When Mitchell Butel saw the musical Kimberly Akimbo on Broadway in 2023, he stood up so quickly to applaud at the end that he whacked his lip on the wooden back of the seat in front of him and it started to bleed as he cheered.

“I thought, ‘That’s a sign of deep appreciation for a show!’” he laughs.

Featuring music by Jeanine Tesori (Fun Home, Shrek) and book and lyrics by David Lindsay-Abaire (based on his 2001 play), Kimberly Akimbo centres on teenager Kimberly Levaco, who was born with a rare genetic disease that means she ages four times faster than everyone else. She is now 16 going on 70.

Marina Prior and the cast of Kimberly Akimbo. Photo © Jo Duck

Her narcissistic mum is pregnant and a hypochondriac. Her alcoholic dad is a bit of a dropkick. When her criminal aunt Debra turns up with a get-rich-quick scheme and involves some of Kimberly’s chorister classmates (think Glee), Kimberly decides that you’re only young once and it’s time to experience everything the world has to offer.

Opening Off-Broadway in December 2021,...