David Thaxton (born 12 May 1982) is a Welsh singer, actor and musical theatre and opera performer. He starred in the

Donmar Warehouse The Donmar Warehouse is a 251-seat, not-for-profit theatre in Covent Garden, London, England. It first opened on 18 July 1977. Sam Mendes, Michael Grandage and Josie Rourke have all served as artistic director, a post held since 2019 by M ...

's '' Passion'', for which he won the 2011 Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical. He previously starred as The Phantom in

The Phantom of the Opera ''The Phantom of the Opera'' (french: Le Fantôme de l'Opéra) is a novel by French author Gaston Leroux. It was first published as a serial in from 23 September 1909 to 8 January 1910, and was released in volume form in late March 1910 by Pier ...

, in

Her Majesty's Theatre Her Majesty's Theatre is a West End theatre situated on Haymarket, London, Haymarket in the City of Westminster, London. The present building was designed by Charles J. Phipps and was constructed in 1897 for actor-manager Herbert Beerbohm Tree, ...

. He previously appeared as

Enjolras Enjolras () is a fictional character who acts as the charismatic leader of the Friends of the ABC in the 1862 novel ''Les Misérables'' by Victor Hugo. In both the novel and the musical that it inspired, Enjolras is a revolutionary who fights f ...

in the

West End West End most commonly refers to: * West End of London, an area of central London, England * West End theatre, a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London, England West End may also refer to: Pl ...

production of ''

Les Misérables ''Les Misérables'' ( , ) is a French historical novel by Victor Hugo, first published in 1862, that is considered one of the greatest novels of the 19th century. In the English-speaking world, the novel is usually referred to by its original ...

''. In March 2011, he joined the cast of '' Love Never Dies'', undertaking the role of Raoul de Chagny. Later then playing the role of Kevin T in the

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

production of ''

Come from Away ''Come from Away'' is a Canadian musical, with book, music and lyrics by Irene Sankoff and David Hein. It is based on the events in the Newfoundland town of Gander during the week following the September 11 attacks, when 38 planes, carrying ...

''.

Early life and education

Thaxton was born in

Neath Neath (; cy, Castell-nedd) is a market town and community situated in the Neath Port Talbot County Borough, Wales. The town had a population of 50,658 in 2011. The community of the parish of Neath had a population of 19,258 in 2011. Historica ...

, South Wales. He attended Grimston Primary School and Springwood High School in King's Lynn, Norfolk, and subsequently won a scholarship to the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama, following a four-year vocal studies course, where he was awarded Young Welsh Musical Theatre Singer of the Year 2005 and was runner-up in the Kathleen Ferrier Young Singers' Bursary. He was also a member of Only Men Aloud!.

Career

As a member of the National Youth Music Theatre, he was part of the world premiere of Richard Taylor's ''Warchild''. He was a soloist at the opening gala for the Wales Millennium Centre in 2004 and created the role of the Wolf in the world premiere of John Doyle's ''The Tailors Daughter'' (

Welsh National Youth Opera WNO Youth Opera (WNYO) (Welsh: ''Opera Ieuenctid WNO'') is a training and performance programme for young singers aged between 8 and 25. It forms part of the youth wing of Welsh National Opera, with Youth Opera groups in South Wales (Cardiff), Nor ...

). Other work includes Foreman in

Trial by Jury A jury trial, or trial by jury, is a legal proceeding in which a jury makes a decision or findings of fact. It is distinguished from a bench trial in which a judge or panel of judges makes all decisions. Jury trials are used in a significa ...

, and the subsequent Chandos recording (BBC National Orchestra of Wales, St David's Hall), Nick Shadow in ''

The Rake's Progress ''The Rake's Progress'' is an English-language opera from 1951 in three acts and an epilogue by Igor Stravinsky. The libretto, written by W. H. Auden and Chester Kallman, is based loosely on the eight paintings and engravings '' A Rake's Pro ...

'' (Wales Millennium Centre), Sweeney in ''Sweeney Todd'' (Norwich Playhouse), Harasta in ''The Cunning Little Vixen'' (Cardiff Sherman) and Tarquinius in ''The Rape of Lucretia''.

''Les Misérables''

From 2005 to 2007, Thaxton was an ensemble member in the London production of ''

'' at the Queen's Theatre, playing the parts of Courfeyrac and Bamatabois, and understudying the roles of Enjolras and the Bishop of Digne (both first cover). He was part of the 21st Anniversary Cast, performing at the special BBC Radio 2 concert. In 2008, he returned to ''Les Misérables'', now as principal

. After the cast change in June 2009, he stayed on for the 2009–2010 season as well. He left the show on 19 June 2010, having played the role to much acclaim and attention from the public. Thaxton played the role of

Javert Javert (), no first name given in the source novel, is a fictional character and the main antagonist of Victor Hugo's 1862 novel '' Les Misérables.'' He was presumably born in 1780 and died on June 7, 1832. First a prison guard, and then a pol ...

in the 2014–2015 West End production and reprised the role in 2018. As of September 27th 2022, Thaxton has once again returned to the role of Javert at the Sondheim Theatre in London's West End.

''Passion''

In March 2010, Thaxton accepted the offer to play the part of Giorgio in the

revival of the Sondheim/ Lapine musical '' Passion'' alongside Elena Roger and Scarlett Strallen, with previews starting on 10 September 2010 and opening night on 21 September 2010. He won the

Olivier Award The Laurence Olivier Awards, or simply the Olivier Awards, are presented annually by the Society of London Theatre to recognise excellence in professional theatre in London at an annual ceremony in the capital. The awards were originally known a ...

for Best Actor in a Musical. Sondheim praised his performance for bringing the show "properly into focus" and making Giorgio the center of attention.Sondheim, Stephen – Look I Made a Hat: Collected Lyrics (1981–2011) with Attendant Comments, Amplifications, Dogmas, Harangues, Digressions, Anecdotes and Miscellany

''Love Never Dies''

Thaxton portrayed Raoul, Vicomte de Chagny in the second cast of '' Love Never Dies'', taking over from Joseph Millson who portrayed Raoul in the original cast. He played this role at the

Adelphi Theatre The Adelphi Theatre is a West End theatre, located on the Strand in the City of Westminster, central London. The present building is the fourth on the site. The theatre has specialised in comedy and musical theatre, and today it is a receiv ...

until it closed on 27 August 2011.

''Unborn Twin''

Thaxton is a member of the band Unborn Twin (formerly Glasgow Coma Score). On 12 January 2012, they announced that they would be issuing their first EP (''Distort and Merge EP'') and on 12 April of the same year would play a concert at London's Bush Hall. Following on from this the band released the CD and download single "Suffer This", and have played several shows at venues such as Norwich Arts Centre, 93 Feet East and the Dublin Castle in Camden.

''Candide''

From 23 November to 22 February 2013, Thaxton portrayed Maximilian in ''

Candide ( , ) is a French satire written by Voltaire, a philosopher of the Age of Enlightenment, first published in 1759. The novella has been widely translated, with English versions titled ''Candide: or, All for the Best'' (1759); ''Candide: or, Th ...

'' at the Menier Chocolate Factory, alongside Fra Fee and Scarlett Strallen.

Theatre Credits

Accolades

References

External links

Official Les Misérables Website

Unofficial West End Les Misérables Website

Unborn Twin Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Thaxton, David 1982 births Living people People from Neath 21st-century Welsh male opera singers Welsh male musical theatre actors Laurence Olivier Award winners 21st-century Welsh male actors