Ben-Hur comes to the O2 Arena

A musical version of Ben-Hur, Lew Wallace's epic tale of Christ which was immortalised in the 1959 film version starring Charlton Heston, is to be staged at the O2 Arena in London next September. The £5m production will include state-of-the-art pyrotechnics, a storm machine, a water wall with light projections, and, as with the movie versions, a chariot race. In addition to this, 400 performers will share the stage an army of horses, donkeys and camels, falcons, vultures and eagles.

The show will bring together a creative team from Hollywood, Broadway and the music industry. A symphonic soundtrack has been composed by Klaus Badelt, who wrote the music for Gladiator and Pirates Of The Caribbean, while Mark Fisher, who designed Pink Floyd's The Wall tour and also the opening of the Beijing Olympics ceremony, is collaborating with Patrick Woodroffe, who has created light effects for the Rolling Stones.

Franz Abraham, the German-born producer, who conceived the idea in 1995 maintains: "This is something gigantic and legendary. The show will have the speed of a musical, the depth of great theatre, the power of a rock concert and the visual opulence of a Hollywood blockbuster."

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