Help! London theatre seeks Beatles lookalikes

LONDON - Agence France-Presse

Nick Bird auditions at the Cavern Club for a part in Let It Be, a theatrical concert celebrating the music of The Beatles, Liverpool, England, Tuesday, May 1, 2012. Let It Be will be run at the Prince Of Wales Theatre in London from September 2012. (AP Photo/Jon Super)

More than a hundred mop-topped musicians have flocked to a London theater in the hope of being cast as Paul, John, George or Ringo in a new Beatles-inspired musical.
 
A spokesman for the producers of "Let It Be", due to hit London's West End theater district in September, said Wednesday that around a dozen hopefuls were through to a second round after Tuesday's open auditions in London.
 
"We're still whittling it down, but we hope to have the final cast announced in June," he told AFP.
 
Open auditions were also held in the band's hometown of Liverpool in northwest England last week, yielding 15 call-backs, the spokesman added.
 
Producers said in a statement: "Potential Beatles must be talented musicians capable of performing Beatles hits as part of a live band. A physical resemblance is also desirable." The show will feature more than 20 of the Beatles' hits, including "A Hard Day's Night" and "I Wanna Hold Your Hand", and will use video footage to recreate the meteoric rise of the best-selling band in history.
 
The show has been produced to coincide with the 50th anniversary of the band's first single, "Love Me Do".
 
"Let It Be" will run at London's Prince of Wales Theater from September 14 until January 19.