'101 Dalmatians' postponed at Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre

The world premiere was due to open this year's season.

101 Dalmatians was due to open at Regent's Park Open Air Theatre in 2020, but due to the coronavirus pandemic, the production was moved back a year. However, in an announcement today, 101 Dalmatians is once again postponed, with no future dates.

In a tweet from Regent's Park Open Air Theatre, they said: "We are unable to go ahead with our plans to present 101 Dalmatians as part of our 2021 season. Indications appear to be that such restrictions will almost certainly still be in place when rehearsals were due to begin in March... both practically and financially, it will be impossible for us to produce this ambitious brand new musical with complex puppetry and large ensemble cast."

Based on Dodie Smith's iconic story, the musical will follow Cruella de Vil as she kidnaps a litter of Dalmatian puppies to use their fur. The production is written by Zinnie Harris and Douglas Hodge, with direction by Timothy Sheader and puppetry by Toby Olié.

When the production was first announced, Kate Fleetwood was cast as Cruella de Vil. Further casting for 101 Dalmatians, as well as a full creative team has not been named.

In the statement, Regent's Park Open Air Theatre have also spoke of plans to stage Romeo and Juliet and Carousel this summer. As these productions will be presented in summer 2021, they are currently expected to be open as usual.

^{Photo credit: Regent's Park Open Air Theatre (Photo by Mike_fleming on Flickr under CC 2.0)}