Cast announced for The Full Monty play visiting Sunderland

Everyman Theatre, Cheltenham and Buxton Opera House, in association with Mark Goucher and David Pugh, today announced the creative team and initial casting for the major national tour of The Full Monty. The beloved film will celebrate its 30th anniversary in 2027, and the production will visit Sunderland Empire from Monday 17 – Saturday 22 May as part of a UK Tour running until July 2027.

The cast includes Kevin Clifton (Strictly Come Dancing, BBC One; Priscilla Queen of the Desert, UK Tour) as Gaz, Stewart Wright (Doc Martin, ITV; The Upstart Crow, Apollo Theatre) as Dave, James Gaddas (Coronation Street, ITV; The Rocky Horror Picture Show, UK Tour) as Gerald, Ben Onwukwe (The Full Monty, UK Tour 2024; The Shawshank Redemption, UK Tour) as Horse, Jon-Paul Bell (Hollyoaks, Channel 4; Masters of Air, Apple TV) as Guy and Zrey Sholapurkar (Lark Rise to Candelford, The Watermill Theatre/Theatre by the Lake; The History Boys, UK Tour) as Lomper. Further casting to be announced.

The Full Monty will be directed by Michael Gyngell, choreography and intimacy direction by Ian West, the Resident Director is Rachel Heyburn, Set and Costume Design by Jasmine Swan with Lighting Design by Andrew Exeter, Sound Design by Chris Whybrow, the Casting Director is Marc Frankum, and the Children’s Casting is by Carolan Copley – Tucci.

Simon Beaufoy’s heartfelt play tells the story of an ordinary group of men striving to reclaim their dignity and pride. Fast-paced and irresistibly funny, the play remains strikingly relevant today, resonating powerfully in an era marked once again by a cost-of-living crisis. Gaz and his mates find themselves down on their luck, cast aside and underestimated — but determined to fight back, even if it means revealing more than they ever imagined.

Echoing the 1997 smash-hit film, this production delivers a rollercoaster of laughter and heartbreak as audiences are invited to relive the iconic music of the 90s cheering on this unforgettable group of lads as they prepare to put on the show of their lives.

Simon Beaufoy is an Academy Award–winning British screenwriter who won the Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay for Slumdog Millionaire. Beaufoy is also best known for writing The Full Monty, which became an international hit and earned him an additional Oscar nomination.

General tickets for The Full Monty are available online now at ATGTickets.com/ Sunderland *

* A transaction fee may apply to online bookings.