Twelve perfomers have been chosen from a group of unknowns to star in a West End musical about the venue which made stars of James Brown and the Jackson Five.

Performers from Forfar, Birmingham, Swindon and Swansea were among those who were vying for a place stage at an open audition at the Shaftesbury Theatre, central London.

Twelve people were chosen from a final shortlist of 52 for the show, based on the legendary Apollo Theatre in Harlem, New York.

They will have the opportunity to train and rehearse with the cast, and 11 of those chosen will each be given a week in the spotlight when they will perform a solo number every night.

One grand winner will be chosen to perform on the opening night of the show in front of an audience which will include top West End agents.

The show is based around the famous "amateur nights" that used to be held at the Apollo Theatre.

Dionne Warwick was an Apollo performer who made it big

James Brown, Jackie Wilson, Dionne Warwick and Michael Jackson and the Jackson Five were among those who performed on these nights before they became famous.

The action in the musical takes place over one night in 1969, when major stars scheduled to perform at the Apollo are caught in a riot outside the theatre.

The amateur performers who are already in the auditorium have to perform in their place, and win over the crowd.

It is written and directed by Alan Janes and Rob Bettinson, the team behind the hugely successful musical Buddy.

The show is scheduled to open at the Shaftesbury Theatre on 17 September.

Further auditions to find a fresh batch of amateur performers will be held in the near future.

The 12 performers picked on Tuesday were: Jamie Deary from Liverpool, Carly Alice Jackson from Shrewsbury, Debbralee Burns from London, George Maudsley from Liverpool, Abigail Bailey from Reading, Jennifer Wallace from Birmingham, Craig Aldridge from Swindon, Layla Monoocherhri from Solihull, Derek Low from Glasgow, Annette Mitchell from Oldham, Jamie McCallum from Paisley, and Andrew Davies from Swansea.

Another performer, John Barr, from London, is to appear in preview shows this week.