Tim Driesen | |
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Born | |
Nationality | Belgian |
Occupation(s) | Actor, musical theatre performer, singer-songwriter, composer, dancer, pianist |
Tim Driesen is a Belgian actor, notable for roles in both musicals, plays, and television serials. He has composed a full-scale musical as well as a number of pop-songs. In 2007, he created the role of Adrian Banks (a character based on pop-star Mark Owen) in the Take That musical, Never Forget . [1] Take That member Gary Barlow, who wrote the majority of the production's musical numbers, said jokingly of the cast: "I'm just worried that they're better than us". [2] When the musical opened, Driesen appeared with fellow cast members Dean Chisnall, Craig Els, Stephane Anelli, Eaton James and Nancy Sullivan on ITV's GMTV performing the show's title song, "Never Forget". [3] He also appeared in the UK tour of Starlight Express . Driesen appeared in the television series, The Bubbles.
He is also noted for his voice-over work in televised commercials.
Driesen appeared as Phoebus in Notre Dame de Paris in Belgium (Antwerp & Ghent). He played a role for which he won 'Best Supporting Actor in a Musical' at the VMPs (Flemish Musical Awards).
His musical 'My Super Girlfriend' (previously known as 'Super Alice Smith') has been workshopped and showcased in conjunction with 'Perfect Pitch' at Trafalgar Studios in London
Tim has played Joey Primo in Rock of Ages in London's West End. He was alternate for lead character Drew, as well as understudying and regularly performing as Stacee Jaxx.
Tim then did Jersey Boys in the Netherlands in which he plays the lead character Frankie Valli. The cast performed at Musical Sing-A-Long on Dutch TV in September 2013. [4]
For the past couple of years he has been performing in Disney's The Lion King, first in The Netherlands and currently on the UK tour.
Originally from Belgium, Driesen is based in London in the UK. He trained at Laine Theatre Arts in Epsom.
In theatre, an understudy, referred to in opera as cover or covering, is a performer who learns the lines and blocking or choreography of a regular actor, actress, or other performer in a play. Should the regular actor or actress be unable to appear on stage, the understudy takes over the part. Usually when the understudy takes over, the theater manager announces the cast change prior to the start of the performance. Coined in 1874, the term understudy has more recently generally been applied only to performers who can back up a role, but still regularly perform in another role.
Take That are an English pop group formed in Manchester in 1990. The group currently consists of Gary Barlow, Howard Donald and Mark Owen. The original line-up also featured Jason Orange and Robbie Williams. Barlow is the group's lead singer and primary songwriter, with Owen and Williams initially providing backing vocals, and Donald and Orange serving primarily as dancers.
Howard Paul Donald is an English singer, songwriter, drummer, pianist, dancer and record producer. He is a member of English pop-group Take That. Donald was also judge on the German reality talent show Got to Dance from 2013 to 2014, during a Take That-hiatus.
Notre-Dame de Paris is a sung-through French musical which debuted on 16 September 1998 in Paris. It is based upon the novel Notre-Dame de Paris by the French novelist Victor Hugo. The music was composed by Riccardo Cocciante and the lyrics are by Luc Plamondon.
James Jacob Lomas is a British actor best known for his role as Billy Elliot in Billy Elliot the Musical, which earned a Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical, making him one of the youngest winners of the awards.
Mark Stephen Moraghan is an English actor and singer. He has appeared in many British drama series including Peak Practice, London's Burning and Heartbeat. He is most famous for being the narrator for the children's television show Thomas & Friends from the seventeenth to twenty-first seasons, and his roles as Greg Shadwick in Brookside, Ray Wyatt in Dream Team, Owen Davies in Holby City and Adrian Atkins in Coronation Street.
Jack Siegfried Ryder is an English actor, best known for playing Jamie Mitchell in the BBC One soap opera EastEnders from 1998 to 2002. He has subsequently established himself as a film and theatre director.
JoAnn Gibb is a Scottish theatre actress best known for her role of Rumpleteazer in the 1998 film of Andrew Lloyd Webber's Cats, and as the replacement Pearl the Observation Car in the original production of Starlight Express. She also played Belle in the 2006 UK Productions tour of Beauty and the Beast and appeared as Columbia in the 2000 UK national tour of The Rocky Horror Show.
Reva Rice is an American musical theatre actress and singer, best known for originating the role of Pearl in Starlight Express on Broadway.
Never Forget is a jukebox musical with a book written by Guy Jones and Ed Curtis, with screenwriter Danny Brocklehurst acting as story advisor, based on the 1990s songs of boy band Take That, written by Gary Barlow. In addition to Barlow's songs, Never Forget features additional music and lyrics by Barry Manilow, Dan Hartman and Adrienne Anderson, all of which were covered by Take That in the 1990s. The musical's story focuses on the themes of friendship, ambition, love and betrayal among the members of a Take That tribute band, but it is not related to the history of Take That. The musical is named after Take That's chart-topping single "Never Forget".
"Starlight Express" is the 'showstopper' number from the musical Starlight Express. In the show, it is performed by Rusty, the show's protagonist. Before the song, he has been told by the old steam engine Poppa of a magical locomotive, named the Starlight Express, who will aid him in need.
Ray Shell is an American film, TV and stage actor, as well as an author, singer, director and producer. He is known for creating the roles of Nomax in Five Guys Named Moe (1990) and Rusty in Starlight Express (1984). He is a Creative Director of the Giant Olive Theatre Company, resident company at the Lion & Unicorn Theatre in Kentish Town, London. Shell is the author of the 1993 novel Iced.
"Jack and the Beanstalk" is an English fairy tale. It appeared as "The Story of Jack Spriggins and the Enchanted Bean" in 1734 and as Benjamin Tabart's moralized "The History of Jack and the Bean-Stalk" in 1807. Henry Cole, publishing under pen name Felix Summerly, popularized the tale in The Home Treasury (1845), and Joseph Jacobs rewrote it in English Fairy Tales (1890). Jacobs' version is most commonly reprinted today, and is believed to be closer to the oral versions than Tabart's because it lacks the moralizing.
Rock of Ages is a jukebox musical built around classic rock songs from the 1980s, especially from the famous glam metal bands of that decade. The musical features songs from Styx, Journey, Bon Jovi, Pat Benatar, Twisted Sister, Steve Perry, Poison and Europe, among other well-known rock bands. It was written by Chris D'Arienzo, directed by Kristin Hanggi and choreographed by Kelly Devine with music supervision, arrangements and orchestrations by Ethan Popp.
Nancy Sullivan is an English actress and singer.
Take That Present: The Circus Live was the seventh concert tour by English pop group, Take That. The tour promoted their fifth studio album, The Circus. The tour began on 5 June 2009 at the Stadium of Light in Sunderland and finished on 5 July 2009 at Wembley Stadium in London. The Circus Live was their biggest tour to date. and was seen by 1,014,000 people, making a profit of £40,560,000. The tour became the fastest selling in UK history, with the 600,000 for all original eight dates selling out in five hours.
Phil Gallagher is a British children's television presenter who is best known for playing the title character in the CBeebies children's television show Mister Maker.
Progress Live was the eighth concert tour by English pop group Take That. The tour, sponsored by Samsung, supported their sixth studio album, Progress as they visited major cities in the UK and Europe. It was the first tour to feature all five original members performing together in 16 years and the final tour to feature Jason Orange and Robbie Williams. In its infancy, the tour accomplished many accolades including selling 1.34 million tickets in less than 24 hours. The tour quickly became the biggest tour in the United Kingdom. They played 8 nights each at Etihad Stadium in Manchester and also Wembley Stadium in London – breaking the previous record held by Michael Jackson's Bad World Tour set in 1988. These eight nights at Wembley Stadium saw Take That break the record for the highest-grossing residency by grossing £38 million from their respective London dates alone. At the conclusion of 2011, the tour was placed on Billboard's annual, "Top 25 Tours", and appeared third worldwide, earning over $180 million with 29 shows. Each member of the band received £7,900,000 from the tour after tax.
Gary Barlow in Concert was the first full solo tour that Gary Barlow had performed in over 13 years. Leg 1 saw him performing songs from his "incredible music career spanning over 20 years" in front of a sell out audience, whilst also raising money for The Prince's Trust and The Royal Foundation during two nights at the Royal Albert Hall. It was announced on 15 October 2012 that Barlow would go on a full solo tour for his second leg of shows, lasting two months around the UK and Ireland.
Jack the Giant Killer is a 2013 American fantasy film produced by The Asylum and directed by Mark Atkins. A modern take of the fairy tales "Jack the Giant Killer" and "Jack and the Beanstalk", the film stars Ben Cross and Jane March. It is a mockbuster of Jack the Giant Slayer. It was released on DVD in the UK as The Giant Killer.