Here Lies Love to close on 3 January 2015

As Jaygee Macapugay assumes the leading role of Imelda Marcos in David Byrne and Fatboy Slim's hit musical Here Lies Love, tonight (replacing Ruthie Ann Miles, who played her last performance on 18 October), producers of the show have now posted closing notices. The production will play its final performance off-Broadway on 3 January 2015.

The World Premiere of Here Lies Love opened at the Public's LuEsther Hall on 23 April 2013, and was originally scheduled to close on 5 May 2013, but four extensions saw the show run through to 28 July 2013. It is currently back at the same venue for a commercial run which began previews on 14 April 2014 and officially opened on 1 May. There had been earlier rumours that Joey Parnes Productions and the Public Theater had been considering a Broadway premiere of the musical.

Here Lies Love was conceived by David Byrne, and features lyrics by Byrne, music by Byrne and Fatboy Slim, with additional music by Tom Gandey and J Pardo.

Directed by Alex Timbers and choreographed by Annie-B Parsons, Here Lies Love "deconstructs the astonishing journey of Filipina First Lady Imelda Marcos and her meteoric rise and subsequent descent into infamy."

Press notes desribe the musical as "neither a period piece nor a biography, neither a play nor a traditional musical but a wholly immersive theatrical event combining songs influenced by four decades of dance music, adrenaline-fueled choreography, and a remarkable 360-degree scenic and video environment to go beyond Imelda's near-mythic obsession with shoes and explore the true tragic consequences of power and responsibility."

The full cast of Here Lies Love includes Jaygee Macapugay (Imelda Marcos), Jose Llana (Ferdinand Marcos), Conrad Ricamora (Aquino), Melody Butiu (Estrella), with Renee Albulario, Carol Angeli, Natalie Cortez, Debralee Daco, Kelvin Moon Loh, Jaygee Macapugay, Jeigh Madjus, Maria-Christina Oliveras, George Salazar, Janelle Velasquez and Tobias Wong.

The musical opened to excellent reviews: "Exciting new poperetta (NY Times); Finally — a new musical that's so exhilarating and such a great time that it's easy to recommend it without hesitation (NY Daily News); Irresistible, the most joyful evening you can imagine (The Record); One of the most exciting, complex musicals of the season (Time Out NY).

The creative team features set design by David Korins; costume design by Clint Ramos; lighting design by Justin Townsend; sound design by M. L. Dogg and Cody Spencer; and projection design by Peter Nigrini.

The show is also currently running at London's National Theatre, as the first production in the newly re-opened (and re-named) Dorfman Theatre, and officially opened to rave reviews on 13 October, for a limited run through to 8 January 2015. Other productions are in development for a US tour, as well as stagings in Australia, South America, South Korea, Singapore, Japan and the Phillipines.

- by Tom Millward