Canadian actor Bob Martin has taken his final bow on Broadway in the role of Man in Chair in the run of The Drowsy Chaperone.

But Martin is far from finished with the part of the show-tune lover who introduces audiences to his favourite 1928 musical, The Drowsy Chaperone.

Bob Martin as Man in Chair introduces his favourite 1928 musical, The Drowsy Chaperone.
(Joan Marcus/Bryan-Brown)

He'll be donning the brown cardigan and sitting in the chair again in London when the play opens in the West End May 14 at the Ivor Novello Theatre.

The premiere is June 6 and the show is expected to run until February 2008.

And he's also expected to reprise the role when a touring version of The Drowsy Chaperone hits Toronto, possibly this year.

Martin helped write the musical satire, with Don McKellar, Lisa Lambert and Greg Morrison, when it got its start on the Toronto stage. A Second City veteran, he turned his improv skills to the role of Man in Chair.

A break before London

Martin, who is also a writer on the TV series Slings and Arrows, said he is taking some time off before beginning the London run, where he will star with Elaine Page.

John Glover, who plays Lionel Luthor on Smallville and has won a Tony Award for Love! Valour! Compassion!, is to take over the role of Man in Chair in The Drowsy Chaperone on Broadway April 17.

In the meantime, understudies Jay Douglas and Patrick Wetzel will play the part in the successful New York production, which won five Tony awards, including best book and best score of a musical, and seven Drama Desk Awards.

The Drowsy Chaperone started life in 1998 as a sketch for a stag in Toronto, became a hit at Toronto's Fringe Festival, had success in Los Angeles and then went on to Broadway.