On Jan. 13, 2008, Mazzie will begin playing The Lady of the Lake at London's Palace Theatre, while Waddingham will begin performances in the same role at Broadway's Shubert Theatre.
Marin Mazzie is a three-time Tony Award nominee for her performances in Kiss Me, Kate; Ragtime; and Passion. Her other theatrical credits include Into the Woods, Big River, The World Goes 'Round, the City Center Encores! productions of Kismet and Out of this World and Off-Broadway's The Trojan Women: A love Story, where she met husband Jason Danieley. Mazzie also starred in the London production of Kiss Me, Kate, where she earned an Olivier Award nomination for her work. She was also seen in the Actors' Fund of America's concert staging of On the Twentieth Century.
Hannah Waddingham received a Laurence Olivier nomination for her work in the London production of Spamalot. Her other West End credits include Lautrec, The Likes of Us and The Beautiful Game. Waddingham's screen credits include "Footballers' Wives," "Easy Peasy Hollyoaks – Let Loose" and "The Only Boy For Me."
Mike Nichols ("The Graduate," "Angels in America") directed and Casey Nicholaw (The Drowsy Chaperone) choreographed Spamalot, which was inspired by the 1975 feature film comedy "Monty Python and the Holy Grail." Spamalot landed at Broadway's Shubert Theatre for a St. Valentine's Day (Feb. 14, 2005) start and a St. Patrick's Day (March 17) opening.
The musical tells the tale of King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table on their quest from God for the Holy Grail - with a short stop in the dazzling Spam-filled land of Camelot. The musical features a book by Eric Idle based on the screenplay he co-wrote with Monty Python creators Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Terry Gilliam, Terry Jones and Michael Palin. The show's score — with music and lyrics by Idle and composer John Du Prez ("A Fish Called Wanda") — includes songs ("Brave Sir Robin" and "Knights of the Round Table") from the original film as well as the Python signature "Always Look on the Bright Side of Life."
Spamalot took home prizes at the 2005 Tony Awards for Best Musical, Best Direction (Nichols) and Featured Actress (Sara Ramirez).
In addition to Broadway production, the show can be seen in the West End at the Palace Theatre, on a national U.S. tour and in Las Vegas at the Grail Theatre in the Wynn Las Vegas resort. An Australian production will play Her Majesty's Theatre in Melbourne later this year.
The official website can be found at www.montypythonsspamalot.com.
