Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (franchise) co-production with American Lyric Theater and Wexford Festival Opera. A musical based on the novel, titled "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" premiered at the West End's Theatre Royal, Drury Lane in May 2013 and officially opened on 25 June. The show is directed by Sam Mendes, with new songs by Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman, and stars Douglas Hodge as Willy Wonka. The production broke records for weekly ticket sales. Coincidentally, Hodge was also the voice of a Charlie and the Chocolate Factory audiobook, as part of a package of Roald Dahl CDs read by celebrities. There are two "Charlie
Menier Chocolate Factory with stone dressings in London between 1865 and 1874. It was listed Grade II in 1996. The Menier Chocolate Factory was opened in 2004 in its current incarnation, the building having been derelict since the 1980s. It is run by artistic director David Babani. In 2005, the theatre received the Peter Brook/Empty Space Up and Coming Venue Award. In the same year, he and co-founder Danielle Tarento jointly won the "Evening Standard" Milton Shulman Award for Outstanding Newcomer. Tarento left in 2006 to pursue a solo producing career, and was replaced by General Manager Thomas Siracusa. In 2007 the Chocolate