"Georgy Girl - The Seekers Musical" soon to move from Melbourne to Sydney

Georgy Girl is the name of the No. 1 hit song sung by The Seekers. It is also the name of The Seekers Musical currently playing in Melbourne in its world premiere season, and soon moving on to Sydney.

Georgy Girl - The Seekers Musical tells the story of how four young Australians formed a folk singing group in the 1960s. The Seekers first performed together in Melbourne in 1962. They left Australia by ship to try to make the big time in England.  This they did, and they went on to become world famous.

After 4 years together they broke up and went their own separate ways, rejoining for various anniversary tours and concerts. The Seekers still hold the record for the biggest concert crowd in the southern hemisphere (200,000) in March 1967.

A good thing about this musical is that it is all Australian, with a great Australian cast and crew. It showcases many of the hit songs made famous by The Seekers, including "I'll Never Find Another You", "A World of Our Own", "The Carnival is Over", "Morningtown Ride" "I Am Australian" and of course "Georgy Girl". The Seekers were the first Australian group to reach No.1 in the USA with "Georgy Girl". The musical includes several other songs from the era such as "I Know a Place" and "Downtown".

There are 4 leads, 3 support, and an ensemble of 15 that bring The Seekers story to life on stage. The standout performer is Pippa Grandison, who plays Judith Durham. She captures the essence of Judith's unique singing voice, gestures and movements. Pippa has performed in many other theatre works, including Mary Poppins and Wicked.

The three men of The Seekers are Phillip Lowe playing Keith Potger, Mike McLeish playing Bruce Woodley, Glaston Toft playing Athol Guy. The other supporting cast members are Adam Murphy playing Ron Edgeworth, Sophie Carter playing Bev, Judith's sister, and Stephen Wheat playing Eddie Jarrett.

The talented ensemble of 15 singers and dancers help bring the musical to life.

An accomplished band of 11 musicians plays all the music in the show on a range of instruments including keyboards, banjo, guitars, drums, percussion, violin, cello, flute, piccolo clarinet, flugelhorn and trombone.

The simple sets consists of opaque rectangular panels covering the rear and side walls of the stage. Various videos and lights are projected on these panels to create the various scenes such as Judith's Melbourne family living room, GTV Studios and 60's London. Minimalist furniture is sometimes brought on stage, but the stage is largely bare to make the singers and dancers the centre of attention.

The costumes recreate the 60's era with the bright psychedelic colours that contrast with the drab men's suits of The Seekers.

There is happiness, sadness and much music in Georgy Girl - The Seekers Musical. It will be enjoyed by the many people who would have grown up with The Seekers music. It will also be enjoyed by the the younger generation still to discover the delightful folk ballads sung by The Seekers.

Melbourne

Performances: until March 20 only, Tuesdays to Sundays, with matinee shows on Wednesdays, Saturdays and Sundays
Venue: Her Majesty's Theatre, 219 Exhibition Street
Tickets: Available from Ticketek
By popular demand concession tickets from $80 A Reserve for Students, Pensioners and Seniors are now available for Tuesday 7pm, Wed 1pm and 7pm and Thursday 8pm. The Family and Friends ticket from $320 (4 x A Reserve tix) is still available for Tuesday-Thursday evenings subject to availability.

The original Seekers (seated) and cast of "Georgy Girl" (standing)

Sydney:

Performances: April 2 to May 15 for 9 weeks only Tuesdays to Sundays, with matinee shows on Wednesdays, Saturdays and Sundays
Venue: State Theatre, 49 Market St, Sydney
Tickets: Available form Ticketek

Running Time: 2hrs 35min including interval