Queen musical making stop in Van Wert

The We Will Rock You national tour will make a storied stop in Van Wert on Sunday, November 24, at 7:30 p.m. Annerin Theatricals revived the musical, which debuted in 2002, for its latest touring production.

“This is a show I have wanted to produce since I first saw it in London,” shared Annerin Theatricals’ Jeff Parry. “My vision was to be able to produce it in such a way that it plays in soft-seaters as well as cut-down arenas. I thought that Queen’s musical was for everyone and not just the typical Broadway crowd, therefore we’re producing it in a way that can accommodate most buildings and audiences that want to experience the music of Queen in a uniquely theatrical manner.”

The Niswonger Performing Arts Center is the perfect space to experience We Will Rock You, which uses Queen’s music to tell a futuristic, quirky, eccentric and heartfelt story of outsiders. The idea for the musical came after a meeting between the actor Robert De Niro with musicians Brian May and Roger Taylor, in Venice in 1996. De Niro’s daughter was a big fan of Queen and the actor asked if the legends of rock had never thought of creating a musical based on their songs. That was the beginning of everything.

Since 2002 over 15 million theatergoers in 17 countries have been thrilled by this awe-inspiring production, which is based on the songs of Queen with a book by Ben Elton (The Young Ones, Blackadder, Popcorn). Elton fashioned this hilarious futurist comedy around more than 24 of Queen’s biggest hit songs including “We Are The Champions”, “Radio Ga Ga”, “I Want To Break Free”, “Somebody To Love”, “Killer Queen”, “Don’t Stop Me Now”, “Under Pressure”, “Bohemian Rhapsody”, “Another One Bites The Dust”, and, of course, “We Will Rock You”.

“The audience gets to become part of what eventually becomes a rock concert…”–Ben Elton