BRINGING her one woman show, Looking for Lansbury to The Playhouse Theatre in Cheltenham on December 5, Fiona-Jane Weston explores the life of Dame Angela Lansbury.
Written by Fiona-Jane Weston and Patrick Lambe, Looking for Lansbury studies the life and works of the acting legend, who turned 90 on October 16.
The daughter of West End star Moyna Magill and granddaughter of Labour Leader George Lansbury, Angela was a cabaret star at 17-years-old, becoming an MGM contract player before she was 20.
With a career that spans seven decades, Angela is a three-time Oscar nominee and a star of musical theatre, serious drama and TV.
Her film and TV credits include Murder She Wrote, Bedknobs and Broomsticks and The Manchurian Candidate, amongst many others, and she continues to perform on stage, winning the Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role for Blithe Spirit earlier this year.
Fiona-Jane explores how the events and influences from the past have created the actress we know today, through songs, words and a little help from the Jessica Fletcher Appreciation Society.
No stranger to feminism, Fiona-Jane often considers the place of women in society and the advances they have made over the past 100 years, bringing these considerations into her work.
Looking for Lansbury will include authentic Suffragette speeches and quotes, as well as comments from Angela Lansbury’s real words.
“There are lots of similarities between me and Angela”, says Fiona-Jane. “We are both English and, like her, I also use song as a vehicle to tell stories and explore the emotions and motivations of a character.
“Doing a one-woman show about her gives me a great excuse to cover some terrific material.
“Hers is a fascinating untold story, not only her own incredibly varied and extensive career, but the influences in her formatives years by both her actress mother, and her politician grandfather George Lansbury, who was imprisoned for his support of the Suffragettes!”
- Looking for Lansbury is at The Playhouse Theatre, Cheltenham on December 5 at 7.45pm. Tickets adults £14, concessions £12; for more information visit cheltplayhouse.org.uk
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