The live production follows in the footsteps of « Disney’s The Little Mermaid » and also features Elle King and « Weird Al » Yankovic.
The Warner Bros. classic film, Broadway adaptation, and Roald Dahl novel “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” will get the live-in-concert treatment this Nov. 3 and 4 with “Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory In Concert at the Hollywood Bowl: A Live-to-Film Celebration.”
“Stranger Things” and “It” star Finn Wolfhard will play Charlie Bucket, with John Stamos singing “Pure Imagination” as Willy Wonka and “Weird Al” Yankovic as the Oompa Loompas. Elle King will take on the odious Veruca Salt singing “I Want It Now,” with Giancarlo Esposito as The Candy Man, Ingrid Michaelson as Mrs. Bucket, and Richard Kind as Grandpa Joe.
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Musical numbers from the Oscar-nominated score by Anthony Newley, Leslie Bricusse, and Walter Scharf including “The Candy Man,” “I’ve Got A Golden Ticket,” and “Oompa-Loompa Doompadee-Doo” will be performed live onstage accompanied by multi-instrumental band DeVotchka and a musical ensemble conducted by Jeff Hoeppner. DeVotcka’s Nick Urata will also serve as music director for the show.
“Willy Wonka is the first movie I ever saw,” said Stamos. “The film was released at a time when you could bring your own popcorn to the movie theater. I filled a whole grocery bag full of popcorn, but never touched it because I was so fascinated with what was going on behind Willy’s eyes. Gene Wilder as Willy was pure magic. Every time I watch the movie, and I’ve watched it more than several hundred times, I find something new. It becomes deeper, weirder, more charming and more of a mystery.”
The show will be presented in Smell-O-Rama, which means attendees will be presented with exclusive Scratch-N-Sniff Golden Tickets. The concert will also feature a factory of treats, including a costume contest and special projections on the surface of the Bowl created by acclaimed painter, designer, and illustrator Shag.
“Like our concert celebration of ‘Disney’s The Little Mermaid at the Hollywood Bowl,’ we are mixing in film, live music, singers, dancers, effects and special guest artists to create an event that pays homage to the original movie but also delivers something that could only be experienced live,” said concert director Richard Kraft. “Our creative mantra for this show has been, ‘Anything you want to: Do it.’”
Kraft was previously the director of “Disney’s The Little Mermaid In Concert Live-to-Film at the Hollywood Bowl,” as well as “La La Land In Concert” and “A Whole New World of Alan Menken.” Maximillian Castillo, who produced the “La La Land” City Hall aerial dancing production, will join him as concert director.
Carter Armstrong serves as music supervisor for the show, with choreography by Mark “Swany” Swanhart. Robert J. Ulrich, Carol Kritzer, and Alex Newman are the casting directors.
Tickets go on sale Sept. 23 at 10 a.m.
