*The new musical is based on Kahlil Gibran’s 1912 masterpiece
Set to launch on August 1, a new masterpiece for the musical 'Broken Wings' will debut at Theatre Royal Haymarket in London, composed by Qatar’s internationally acclaimed musical composer Dana Alfardan in collaboration with West End star Nadim Naaman.
With only a few days to go until this highly anticipated show, 'Broken Wings' has witnessed a lot of hype in terms of both international media recognition, including appearing on BBC and Al Jazeera and tickets selling at an "exciting rate daily", according to a press statement.
Naaman collaborated with Alfardan on the music for this theatre production, which is based on Lebanese-born poet Kahlil Gibran’s 1912 masterpiece, 'Broken Wings'.
Naaman rose to prominence for his work in the hit musical, 'The Phantom of the Opera' at the Her Majesty's Theatre. He also played numerous roles in the West End as well as contracts in high-profile fringe productions such as 'Titanic', 'Chess' and the 2014 hit revival of 'Sweeney Todd'.
“I am very excited that the countdown has started until 'Broken Wings' debuts at the incredible Theatre Royal Haymarket venue in London,” Alfardan said.
“I’m waiting in anticipation to see the crowd’s feedback to this amazing musical and to them witnessing the re-enactment of Kahlil Gibran’s masterpiece, ‘The Prophet’, placed within the context of his life, as represented in 'Broken Wings',” she noted.
The themes in 'Broken Wings' are highly relevant to global discourse, and the whole point behind choosing this body of work is the idea that in the context of a world that has been experiencing the rise of the right, with so much emphasis on exclusion and so much negative perceptions of the 'Middle East' (which is judged by many as a monolithic entity), "we are going to be projecting this pillar of humanity who happened to be a product of the Middle East as much as an artistic product of the US", it is observed.
Gibran’s identity is interwoven with both cultural frameworks. "It is our job as Arab artists to counter the media’s obsession with creating an image of an angry violent and irrational Middle East, and replace it with a philosophy of love, tolerance and peace from this region. Music is a universal language and our medium to shift perspectives. Hence, it was exciting that we were going to present Gibran the charming young man at the crossroads of his life at the turn of the 20th century," she explained.
'Broken Wings' will run for four days at the Theatre Royal Haymarket where Alfardan will work with a nine-piece semi-staged production orchestra by Joe Davison (who has worked with Adele and Leona Lewis).
“The first single from 'Broken Wings', 'Spirit of the Earth', has been featured on BBC Radio 2 on Elaine Paige’s Sunday show and received rave reviews from critics and listeners in the United Kingdom,” Alfardan added.
Nikita Johal, fresh from playing the lead role of Wendla in the acclaimed 'Spring Awakening' at Manchester’s Hope Mill Theatre, will play the role of Selma.
The extensive cast also features Adam Linstead as Farris, Soophia Foroughi as Mother, Nadeem Crowe as Karim, Irvine Iqbal as Bishop Bulos Galib and Sami Lamine as Mansour Bey Galib with Robert Hannouch and Lauren James Ray as ensemble.
A Broken Wings concept album featuring an all-star cast was released on May 10.