DEATH OF ENGLAND: CLOSING TIME
- Theatre: National Theatre (Dorfman)
- First Preview: September 13, 2023
- Opening: September 20, 2023
- Playwright: Clint Dyer, Roy Williams
- Director: Clint Dyer
- Cast: Jo Martin, Hayley Squires
Grieving the loss of the family shop and their dreams destroyed, Denise and daughter-in-law Carly are left to pick up the pieces of their relatives’ mistakes. Will all be forgiven?
- Theatre: Southwark Playhouse
- First Preview: September 15, 2023
- Opening: September 20, 2023
- Playwright: Alan Brody
- Director: Andy Sandberg
- Cast: Nathaniel Parker, Nicholas Armfield, Jamie Bogyo, Simon Bubb, Simon Chandler, Matthew Duckett, Jake Mann, Peter Prentice, Leighton Pugh, Simon Rhodes, Gyuri Sarossy, Gabriel Freilich
It’s the close of World War II – the dawn of the atomic age. The Allies have captured Germany’s ten foremost nuclear scientists and sequestered them deep in the English countryside to ascertain the answer to a life or death question: how close are the Nazis to making an atomic bomb? The world stands on the precipice of creation and destruction, bound by the gravity of decisions which hold the power to change the course of history.
- Theatre: Duke of York's Theatre
- First Preview: September 15, 2023
- Opening: September 21, 2023
- Playwright: Anton Chekhov, adapted by Simon Stephens
- Director: Sam Yates
- Cast: Andrew Scott
A new solo adaptation of Anton Chekhov's play about a family beset by secrets, illicit love interests, and deep divides over their burdensome estate.
- Theatre: Royal Court Jerwood Theatre Downstairs
- Opening: September 23, 2023
- Playwright: Molly Davies
- Director: Hamish Pirie
- Cast: Kirsty Adams, Cian Binchy, Housni Hassan, Dayo Koleosho, Stephanie Newman, Lee Phillips, and Charlene Salter
A "whodunnit" inspired by the barriers that neurodivergent individuals experience and the politics surrounding the neurodivergent experience.
- Theatre: Birmingham Repertory Theatre
- Opening: September 23, 2023
- Book: Joe DiPietro
- Music and Lyrics: Various
- Director: Kathleen Marshall
- Cast: Matt Doyle, Ana Villafañe, Phoebe Panaretos, Dawn Buckland, Vincent Riotta, Carl Patrick, Maddy Ambus, Tyler Orphé Baker, Greg Bernstein, Helen Colby, Frances Dee, Alex Gibson-Giorgio, Ryesha Higgs, Stevie Hutchinson, Lottie Power, Spin, John Stacey, Amelia Connor, Effiie Gell, Isla Granville
It is New Year’s Eve, 1942, and a skinny 27-year-old Italian-American singer is about to step onto the stage of New York’s Paramount Theatre and give a performance that will change music history. As Frank Sinatra’s career suddenly skyrockets, he struggles with balancing the love of his wife, Nancy, against the demands and temptations of being the most popular singer in America. But when he begins a torrid affair with movie goddess Ava Gardner, his records stop selling and the press turns against him, sending his career into a tailspin. Driven by his devotion to his family, Sinatra employs his peerless artistry and dogged determination to stage the greatest comeback in showbiz history.
- Theatre: Marylebone Theatre
- First Preview: September 14, 2023
- Opening: September 25, 2023
- Playwright: Dmitry Glukhovsky
- Director: Maxim Didenko
- Cast: Paul-Hector Antoine, Lucas Allemann, Olivia Bernstone, Pearl Chanda, Leo Franky, James Garnon, Lewis Hart, Mark Quartley, Adrian Schiller, Matthew Spencer, Aron Yacobi
Spanning several decades, The White Factory explores the life of Yosef Kaufman, a Holocaust survivor from Lodz, haunted by his wartime experiences as he tries to build a new future in 1960’s Brooklyn.
- Theatre: Menier Chocolate Factory
- First Preview: September 18, 2023
- Opening: September 27, 2023
- Book: Ben Elton
- Music and Lyrics: Various
- Director: Ben Elton
- Cast: Elena Skye, Lauren Azania AJ King-Yombo, Matt Corner, Darren Day, Beth Devine, Aoife Dunne, Hannah-Jane Fox, Steven Serlin, Emma-Katie Adcock, Liam Buckland, Harriet Bunton, Leanne Garretty, Luke Johnson, David McIntosh, Danny Nattrass, Sydney Spencer, Karen Walker
The story of a skinny kid from Neasden who became the most famous teenager on the planet and the ‘face of the 1960’s may seem like the stuff of fairy tales, but there is tragedy as well as triumph in this intimate portrayal of a true 20th century icon.
- Theatre: Theatre Royal Haymarket
- First Preview: September 27, 2023
- Playwright: Michael Frayn
- Director: Lindsay Posner
- Cast: Felicity Kendal, Jonathan Coy, Alexander Hanson
This play-within-a-play captures a touring theatre troupe’s production of "Nothing On" in three stages: dress rehearsal, the opening performance, and a performance towards the end of a debilitating run. Progressing from flubbed lines and missed cues in the dress rehearsal to mounting friction between cast members, slamming doors, falling trousers, and flying sardines in their final performances, audiences are treated to a hilarious behind-the-scenes peek that truly challenges the age-old saying “The show must go on.”
- Theatre: The Other Palace
- Opening: September 28, 2023
- Playwright: Henry Parkman Biggs
- Director: Blair Anderson
- Cast: Emer Dineen, Alex Wadham, Craig Bartley, Dominic Booth, Olivia Saunders, Sarah Louise-Hughes, William Elijah Lewis, Yasmin Sharp
Cabaret, queer theatre, politics, and circus collide in this tongue-in-cheek musical inspired by famous surrealist pieces of art such as The Escherian Stairwell, Magritte’s apples and Salvador Dali’s melting clocks.
- Theatre: Rose Theatre
- Opening: September 29, 2023
- Playwright: Nina Segal
- Director: Jeff James
- Cast: Antonia Thomas, Christian Rubeck, Avi Nash, Anna Andresen, Matilda Bailes, Joshua James
When offered the lead part in a Norwegian film adaptation of Hedda Gabler, an American actress seizes the opportunity to escape Hollywood - and gain some artistic credibility. She’s running away from her past as a child star, from her present as a tabloid punchline, and from an unfortunate collision between a self-driving Tesla and a member of the paparazzi. But most of all - she's running away from herself.
- Theatre: Garrick Theatre
- Opening: September 30, 2023
- Playwright: Lolita Chakrabarti
- Director: Erica Whyman
- Cast: Madeleine Mantock, Tom Varey, Gabriel Akuwudike, Sarah Belcher, Will Brown, Haydn Burke, Ajani Cabey, Faye Campbell, Phoebe Campbell, Mhairi Gayer, Frankie Hastings, Karl Haynes, Alex Jarrett, Hannah McPake, Elizabeth Rider, Rose Riley, Harmony Rose-Bremner, Liza Sadovy, Obioma Ugoala, Peter Wight
Warwickshire,1582. Agnes Hathaway, a natural healer, meets the Latin tutor, William Shakespeare. Drawn together by powerful but hidden impulses, they create a life together and make a family. When the plague steals 11-year-old Hamnet from his loving parents, they must each confront their loss alone. And yet, out of the greatest suffering, something of extraordinary wonder is born.
- Theatre: Wilton's Music Hall
- Opening: October 4, 2023
- Playwright: James Corley
- Director: Harry Mackrill
- Cast: Richard Cant, Cayvan Coates
September 1970. A year after the Stonewall Riots, Harper’s Magazine publish the now notorious article ‘Homo/hetero: the struggle for sexual identity’. Acclaimed journalist and former editor of Harper’s Magazine, Merle Miller reads the article from his home in upstate New York and decides to take a stand.
September 1971. Merle sits at his desk and begins to write. Part man, part memory he invites the audience to join him on an incredible journey of his life from provincial Iowa to the pages of the New York Times.
- Theatre: Savoy Theatre
- First Preview: September 18, 2023
- Opening: October 5, 2023
- Book and Lyrics: Chrstopher Hampton, Don Black
- Music: Andrew Lloyd Webber
- Director: Jamie Lloyd
- Cast: Nicole Scherzinger, Rachel Tucker, Tom Francis, Grace Hodgett Young, David Thaxton, Carl Au, Georgia Bradshaw, Hannah Yun Chamberlain, Tyler Davis, Kamilla Fernandes, Ahmed Hamad, Laura Harrison, Charlotte Jaconelli, Olivia-Faith Kamau, Luke Latchman, Emma Lloyd, Mireia Mambo, Gregor Milne, Kody Mortimer, Jon Tsouras, Charlie Waddell, Lara Denning, Jordan Cork, Shayna McPherson, Catherine Cornwall, Michael Lin, Jon Reynolds, Kristy Anne Shaw, Harrison Wilde, Lillie-Pearl Wildman
In her mansion on Sunset Boulevard, faded, silent-screen goddess, Norma Desmond, lives in a fantasy world. Impoverished screen writer, Joe Gillis, on the run from debt collectors, stumbles into her reclusive world. Persuaded to work on Norma’s ‘masterpiece’, a film script that she believes will put her back in front of the cameras, he is seduced by her and her luxurious life-style. Joe becomes entrapped in a claustrophobic world until his love for another woman leads him to try and break free with dramatic consequences.
- Theatre: Riverside Studios
- First Preview: September 30, 2023
- Opening: October 5, 2023
- Book: Rachel Wagstaff
- Music and Lyrics: Richard Taylor
- Director: Bornagh Lagan
- Cast: Jenna Russell, Hal Fowler, Kelly Price, Annie Wensak, Charlotte Kennedy, Nathanael Campbell, David McKechnie, Pippa Winslow, Issy Khogali, Richard Morse, Harry Singh, Abigail Williams
For Ada Harris, day-to-day life is spent cleaning houses. But one day when she is working for a wealthy client in Belgravia, she happens upon a Dior dress that takes her breath away. In that magical moment, Ada has an epiphany and sets off on a journey that will change her life... From the cobbled streets of post-war London to the magical avenues of Paris and beyond, Ada transforms the lives of everyone she meets along the way, but can she let go of her past and finally let her own life blossom?
- Theatre: London Coliseum
- Opening: October 5, 2023
- Libretto: W.S. Gilbert
- Music: Sir Arthur Sullivan
- Director: Cal McCrystal
- Cast: Samantha Price, Ellie Laugharne, Catherine Wyn-ROgers, Marcus Farnsworth, John Savournin, Ben McAteer, Ruairi Bowen, Keel Watson, Llio Evans, Bethan Langford, Petra Massey
In Gilbert and Sullivan's 1882 operetta, the fairy Iolanthe, who was banished from Fairyland for marrying a mortal, is pardoned by her Queen. Upon learning that Iolanthe's son, Strephon, is in love with Phyllis, a ward in chancery, the fairies pledge their aid to Strephon in obtaining the Lord Chancellor's consent to be married. When the Lord Chancellor recklessly insults the Fairy Queen, a battle ensues between the Fairies and the House of Lords, with Strephon and Phyllis caught in the center.
- Theatre: Almeda Theatre
- Opening: October 7, 2023
- Playwright: Marina Carr
- Director: Carrie Cracknell
- Cast: Kathy Kiera Clarke, Sorcha Cusack, Charlie Kelly, Conor MacNeill, Sadhbh, Fergal McElherron, Mairead McKinley, Mark O'Halloran, Alison Oliver, Chris Walley, Archee Aitch Wylie
Today is Portia’s birthday. But it’s not a day for family and celebrations. Because Portia is making terrible choices, lurching between past and present, and wondering if the hand of fate has already set her course. Tormented by her dead twin Gabriel, who disappeared into the depths of the Belmont River 15 years ago, she wreaks havoc on all she loves in a desperate bid to save herself.
- Theatre: Lyric Theatre Hammersmith
- First Preview: October 4, 2023
- Opening: October 10, 2023
- Playwright: Tanika Gupta
- Director: Pooja Ghai
- Cast: Raj Bajaj, Miriam Grace Edwards, Francesca Faridany, Alexandra Gilbreath, Aaron Gill, Anyebe Godwin, Oliver Hembrough, Avita Jay, Tanya Katyal, Tom Milligan, Sarah Moyle, Chris Nayak, Lauren Patel, Simon Rivers, Anish Roy, Nicola Stephenson, Premi Tamang, Joe Usher
It is 1887, the year Queen Victoria celebrates her Golden Jubilee. Sixteen year old Rani Das, ayah (nursemaid) to an English family arrives at Tilbury docks after a long voyage from India, to start a new life in Britain. On the boat, Rani befriends a lascar (sailor), an Indian politician and a royal servant destined to serve the Queen. Full of hopes and dreams of what lies ahead, they each embark on an extraordinary journey.
- Theatre: Royal Court Theatre
- First Preview: October 5, 2023
- Opening: October 11, 2023
- Playwright: Mohamed-Zain Dada
- Director: Milli Bhatia
- Cast: Salman Akhtar, Omar Bynon, Arian Nik
Chunkyz Shisha Lounge is a home away from home for Jihad, Rashid and Asif, a space where community whispers are heard, jokes are told and new hustles are born. But its future is under threat, having become a target for local politicians. Aspiring journalist, Jihad wants to fight back. After winning a competition to produce his own documentary, he sets out to create something that gives a voice to his community and challenges the usual stereotypes that fill the airwaves.
THE OCEAN AT THE END OF THE LANE
- Theatre: Noël Coward Theatre
- Opening: October 11, 2023
- Playwright: Neil Gaiman, Joel Horwood
- Director: Katy Rudd
- Cast: James Bamford, Siubhan Harrison, Penny Layden, Grace Hoff-Robinson, Laura Rogers, Nicolas Tennant, Nia Towle, Ruby Ablett, Emma Bown, Charlie Cameron, Jeff D’Sangalang, Kieran Garland, Miranda Heath, Tom Mackley, Charleen Qwaye, Peter Twose
Returning to his childhood home, Alex finds himself standing beside the duck pond of the old Sussex farmhouse where he used to play. He’s transported to his 11th birthday, spring half term. When his dad was struggling to make ends meet and his friend Lettie claimed it wasn’t a pond, but an ocean… Plunged into a magical world, Alex and Lettie’s survival depends on their ability to reckon with dark, ancient forces that threaten to destroy everything around them.
- Theatre: Theatre Royal Bath
- Opening: October 12, 2023
- Playwright: Oliver Cotton
- Director: Trevor Nunn
- Cast: Brian Cox, Nicole Ansari-Cox, Matthew Burns, Doña Croll, Peter de Jersey, Stephen Hagan, Christopher Staines, Benedict Salter, Eric Sirakian
Spring 1747. Potsdam, Prussia. Johann Sebastian Bach reluctantly visits the court of Frederick II, Europe’s most ambitious and dangerous leader. The two men could hardly be more different. As the Age of Enlightenment dawns, they stand in opposite camps. Bach is deeply religious, Frederick is an atheist. Bach loathes war, Frederick revels in it. Bach studies scripture, Frederick reads military history. Frederick remains in awe of Bach’s genius however and has mischievously prepared a musical conundrum that he hopes will baffle the composer and amuse his court. The explosive events of the following days could not have been predicted by either man.
- Theatre: Bush Theatre
- Opening: October 14, 2023
- Playwright: Anoushka Lucas
- Director: Jess Edwards
- Cast: Anoushka Lucas
A piano came through the sky and landed in Lylah’s council flat, just for her. As she pours over the keys and sound floods into all the rooms, Lylah falls in love. At school, Lylah can’t ask questions – she’s got to be good, good, good or else she’ll lose her scholarship. At home she can’t ask questions; her cousins say she talks weird, and her parents are distracted. So she asks her piano: Where did you come from? Why are you here? And their shared history tumbles into the light.
- Theatre: Prince Edward Theatre
- First Preview: October 9, 2023
- Opening: October 19, 2023
- Playwright: James Graham
- Director: Rupert Goold
- Cast: Joseph Fiennes
The country that gave the world football has since delivered a painful pattern of loss. Why can’t England’s men win at their own game? With the worst track record for penalties in the world, Gareth Southgate knows he needs to open his mind and face up to the years of hurt to take team and country back to the promised land.
- Theatre: Donmar Warehouse
- First Preview: October 13, 2023
- Opening: October 19, 2023
- Playwright: Lynn Nottage
- Director: Lynette Linton
- Cast: Ronkẹ Adékọluẹ́jọ́, Patrick Gibson, Gbemisola Ikumelo, Sebastian Orozco, Giles Terera
When tough-as-nails sandwich shop owner Clyde offers her formerly incarcerated kitchen staff a shot at redemption, they find purpose and inspiration in their shared quest to create the perfect sandwich. This sweet and savory comedy serves up the story of ordinary people with extraordinary dreams.
- Theatre: National Theatre (Lyttelton)
- First Preview: October 19, 2023
- Opening: October 20, 2023
- Playwright: Alexander Zeldin
- Director: Alexander Zeldin
- Cast: Joe Bannister, Amelda Brown, Jerry Killick, Lilit Lesser, Brian Lipson, Eryn Jean Norvill, Pamela Rabe, Gabrielle Scawthorn, Yasser Zadeh
An intimate portrait of a life. Australia 1943 to London 2021, and everything in between. Alice is learning to be herself against the times. But how do the times shape who we are? Playing out over a tumultuous eight decades, Alice’s complex relationships become a common thread in her personal journey, in this intimate portrait of a life.
- Theatre: Southwark Playhouse
- First Preview: October 19, 2023
- Opening: October 24, 2023
- Book, Music, and Lyrics: Maimuna Memon
- Director: Kirsty Patrick Ward
- Cast: Maimuna Memon, Rachel Barnes, Harley Johnston
Ria is working with her band to complete a new album – songs charting the rise and fall of a recent relationship. But the more Ria progresses, the more she’s drawn back to the darkness of her troubled past, until we’re not sure where memory ends and reality begins.
- Theatre: Harold Pinter Theatre
- First Preview: October 17, 2023
- Opening: October 25, 2023
- Playwright: Penelope Skinner
- Director: Ian Rickson
- Cast: Kristin Scott Thomas, Lily James, James Corrigan, Doon Mackichan, Sara Powell
Elaine, a reclusive and talented actress, disappears in mysterious circumstances. 30 years later, she finally feels ready to tell her story –summoning Kate, a young film executive, to her remote Cornish home to assist with her glorious comeback.
- Theatre: Hope Mill Theatre
- First Preview: October 21, 2023
- Opening: October 26, 2023
- Book: Douglas Carter Beane
- Music and Lyrics: Lewis Flinn
- Director: Douglas Carter Beane
- Cast: Peter Caulfield, Gregory Haney, Pablo Gómez Jones, Carolyn Maitland, Duncan Burt, Alexander Kranz, Arthur Boan, Ayesha Maynard, Emily Ooi, Jermaine Woods, Lee Harris, Natalie Day, Scott Hunter, Susie Fenwick, Samantha Bingley, Theo Maddix, Jamil Abbasi, Megan Davies-Truin
Set in 90s New York, To Wong Foo The Musical tells the story of 3 Drag Queens, Vida, Noxeema and Chichi, who embark on a trip across America to attend the Drag Queen of the Year Finals in Hollywood. When their car breaks down in Middle America, their lives, as well as those in the town, are turned upside down, in this joyous, heartfelt and high camp musical extravaganza!
- Theatre: Duke Of York's Theatre
- Opening: October 27, 2023
- Playwright: Marcelo Dos Santos
- Director: Michael Grandage
- Cast: Penelope Wilton, Luke Evans
Set in 1979, when strikes are bringing the country to its knees and Britain is about to seismically change under Margaret Thatcher, it is business as usual for the Queen Mother and her loyal servant Billy inside Clarence House. Receptions are in full swing and the champagne is flowing as the two worlds start to collide with dizzying consequences.
- Theatre: Wyndham's Theatre
- First Preview: October 21, 2023
- Opening: October 31, 2023
- Playwright: William Shakespeare
- Director: Kenneth Branagh
- Cast: Kenneth Branagh, Mara Allen, Deborah Alli, Raymond Anum, Melanie-Joyce Bermudez, Doug Colling, Dylan Corbett-Bader, Eleanor de Rohan, Chloe Fenwick-Brown, Joseph Kloska, Corey Mylchreest, Hughie O'Donnell, Caleb Obediah, Jessica Revell
Perhaps Shakespeare's greatest tragedy, King Lear is the story of an aging king, who, in demanding a show of devotion from his three daughters, leaves his kingdom divided, his family destroyed, the faithful banished and the hateful left to wreak inhuman havoc in the realm.
- Theatre: Rose Theatre
- Opening: October 31, 2023
- Playwright: Arthur Miller
- Director: Holly Race Roughan
- Cast: Jonathan Slinger, Nancy Crane, Kirsty Bushell, Rachelle Diedericks, Elijah Holloway, Luke Newberry, Tommy Sim'aan, Lamin Touray
Eddie Carbone, a Brooklyn laborer, holds family and honor above all else. He and his wife have raised a niece as their own. But his possessive love of his niece drives him to actions that betray his family and his ideals.
- Theatre: Park Theatre
- First Preview: October 27, 2023
- Opening: November 1, 2023
- Playwright: Jonathan Maitland
- Director: Michael Fentiman
- Cast: TBA
On the 20th of November 1995 the BBC broadcast an interview between Princess Diana and Martin Bashir. It was watched by hundreds of millions worldwide. But now, it is said, the interview has no legitimacy. Is it right that the way it came about has overshadowed what it was meant to be?
- Theatre: Park Theatre
- First Preview: November 1, 2023
- Opening: November 6, 2023
- Playwright: Dan Sareen
- Director: Imy Wyatt Corner
- Cast: Amy-Leigh Hickman, Bhasker Patel, Catherine Cusack, Jack Flammiger, Kishore Walker
Rachel is stuck, desperate to be one thing but without a clear identity. And time is running out. In light of her Grandfather’s declining health, Rachel is worried about losing her only connection to her Indian heritage. Her father is Indian, but from an early age has rejected his roots, and her mother is white. Uncertain and desperate, she attempts to bring Indian culture into their lives before it is too late - and organises their very first celebration of Diwali.
FEELING AFRAID AS IF SOMETHING TERRIBLE IS GOING TO HAPPEN
- Theatre: Bush Theatre
- Opening: November 10, 2023
- Playwright: Marcelo Dos Santos
- Director: Matthew Xia
- Cast: Samuel Barnett
After years of swiping, a permanently single, professionally neurotic stand-up finally meets Mr Right – and then does everything wrong. Strap in for a delightfully dark journey through self-awareness and self-sabotage as he decides whether love is worth the price of a killer punchline.
- Theatre: Dominion Theatre
- Opening: November 15, 2023
- Book: Bob Martin and Thomas Meehan
- Music: Matthew Sklar
- Lyrics: Chad Beguelin
- Director: Philip Wm. McKinley
- Cast: Matthew Wolfenden, Georgina Castle, Tom Chambers, Rebecca Lock, Kim Ismay, Nicholas Pound, Dermot Canavan, Ben Lancaster, Jude Farrant, Daniel Lee, Oliver Ravelini, Austin Riley
Buddy, a young orphan, mistakenly crawls into Santa’s bag of gifts and is transported to the North Pole. The would-be elf is raised, unaware that he is actually a human until his enormous size and poor toy-making abilities cause him to face the truth. With Santa’s permission, Buddy embarks on a journey to New York City to find his birth father and discover his true identity. Faced with the harsh realities that his father is on the naughty list and his half-brother doesn’t even believe in Santa, Buddy is determined to win over his new family and help New York remember the true meaning of Christmas.
TWO STRANGERS (CARRY A CAKE ACROSS NEW YORK)
- Theatre: Kiln Theatre
- First Preview: November 9, 2023
- Opening: November 16, 2023
- Book, Music, and Lyrics: Jim Barne, Kit Buchan
- Director: Tim Jackson
- Cast: Dujonna Gift, Sam Tutty
Dougal is a naive, impossibly upbeat Brit, flying to New York for his Dad’s second wedding. The Dad he’s never known. Waiting for him at the airport is Robin, the sister of the bride. She’s a native New Yorker, she’s late for work, and she doesn’t have time to stop and see the sights. Instant attraction? Definitely not. But with an extravagant wedding approaching and the city at their feet…anything could happen.
STRANGER THINGS: THE FIRST SHADOW
- Theatre: Phoenix Theatre
- Opening: November 17, 2023
- Playwright: Kate Trefry
- Director: Stephen Daldry
- Cast: Shane Attwooll, Kemi Awoderu, Chase Brown, Christopher Buckley, Ammar Duffus, Gilles Geary, Florence Guy, Max Harwood, Michael Jibson, Oscar Lloyd, Louis McCartney, Isabella Pappas, Matthew Pidgeon, Calum Ross, Maisie Norma Seaton, Patrick Vaill, Lauren Ward, Ella Karuna Williams
Hawkins, 1959: a regular town with regular worries. Young Jim Hopper’s car won’t start, Bob Newby’s sister won’t take his radio show seriously and Joyce Maldonado just wants to graduate and get the hell out of town. When new student Henry Creel arrives, his family finds that a fresh start isn’t so easy… and the shadows of the past have a very long reach.
- Theatre: Barbican Theatre
- Opening: November 21, 2023
- Playwright: Tom Morton-Smith
- Director: Phelim McDermott
- Cast: TBA
Exploring the magical fantasy world of childhood and the transformative power of imagination, My Neighbour Totoro follows one extraordinary summer in the lives of sisters Satsuki and Mei as they are swept up in exciting adventures with their new neighbours – transported to a long-forgotten realm of spirits, sprites, and natural wonder.
- Theatre: National Theatre (Olivier)
- First Preview: November 7, 2023
- Opening: November 21, 2023
- Book: Lucy Kirkwood
- Lyrics: Lucy Kirkwood, Dave Malloy
- Music: Dave Malloy
- Director: Lyndsey Turner
- Cast: Julie Armstrong, Chrissie Bhima, Zoe Birkett, Maddison Bulleyment, Miracle Chance, Daniele Coombe, Richard David-Caine, Molly-May Gardiner, Tiffany Graves, Adrian Grove, Irvine Iqbal, Katherine Kingsley, Bobbie Little, Tania Mathurin, Amira Matthews, Jacob Maynard, Laura Medforth, Ekow Quartey, Ben Redfern, Daniel Rigby, Maggie Service, Sally Ann Triplett, Alexandra Waite-Roberts
- Theatre: Old Vic Theatre
- First Preview: November 11, 2023
- Opening: November 22, 2023
- Playwright: Jack Thorne
- Director: Matthew Warchus
- Cast: TBA
A Christmas Carol fills the auditorium to the brim with mince pies, music and merriment. A unique staging immerses the audience in London’s longest running adaptation of this beloved festive favourite.
- Theatre: Lyric Theatre
- Opening: November 23, 2023
- Playwright: Henry Lewis, Jonathan Sayer, Henry Shields
- Cast: Mischief
Co-written by Mischief company members Henry Lewis, Jonathan Sayer and Henry Shields, Peter Pan Goes Wrong is a highly physical comedy packed with finely-tuned and inspired slapstick, delivered with split-second timing and ambitious daring. The play sees the ‘Cornley Drama Society’ back on stage battling technical hitches, flying mishaps and cast disputes as they attempt to present J.M Barrie’s much-loved tale. But will they ever make it to Neverland?
- Theatre: National Theatre (Lyttelton)
- First Preview: November 16, 2023
- Opening: November 27, 2023
- Playwright: Federico Garcia Lorca, adapted by Alice Birch
- Director: Rebecca Frecknall
- Cast: Harriet Walter, Isis Hainsworth
In the domain of Bernarda Alba, a daughter who disobeys is no longer a daughter. Forced to live under their mother’s tight grip as they mourn their father’s death, can five sisters survive when young Adela dares for passion and freedom? Rebecca Frecknall makes her directorial debut at the National Theatre with Alice Birch’s radical version of Federico García Lorca’s modern masterpiece.
- Theatre: Curve Theatre, Leicester
- Opening: November 27, 2023
- Book and Lyrics: Tim Rice
- Music: Andrew Lloyd Webber
- Director: Nikolai Foster
- Cast: Martha Kirby, Tyrone Huntley
- Theatre: National Theatre (Dorfman)
- First Preview: November 22, 2023
- Opening: November 30, 2023
- Playwright: Annie Baker
- Director: James Macdonald
- Cast: Marylouise Burke, Mia Katigbak, Christina Kirk, Kristine Nielsen, Brenda Pressley, Pete Simpson
Five women in Northern California sit outside on chaise lounges and philosophize. A surprisingly funny inquiry into the complexity of suffering, and what it means to desire in a body that’s failing you.
- Theatre: Ambassadors Theatre
- Opening: November 30, 2023
- Playwright: Paul Unwin
- Director: Angus Jackson
- Cast: Catherine Tate, David Threlfall
The Hodgson’s had no idea what a poltergeist was when, in the summer of 1977, furniture and toys started moving of their own accord. An ordinary, working-class family, who lived in a north London council house became the centre of one of the most famous poltergeist events in the world. This is the story of one night in the spring of 1978 when events were approaching a climax.
- Theatre: Almeda Theatre
- Opening: November 30, 2023
- Book: Conor McPherson
- Music: Elvis Costello
- Director: Rupert Goold
- Cast: Anya Chalotra, Elliot Levey, Luke Thallon
Poland, 1949. Zula is bold and brilliant, a singer who ignites the stage. Wiktor is withdrawn and damaged, a composer longing to write. Irresistibly drawn to each other, they dream of escape. But in communist-controlled Poland that can be a dangerous thing.
- Theatre: Bush Theatre
- First Preview: November 28, 2023
- Opening: December 1, 2023
- Playwright: Kwame Owusu
- Director: Kwame Owusu
- Cast: Tienne Simon
Malachi’s been looking forward to a fresh start at uni for months. He’s settling in, he’s got a stack of books to read and he’s met someone new – Kojo, a musician with a megawatt smile, who’s basically perfect. But something doesn’t feel right. He keeps having the same nightmare – sinking, crushed by the weight of the ocean – and it’s getting worse… A beast grows in the water, hungry, relentless, hunting him but always just out of sight. As the boundaries between nightmare and reality fracture, Malachi must fight harder than ever to stay afloat.
- Theatre: SoHo Theatre
- Opening: December 1, 2023
- Playwright: Armando Ianucci
- Director: Patrick Marber
- Cast: TBA
A caustic entertainment for the winter months. A funny, wild ongoing history play about how our great leaders grappled first with the Pandemic and then with each other. The Johnson-Truss-Sunak years told at a furious pace in all their horrible glory. Relive the horror! The Mess! The Murk! The lying about the lies! Jingle while you mingle with Bully Raab and Super Suella. It’s one big dodgy party. Bring a suitcase
- Theatre: Rose Theatre
- Opening: December 1, 2023
- Playwright: J.M. Barrie, Adapted by Evan Placey
- Director: Lucy Morrell
- Cast: TBA
Chasing his runaway shadow, a mischievous young boy crash lands through an open window and meets a headstrong young girl not yet ready to face growing up. With a sprinkle of fairy dust, they take flight on a whirlwind festive voyage over pirate ships, through mermaid lagoons and into the heart of Neverland.
- Theatre: Menier Chocolate Factory
- First Preview: November 25, 2023
- Opening: December 4, 2023
- Book: John Weidman
- Music and Lyrics: Stephen Sondheim
- Director: Matthew White
- Cast: TBA
A stunning exploration of tradition and transformation based on historical events. In 1853, after 200 years of stability, Japan faces an American expedition determined to open the “floating kingdom” to trade. The isolationist island’s reckoning with the unwelcome western influence is brilliantly illuminated through a kaleidoscope of stories about sailors, samurai, “someone in a tree” and two friends who choose radically different paths. This innovative epic of East meets West is one of Sondheim’s most ambitious and rarely produced musicals.
- Theatre: Park Theatre
- First Preview: November 30, 2023
- Opening: December 5, 2023
- Playwright: Steven Canny and John Nicholson
- Director: Orla O'Loughlin
- Cast: Michael Dylan, Dave Hearn, Amy Revelle
Join Dave, Amy and Michael for the premiere of their brand-new version of The Time Machine. H G Wells’ comic deadly serious masterpiece will never be the same again as this hapless highly skilled group of actors embark on a journey of a lifetime! Will Dave persuade the others to stick to the script he’s worked so hard on? Will Michael be able to explain time travel without the help of excessive props? Will Amy get to sing her Cher tribute? And ultimately… will they be able to defeat the space time paradox - or at least get through the second half?
- Theatre: Donmar Warehouse
- First Preview: December 8, 2023
- Opening: December 15, 2023
- Playwright: William Shakespeare
- Director: Max Webster
- Cast: David Tennant, Cush Jumbo
A spellbinding story of love and murder, the renewing power of nature, and of the internal struggles of a damaged man as he tries to control his destiny. This bracingly fresh production of the Scottish play places us inside the mind of Macbeth, asking are we ever really responsible for our actions?
- Theatre: Park Theatre
- First Preview: January 8, 2024
- Opening: January 12, 2024
- Playwright: Ins Choi
- Director: TBA
- Cast: Ins Choi
Mr. Kim works hard to support his wife and children with his Toronto convenience store. As he evaluates his future, he faces both a changing neighbourhood landscape and the gap between his values and those of his Canada-born children.
- Theatre: Savoy Theatre
- Opening: January 15, 2024
- Playwright: Neil Simon
- Director: John Benjamin Hickey
- Cast: Matthew Broderick, Sarah Jessica Parker
An evening of three one-acts set in the Plaza Hotel. In Visitor from Mamaroneck, a middle-aged married couple tries to rekindle their dying spark. In Visitor from Hollywood, a film producer invites his childhood sweetheart to a hotel for sex. In Visitor from Forest Hills, a bride has locked herself in the bathroom on her wedding day, with her parents desperate to get her out.
- Theatre: Park Theatre
- First Preview: January 16, 2024
- Opening: January 18, 2024
- Playwright: Philip Ridley
- Director: Max Harrison
- Cast: TBA
East London. 2023. Steven has always tried to be a good person. He works hard. He looks after his family. But, suddenly, everyone starts accusing him of things. His wife accuses him of being unfaithful. His mother accuses him of being coercive. And his brother, Barry, accuses him of...what exactly? Barry won't say. Or can't. Or perhaps...Steven hasn't done anything at all.
- Theatre: Dominion Theatre
- Opening: January 20, 2024
- Book and Lyrics: Oscar Hammerstein II
- Music: Richard Rodgers
- Director: Bartlett Sher
- Cast: Helen George, Darren Lee
Welsh schoolteacher Anna Leonowens travels from England to Siam to serve as governess to the king's many children. Their clash of wills and the lessons they learn from each other are examined in this Rodgers and Hammerstein musical, based on Leonowens's account of her experiences.
- Theatre: Royal Court Theatre
- First Preview: January 16, 2024
- Opening: January 22, 2024
- Playwright: Lucas Hnath
- Director: Les Waters
- Cast: Deirdre O'Connell
Dana was a chaplain of a psych ward where she met a charismatic patient, an ex-convict searching for redemption. A harrowing true story, Dana was held captive with her life in this man’s hands — trapped in a series of Florida motels, disoriented and terrified — for five months. Told in Dana's own words and reconstructed for the stage by her son Lucas Hnath, this innovative work shatters the boundaries of the art form and our understanding of good and evil.
- Theatre: Theatre Royal Haymarket
- First Preview: January 23, 2024
- Opening: January 31, 2024
- Playwright: Adapted by Kip Williams from the book by Oscar Wilde
- Director: Kip Williams
- Cast: Sarah Snook
- Theatre: Bush Theatre
- First Preview: January 30, 2024
- Opening: February 5, 2024
- Playwright: Sophia Chetin-Leuner
- Director: Ed Madden
- Cast: TBA
Jay’s new. He’s just started as a temp at an NHS Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service office. He arrives with little more than a fledgling desk plant and well-meaning plans to change the broken system. Angela’s seen it all. She’s been working in this building for over 30 years and nothing seems to faze her – except perhaps this eager new hire who seems determined to challenge her at every turn. Exhausted by archaic protocol, Jay starts to bend the rules to breaking point in a desperate attempt to help their patients. Trust is shattered, professional boundaries are crossed and Jay discovers the reality of what is truly at stake.
- Theatre: Almeda Theatre
- Opening: February 8, 2024
- Playwright: William Shakespeare
- Director: Yaël Farber
- Cast: Danny Sapani
Perhaps Shakespeare's greatest tragedy, King Lear is the story of an aging king, who, in demanding a show of devotion from his three daughters, leaves his kingdom divided, his family destroyed, the faithful banished and the hateful left to wreak inhuman havoc in the realm.
- Theatre: Duke of York's Theatre
- First Preview: February 6, 2024
- Opening: February 20, 2024
- Playwright: Henrik Ibsen
- Director: Thomas Ostermeier
- Cast: Matt Smith
Thomas Ostermeier's iconoclastic production of An Enemy Of The People makes its West End debut in English at the Duke of York's Theatre for a strictly limited run.
- Theatre: Lyric Theatre (Shaftesbury)
- First Preview: February 10, 2024
- Opening: February 21, 2024
- Book, Music, and Lyrics: Anaïs Mitchell
- Director: Rachel Chavkin
- Cast: TBA
Hadestown follows two intertwining love stories—that of young dreamers Orpheus and Eurydice, and that of King Hades and his wife Persephone—as it invites audiences on an epic journey to the underworld and back.
- Theatre: Bush Theatre
- First Preview: February 16, 2024
- Opening: February 23, 2024
- Playwright: Benedict Lombe
- Director: Lynette Linton
- Cast: Tosin Cole
Des and Dre. Destiny and Dream.
Young. Gifted. Black.
Rivals. Friends. Lovers.
She left. He stayed.
Now, tragedy brings Des and Dre crashing back into each other’s lives, carrying new secrets and old scars. Caught in the space between memory and reality, they must struggle to navigate the shifting borders that threaten to rewrite their past and reshape their future.
- Theatre: Dominion Theatre
- Opening: March 15, 2024
- Book: Cheri and Bill Steinkellner, Douglas Carter Beane
- Music: Alan Menken
- Lyrics: Glenn Slater
- Director: Bill Buckhurst
- Cast: Beverley Knight (March 15 - June 8), Alexandra Burke (June 10 - August 31)
What’s the best place to hide a disco diva who just witnessed a mob hit? In a convent, of course! Delores Van Cartier takes cover and dons a habit, but she can’t quite live up to the rigid expectations of Mother Superior. When she brings her disco talent to the convent choir, the word “sister” takes on new meaning as the public, the press – and the mob – take notice.
- Theatre: Prince Edward Theatre
- First Preview: March 6, 2024
- Opening: March 27, 2024
- Book: Lynn Nottage
- Music and Lyrics: Various
- Director: Christopher Wheeldon
- Cast: Myles Frost
He is one of the greatest entertainers of all time. Now, Michael Jackson’s unique and unparalleled artistry has finally arrived on Broadway in a brand-new musical. Centered around the making of his 1992 Dangerous World Tour, and created by Tony Award(R)-winning Director/Choreographer Christopher Wheeldon and two-time Pulitzer Prize winner Lynn Nottage, MJ goes beyond the singular moves and signature sound of the star, offering a rare look at the creative mind and collaborative spirit that catapulted Jackson into legendary status. Turn it up, Broadway — MJ is here
- Theatre: Wyndham's Theatre
- First Preview: March 19, 2024
- Opening: April 2, 2024
- Playwright: Eugene O'Neill
- Director: Jeremy Herrin
- Cast: Brian Cox, Patricia Clarkson, Alex Lawther, Daryl McCormack, Louisa Harland
The Tyrone family — the miserly actor father, the grasping mother addicted to morphine, the alcoholic older son and the tubercular younger son — come to grips with their twisted love for one another in Eugene O'Neill's Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award-winning play.
- Theatre: Bush Theatre
- First Preview: April 12, 2024
- Opening: April 18, 2024
- Playwright: Bijan Sheibani
- Director: Bijan Sheibani
- Cast: Irfan Shamji
The arrival of this baby has changed everything. Amir hovers as his mother holds her grandchild for the first time, mesmerised. The bag of handmade baby clothes she’s brought lies at her feet. After she leaves, Amir watches his wife feeding their newborn son, so close, almost intertwined. They look so complete, while Amir feels aware of a growing chasm separating him from them, and him from his own mother. As sleepless nights, relentless crying and hushed arguments take their toll, Amir grapples with the puzzle of how to be a father, a son, a husband – mashing together pieces that don’t seem to fit. All he knows is he’s determined not to repeat the past.
- Theatre: Theatre Royal Plymouth
- Opening: May 11, 2024
- Adaptation: Lindsey Ferrentino, Drew McOnie
- Director: Drew McOnie
- Cast: TBA
In 1920s Hollywood the business of making dreams come true is in full swing. Silent movie icon George Valentin has long been the darling of the silver screen when he falls for aspiring actress Peppy Miller. But while her star is about to rise, his might soon flicker out: amidst all the glamour, laughter and romance, the silent movie industry is on the brink of a revolution. With the Talkies on their way, George must either find his voice in a brave new world or lose everything he holds dear to a bygone era.
