Tonight's the night Josephine

"This is going to be the French musical that works," says Paul Baker in his most Napoleonic tones during a break in rehearsals for the West End's new £4.5 million musical about the French emperor.

After long and varied service as Zarzu the hornbill, Timon the meerkat and Pumbaa the warthog in The Lion King, he has been cast in the title role in Napoleon, which has its first preview at the Shaftesbury Theatre on Saturday.

"I have been waiting for this all my life but I had to do 14 auditions and the last one lasted two hours," he said, wincing at the thought.

"I left the audition room and collapsed, and then had to go and do The Lion King. I think they wanted to see if anyone could be Napoleonic enough to stand the test."

The show is set against the background of Napoleon's rise to power, but is really the story of his love for Josephine from their first meeting in 1796 to his and her Waterloo. Playing Josephine is American Anastasia Barzee, who will be making her London stage debut.

"Josephine has humour and intelligence and her relationship is passionate but very sad," she said.

With a cast of 32, and an orchestra of 26, the show is a big undertaking.

Napoleon The Musical