in the Amsterdam area, I'd love to be your guide to significant developments and background information from The Netherlands and nearby countries. Despite being a small country, where theatres can't rely on tourists to fill seats, the musical culture is thriving and diverse. International musical theatre mogul Joop van den Ende has his homebase here and musical theatre performers and creatives from the UK and US are often warmly welcomed in the Netherlands to work in (creating) local and international productions.

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