Choreographer takes on iconic songs for musical

An Officer and a Gentleman is on at Stoke-on-Trent's Regent Theatre this week during its UK tour

A stage production of An Officer and a Gentleman has reached Stoke in its national tour - and its choreographer is a local talent.

Joanna Goodwin, who grew up in Clayton, Staffordshire, has also worked on West End productions of Sunset Boulevard and Pippin.

“It was massive for me,” Ms Goodwin said, of being asked to choreograph the stage version of the 1982 film starring Richard Gere and Debra Winger.

The show is on at Stoke-on-Trent's Regent Theatre until Saturday.

Ms Goodwin told BBC Radio Stoke a love of the theatre was “always in our blood,” as her mother, grandmother, and grandfather are all fans of musicals.

She recalled that her drama teacher at Clayton High School had said: “I know that this is what you’re going to be doing.”

Ms Goodwin spent 15 years performing on stage before deciding, when she was 30, that going into choreography was the natural next step.

An Officer and a Gentleman includes 1980s hits by Madonna, Bon Jovi, Cyndi Lauper, and Blondie, in its stage incarnation.

Ms Goodwin said that working on “iconic” songs such as Material Girl had come with certain amount of pressure, but added she loved her job.

“I dreamt it, but I didn’t ever believe that it would happen,” she said of her theatre career.