
The Chimes
by Charles Dickens.
Book and Lyrics by David Willis. Music by Conor Linehan
Directed by Rob Ellis
Thursday 12 - Saturday 21 December, 2024
At the Tower Theatre, Stoke Newington
Photography by Pau Ros
Cast List
Toby “Trotty” Veck : Dom Ward
Meg : Imogen Front
Richard : Nvaron Anderson
Lillian : Beth Blackler
Will Fern : Alan Maddrell
Alderman Cute : Matthew Vickers
Mrs Feeder : Rachel Berg
Mr Filer : Steve Saxby
Sir Joseph Blarney : Nick Edwards
Lady Blarney : Sorrel Brown
Mrs Chickenstalker : Haidee Elise
Mr Chickenstalker : Steve Saxby
Chorus Leader : Beth Blackler
Chorus/Footman/Dance Captain : Rosie Barwick
Chorus/Goblins : Flavia Di Saverio, Stephanie Irvine
Chorus/Fish : Julie Joubert
Chorus/Master Blarney : Kelly Guibal
Chorus/Doorman/Undertaker : Federica Bonomi
Chorus/Neighbour : Christiane Rakoto
Music played by
Jonathan Norris (Keyboard)
Haidee Elise (Harp)
Production Team
Director : Rob Ellis
Musical Director : Jonathan Norris
Set Design : David Willis
Costume Design : Emma Efkeman
Lighting Design : Stephen Ley
Sound Design : Phillip Ley & Light Fantastic
Stage Manager : Sarah Ambrose
Assistant Director : Emily Hassan
Assistant Musical Director : Sorrel Brown
Dance Captain : Rosie Barwick
Assistant Stage Manager : Ruth Sanderson
Lighting Operator : Richard Davies
Sound Operator : Phillip Ley
Costume Makers : David Willis, Christine Bowmaker
Set Construction and Get-In : Freya Alexander, David Chance, Femi Davies, Rob Hebblethwaite, Sam Jego, Maxx, Keith Syrett, Samuel Littley, Brett Tappin.

Dom Ward trained at Mountview Academy and has been with the Tower since he was press-ganged into a production of The Entertainer in 2001. After a brief career playing romantic leads in Hot Mikado and Guys and Dolls amongst others, he graduated to grown-up roles, including David in After the Dance, Stanley in The Birthday Party, and Carr in Travesties. Dom is also often found on the other side of the rehearsal room, directing everything from Victorian ghost stories (Darker Shores) to classic farce (Loot), and Emlyn Williams' forgotten classic Accolade.

Imogen Front is an actor from North London. She recently completed her Acting Diploma at Central School of Speech and Drama, where she developed her stage and screen skills after years of student theatre during her undergraduate degree. Her recent professional credits include Jack and Millie, The Shell Seekers and Chicken Soup with Barley, all for BBC Radio 4, 1984 and The Baker Street Four for Audible, and the children's bedtime story podcast Baby Jake's Sleepy Stories on Apple Podcasts. This is her first role with the Tower.

The Chimes is Nvaron Anderson’s debut performance at the Tower Theatre, following his recent Diploma studies at the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama. As an avid theatre kid, this marks a fond return to his love for acting. Highlights for Nvaron include his portrayal of Henry Higgins in his school’s production of My Fair Lady, and his recent ensemble work in Lemons Lemons Lemons Lemons Lemons. Nvaron is also a singer-songwriter who has accumulated vast choral experience performing in Venice, New York and Barcelona. This includes an unforgettable performance at the 2016 BBC Proms, singing behind Destiny’s Child member Michelle Williams. He gives his utmost gratitude and thanks to the Tower Theatre for this opportunity to further his acting journey and cultivate his training alongside this amazing cast.

This is Beth Blacker’s debut at the Tower Theatre. She moved to London for university in 2019 to study drama. She is excited to get involved and pursue her passion! She has worked on various television sets such as The Crown and Slow Horses, and is ready to be performing alongside some new lovely people. She absolutely loves Christmas and will enjoy bringing this festive new adaptation to life!

Alan Maddrell played Joe Meek in the Tower's production of Telstar, Tristan Tzara in Travesties, Christy in All That Fall, Mike in Pal Joey and, most recently, Doc in The Night Alive. Shows with other companies include Dracula, The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui and Black Comedy (KDC); The Last Days of Judas Iscariot, Gross Indecency, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead and The Taming of the Shrew (SEDOS). He also co-wrote The War of the Waleses, co-directed The Provoked Wife and directed Ubu Rex for KDC.

Matthew Vickers has been an acting member of the Tower Theatre for many years, now having performed in numerous plays including Coyote on a Fence, Clybourne Park, An Enemy of the People, Arcadia, Sweat and more recently PMQ, Death and the Maiden and The Real Inspector Hound. He is looking forward to playing Alderman Cute in The Chimes very much.

Rachel Berg trained as a professional dancer and choreographer. Her career took her all over the world with highlights including Sadlers Wells, Abbey Road Studios, York Minster, KoKo in Camden, The Gaiety Theatre Isle of Man and the inside of a hot air balloon! She is very much looking forward to a Dickensian Christmas at the Tower. Previous Tower productions include Nell Gwynn, Frankenstein, The Winter's Tale, The Seagull, The Boy who Fell into a Book and Pal Joey.

Steve Saxby returned to acting this year and has so far appeared in the Tower's production of Measure for Measure (Elbow), with the Acting Gymnasium in Twelfth Night (Sir Andrew), and with the Theatre Shakespeare Company in Cymbeline (Belarius/Jupiter). He is delighted to be performing in a musical again after previous appearances in Oklahoma (Curly), Patience (the Duke of Dunstable) and numerous exuberant characters in pantomime music hall performances.

Nick Edwards has been a member of the Tower for 15 years and acted in 10 previous productions including Consent, Sweat, London Wall, Under The Blue Sky and Clybourne Park, the last of which was also directed by Rob. Nick’s most recent project was as a director himself, on Cock earlier this season. The Chimes marks Nick’s first venture into musicals for 16 years and he is excited to be involved with this show with such a talented cast and crew.

Sorrel Brown trained at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland but now works in higher education. She is new to the Tower Theatre, having acted and directed for fellow London amateur theatre company SEDOS in recent years where she has played roles such as St Jimmy in American Idiot (2022) and Mrs White in cult classic Clue (2023). Other previous roles include Christine Colgate in Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, Lilli Vanessi in Kiss Me Kate, and Viola in Twelfth Night. Sorrel is delighted to be part of such a fantastic company and hopes that our production leaves you feeling the christmassy magic of The Chimes for yourselves!

Haidee Elise is a long standing member of the Tower Theatre; credits include: Mrs Milcote (Coram Boy), Lady Macbeth performed at The British Embassy in Paris, Ariel (The Tempest), Ophelia (Hamlet), Regan (King Lear), Margery Pinchwife (The Country Wife), Tourvel (Les Liaisons Dangereuses) and many more. Haidee trained at The Academy of Live & Recorded Arts and had a successful professional singing and dancing career in her younger years. Haidee has costumed many Tower Theatre productions including Wolf Hall, To Kill A Mocking Bird, Measure For Measure and The Importance Of Being Earnest. She also produced Entertaining Mr Orton at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.

Rosie Barwick is an actor and theatre director from South London. She trained in acting at the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, and movement at the Royal Academy of Dance and the Kunstquartier Bethanien, Berlin. She has a degree in Law and International Relations, and currently works with females with multiple disadvantages. She is particularly interested in Women’s stories and work that explores societal and community issues. She assistant directed Leave Taking (Tower Theatre) and Voices from Home (King’s Head Theatre), and for the Tower she has directed That Almost Unnameable Lust and Swipe.

This is Flavia Di Saverio’s fifth show at the Tower Theatre, after appearing in Antigone, The Merry Wives of Windsor, Under Milk Wood and The Little Prince. Flavia has been involved in amateur theatre on and off since childhood, and over the years she has combined her passion for foreign languages with the stage, performing in Italian, French, English and Spanish. Back in Italy, her main stage credits included roles in Cinderella, Pygmalion, Round Heads and Pointed Heads, Black Comedy and Our Town. Elsewhere in London, she has appeared in Treasure Island and in an adaptation of Three Men in a Boat, both for the Putney Theatre Company.

This is Stephanie Irvine’s seventh production with the Tower, following Princess and The Hustler (2024), The Fan (2024), Richard III (2023), Improbable Fiction (2022), Coram Boy (2022), and Mules (2021). Stephanie used to be a radio journalist at the BBC World Service and now works for an environmental charity planting community orchards.

Julie Joubert is a performer and writer based in London. Born and bred in Paris, she initially focused on bringing modern French theatre to London audiences: as an actress in productions of Orpheus (Bloomsbury Studio) and Isma (Camden People’s Theatre), as well as directing Topaze (Etcetera Theatre). As a writer, she is a regular contributor to the Hampstead Literary Society Journal. The Chimes will be her second production at the Tower Theatre, having appeared in The Fan earlier in 2024. She is delighted to take part in her first musical at the Tower!

This is Kelly Guibal's third production with the Tower Theatre. Kelly studied Acting in Spain, New York and London. Her credits include As you like it as Rosalind, A Midsummer Night's Dream as Puck and The Importance of Being Earnest as Cecily Cardew. She is thrilled to be back on stage sharing this amazing new musical version of Charles Dickens' Christmas story!

Federica Bonomi is thrilled to be making her debut with the Tower Theatre in The Chimes. With a career in translations and sales, she has recently been focusing on her long-standing love for acting; she trained in Musical Theatre with City Academy and completed a two-year acting diploma with IDSA. Federica has been performing for over 15 years in Italy. Productions include The Canterville Ghost, Love's Labour's Lost and The Important of Being Earnest. Federica is very grateful for the opportunity to be a part of such a talented cast and crew.

Originally from Paris and now based in London, Christiane Rakoto is thrilled to be making her debut with the Tower Theatre in The Chimes. Christiane has been part of several productions with City Acting Drama School: as Blanche in A Streetcar Named Desire, Nora in A Doll's House, Sonya in Uncle Vanya, Emma in Betrayal, Judy in The Day I Stood Still and more recently as Carrie in Rules for Living.

Over his 30 Tower Company years, Jonathan Norris has been involved in more than seventy productions – whether as actor (Mr. Walker in London Wall, Thomas Boleyn in Wolf Hall, Inspector Hubbard in Dial M For Murder, Alfred Doolittle in Pygmalion), music-directing (A Little Night Music and Guys and Dolls), or writing and/or playing musical additions on keyboard or trombone. He has happy memories of playing Ernest in Bedroom Farce, arranging and Music-Directing Nell Gwynn, and playing Sorin in The Seagull in the new Tower’s first season (2018). Recently he has added sound and lighting operation to his repertoire.

Rob Ellis is from North Yorkshire, lives in North London and has been a Tower member for nine years. For the Tower, he has directed Clybourne Park, The 39 Steps, The Real Inspector Hound and The Merry Wives of Windsor, which toured to Paris. For his day job, Rob is a theatre producer - he runs Relish Theatre, a LGBTQ+ sustainable new writing company. Relish are producing three shows in Spring 2025 to celebrate LGBT+ history month.
![]() |
The Chimes
by Charles Dickens. |
|
Thursday 12 - Saturday 21 December, 2024 |
Cast List
|
Production Team
|
![]() | Dom Ward trained at Mountview Academy and has been with the Tower since he was press-ganged into a production of The Entertainer in 2001. After a brief career playing romantic leads in Hot Mikado and Guys and Dolls amongst others, he graduated to grown-up roles, including David in After the Dance, Stanley in The Birthday Party, and Carr in Travesties. Dom is also often found on the other side of the rehearsal room, directing everything from Victorian ghost stories (Darker Shores) to classic farce (Loot), and Emlyn Williams' forgotten classic Accolade. |
![]() | Imogen Front is an actor from North London. She recently completed her Acting Diploma at Central School of Speech and Drama, where she developed her stage and screen skills after years of student theatre during her undergraduate degree. Her recent professional credits include Jack and Millie, The Shell Seekers and Chicken Soup with Barley, all for BBC Radio 4, 1984 and The Baker Street Four for Audible, and the children's bedtime story podcast Baby Jake's Sleepy Stories on Apple Podcasts. This is her first role with the Tower. |
|
![]() | The Chimes is Nvaron Anderson’s debut performance at the Tower Theatre, following his recent Diploma studies at the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama. As an avid theatre kid, this marks a fond return to his love for acting. Highlights for Nvaron include his portrayal of Henry Higgins in his school’s production of My Fair Lady, and his recent ensemble work in Lemons Lemons Lemons Lemons Lemons. Nvaron is also a singer-songwriter who has accumulated vast choral experience performing in Venice, New York and Barcelona. This includes an unforgettable performance at the 2016 BBC Proms, singing behind Destiny’s Child member Michelle Williams. He gives his utmost gratitude and thanks to the Tower Theatre for this opportunity to further his acting journey and cultivate his training alongside this amazing cast. |
![]() | This is Beth Blacker’s debut at the Tower Theatre. She moved to London for university in 2019 to study drama. She is excited to get involved and pursue her passion! She has worked on various television sets such as The Crown and Slow Horses, and is ready to be performing alongside some new lovely people. She absolutely loves Christmas and will enjoy bringing this festive new adaptation to life! |
|
![]() | Alan Maddrell played Joe Meek in the Tower's production of Telstar, Tristan Tzara in Travesties, Christy in All That Fall, Mike in Pal Joey and, most recently, Doc in The Night Alive. Shows with other companies include Dracula, The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui and Black Comedy (KDC); The Last Days of Judas Iscariot, Gross Indecency, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead and The Taming of the Shrew (SEDOS). He also co-wrote The War of the Waleses, co-directed The Provoked Wife and directed Ubu Rex for KDC. |
![]() | Matthew Vickers has been an acting member of the Tower Theatre for many years, now having performed in numerous plays including Coyote on a Fence, Clybourne Park, An Enemy of the People, Arcadia, Sweat and more recently PMQ, Death and the Maiden and The Real Inspector Hound. He is looking forward to playing Alderman Cute in The Chimes very much. |
|
![]() | Rachel Berg trained as a professional dancer and choreographer. Her career took her all over the world with highlights including Sadlers Wells, Abbey Road Studios, York Minster, KoKo in Camden, The Gaiety Theatre Isle of Man and the inside of a hot air balloon! She is very much looking forward to a Dickensian Christmas at the Tower. Previous Tower productions include Nell Gwynn, Frankenstein, The Winter's Tale, The Seagull, The Boy who Fell into a Book and Pal Joey. |
![]() | Steve Saxby returned to acting this year and has so far appeared in the Tower's production of Measure for Measure (Elbow), with the Acting Gymnasium in Twelfth Night (Sir Andrew), and with the Theatre Shakespeare Company in Cymbeline (Belarius/Jupiter). He is delighted to be performing in a musical again after previous appearances in Oklahoma (Curly), Patience (the Duke of Dunstable) and numerous exuberant characters in pantomime music hall performances. |
|
![]() | Nick Edwards has been a member of the Tower for 15 years and acted in 10 previous productions including Consent, Sweat, London Wall, Under The Blue Sky and Clybourne Park, the last of which was also directed by Rob. Nick’s most recent project was as a director himself, on Cock earlier this season. The Chimes marks Nick’s first venture into musicals for 16 years and he is excited to be involved with this show with such a talented cast and crew. |
![]() | Sorrel Brown trained at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland but now works in higher education. She is new to the Tower Theatre, having acted and directed for fellow London amateur theatre company SEDOS in recent years where she has played roles such as St Jimmy in American Idiot (2022) and Mrs White in cult classic Clue (2023). Other previous roles include Christine Colgate in Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, Lilli Vanessi in Kiss Me Kate, and Viola in Twelfth Night. Sorrel is delighted to be part of such a fantastic company and hopes that our production leaves you feeling the christmassy magic of The Chimes for yourselves! |
|
![]() | Haidee Elise is a long standing member of the Tower Theatre; credits include: Mrs Milcote (Coram Boy), Lady Macbeth performed at The British Embassy in Paris, Ariel (The Tempest), Ophelia (Hamlet), Regan (King Lear), Margery Pinchwife (The Country Wife), Tourvel (Les Liaisons Dangereuses) and many more. Haidee trained at The Academy of Live & Recorded Arts and had a successful professional singing and dancing career in her younger years. Haidee has costumed many Tower Theatre productions including Wolf Hall, To Kill A Mocking Bird, Measure For Measure and The Importance Of Being Earnest. She also produced Entertaining Mr Orton at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. |
![]() | Rosie Barwick is an actor and theatre director from South London. She trained in acting at the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, and movement at the Royal Academy of Dance and the Kunstquartier Bethanien, Berlin. She has a degree in Law and International Relations, and currently works with females with multiple disadvantages. She is particularly interested in Women’s stories and work that explores societal and community issues. She assistant directed Leave Taking (Tower Theatre) and Voices from Home (King’s Head Theatre), and for the Tower she has directed That Almost Unnameable Lust and Swipe. |
|
![]() | This is Flavia Di Saverio’s fifth show at the Tower Theatre, after appearing in Antigone, The Merry Wives of Windsor, Under Milk Wood and The Little Prince. Flavia has been involved in amateur theatre on and off since childhood, and over the years she has combined her passion for foreign languages with the stage, performing in Italian, French, English and Spanish. Back in Italy, her main stage credits included roles in Cinderella, Pygmalion, Round Heads and Pointed Heads, Black Comedy and Our Town. Elsewhere in London, she has appeared in Treasure Island and in an adaptation of Three Men in a Boat, both for the Putney Theatre Company. |
![]() | This is Stephanie Irvine’s seventh production with the Tower, following Princess and The Hustler (2024), The Fan (2024), Richard III (2023), Improbable Fiction (2022), Coram Boy (2022), and Mules (2021). Stephanie used to be a radio journalist at the BBC World Service and now works for an environmental charity planting community orchards. |
|
![]() | Julie Joubert is a performer and writer based in London. Born and bred in Paris, she initially focused on bringing modern French theatre to London audiences: as an actress in productions of Orpheus (Bloomsbury Studio) and Isma (Camden People’s Theatre), as well as directing Topaze (Etcetera Theatre). As a writer, she is a regular contributor to the Hampstead Literary Society Journal. The Chimes will be her second production at the Tower Theatre, having appeared in The Fan earlier in 2024. She is delighted to take part in her first musical at the Tower! |
![]() | This is Kelly Guibal's third production with the Tower Theatre. Kelly studied Acting in Spain, New York and London. Her credits include As you like it as Rosalind, A Midsummer Night's Dream as Puck and The Importance of Being Earnest as Cecily Cardew. She is thrilled to be back on stage sharing this amazing new musical version of Charles Dickens' Christmas story! |
|
![]() | Federica Bonomi is thrilled to be making her debut with the Tower Theatre in The Chimes. With a career in translations and sales, she has recently been focusing on her long-standing love for acting; she trained in Musical Theatre with City Academy and completed a two-year acting diploma with IDSA. Federica has been performing for over 15 years in Italy. Productions include The Canterville Ghost, Love's Labour's Lost and The Important of Being Earnest. Federica is very grateful for the opportunity to be a part of such a talented cast and crew. |
![]() | Originally from Paris and now based in London, Christiane Rakoto is thrilled to be making her debut with the Tower Theatre in The Chimes. Christiane has been part of several productions with City Acting Drama School: as Blanche in A Streetcar Named Desire, Nora in A Doll's House, Sonya in Uncle Vanya, Emma in Betrayal, Judy in The Day I Stood Still and more recently as Carrie in Rules for Living. |
|
![]() | Over his 30 Tower Company years, Jonathan Norris has been involved in more than seventy productions – whether as actor (Mr. Walker in London Wall, Thomas Boleyn in Wolf Hall, Inspector Hubbard in Dial M For Murder, Alfred Doolittle in Pygmalion), music-directing (A Little Night Music and Guys and Dolls), or writing and/or playing musical additions on keyboard or trombone. He has happy memories of playing Ernest in Bedroom Farce, arranging and Music-Directing Nell Gwynn, and playing Sorin in The Seagull in the new Tower’s first season (2018). Recently he has added sound and lighting operation to his repertoire. |
![]() | Rob Ellis is from North Yorkshire, lives in North London and has been a Tower member for nine years. For the Tower, he has directed Clybourne Park, The 39 Steps, The Real Inspector Hound and The Merry Wives of Windsor, which toured to Paris. For his day job, Rob is a theatre producer - he runs Relish Theatre, a LGBTQ+ sustainable new writing company. Relish are producing three shows in Spring 2025 to celebrate LGBT+ history month. |