In the new musical of Roald Dahl’s The Witches, George Menezes Cutts played Bruno, performing to Dave Malloy’s music, with the show finishing its run at the National Theatre last week. Having made his professional and West End debut as Young Aaron in The Prince of Egypt at the Dominion Theatre, George has since gone on to play Young Clyde in Bonnie & Clyde at the Arts Theatre, Christopher Robin in the original London cast of Winnie the Pooh the Musical, reprising his role for the UK and Ireland Tour, and he was in the cast of Dolly Parton’s Smoky Mountain Christmas Carol at the Southbank Centre. For his theatre career, George is represented by Byron’s Management (https://www.byronsmanagement.co.uk/). George answered our questions about his time as Bruno in Roald Dahl’s The Witches, being in the original London cast of Winnie the Pooh the Musical as Christopher Robin and playing Young Clyde in Bonnie & Clyde and Young Aaron in The Prince of Egypt.

You played Bruno in the recent run of Roald Dahl’s The Witches, what is he like to play and how did you feel booking the role?

I loved playing the role of Bruno! The character is complex so he’s really fun to play. I love how much Bruno craves chocolate and how he can get sugar out of people easily. Another thing that makes Bruno so fun to play is how two-sided he is. To his ladies and his parents, he is charming, polite and perfect but, to other people who are less important to him, he is menacing and full of disdain towards them. It was really exciting finding out that I was going to play Bruno. We covered many of the scenes and songs in the audition process, which I had really enjoyed doing.

Can you tell us about the musical and how was it hearing Dave Malloy’s music for the first time?

It is an epic show with many details that you may not spot the first time you see it. The magic is genius and you will always be sitting on the edge of your seat, waiting to see what happens next. The musical is extremely loyal to the book, even quoting it at some points in the show, however, it is a lot more witty and vibrant. In my opinion, the show is for everyone. People of all ages would enjoy the show. There are some scarier scenes in the show though, so maybe not littler kids!

Dave Malloy’s music is really what makes the show incredible. It takes you through a roller coaster of emotions and I fell in love with Bruno’s number the moment I heard it. It was amazing when we performed all of the songs with the band for the first time as it really opened up a new layer to the music.

How much did you know about Roald Dahl’s The Witches before auditioning and what drew you to the show?

I knew the story inside out. It had been my favourite book for quite some time and I had even begun to write my own play of The Witches and was turning it into a musical when this mysterious audition came in. Of course the title was confidential at that stage but it wasn’t long before I worked out that it had to be The Witches. I was drawn to the show because of my familiarity with the story. It is an amazing book so I knew that the show would be amazing too.

How was it meeting the rest of the cast and had you worked with any of them previously?

Meeting the cast was a wonderful experience with a real buzz in the atmosphere. Everyone was very welcoming and friendly as well as being extremely excited. The director even got us to play a game with the full cast that helped us to get to know each other a bit more. This was an experience which I’ll never forget. I knew a lot of the young company from previous shows – six of us were in The Prince of Egypt at The Dominion! I’ve been friends with Charlie (Man-Evans) for many years as we met at NLPAC (where we do our performing arts classes) and we played Christopher Robin at the same time last year!

What were you looking forward to for working on a new production at the National Theatre?

I was really looking forward to performing to a live audience who were hearing the script for the first time. Performing in the Olivier Theatre was very different to performing to my fellow actors and crew in the rehearsal room. Fresh people hearing the show gave a real buzz to all of us on stage. Also, the stage is really unique and has cool technical features like trapdoors and a revolve! It was so fun doing the show with all of these things.

How was your time playing Christopher Robin in the original London cast of Winnie the Pooh the Musical and how was it getting into character?

I really enjoyed this show as, although the role was small, we were given a lot of freedom with the character himself. This gave me an opportunity to build my acting skills further. It was one of the first shows where I tried getting into character before going on stage – it really helped me to feel the feelings of the character and connect with Christopher Robin more.

What was it like performing alongside the character puppets and bringing the Winnie the Pooh story to life?

Performing alongside puppets was a truly unique experience! It took a while for us to get used to only focusing on the puppet and not the puppeteer. Seeing and feeling the puppets really felt like you were there with them, which made it even more exciting to perform. Bringing the story to life was a real privilege for me. It is such a well-loved, iconic tale and to be able to bring it to life in the UK premiere of the musical was amazing for me.

You then reprised your role for the UK and Ireland Tour, how was this?

I had never experienced touring before Winnie the Pooh. Although it was really fun, it felt quite strange doing the show in a venue that was so much bigger than the original one. The set seemed to have magically expanded its size and we had to be a bit bigger with our gestures too. I felt really privileged that the casting team, Keston & Keston, asked me to reprise the role of Christopher Robin and I was very happy to be able to meet the cast again – especially after thinking that the last night in London would be the last time I would ever do the show and see them!

Can you tell us about being part of Dolly Parton’s Smoky Mountain Christmas Carol at the Southbank Centre?

This show was an extremely fun and festive experience. It got all of us in the Christmas mood! There were some very fun dance numbers in the show that I was lucky enough to be part of. This show really improved my dancing skills and helped me with my acting and singing too.

In 2022, you played Young Clyde in Bonnie & Clyde at the Arts Theatre, what did you enjoy most about playing the role?

All aspects of the role of Young Clyde were really interesting to play. He was extremely cheeky and often answered back to his parents. The best part of playing the role was probably being able to haunt Clyde about his past as a ghost! I really enjoyed this role as it was my first professional job where I was singing solo and had a fairly intense monologue. This show was a real highlight of my acting career so far.

What are some of your favourite memories from making your professional and West End debut in The Prince of Egypt as Young Aaron?

The show was epic! I made many great friends on the show and some of the best memories that I made were when the covers went on and we were able to perform with different people. I also really enjoyed the end of show party as we felt sad and the party cheered us all up. The things that went wrong on stage always stood out to me too and the main highlight was a mess up matinee – some people said their lines wrong and it just made everything more funny!

How did you get into acting and was it something you always wanted to do?

I went to see my parents in shows when I was younger and I really enjoyed watching them. Coming from a family of actors and musicians, I have definitely been inspired by them. A friend of my parents suggested that I should start auditioning and recommended an agent to us – the professional jobs started from there! I have wanted to do acting since I was very young and I’m so happy to be doing so much of it now. I feel very lucky to have performed with so many nice, talented people too.

Can you tell us about your training?

I attend the New London Performing Arts Centre (NLPAC) where I do group drama classes, LAMDA acting (where I’m on Grade 5), singing and dance (I do ballet, tap and street dance). I have learnt so much from these classes and I really couldn’t have done all of these shows without their support and training.

Have you been given any advice over your time as an actor so far that has stuck with you?

There has been so much advice that I have been given over my time as an actor. One thing that has stuck with me is when I was told, “Be free and trust the flow of your character. Whatever your character would do is the right thing to do on stage”.

What are some of your favourite theatre shows to watch and how do you like to spend your free time?

I really enjoy watching Hamilton and Les Misérables. They are probably my favourite shows. In my free time, I organise my LEGO sets and Pokémon cards. I also like to read, write my own scripts and watch movies.