Oliver Cave was familiar with just one Simon & Garfunkel song when he applied for the role of Art Garfunkel in a stage show about the folk-rock duo's lives and music.
Having scored the role and toured The Simon & Garfunkel Story across the UK and Europe, he can now add a few more songs to his repertoire.
"I had never heard their songs, with the exception of The Sound of Silence, but I think that they are timeless and brilliant because of the interesting way that Paul Simon writes songs," he tells Weekender.
"My favourites to sing are Keep The Customer Satisfied, Richard Cory, I Am a Rock and of course, Bridge Over Troubled Water."
Cave stars opposite fellow Britt William Sharp (Paul Simon) in The Simon & Garfunkel Story which is touring Australia in August following a sell-out run in London's West End.
The production tells the tale of how two young boys from Queens, New York, started out as '50s rock'n'roll duo Tom & Jerry and went on to become the most successful music duo of all time. It covers the songs and stories that shaped them, the dramatic split and their individual solo careers, and ends with a stunning recreation of their 1981 Central Park reunion concert.
The show also includes rare photographs and film footage of the duo, and the two leads are accompanied by a full band (Leon Camfield on bass, Will Tuckwell on electric guitar and keyboards and Mat Swales on the drums).
Both leads are recent college graduates - Sharp from the London College of Music and Cave from the Royal Academy Of Music.
"I have had two professional performing jobs since graduating from the Royal Academy of Music in London in 2021 - I did a choral theatre job in July 2022 and while that was happening I had my audition for The Simon & Garfunkel Story."
Cave has never been to Australia before and is looking forward to the experience.
"We are going all over the country - and New Zealand - in August and I am really excited although I know it will be a lot of work," he says.
Take a walk down memory lane at Newcastle's Civic Theatre on Thursday, August 24, with The Simon & Garfunkel Story. Tickets are on sale now.
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