Madagascar the Musical Moves It to Aylesbury

1 November 2023

The countdown is on to Madagascar – The Musical coming to Aylesbury Waterside Theatre from Wednesday 15-Saturday 18 November. Get ready to follow all of your favourite crack-a-lackin’ friends as they escape from their home in New York’s Central Park Zoo and find themselves on an unexpected journey to the madcap world of King Julien’s Madagascar.

Popular TV Presenter, theatre performer and Strictly finalist Karim Zeroual leads the cast of the brand-new tour of the smash-hit family favourite as the hilarious King Julien.

Karim Zeroual is a television presenter and theatre performer best-known for anchoring CBBC and reaching the final of Strictly Come Dancing in 2019. In television he has hosted BBC’s Young Dancer of the Year and BBC Four’s Dance Passion as well as fronting events with the BBC National Orchestra. In 2020, he presented BBC Bitesize, educating the nation’s children during lockdown. He could also be seen on in numerous TV shows, including EastEnders, Da Vinci’s Demons and The Sparticle Mystery, alongside reality shows including Celebrity Best Home Cook on BBC One and Celebs Go Dating. No stranger to the stage, Karim’s West End performances include Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, The Lion King and Here Come The Boys.

Karim said of playing King Julien: ‘I’m really excited, I love the film dearly, it’s one of my favourites. King Julien is such an iconic character I’m looking forward to getting down and ‘winding my body!’ to Move it Move it! Theatre is actually my one true love. I trained at theatre school and started my career in the West End. I’ve been doing a lot of TV recently so coming back to theatre feels like coming home. There’s nothing like a live audience in front of you. I really can’t wait.’

Joining Karim on stage will be Laura Marie Benson (Kowalski), Francisco Gomes (Marty), Aidan Harkins (Swing), Joseph Hewlett (Alex), James Hilton (Ensemble), Gabriel Hinchliffe (Swing), Ella Howlett (Rico), Connor Keetley (Skipper/ Maurice), Brogan McFarlane (Private/ Mort), Joshua Oakes-Rogers (Melman) and Jarneia Richard-Noel (Gloria).

Alex the lion is the king of the urban jungle, the main attraction at New York’s Central Park Zoo. He and his best friends – Marty the zebra, Melman the giraffe and Gloria the hippo – have spent their whole lives in blissful captivity before an admiring public and with regular meals provided for them. Not content to leave well enough alone, Marty lets his curiosity get the better of him and makes his escape – with the help of some prodigious penguins – to explore the world.

Join Alex, Marty, Melman, Gloria and those hilarious, plotting penguins as they bound onto stage in the musical adventure of a lifetime. Filled with outlandish characters, adventure galore and an upbeat score, you’ll have no choice but to ‘Move It, Move It!’

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