Oliver Tompsett (born 25 August 1981) is a British actor and singer, best known for his work in musical theatre. He originated leading roles in multiple West End productions, including Drew Boley in Rock of Ages and William Shakespeare in & Juliet. In addition, Tompsett is known for his portrayal of Fiyero in Wicked and Galileo in We Will Rock You.
Oliver Tompsett | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | 25 August 1981 Abingdon, Oxfordshire, England |
| Occupation(s) | Actor, singer |
| Years active | 2002–current |
Early life and education edit
Tompsett was born in Abingdon-on-Thames. His father, John, was an engineer and opera singer, and his mother, Judy, who ran a dance studio. He has an older brother, Ben, who is a musician, and a sister, Amy.[1] Tompsett attended John Mason School. He was a member of the Oxfordshire Youth Music Theatre, which sparked his interest in musical theatre, where he performed in youth productions of Me and My Girl, Godspell and Anne of Green Gables.[1] He is a graduate of Arts Educational School, where he played the lead role of "Tony" in West Side Story.[1]
Career edit
This section of a biography of a living person needs additional citations for verification. (May 2023) |
Tompsett made his professional and West End debut in October 2002 in the Madness/Tim Firth musical Our House, directed by Matthew Warchus, at London's Cambridge Theatre. He is featured on the DVD of the production, recorded for BBC3 in 2003, as the character Callum and as a member of the ensemble.[citation needed]
His subsequent London stage appearances include: Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus' Mamma Mia!, directed by Phyllida Lloyd, at the Prince of Wales Theatre; Notes From New York at the Trafalgar Studios and Christmas in New York at the Apollo Theatre, both directed by David Randall; 'Caliph' in Kismet, directed by Tiffany Watt-Smith, at the Arcola Theatre and "Harry Lytton" in Richard Stirling's Over My Shoulder: The Story of Jessie Matthews, directed by Stewart Nicholls, at Wyndhams Theatre.[citation needed]
Immediately prior to joining the original cast of Wicked, in September 2006, he appeared in Trevor Nunn's production of Peter Shaffer's The Royal Hunt of the Sun at the National Theatre. He has twice appeared on the Royal Variety Performance, in 2002 and 2006.[citation needed]
Tompsett next played the role of Fiyero in the West End musical Wicked, which opened 27 September 2006. He is a member of the original London cast, having previously performed in the ensemble and serving as the understudy for Fiyero, before replacing Adam Garcia on 16 July 2007. He played his final performance on 27 March 2010 after three and a half years with the production. He was succeeded by Lewis Bradley who played the role until May 2010, when Lee Mead took over.[2]
Tompsett originated the role of Drew in the West End production of Rock of Ages.[3] For this role he was nominated for the whatsonstage.com Theatergoers Choice Award for Best Actor in a Musical.[4] Oliver left the show on 23 September 2012 when his contract ended.
On 12 September 2012 it was confirmed that Tompsett will replace Noel Sullivan as Galileo in We Will Rock You on 6 October 2012. For this part he was nominated for the whatsonstage.com Theatergoers Choice Award for Best Take Over in a Role.[5] He remained with the show until its closure on 31 May 2014.
From November 2014 to 24 January 2015, Tompsett played the role of Phil Davis in the musical White Christmas alongside Darren Day in Leeds.[6]
From 16 March to 14 August 2016, Tompsett played the role of Sky Masterson in the West End revival of Guys and Dolls following its transfer to the Phoenix Theatre in London.[7] Tompsett reprised the role for the show's Israeli premiere at the Opera House in Tel Aviv for 10 performances.[8]
On 20 November 2016, Tompsett starred alongside Seth Rudetsky, Jennifer Simard, Sally Ann Triplett, Alice Fearn, Sandra Marvin and Jodie Jacobs in two benefit gala performances of satirical comedy musical Disaster at the Charing Cross Theatre in London.[citation needed]
In 2019, Tompsett joined the cast of & Juliet as Shakespeare.[9] The world premiere production opened at the Manchester Opera House on 10 September 2019 and closed on 12 October 2019. He continued on in the role when the musical transferred to the West End, where it began performances at the Shaftesbury Theatre on 2 November 2019.[10] At the 2020 WhatsOnStage Awards, he was nominated for Best Actor in a Musical.[11] Tompsett continued in the role for the entire West End run of & Juliet, until the show closed on 25 March 2023.[12]
On 4 April 2023, Tompsett took over the role of Edward Lewis in the West End production of Pretty Woman. He will continue to play the role until the show's closing on 18 June 2023.[13]
On 18 May 2023, it was announced that Tompsett will star in the musical In Dreams, which will begin performances at Leeds Playhouse on 3 July 2023.[14]
Personal life edit
Tompsett is married to actress Michelle Potter.[15] They met in 2003 while performing in the West End production of Mamma Mia.[16] Their first child, a son named George, born in 2013.[1] Their second child, a daughter named Kaia, was born in February 2017.[17]
Tompsett ran in the 2022 London charity marathon for Parkinson's disease.[18]
Theatre credits edit
| Year | Title | Role | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 - 2003 | Our House | Callum/Ensemble | Cambridge Theatre | West End |
| 2003 - 2004 | Mamma Mia! | Ensemble | Prince of Wales Theatre | West End |
| 2004 | Notes From New York | Ensemble | Trafalgar Studios | West End |
| 2004 | Cinderella | Prince Charming | Watford Palace Theatre | Regional |
| 2004 | Christmas in New York | Performer | Apollo Theatre | West End |
| 2005 | Kismet | Caliph | Arcola Theatre | Off-West End |
| 2006 | Over My Shoulder: The Story of Jessie Matthews | Harry Lyton | Wyndhams Theatre | West End |
| 2006 | The Royal Hunt of the Sun | Ben | Royal National Theatre | |
| 2006 - 2007 | Wicked | Ensemble, u/s Fiyero | Apollo Victoria Theatre | West End |
| 2007 - 2009 | Fiyero | |||
| 2011 - 2012 | Rock of Ages | Drew Boley | Shaftesbury Theatre | West End |
| 2012 - 2014 | We Will Rock You | Galileo | Dominion Theatre | West End |
| 2014 - 2015 | White Christmas | Phil Davis | Leeds Grand Theatre | |
| 2016 | Guys & Dolls | Sky Masterson | Phoenix Theatre | West End |
| Opera House | Tel Aviv | |||
| 2016 | Disaster! | Chad | Charing Cross Theatre | Benefit concert performance |
| 2017 - 2019 | Kinky Boots | Charlie Price | Adelphi Theatre | West End |
| 2019 | & Juliet | William Shakespeare | Manchester Opera House | World premiere - pre-West End engagement |
| 2019 - 2023 | Shaftesbury Theatre | West End | ||
| 2023 | Pretty Woman | Edward Lewis | Savoy Theatre | West End |
| 2023 | In Dreams | Ramsey | Leeds Playhouse | World premiere[19] |
| Ed Mirvish Theatre | North American premiere |
Filmography edit
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | Hard Way: The Action Musical | Jake | Short film |
| 2018 | Show Dogs | Chauncey | Voice role |
| 2021 | I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change | Unknown |
Awards and nominations edit
| Year | Award | Category | Work | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | WhatsOnStage Award | Best Actor in a Musical | Rock of Ages | Nominated | [20] |
| 2013 | WhatsOnStage Award | Best Takeover in a Role | We Will Rock You | Nominated | [21] |
| 2020 | WhatsOnStage Award | Best Actor in a Musical | & Juliet | Nominated | [11] |
Recordings edit
In 2008 he recorded a song for the CD Act One – Songs From The Musicals Of Alexander S. Bermange, an album of 20 new recordings by 26 West End stars, released in October 2008 on Dress Circle Records. He can be heard on the recent Alexander S. Bermange CD singing "More than a Memory" and more.
In late 2008 he released his debut album entitled "Sentimental Heart", with all of the songs written, performed and produced by Tompsett.
Tompsett also recorded the song 'We Are Not Alone' on Terry Pratchett's 'Only You Can Save Mankind', which was released on 23 November 2009.
In May 2010, Tompsett announced on his Official Twitter account that due to the success of his début album, he had signed a record deal with Major Record Label Warner Brothers.[22] His second album was released in 2011.[23]
References edit
- ^ a b c d Gray, Chris (17 July 2013). "Abingdon's Oliver Tompsett on his star role in We Will Rock You". Oxford Mail. Retrieved 20 May 2023.
- ^ Lee Mead to Join London's Wicked as Fiyero; Principals Confirmed Archived 31 January 2010 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Amy Pemberton, Oliver Tompsett, Simon Lipkin et al. Join Justin Lee Collins and Shayne Ward in the West End's Rock of Agea!
- ^ "Full List: 2012 Whatsonstage.com Award winners". Archived from the original on 23 February 2012. Retrieved 21 February 2012.
- ^ "Full list: Winners announced of the 2013 Whatsonstage.com Awards". Archived from the original on 3 June 2013. Retrieved 18 February 2013.
- ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 15 August 2016. Retrieved 6 July 2016.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 15 August 2016. Retrieved 6 July 2016.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ "West End Frame: Casting announced for Guys and Dolls Israeli transfer". westendframe.com. Archived from the original on 29 August 2016.
- ^ Thomas, Sophie (8 February 2019). "Further casting announced for & Juliet at the Shaftesbury Theatre". London Theatre.
- ^ Jackson, Daisy (25 January 2019). "What if Juliet didn't die at the end of Romeo & Juliet? This new musical has the answers". Manchester Evening News.
- ^ a b Wood, Alex (1 March 2020). "20th Annual WhatsOnStage Awards winners include Andrew Scott, Claire Foy, Come From Away and Six". WhatsOnStage. Retrieved 20 May 2023.
- ^ Mayo, Douglas (9 October 2022). "Juliet Musical sets West End closing date". BritishTheatre.com. Retrieved 15 January 2023.
- ^ Wood, Alex (8 March 2023). "Pretty Woman sets West End closing date and announces new lead casting". WhatsOnStage. Retrieved 20 May 2023.
- ^ Wood, Alex (18 May 2023). "Cast announced for In Dreams musical including Oliver Tompsett, Lena Hall and Gabriela García". WhatsOnStage. Retrieved 20 May 2023.
- ^ Wolf, Matt (26 June 2018). "West End Star Oliver Tompsett on How Starring in Kinky Boots Affects His Footwear Choices, Meeting Cyndi Lauper and More". Broadway.com. Retrieved 20 May 2023.
- ^ Macaskill, Grace (22 June 2014). "Mamma Mia! Stars of hit stage show find their own love stories...with each other!". Mirror. Retrieved 20 May 2023.
- ^ Tompsett, Oliver. "It's a Girl!! I am THE luckiest person alive! Meet my daughter Kaia". Twitter. Retrieved 20 May 2023.
- ^ Jenny, Kristin (27 February 2023). "Running for Charity: A Billion-Dollar Enterprise". Outside Online. Retrieved 20 May 2023.
- ^ Gans, Andrew (14 June 2023). "Cast Complete for World Premiere of In Dreams Musical, Starring Lena Hall and Oliver Tompsett". Playbill. Retrieved 22 September 2023.
- ^ "Full List: 2012 Whatsonstage.com Awards Nominees". WhatsOnStage. 16 February 2012. Retrieved 20 May 2023.
- ^ "Full list: Winners announced of the 2013 Whatsonstage.com Awards". WhatsOnStage. 17 February 2013. Retrieved 20 May 2023.
- ^ Oliver Tompsett – Official Twitter
- ^ Oliver Tompsett [@OliverTompsett] (4 November 2010). "Album is shaping up to be EPIC! going to L.A to record with some very Talented people cant wait to release it next year YEAH!" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
