American actress Amber Riley is to leave the London production of Dreamgirls next month.
Riley who is best known for her role on US series Glee, has performed the lead role of ‘Effie White’ since it opened last year at the Savoy Theatre.
Her performance stunned critics and she went on to win the Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Musical.
A new cast will take over from 20 November 2017 with the role of ‘Effie’ being played by by Marisha Wallace, Karen Mav and Moya Angela.
Wallace and Mav already perform the role, and Angela joins the cast having played the character in the North American tour revival of the show.
Angela’s theatre credits include the original Broadway cast of Ghost the Musical, In Transit, and the North American touring production of Disney’s The Lion King.
Producer Sonia Friedman said: “The thrill of Dreamgirls is to experience the brilliance of the human voice. Effie White is arguably the biggest sing in musical theatre history, which is why we have cast three extraordinary vocalists to play this iconic role.”
Also joingin the cast will be Broadway actress Brennyn Lark as Deena Jones, Tosh Wanogho-Maud as Jimmy Early, Durone Stokes as C.C. White, Delroy Brown as Marty and Kimmy Edwards as Michelle Morris.
Asmeret Ghebremichael will continue to play Lorrell Robinson, with Joe Aaron Reid continuing in the role of Curtis Taylor Jr.
Dreamgirls is currently booking until 2 June 2018 at the Savoy Theatre, London.
