LUKE BATEMAN
Composer & Musician
Painter and decorator by day, Mr Popper spends all his time dreaming of Antarctic expeditions and living amongst the penguins.
He is astounded when one day a packing crate arrives on his doorstep, out of which waddles a real life penguin. Soon another penguin arrives and not long after there are ten more baby penguins skating about the house.
There is merriment and mayhem but with barely enough money to feed his wife and children, Mr Popper must do something before the penguins eat his family out of house and home.
With songs, puppets and a great story to tell, this musical adaptation of Richard and Florence Atwaters book, perhaps best known for the 2011 movie starring Jim Carey, will delight family audiences from 4 - 104!
Produced by Kenny Wax Family Entertainment.
...full of excellent tunes by Luke Bateman **** Ben Dowell, The Radio Times on Mr Popper's Penguins at the Criterion Theatre, West End
...a bouncy, upbeat and thoroughly hummable score by Luke Bateman...Laurel Graeber, New York Times on Mr Popper's Penguins at the New Victory Theatre, 42nd Street, Manhattan
Composers Luke Bateman and Richy Hughes succeed in turning the story into a musical, with a string of witty 1950s-influenced songs adding extra theatrical magic to an increasingly zany narrative that celebrates the triumph of imagination over conformity. **** Roger Foss, The Stage on Mr Popper's Penguins at The Lowry, Salford
Composer Luke Bateman and lyricist Richy Hughes give each number a sunny Sherman Brothers-esque bounce, most evident in the only-ever-so-naughty ‘I’ve Got the Chills for You’. But, like the Shermans, they are also adept at plucking the heartstrings, as in the touching ‘I’m Still Here’. **** Chris Bartlett, Musical Theatre Review on Mr Popper's Penguins at The Lowry, Salford
Touring the world since 2015 including The New Victory on 42nd street NYC and The Criterion Piccadilly, London.
see below for tour history and up coming shows.
2019
26th Nov -31st Dec Waterside Arts, Manchester
2018 - 2019
18th Dec - 6th Jan Glasgow Lomond Auditorium
15th Jan - 24th Feb Minneapolis Children's Theatre
2017-2018
7th Nov - 31st Dec Seattle Children's Theatre
29th Sept - 15th October Casa Manana, Texas
3rd - 5th - Dec Paramount Theatre, Texas
6th Dec The Grand 1884 Opera House, Texas
7th Dec - Lutcher Theatre, Texas
8th Dec - Cowan Fine Performing Arts Center, Texas
11th Dec - Oxford PAC, Alabama
13th Dec - Ole Ford Center for Performing Arts, Mississipi
22nd - 31st Dec - The Kennedy Center, Washington D.C.
7th - 8th Jan - Overture Theater, Madison, Wisconsin
9th Jan - Thrivent Financial Hall, Wisconsin
10th - 13th Jan Des Moines Civic Center, Iowa
14th Jan - NIACC, Iowa
19th Jan - Macomb PAC, Michigan
20th Jan - Victoria Theatre, Ohio
22nd - 28th Jan Ohio Theatre, Cleveland
30th Feb - Tiffin, Ohio
1st Feb - Strand Theatre, York, PA
2nd Fed - Amoss PAC, Maryland
3rd Feb - Miller Center for the Arts, PA
5th Feb - Reg Lenna, New York
7th The Capitol Theatre, New Hampshire
8th Feb - Grand Opera House, Delaware
9th Feb - Purchase College, New York
10th - 12th Feb - Merriam Theatre, Pennsylvania
13th Feb - Wyoming Seminary, PA
15th Feb - Colden Auditorium, New York
18th Feb - Bergen PAC, New Jersey
19th Feb - State Theatre, NJ
22nd Feb - Bucknell, PA
24th Feb - Tilles Center, NY
25th Feb - Jorgensen Auditorum, CT
27th - 28th Feb - Wilkens Hall, NJ
5th Mar - Norton Center, KY
6th Mar - Carson Center, KY
12th - 15th Mar - Smith Center, Las Vegas, NV
17th Mar - Morrison Center, ID
21st Mar - Wheeler Opera House, CO
23rd - 24th Mar - Lincoln Center or Ft Collins, CO
25th - 26th Mar - WYO Theatre, WY
8th April - Hult Center, OR
10th - 17th April - Washington Center for Arts, WA
14th April - Historic Everett Theatre, WA
19th April - Luther Burbank Center, CA
20th April - Gallo, CA
22nd - 25th April -Segerstrom, CA
26th April - Lancaster PAC, CA
27th April - CAl Poly, CA
2016-2017 Tour
Assembly Hall Theatre, Tunbridge Wells
29th Sept - 1st Oct
Northcott, Exeter 4th Oct - 8th Oct
New Victory Theatre, 42nd Street, NY
13th Oct - 30th Oct
Curve, Leicester 15th Nov - 20th Nov
The palace, Southend 24th - 27th Nov
Artsdepot, London 30th Nov - 4th Dec
Festival Theatre, Chichester 7th Dec - 11th Dec
The Criterion, Picardilly. 16th - 31st December
2015-2016 Tour
Theatre Royal Brighton: 24th - 28th November
Malvern Theatre: 30th November - 1st Dec 2015
Cadogan Hall: 4th & 5th December 2015
The Lowry: 10th December 2015 - 10th Jan 2016
The Rose Theatre, Kingston 14th Jan - 17th Jan 2016