Jason Manford on heading to Sunderland Empire with Curtains The Musical + win tickets

Comedian and TV Star Jason Manford comes to Sunderland Empire from January 21-25 starring in a brand-new UK Tour of the Tony Award-winning musical Curtains.
Jason Manford in Curtains The Musical ©The Other RichardJason Manford in Curtains The Musical ©The Other Richard
Jason Manford in Curtains The Musical ©The Other Richard

We caught up with Jason to chat about the show, and how he finds life in musical theatre compared to his roots in stand-up comedy.

Q: Firstly, can you tell us a little about Curtains?

The show was a huge success on Broadway so it’s really exciting to be bringing this new production to the UK. It’s a comedy musical ‘whodunit?’ and I play a detective obsessed with musicals.

Curtains The Musical 

©The Other RichardCurtains The Musical 

©The Other Richard
Curtains The Musical ©The Other Richard
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When a murder happens in a theatre, he, along with the audience, turns up to discover who the killer is. It’s written by Kander and Ebb who wrote Chicago and Cabaret, so the music is great and it’s a hilarious script.

Q: Did you know the show before coming on board?

I didn’t know much, but as soon as I would mention it to friends in theatre they would say, “That’s one of my favourite shows!”.

It’s a popular musical within the theatre community and I’m excited that we can share this love to cities all over the UK.

Curtains The Musical 

©The Other RichardCurtains The Musical 

©The Other Richard
Curtains The Musical ©The Other Richard

Q: You’re playing the role of Frank Cioffi, a local detective and huge musical theatre fan. What appealed to you about taking on the role?

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What I love about Frank is that he’s such a sweet guy, even considering he’s there to solve a murder. He loves theatre but hasn’t had the chance to be on stage, and that’s not dissimilar from how I started.

I came from a different world, coming from the stand-up comedy and television world and was surrounded by these hugely talented actors and performers, so I can relate to that a bit.

There’s something in him that is just fun to play with as an actor.

Curtains The Musical 

©The Other RichardCurtains The Musical 

©The Other Richard
Curtains The Musical ©The Other Richard

Q: How will you prepare for the role? Will you be swotting up on famous detectives and big musical theatre numbers?

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Yeah, I think so. The first thing to do is to adapt to the Boston accent. I’ve done New York a couple of times as I was Leo Bloom in The Producers and Nathan Detroit in Guys and Dolls so I know my way around a New York accent. However, a Boston accent is a new challenge.

We get to work with an accent coach, and I’ve been watching lots of videos and films set in Boston to get an ear for it.

Q: Audiences may know you best from your TV and comedy work, but you’ve been part of many musicals over the years. What initially made you want to make the leap?

What I really love about theatre, which I didn’t realise at first, was how much I enjoy working with other people. You spend so much time alone when you’re touring as a stand-up.

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I mean, don’t feel sorry for me, I did very well out of it, but it’s a lonely job. So, in theatre it’s lovely to be part of a cast, a family feel, which I really love.

Q: Do you prefer performing in theatre to stand up comedy, or do you find one or the other better suits you at different points in your life?

I just find that there are times when stand-up is number one, and there are times when it’s theatre.

With stand-up I’m starting with a blank page – I sit down and think about what I want to tell stories and jokes about whereas with musicals somebody else is setting the parameters that I then get to explore and play in.

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There’s something quite exciting about that – someone saying here are the rules, a script, story, songs, and then you’ve got to use what you’ve got to collaborate with them, with what pre-exists.

It’s actually a really good discipline, and I’ve been able to use some of the skills I’ve learned in theatre and translate them to how I perform stand-up comedy.

Q: Have you ever been given a piece of advice, or some words of wisdom that have stuck with you?

I’ve had quite a bit actually over the years. I remember Peter Kay telling me when I first started stand-up that the rest of the country is working a 40-hour week at least, so just because you work in show business why should you be any different?

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As a comic if you wanted to you could probably get away with working for 20-minutes a night, four nights a week but he was a real inspiration to get me to say okay what am I doing with the rest of my time? He made me write a lot more and do a lot more.

I also remember doing Sweeney Todd and feeling really nervous around these incredible singers, dancers and actors and I said to Michael Ball that I feel like I’m winging it, that I’m on that TV show Faking It, and he said to me, “Darling, we’re all on Faking It” which I thought was good advice as it reassured me we are all sort of winging it to a point!

My Dad always used to say to me ‘Your horizon should become your middle distance’ so that you aim for things, and when you get there you head on to the next thing. That’s a great piece of advice.

*Curtains The Musical is at Sunderland Empire from January 21-25. Tickets available here

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We’ve teamed up with Sunderland Empire to give away a pair of tickets for opening night on January 21. To be in with a chance of winning answer this question: what role does Jason Manford play in Curtains?

Email your answer to [email protected] by 9am on January 20 and make sure to include your daytime contact number. Usual JPI Media competition rules apply.

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