We Will Rock You Tickets

We Will Rock You is a jukebox musical, based on the songs of Queen and named after their hit single. The musical was written by English comedian and author Ben Elton in collaboration with Queen members Brian May and Roger Taylor. The story takes place in a tongue-in-cheek dystopian future where originality and individualism are shunned, and a lone Dreamer appears who can fulfill a prophecy that will enable the return of rock 'n roll.According to Brian May, Jim Beach had talked with the band on the idea of creating a jukebox musical with Queen's songs since the mid-90s. Initially, the intent was to create a biographical story of Freddie Mercury. About this time, Robert DeNiro's production company Tribeca voiced interest in a Queen musical, but found the original idea difficult to work with.

In the year 2000, Ben Elton approached to initiate talks with Brian May and Roger Taylor on the project. Ben suggested taking the musical down a different path than initially imagined; creating an original story that would still be able to capture the spirit of much of [their] music. He worked closely with Brian and Roger to incorporate Queen's songs into the story. Ben has also stated that he was inspired by the computer-controlled dystopia of the science-fiction film The Matrix. The script was eventually completed midway through 2001. It is quite ironical to note that before working on We Will Rock You, neither Brian nor Roger Taylor was fans of the musical genre.As is often the case with jukebox musicals, We Will Rock You received an almost uniformly hostile reception from the London critics, with the story and script heavily criticized, but some praise for the performances.

The original production of We Will Rock You opened in 2002 at the Dominion Theatre in London, England. On August 17, 2005 it became the longest running musical at that venue, surpassing the previous record-holder Grease. This is notable as the Dominion Theatre is one of the largest theatrical venues in West End, with a seating a capacity of 2000 people. The London production was scheduled to close on October 7, 2006 but due to public demand, it has been extended to October 4, 2008. The show is currently still playing there, where it recently celebrated its 5th year anniversary. As of 2007 it is still playing in Great Britain, Canada, Spain, South Africa, Germany, Switzerland, and Japan. A North American tour and a UK nationwide tour are currently in the pipeline.

Played for laughs, there is very little real story to We Will Rock You. While the musical is a spoof of the classic quest tale with some moments of clever dialogue, it exists predominantly as a framework allowing a vocally talented cast to perform covers of Queen's greatest hits. Songs included in the production may vary from theatre to theatre, but generally include favorites such as Another One Bites the Dust, Hammer to Fall, A Kind of Magic, and more. On special occasions or anniversaries, additional songs are added to the encore, such as The Show Must Go On.

Various international productions have followed the original. The first North American venue was the Paris Las Vegas hotel and casino in Las Vegas, Nevada. The show had successful runs in Australia, Tokyo, Moscow and Las Vegas, but these productions have since closed. Shows that opened in 2006 are in Portugal with a German language touring production opening in Zurich. A Toronto production opened in 2007 at the Canon Theatre. An Auckland, New Zealand production will open in October 2007. A production using the Cologne and Zurich translations will open in Vienna, Austria in 2008. 2008 productions are also scheduled to open in Singapore, Seoul and Hong Kong.International productions of the musical feature changes in the story and/or song line-up in order to better reach target audiences. All the main characters retain their names and general personalities across productions, but the main female Bohemian is known by one of two names: Meat or Oz, with the audience's familiarity with Meat Loaf or Ozzy Osbourne. Additionally, the minor Bohemians have constantly been changing names depending on the trend of the moment, and names that have been used include Paul McCartney, Robbie Williams, Beyonce, Bob the Builder and Boy George.

The story is set 300 years in the future in a vaguely Orwellian world. Earth's name has been changed to Planet Mall. As the name would suggest, mainstream commercial conformity reigns. Everywhere on the planet, people watch the same movies, listen to computer-generated music, wear the same clothes and hold the same thoughts and opinions. Musical instruments and composers are forbidden, and rock music is simply unknown. Representative government has been eliminated. All are controlled by the Worldwide mega-corporation Globalsoft, which is headed by the Killer Queen and the commander of her secret police, Khashoggi. Those who stand against Globalsoft's enforced conformity are kidnapped and brain stormed into submission.However, a small group of Bohemians struggle to restore the free exchange of thought, fashion, and (most of all) live music. As with the classic quest stories that it spoofs, the musical includes a Messiah figure, the social outcast Galileo Figaro, and together with his love interest, another dissident whom Galileo calls Scaramouche, Galileo joins with the Bohemians to find the guitar, and overthrow Globalsoft. However, when the Bohemians are captured and brain stormed, Galileo and Scaramouche are forced to flee for their lives.

Eventually they meet Pop, an older, hippie-esque Bohemian who yearns for the old days when people were free and Rock & Roll was omnipresent as the case may be. Again fulfilling the classic role of Guide for the two, Pop shows them a fragment of the Queen video ending at the opening lyrics, Bohemian Rhapsody, further inspiring them. Impressed by the heavenly music, Galileo and Scaramouche eventually decide to search for the guitar at Wembley Stadium, the location of two legendary concerts by Queen. Though the Stadium is a ruin, they find the guitar hidden in a wall. With guitar in hand, and Pop serving as roadie for the two saviors, they perform a rousing rendition of the title song, We Will Rock You, and conclude with an arrangement of Bohemian Rhapsody that includes the entire cast and serves as an encore.