''A Spoonful of Sherman'' is a musical revue written and emceed by

Robert J. Sherman Robert Jason Sherman (born July 16, 1968), known as Robbie Sherman, is an American songwriter based in London. He was born in Los Angeles to Joyce and Robert B. Sherman, the youngest of four siblings. Stemming from a long line of songwriters an ...

which premiered on January 6, 2014 at the St. James Theatre in London. The cast consisted of four rising

West End theatre West End theatre is mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres in and near the West End of London.Christopher Innes"West End"in ''The Cambridge Guide to Theatre'' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1998), pp. 1194–1195, ...

stars including Charlotte Wakefield, Emma Williams, Stuart Matthew Price and Greg Castiglioni. Musical Direction was provided by Colin Billing and the show was directed by Stewart Nicholls. Lighting was designed by the show's Stage Manager Andrew Holton. In the 2017 version of the show, focus of the show's narrative shifted to both

Sherman Brothers The Sherman Brothers were an American songwriting duo that specialized in musical films, made up of brothers Robert Sherman (December 19, 1925 – March 6, 2012) and Richard Sherman (June 12, 1928 – May 25, 2024). Together they received ...

' lives as well as to the life of their father,

Al Sherman Avrum Sherman (September 7, 1897 – September 16, 1973), pen name Al Sherman, was an American songwriter and composer active during the Tin Pan Alley era in American music history. Some of his most recognizable song titles include " You Gotta B ...

Premise

The show covers ninety years of Sherman songwriting (including material written by the Sherman Brothers' father,

(who began writing music in the early 1920s). Songs written by the younger Robert Sherman were also included in the show as well) but the focus of the evening was the music and lyrics of Robert B. Sherman and the

Productions

2014 Productions

The show was originally produced by MusicWorld (UK) in association with the St. James Theatre, James Albrecht, Creative Director. Joanne Benjamin and Clive Chenery of The Entertainment Business provided General Management. The show was successful enough to merit further shows be scheduled for April 2014.

2017 Production

''A Spoonful of Sherman'' returned to London from August 7–20, 2017 at "Live at Zédel". Helena Blackman and

Daniel Boys Daniel Boys (born 26 March 1979) is an English actor. He starred in the West End productions of the musicals ''Rent'' and ''Grease'' before being a 2007 contestant on the BBC talent series '' Any Dream Will Do''. Boys went on to star in many ...

starred alongside pianist/singer Christopher Hamilton. Narrating the show once again was

. While the book for the two 2014 productions largely remained the same, in the 2017 version, Sherman modified his script, removing emphasis on his father, Robert B. Sherman's life and making the story more about both

(Robert and

Richard Richard is a male given name. It originates, via Old French, from compound of the words descending from Proto-Germanic language">Proto-Germanic ''*rīk-'' 'ruler, leader, king' and ''*hardu-'' 'strong, brave, hardy', and it therefore means 'st ...

) and their Tin Pan Alley era songwriter father,

. New musical arrangements were provided by Rowland Lee. Robert J. Sherman explained that changes had to do with the evolution of the show's purpose for being. In 2014 the show was designed merely to serve as a "happy memorial" to his recently deceased songwriter father, Robert B. Sherman, but as the show grew, it began to take on a life of its own, the purpose, and therefore, the focus of the show needed to change as well.

2018 UK/Ireland Tour

On December 20, 2017 the show's producers announced the launch of the first ''A Spoonful of Sherman'' UK/Ireland tour. The tour premiered on February 14, 2018 at the EM Forester Theatre in Tonbridge, Kent with its press night held on March 27 in

Greenwich Greenwich ( , , ) is an List of areas of London, area in south-east London, England, within the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Greater London, east-south-east of Charing Cross. Greenwich is notable for its maritime hi ...

. The tour production marked a departure from previous incarnations of the show, evolving from cabaret to fully realized stage musical. Cast members for the tour include Sophie-Louise Dann, Mark Read, Glen Facey, Jenna Innes and Ben Stock. Stewart Nicholls directed and choreographed with a new book devised by Robert Sherman. Stage and costume design was by Gabriella Slade, Lighting Design was by Chris Withers and new musical arrangements and musical supervision was provided by Rowland Lee. The tour played in 25 different cities spanning the United Kingdom and Ireland.

2019 Licensed Productions

In late 2018 the previous year's UK/Ireland tour version was made available for professional license. In April 2019 ''A Spoonful of Sherman'' made its U.S. premiere in

San Jose, California San Jose, officially the City of San José ( ; ), is a cultural, commercial, and political center within Silicon Valley and the San Francisco Bay Area. With a city population of 997,368 and a metropolitan area population of 1.95 million, it is ...

. The San Jose run played for five weeks at the 3Below Stages featuring veteran Bay Area performers, Shannon Guggenheim, Stephen Guggenheim, Susan Gundunas, F. James Raasch, Teresa Swain and pianist Barry Koron. In July 2019 it was announced that a licensed production of ''A Spoonful of Sherman'' would be presented by Sing'Theatre at School of the Arts in

Singapore Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. It is about one degree ...

starring Hossan Leong, Mina Ellen Kaye, George Chan, Aaron Khaled and Vanessa Kee.

References

External links

''A Spoonful Of Sherman'' Official Website

''A Spoonful Of Sherman'' at West End Live 2018

Emma Williams sings "Mother Earth and Father Time" from the Original London Cast Recording

Dress Circle Of London
{{DEFAULTSORT:Spoonful of Sherman 2014 musicals Cabaret in Europe Musicals by Robert J. Sherman Revues Sherman Brothers West End musicals