Spamalot: Stephen Collins & Drew Lachey to join cast

Emmy nominee Stephen Collins and Grammy nominee Drew Lachey will join the cast of the Broadway musical Spamalot on 24 Jun 2008.

Collins, who is best known to television audiences as 'Rev. Eric Camden' in the long-running WB/CW hit series 'Seventh Heaven,�' will assume the role of King Arthur from 'Jonathan Hadary,' who plays his final performance on 22 Jun 2008.

Collins' Broadway credits include: 'The Loves of Anatol' (1985), 'Censored Scenes From King Kong' (1980), 'The Ritz' (1975), 'No Sex Please, We're British' (1973) and 'Moonchildren' (1972).

Lachey, who rose to fame as a member of the popular band 98 Degrees and was the second season champion of ABC�s top-rated reality competition series �Dancing With The Stars,� will take over the role of Patsy, Arthur�s trusted manservant, from David Hibbard who will play his findal performance on 22 Jun 2008.

This marks Lacey's second Broadway appearance, he made his Broadway debut in the Broadway musical Rent, when he played the role of Mark Cohen from 10 Sep 2004 - 11 Mar 2005.

Spamalot currently features Tony Award nominee Jonathan Hadary and Olivier Award nominee Hannah Waddingham, who play King Arthur and The Lady of the Lake respectively.

They are joined by Bradley Dean (Sir Dennis), Rick Holmes (Sir Lancelot), David Hibbard (Patsy), Robert Petkoff (Sir Robin/Guard/Brother Maynard), Tom Deckman (Historian/Prince Herbert) and Steve Rosen (Sir Bedevere).

Spamalot opened at Shubert Theatre on the 17 Mar 2005 following previews from the 14 Feb 2005. The show is currently booking through to 23 Nov 2008.

Spamalot tells the legendary tale of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table, and their quest for the Holy Grail. The musical features a chorus line of dancing divas and knights, flatulent Frenchmen, killer rabbits and one legless knight.

The musical opened to excellent notices. The New York Post wrote "Bloody fantastic. Gorgeously silly. Superlative and better.� The USA Today said "Somewhere on the mythical Isle of Avalon, King Arthur is rolling over in his grave � and laughing till his armor rattles." and NewsDay printed "Eric Idle and Mike Nichols have indeed fashioned a Holy Grail of a big, crowd-pleasing Broadway musical comedy. The show slays 'em like Excalibur."

Spamalot features a book and lyrics by Eric Idle, music by John Du Prez and Eric Idle, direction by Mike Nichols, choreography by Casey Nicholaw and is based on the screenplay of Monty Python and the Holy Grail by Monty Python creators Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle, Terry Jones and Michael Palin, with an entirely new score with two songs from the 1975 film and the Python classic �Always Look On The Bright Side of Life� from 1979�s The Life of Brian.

Spamalot, is produced on Broadway by Ostar Boyett Productions. The production is directed by Mike Nichols; choreographed by Casey Nicholaw; sets and costumes by Tim Hatley; lighting by Hugh Vanstone ; and musical direction by Todd Ellison.