Closer to Heaven
Encyclopedia
Closer to Heaven is a musical by Jonathan Harvey
and Pet Shop Boys
. It was premiered in May 2001 at the Arts Theatre
in London
, opening to mixed reviews, and ran until 13 October 2001. A second production of Closer to Heaven was premiered in Australia
in 2005.
), who otherwise has a fairly small part in the story. The opening number, "My Night", is sung by Billie and the rest of the cast, and is used to introduce the characters.
Shell Christian (Stacey Roca
), is going to see her estranged father, Vic Christian (David Burt
), for the first time in years. Vic, who is gay, left Shell and her mother during her childhood, and now runs a successful gay club in London. Meanwhile, Straight Dave (Paul Keating
), who has just arrived from Ireland, is working as a bartender at Vic's club, although his ambition is to be a dancer at the club. After seeing and speaking to her father, Shell meets Dave, and they immediately fall in love.
Record producer Bob Saunders (Paul Broughton
) is a friend of Billie Trix and a regular at Vic's club. He sees Dave dancing and decides he wants to sign him for a boy band he is forming. He makes an offer to Dave, who has no interest in signing; however, Saunders continues to pressure Dave into working for him.
Dave meets and falls in love with drug dealer Mile End Lee (Tom Walker), who deals at Vic's club. Shell is devastated when she discovers that Dave is gay, although part of her has suspected it all along. Meanwhile, Vic discovers Lee dealing drugs in his club and confiscates the drugs. Lee is worried he will be killed for losing the drugs.
At this point, everyone gets high on ketamine
- Shell is still upset about Dave, Lee is worried about being killed, Dave is frustrated that Lee has withdrawn from him, and Billie, a habitual user, needs no excuse. Unfortunately, Lee has a drug overdose and dies. At Lee's funeral, Dave sings a song, "For All of Us".
A few months later, Dave is apparently back on the road to success and sings "Positive role model" to end the show on a high.
and Chris Lowe
did not want to produce a "jukebox musical
" in the vein of Mamma Mia!
or We Will Rock You
. Several of the musical's songs were pre-released on the Pet Shop Boys' 1999 album Nightlife, including "Closer to Heaven", "In Denial", and "Vampires". Nightlife was recorded whilst they were writing Closer to Heaven and originally more of the album's tracks appeared in the musical. The oldest song is "Shameless", which originally appeared as the B-side to "Go West
" in 1993.
, was released in October 2001 and was produced by Pet Shop Boys
and Stephen Hague
. The album featured studio recorded version of songs from the musical.
It was planned to release "Positive role model", as sung by Paul Keating, as a single before the album was released. Remixes by Almighty and Fergie were commissioned for use on the single, but plans were scrapped when the London production closed. These remixes remain unreleased, although the Almighty remix was available for a short time from the Pet Shop Boys' website and an edit of Fergie's remix appeared on dance compilation Headliners:03 in 2001.
A limited edition single of "Run girl run" by Billie Trix, a song based on the iconic Phan Thị Kim Phúc photograph from the Vietnam War
, was available during later performances. The two track CD featured two versions of the track, of which brief snippets could be heard in "K-Hole". The versions featured were: "Run girl run (Original 1971 single version)" and "Run girl run (1981 post-apocalyptic nightmare mix)".
" in 2002) or been made available through the Pet Shop Boys' website, but many still remain unreleased. These songs include "Tall Thin Men","The Night Is The Time To Explore Who You Are", "You've got to start somewhere" and "Little Black Dress". The last of these, "Little Black Dress" has been covered by Pet Shop Boys covers band West End Girls and was released as a single in 2009.
.
When Closer to Heaven opened in London, the Pet Shop Boys said that there was interest from production companies all over the world, including New York
and Germany
.
In 2005, a short series of performances was produced by the Brisbane Powerhouse in Brisbane
, Australia
. The cast for the Australian production included:
In December 2005, Pet Shop Boys announced that this production would be moving to Sydney
to coincide with the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras
; however, the production was cancelled due to time constraints.
On 8 May 2006, Frances Barber joined Pet Shop Boys to perform "Friendly fire" at a concert for BBC Radio 2
. This was recorded and later released as the Pet Shop Boys' live album Concrete
.
The amateur City Theatre Company in Brighton
staged "Closer to Heaven" in September 2009 at the Sakkis Benney Theatre. It had a 5 day run, 22 to 26 September.
The first US production is scheduled for 1-24 October 2010, by Uptown Players in Dallas, Texas. The cast for this production includes:
Jonathan Harvey (playwright)
Jonathan Harvey is a British playwright whose work has earned multiple awards. He is also a former secondary school English teacher.-Life and works:...
and Pet Shop Boys
Pet Shop Boys
Pet Shop Boys are an English electronic dance music duo, consisting of Neil Tennant, who provides main vocals, keyboards and occasional guitar, and Chris Lowe on keyboards....
. It was premiered in May 2001 at the Arts Theatre
Arts Theatre
The Arts Theatre is a theatre in Great Newport Street, in Westminster, Central London. It now operates as the West End's smallest commercial receiving house.-History:...
in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, opening to mixed reviews, and ran until 13 October 2001. A second production of Closer to Heaven was premiered in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
in 2005.
Plot
The story is narrated by retired rock icon and actress Billie Trix (Frances BarberFrances Barber
Frances Barber is an Olivier Award-nominated English actress with a long and distinguished stage career. She has also appeared in numerous television productions...
), who otherwise has a fairly small part in the story. The opening number, "My Night", is sung by Billie and the rest of the cast, and is used to introduce the characters.
Shell Christian (Stacey Roca
Stacey Roca
Stacey Roca is a British actress, known for portraying Rachel in The Office and Claudie Stephenson in Strictly Confidential.-Background:Originally from South Africa, Roca moved to Formby at the age of twelve...
), is going to see her estranged father, Vic Christian (David Burt
David Burt
David Burt is a British actor, known primarily for his many and wide-ranging West End performances.Burt recently starred as the flamboyant Count Fosco opposite Yvette Robinson in Andrew Lloyd Webber's The Woman in White at the Palace Theatre and was featured as Captain Andy Hawks in Show Boat at...
), for the first time in years. Vic, who is gay, left Shell and her mother during her childhood, and now runs a successful gay club in London. Meanwhile, Straight Dave (Paul Keating
Paul Keating (actor)
Paul Keating is a British actor from London, England, best known for his performances on the West End stage. He has been nominated twice for an Olivier Award.- Stage career :...
), who has just arrived from Ireland, is working as a bartender at Vic's club, although his ambition is to be a dancer at the club. After seeing and speaking to her father, Shell meets Dave, and they immediately fall in love.
Record producer Bob Saunders (Paul Broughton
Paul Broughton
Paul Broughton is an Australian rugby league football identity. A former player, coach and club chief executive, he is chairman of the Gold Coast Titans of the NRL. He also serves on the board of the North Queensland Cowboys....
) is a friend of Billie Trix and a regular at Vic's club. He sees Dave dancing and decides he wants to sign him for a boy band he is forming. He makes an offer to Dave, who has no interest in signing; however, Saunders continues to pressure Dave into working for him.
Dave meets and falls in love with drug dealer Mile End Lee (Tom Walker), who deals at Vic's club. Shell is devastated when she discovers that Dave is gay, although part of her has suspected it all along. Meanwhile, Vic discovers Lee dealing drugs in his club and confiscates the drugs. Lee is worried he will be killed for losing the drugs.
At this point, everyone gets high on ketamine
Ketamine
Ketamine is a drug used in human and veterinary medicine. Its hydrochloride salt is sold as Ketanest, Ketaset, and Ketalar. Pharmacologically, ketamine is classified as an NMDA receptor antagonist...
- Shell is still upset about Dave, Lee is worried about being killed, Dave is frustrated that Lee has withdrawn from him, and Billie, a habitual user, needs no excuse. Unfortunately, Lee has a drug overdose and dies. At Lee's funeral, Dave sings a song, "For All of Us".
A few months later, Dave is apparently back on the road to success and sings "Positive role model" to end the show on a high.
Music
Most of the songs that appeared in Closer to Heaven were specifically written for the musical because Neil TennantNeil Tennant
Neil Francis Tennant is an English musician, singer and songwriter, who, with bandmate Chris Lowe, makes up the successful electronic dance music duo Pet Shop Boys.-Childhood:...
and Chris Lowe
Chris Lowe
Chris Lowe is an English musician, who, with colleague Neil Tennant, makes up the pop duo Pet Shop Boys.-Childhood:...
did not want to produce a "jukebox musical
Jukebox musical
A jukebox musical is a stage or film musical that uses previously released popular songs as its musical score. Usually the songs have in common a connection with a particular popular musician or group — either because they were written by, or for, the artists in question, or were at least...
" in the vein of Mamma Mia!
Mamma Mia!
Mamma Mia! is a stage musical written by British playwright Catherine Johnson, based on the songs of ABBA, composed by Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus, former members of the band. Although the title of the musical is taken from the group's 1975 chart-topper "Mamma Mia", the plot is fictional, not...
or We Will Rock You
We Will Rock You (musical)
We Will Rock You is a jukebox musical, based on the songs of Queen and named after their hit single of the same name. The musical was written by British comedian and author Ben Elton in collaboration with Queen members Brian May and Roger Taylor...
. Several of the musical's songs were pre-released on the Pet Shop Boys' 1999 album Nightlife, including "Closer to Heaven", "In Denial", and "Vampires". Nightlife was recorded whilst they were writing Closer to Heaven and originally more of the album's tracks appeared in the musical. The oldest song is "Shameless", which originally appeared as the B-side to "Go West
Go West (song)
"Go West" is a song by the 1970s disco group Village People. The song eventually found greater success when it was covered in 1993 by the synthpop duo Pet Shop Boys.-Village People version:...
" in 1993.
Songs
- "My Night" - Billie Trix & Cast
- "Closer to Heaven" - Shell & Vic
- "Something Special" - Straight Dave
- "Positive Role Model" (instrumental)
- "Closer to Heaven" - Shell & Dave
- "In Denial" - Vic & Shell
- "Call Me Old Fashioned" - Bob Saunders
- "Nine Out of Ten" - Shell & Straight Dave
- "It's just my little tribute to Caligula, darling!" - Billie Trix (featured in rehearsal scene)
- "Hedonism (instrumental)"
- "Friendly Fire" - Billie Trix
- "In Denial" - Straight Dave & Shell
- "Something' Special (reprise) - Straight Dave
- "Shameless" - Vile Celebrities
- "Vampires" - Vic
- "Closer to Heaven" - Straight Dave & Mile End Lee
- "Out of my System" - Shell with Billie Trix, Flynn & Trannies
- "K-Hole (instrumental - featuring an excerpt of "Run, girl, run!" - Billie Trix)"
- "For All of Us" - Straight Dave
- "Closer to Heaven" - Straight Dave
- "Positive Role Model" - Straight Dave
- "My Night" - The Cast
Cast Album release
An album, Closer to Heaven (Original Cast Recording)Closer to Heaven (Original Cast Recording)
Closer to Heaven is an album of songs from the Pet Shop Boys 2001 stage musical Closer to Heaven. The songs feature the original London production cast and production credits go to Pet Shop Boys and Stephen Hague.-Track listing:...
, was released in October 2001 and was produced by Pet Shop Boys
Pet Shop Boys
Pet Shop Boys are an English electronic dance music duo, consisting of Neil Tennant, who provides main vocals, keyboards and occasional guitar, and Chris Lowe on keyboards....
and Stephen Hague
Stephen Hague
Stephen Hague is an American music producer most active with various British acts in the 1980s. He was an influential figure in the synthpop movement.-Early career:...
. The album featured studio recorded version of songs from the musical.
It was planned to release "Positive role model", as sung by Paul Keating, as a single before the album was released. Remixes by Almighty and Fergie were commissioned for use on the single, but plans were scrapped when the London production closed. These remixes remain unreleased, although the Almighty remix was available for a short time from the Pet Shop Boys' website and an edit of Fergie's remix appeared on dance compilation Headliners:03 in 2001.
A limited edition single of "Run girl run" by Billie Trix, a song based on the iconic Phan Thị Kim Phúc photograph from the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
, was available during later performances. The two track CD featured two versions of the track, of which brief snippets could be heard in "K-Hole". The versions featured were: "Run girl run (Original 1971 single version)" and "Run girl run (1981 post-apocalyptic nightmare mix)".
Demo songs
During the recording of the Pet Shop Boys' Nightlife album, there were many songs written for the musical that never made it to the final cut. Some of these songs have since been released as b-sides to Pet Shop Boys singles (for example the song "Nightlife" appeared as a b-side to "Home and DryHome and Dry
"Home and dry" is a song by British music group Pet Shop Boys released as the first UK single and the second US single from their album Release. It reached the top 15 on the UK Singles Chart at #14 and peaked at #44 on the US Hot Dance Club Play....
" in 2002) or been made available through the Pet Shop Boys' website, but many still remain unreleased. These songs include "Tall Thin Men","The Night Is The Time To Explore Who You Are", "You've got to start somewhere" and "Little Black Dress". The last of these, "Little Black Dress" has been covered by Pet Shop Boys covers band West End Girls and was released as a single in 2009.
London cast
- Billie Trix - Frances BarberFrances BarberFrances Barber is an Olivier Award-nominated English actress with a long and distinguished stage career. She has also appeared in numerous television productions...
(until 15 September); Amanda Harris (16 September to 13 October) - Straight Dave - Paul KeatingPaul Keating (actor)Paul Keating is a British actor from London, England, best known for his performances on the West End stage. He has been nominated twice for an Olivier Award.- Stage career :...
- Shell Christian - Stacey RocaStacey RocaStacey Roca is a British actress, known for portraying Rachel in The Office and Claudie Stephenson in Strictly Confidential.-Background:Originally from South Africa, Roca moved to Formby at the age of twelve...
- Mile End Lee - Tom Walker
- Vic Christian - David BurtDavid BurtDavid Burt is a British actor, known primarily for his many and wide-ranging West End performances.Burt recently starred as the flamboyant Count Fosco opposite Yvette Robinson in Andrew Lloyd Webber's The Woman in White at the Palace Theatre and was featured as Captain Andy Hawks in Show Boat at...
- Bob Saunders - Paul BroughtonPaul BroughtonPaul Broughton is an Australian rugby league football identity. A former player, coach and club chief executive, he is chairman of the Gold Coast Titans of the NRL. He also serves on the board of the North Queensland Cowboys....
- Flynn - David Langham
- Billie's Babes - Jo Cavanagh, Akiya Henry, C. Jay Ranger, Mark John Richardson, Richard Joe, Louie SpenceLouie SpenceLouie Spence is a dance expert, choreographer and television personality who is currently the artistic director at the London Pineapple Dance Studios...
, Mark Stanway
Other performances
The original run of Closer to Heaven was from May 2001 to September 2001. This was extended to January 2002 because early performances were played to packed audiences. However, over the summer, audiences dwindled. In recent interviews, Neil Tennant has blamed this on poor marketing and bad press reviews. After the 11 September 2001 attacks, the Arts Theatre was worried about the continual fall of audience numbers across London and wanted a big audience puller, so Closer to Heaven closed on 13 October 2001. It was replaced with The Vagina MonologuesThe Vagina Monologues
The Vagina Monologues is an episodic play written by Eve Ensler which ran at the Off Broadway Westside Theatre after a limited run at AFRICA in 1996. Ensler originally starred in the production which was produced by David Stone, Nina Essman, Dan Markley, The Araca Group, Willa Shalit, Mike Skipper...
.
When Closer to Heaven opened in London, the Pet Shop Boys said that there was interest from production companies all over the world, including New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
and Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
.
In 2005, a short series of performances was produced by the Brisbane Powerhouse in Brisbane
Brisbane
Brisbane is the capital and most populous city in the Australian state of Queensland and the third most populous city in Australia. Brisbane's metropolitan area has a population of over 2 million, and the South East Queensland urban conurbation, centred around Brisbane, encompasses a population of...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. The cast for the Australian production included:
- Billie Trix - Libby Munro
- Straight Dave - Regis Broadway
- Shell Christian - Crystal Taylor
- Mile End Lee - Joel Curtis
- Vic Christian - Chris Herden
- Bob Saunders - Chris Maver
- Flynn - David Dellit
- Billie's Babes - Joel Curtis, Olympia Kwitowski, Sarshee Elliot, Brad Kendrick, Remi Broadway, Ellen Casey
In December 2005, Pet Shop Boys announced that this production would be moving to Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
to coincide with the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras
Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras
The Sydney Mardi Gras is an annual LGBTQI pride parade and festival in Sydney, Australia, and draws in thousands of visitors from around Australia and overseas...
; however, the production was cancelled due to time constraints.
On 8 May 2006, Frances Barber joined Pet Shop Boys to perform "Friendly fire" at a concert for BBC Radio 2
BBC Radio 2
BBC Radio 2 is one of the BBC's national radio stations and the most popular station in the United Kingdom. Much of its daytime playlist-based programming is best described as Adult Contemporary or AOR, although the station is also noted for its specialist broadcasting of other musical genres...
. This was recorded and later released as the Pet Shop Boys' live album Concrete
Concrete (Pet Shop Boys album)
Concrete is the seventeenth album by the British band Pet Shop Boys. It was released on 23 October 2006.Due to be called Concert, on 20 September 2006, Pet Shop Boys announced that the album was going to be called Concrete, which was the title that they originally wanted for the album...
.
The amateur City Theatre Company in Brighton
Brighton
Brighton is the major part of the city of Brighton and Hove in East Sussex, England on the south coast of Great Britain...
staged "Closer to Heaven" in September 2009 at the Sakkis Benney Theatre. It had a 5 day run, 22 to 26 September.
The first US production is scheduled for 1-24 October 2010, by Uptown Players in Dallas, Texas. The cast for this production includes:
- Billie Trix - Morgana Shaw
- Straight Dave - Evan Fuller
- Shell Christian - Lee Wadley
- Mile End Lee - Clayton Younkin
- Vic Christian - Jason Kane
- Bob Saunders - Coy Covington
- Flynn - Mikey Abrams