Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (musical) recently closed Broadway version (instead of the West End one) and will feature only 4 child actors who will alternate the role of Charlie. The remainder of the "child" characters will be played adult actors. On 13 October the primary cast was announced and includes U.S. actor Paul Slade Smith (who played Grandpa George in the original cast of Charlie on Broadway) as Willy Wonka alongside Australian actors Tony Sheldon as Grandpa Joe and Lucy Maunder as Mrs Bucket. The role of Charlie will be shared between Tommy Blair, Ryan Yates, Xion Jarvis and Oliver Alkhair.. The play opens with
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory was one of the most common books that UK adults had read as children, after "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland", "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe", and "The Wind in The Willows". Groups who have praised the book include: In the 2012 survey published by "SLJ", a monthly with primarily US audience, "Charlie" was the second of four books by Dahl among the so-called Top 100 Chapter Books, one more than any other writer. Although the book has always been popular and considered a children's classic by many literary critics, a number of prominent individuals have spoken unfavorably of the