Nicola Roberts is stepping into the underworld. The Girls Aloud star will join Hadestown in London’s West End, taking over as Persephone for a strictly limited run while the hit musical continues its strong Lyric Theatre engagement.
New lead, firm dates, and a lively reveal
Roberts will play Persephone from 16 September 2025 to 18 January 2026, succeeding current cast member Victoria Hamilton-Barritt and marking Roberts’ return to the West End following City of Angels. She shared the news on The Scott Mills Breakfast Show on BBC Radio 2 on 12 August, teasing a “big news” announcement ahead of the reveal.
Hadestown remains on Shaftesbury Avenue and is officially booking through 15 February 2026, with a listed running time of 2hr 30min including an interval.
The casting aligns perfectly with the show’s open-ended West End run, keeping Roberts’ engagement within the current booking window. Calling the musical “a true masterpiece,” Roberts said she is “beyond thrilled” to join the company and described Persephone as a character of light and shade, whose songs are rich with emotion. She added an invitation to audiences: “Let’s take a trip to the underworld together!”
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A powerhouse company on stage
Roberts will share the stage with Desmonda Cathabel as Eurydice, Dylan Wood as Orpheus, Chris Jarman as Hades, and Olivier Award-nominee Cedric Neal as Hermes. The Fates are played by Melanie Bright, Allie Daniel, and Lauran Rae. The Workers include Femi Akinfolarin, Michelle Andrews, Ollie Bingham, Laura Delany, and Sebastian Lim-Seet, with swings Lucinda Buckley, Juan Jackson, Oisín Nolan-Power, Lindo Shinda, and Jasmine Triadi completing a full ensemble for the Lyric Theatre run.
The creative team features music, lyrics, and book by Anaïs Mitchell and direction by Tony Award-winner Rachel Chavkin. The production includes choreography by David Neumann, scenic design by Rachel Hauck, costume design by Michael Krass, lighting by Bradley King, and sound by Nevin Steinberg and Jessica Paz.
Liam Robinson provides music supervision and vocal arrangements, with arrangements and orchestrations by Michael Chorney and Todd Sickafoose. Dramaturgy is by Ken Cerniglia, with Maria Crocker as UK Associate Director, Tarek Merchant as Musical Director, and Jacob Sparrow overseeing London casting.
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A modern myth with a wide reach
Hadestown reimagines the entwined myths of Orpheus and Eurydice and Hades and Persephone, blending modern American folk with New Orleans-inspired jazz. The musical first played London’s National Theatre in 2018 before opening at the Lyric Theatre, continuing a momentum built by the Broadway production’s eight Tony Awards, including Best Musical, and a Grammy for Best Musical Theatre Album.
The show has also been filmed in London as Hadestown Live in London, led by original National Theatre and Broadway principals Reeve Carney, André De Shields, Amber Gray, Eva Noblezada, and Patrick Page.
Roberts’ path to Persephone
Roberts is an award-winning singer, songwriter, and actor who rose with Girls Aloud, Britain’s biggest-selling girl group of the 21st century so far, with more than 4.3 million singles and 4 million albums sold in the UK.
She launched a solo career with Cinderella’s Eyes and has written for other artists, won The Masked Singer UK in 2020 as “Queen Bee,” and made her West End debut that same year in City of Angels at the Garrick Theatre, playing Avril and Mallory. On screen, she has appeared in St Trinian’s and The Loneliest Boy in the World, with TV credits including The Holden Girls: Mandy & Myrtle and Britannia High.
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In 2024, she reunited with Cheryl, Kimberley Walsh, and Nadine Coyle for The Girls Aloud Show, a sold-out 30-date arena tour across the UK and Ireland that drew more than 300,000 fans.
Beyond performing, Roberts has advocated for fair representation in beauty through her Dainty Doll line, supported legislation to ban underage tanning bed use, and continues charitable work with Barnardo’s and The Christie NHS Foundation Trust via the Sarah Harding Breast Cancer Appeal.
