Elevator breaks during Sam Mendes’ Charlie and the Chocolate Factory

A performance of Sam Mendes’ new London musical Charlie And The Chocolate Factory was halted on Friday (28Jun13) when a prop elevator broke down in mid-air. Stars of the show were left dangling in a glass platform above the audience when the malfunction occurred at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane, delaying the finale as crewmembers scrambled to fix the problem.
The stage manager came out to apologise before actor Douglas Hodge, who plays candy factory owner Willy Wonka, resumed the scene with child star Jack Costello.
A spokesperson for the production says, “The elevator did not finish its flight and had to be brought down manually. The show was stopped for six minutes while this happened and then continued as normal.”
Skyfall director Mendes officially launched the show in the British capital on Tuesday (25Jun13).