Daniel Healy and Emma Lucia are playing the lead roles together in Once The Musical – not once, but twice.
Having first done so in the regional premiere in autumn 2018, the duo are reunited for the first British tour which plays the Grand Opera House from February 3 to 8.
The multi-award winning musical was first a cult, micro-budget film written and directed by John Carney in 2007, and then a Broadway, West End and Dublin show with very successful runs.
It tells the story of a Dublin street busker and a Czech musician who meet unexpectedly and fall in love across five days.
The touring cast of 16 will be led by Daniel Healy, from Scotland, as Guy and Emma Lucia, from Durham, as Girl. Here’s what the stars had to say…
‘I toured with Ronan Keating’
Daniel: My first run-in with the show was when I was doing a show in LA called Backbeat and I had an audition for the Broadway version of Once but couldn’t do it because of various reasons. But then I understudied the lead and played one of the main characters, Eamon in the London production, when I understudied Ronan Keating.
Daniel: I think, without being big-headed, I’ve got an ear for accents. I’d ask Irish friends too, and it’s all about not being afraid to ask. Though being Scottish doesn’t make it easier to learn because, when accents are close to each other, like these two, they’re actually more difficult to separate…but I’ve managed to fool a few people with my Irish accent, thinking I really must be from Dublin!
Daniel: My dad’s a guitarist, and I did musical theatre from the age of five, and TV dramas and films too.
Daniel: I could never call myself a busker, but I have busked in the past, but I sympathise more with Guy’s struggle with not having the courage to follow through with his dreams when you hope you can make it as a singer-songwriter.
Once the Musical is at the Grand Opera House from Monday February 3 to Saturday February 8. Buy your tickets from the Box office at 0844 871 3024 or from their website.
For our full event listings for the Grand Opera House please visit here.