R&H Theatricals Europe, scheduled to launch in January 2013, will represent the catalogue throughout the UK and the European market. It takes over from Josef Weinberger Ltd., who currently represent the catalogue on behalf of R&H Theatricals. Vivien Goodwin, formerly managing director of Samuel French Ltd., a theatrical licensing and publishing house who also operate a bookstore in central London, has been appointed managing director, with Bert Fink of the R&H New York office joining the London team for a year in a new business development role as senior vice president Europe for Rodgers and Hammerstein.

In a press statement, Ted Chapin, president of Rodgers and Hammerstein commented, "I couldn't be more thrilled about this exciting new chapter for R&H. Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II always knew the importance of the British and European market, and they both loved London, where they had a production office for many years. Today, as part of a global company, our new London branch will give us the opportunity to reinvigorate our catalogue throughout Britain and across the Continent. This is an important move for us, which is why I am sending my longtime R&H colleague Bert Fink to London to help launch this venture."

John Minch, chief executive of Imagem UK, added, "Sean Gray and his team at Weinberger have done a great job representing these catalogues and we are very grateful to them. Bringing the business in-house now is a logical move, especially given the work we already do with musicals from the Warner-Chappell catalogue. Having Vivien Goodwin join us is a real coup; it means that we will be able to build up a musical theatre rights business alongside our classical, pop and library music publishing businesses."

Amongst over 100 musicals represented by R&H Theatricals are works by Rodgers & Hammerstein (including Oklahoma!, The King and I, Carousel, South Pacific and The Sound of Music), Rodgers & Hart (Pal Joey, Babes in Arms), and Kern & Hammerstein (Show Boat), as well as musicals by Irving Berlin (White Christmas, Annie Get Your Gun), and Kurt Weill (Lost in the Stars, Lady in the Dark), and more recent work like The Light in the Piazza, Floyd Collins, In the Heights, The Wild Party, Carrie, Altar Boyz, Footloose, Smokey Joe's Cafe and I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change.

For further details, visit www.rnh.com.