Award-winning British actress of Downton Abbey, Lesley Nicol, shares her journey from up-and-comer to big-screen sensation in this one-woman musical, HOW THE HELL DID I GET HERE? coming to the Greenhouse Theater Center, 2257 N. Lincoln Avenue during its North American tour. Previewing March 9th and opening March 13th for a limited engagement through April 3rd, this uproarious feel-good musical takes the audience on a journey from Lesley’s childhood, through her time as a working actress to her success in the role as a cherished cook “Mrs. Patmore” on the worldwide phenomenon hit television drama Downton Abbey. Through the masterful storytelling and ten original songs by Mark Mueller, HOW THE HELL DID I GET HERE? is certain to have audiences tapping their toes to Lesley’s journey through life.
“Mark and I are so thrilled to bring our musical to Greenhouse Theater,” said Lesley Nicol, Actress and Writer. “Chicago theatre is rightly known and celebrated around the world and we are so looking forward to being part of the theatre community and playing to audiences in your wonderful city.”
HOW THE HELL DID I GET HERE? came into fruition when Lesley expressed to her close friend and successful American songwriter, Mark Mueller, her desire to write a musical. Having a successful acting career in Great Britain and in America, Lesley has been a part of countless theatre productions, successful television shows, and most notably, will be featured in the upcoming movie Downton Abbey: A New Era released on March 18th, 2022. In this delightful new musical, instead of her beloved character, “Mrs. Patmore,” cooking up an extravagant meal, Lesley is serving up this fabulous musical autobiography about her incredible life. Through her own words, photos and songs, Lesley reveals how she overcame personal demons, found love, and achieved success on stage and on screen. HOW THE HELL DID I GET HERE? invites the audience to examine their own journeys while watching Lesley’s play out on stage. We are all on the same road, we all just have different bumps.
Written by Lesley Nicol and Mark Mueller, HOW THE HELL DID I GET HERE? is produced by Pemberley Productions (The Woman in Black, Royal George Theatre; Private Peaceful Greenhouse Theater) and directed by Luke Kernaghan. The production will feature scenic design by Anshuman Bhatia, lighting design by Lucrecia Briceno and sound design by Chicagoan Ray Nardeli.
HOW THE HELL DID I GET HERE? will run at the Greenhouse Theater Center, 2257 N. Lincoln Avenue in Chicago. Performances begin March 9 for a limited engagement through April 3, 2022. The performance schedule is as follows: Tuesday to Sunday performances. The running time is 80 minutes no interval. Tickets range from $30 to $89 plus processing fees. For tickets and more information, visit (www.howthehellmusical.com) or call the Greenhouse Theater Center Box Office at 773-404-7336.
Creative Team
- (Performer and Writer) Lesley Nicol
- (Composer and Writer) Mark Mueller
- (Direction) Luke Kernaghan
- (Scenic Designer) Anshuman Bhatia
- (Lighting Designer) Lucrecia Briceno
- (Sound Designer) Ray Nardeli
- (Producer) Pemberley Productions
- (Performer and Writer) Lesley Nicol
Lesley is best known for her starring role as Mrs. Patmore in the hugely successful worldwide hit TV series “Downton Abbey” and its box-office smash film sequel. The second film debuts in March, 2022. She’s also enjoyed a wildly diverse theatrical career in the UK and the US, having started her career in musicals with a role in the original production of “Jesus Christ Superstar” on London’s fabled West End, followed by singing her way ‘round the theaters of Great Britain. Back in London on the West End, she starred as Rosie in “Mamma Mia” and originated the role of Kath in “Our House - the Madness Musical.” More recently, she portrayed the redoubtable Miss Hannigan in “Annie” at Toronto’s Ed Mirvish Theater. One of Lesley’s favorite stage roles involved creating the character of Auntie Annie in “East is East” at London’s Royal Court Theater. She later reprised the part in the BAFTA-Award winning film and its film sequel, “West is West.” Another highlight includes her co-starring performance in the acclaimed drama “The York Realist” at The Donmar Warehouse in London.
Her TV career has encompassed both drama and comedy in the US and UK. In addition to the ITV/PBS Masterpiece drama “Downton Abbey,” Lesley starred as mafia matriarch Sybil Griffiths in the ABC/Shonda Rhimes crime drama “The Catch” and as lead character Henrietta Beecham in the India-set period drama “Beecham House” for ITV/PBS Masterpiece. Other shows she’s appeared on include “Shameless,” “Blackadder,” “Dinnerladies,” the BBC’s “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe” and “Inspector George Gently.” In the US, she has guest-starred on Amazon’s “The Boys,” ABC’s “Once Upon a Time,” Fox’s “Raising Hope,” TVLand’s “Hot in Cleveland” and The CW’s long-running hit “Supernatural,” in which she truly showed her range by playing an evil, child-eating German witch!Her voice work includes the children's series “Sarah and Duck” for the BBC. In the US, she can be heard regularly on “Goldie and Bear,” “Harvey Beaks,” “Tom and Jerry,” “Summer Camp Island” and “Vamperina.” Lesley also had the huge honor of paying a "flying visit” to the “Ghostbusters” film reboot for director Paul Feig.
(Composer and Writer) Mark Mueller
Mark Mueller’s music career includes writing #1 pop songs in the U.S., the U.K, and around the world. He's sold more than 32 million records worldwide and has received 47 gold and platinum records. He's won the ASCAP Pop Award twice for writing one of the Most Performed Songs of the Year and he's also a two-time Emmy Award nominee in the category of Outstanding Achievement in Music and Lyrics for his work in TV. "Vanity Fair" magazine called Mark's theme song for Disney's animated hit DuckTales "history's catchiest single minute of music." The show is currently streaming in 162 countries and 34 languages. His pop songs include the #1 hit "That's What Love Is For” by Grammy-winner Amy Grant, #1 worldwide smash “Crush” by Jennifer Paige and Top 5 rock anthem “Nothin' At All” (words & music), performed by iconic Grammy-winning group Heart. In his work for the stage, Mark wrote the lyrics and co-wrote the book of the original musical “Butterfly,” directed by Tony Award-winning Jack Hofsiss at the Goodspeed Opera House." A song from the show, “The Next Dream,” was performed by two-time Tony Award winner Bernadette Peters on NBC’s Carol Burnett show. His songs have been featured in films such as “Pokémon: The First Movie,” “National Lampoon’s Vegas Vacation,” “Honey, I Blew Up The Kid” and “The Last Starfighter." For "Adventures in Babysitting," he wrote "The Babysitting Blues," sung by Oscar-nominee Elisabeth Shue.
(Director) Luke Kernaghan
Luke Kernaghan’s directing work includes Treasure Island (Lighthouse Theatre, Poole); Disney’s Freaky Friday (Andrew Lloyd Webber Foundation Theatre – European premiere) From Morning To Midnight (Rose Theatre, Rose Bruford); Chaika: First Woman In Space (Edinburgh Festival); Magpies (Samuel Beckett Theatre, Dublin) Blood And Ice (Shelley Theatre); Sunday In The Park With George (Andrew Lloyd Webber Foundation Theatre); Clockwork Canaries (Theatre Royal Plymouth); Let The Right One In (Abbey Theatre Dublin/National Theatre of Scotland – Irish premiere, original production directed by John Tiffany); Unplugged (National Theatre of Scotland); Alice, Edward II, The Man of Mode (Arts University Bournemouth); Códice Ténoch (Compañia Nacional de Teatro de Mexico/Royal Shakespeare Company); Redcrosse (Royal Shakespeare Company); Heartbreak Beautiful (Theatre Royal Plymouth); The Urban Girl’s Guide To Camping, No Way Out: Huis Clos (Southwark Playhouse); Vantastic & Lobster (Oval House); Rebels & Retail (Trafalgar Studios); The B File, The Rover (Etcetera Theatre). Kernaghan has directed workshops for new musicals including Worlds Apart (3 Pin Productions) and All Things Must Change (Selladoor/Eden Court/Raw Material). MA Directing from the Central School of Speech and Drama. Trained at the Jacques Lecoq School in Paris and the National Theatre of Great Britain Director’s Course. Finalist for the JMK Young Director’s Award.