Bend It Like Beckham - Phoenix Theatre, London

Audiences have another opportunity to revisit a film favourite on a West End stage as the 2002 hit movie Bend It Like Beckham arrives at the Phoenix Theatre. The show not only boasts a story that has already resonated with audiences but also has its original director calling the shots. Gurinder Chadha co-writes and directs the production, ensuring that her own hit film is introduced to a new generation of crowds.

Chadha provides the book to the music alongside Paul Mayede Berges, her husband with whom she has previously penned the original film and who directed her script for The Mistress Of Spices. Meanwhile, the music and lyrics are provided by Howard Goodall and Charles Hart.

In Bend It Like Beckham we are introduced to Jess, a character with a big decision to make. She is an Indian girl living in the United Kingdom whose own dreams are at odds with the wishes of her family, the latter of which will be gathered for an upcoming wedding. So she doesn’t have long to decide on following her dream of becoming a star footballer like David Beckham, or taking an academic route and establishing her own family.

The original film starred Parminder Nagra and Keira Knightley, among others, and is still enjoyed to this day, over a decade since its release.

It was also a big success for director Gurinder Chadha, who had previously directed Bhaji On The Beach and followed up Bend It Like Beckham with the likes of Bride & Prejudice, It’s A Wonderful Afterlife and Angus, Thongs And Perfect Snogging. It has been known for some time that she intended to bring her biggest hit to the West End, so this is undoubtedly a passion project of a renowned artist.

And she has brought it to the right place. The West End is already the home to numerous shows based on films, from the long-running The Lion King and Billy Elliot The Musical to the more recent hits like Once, which Bend It Like Beckham replaces at the Phoenix Theatre.

The show runs at the West End venue from Wednesday 24^th June 2015 (previews from Friday 15^th May 2015).