The curtains are rising on some great new shows this month and beyond - and there promises to be something for every guest.
The Company of Kiss Me, Kate; Adrian Dunbar; Charlie Stemp and Georgina Onuorah. Photos: Johan Persson.
Bookings Are Open for Kiss Me, Kate
From Cole Porter, composer of Anything Goes, Kiss Me, Kate features musical theatre classics such as Brush Up Your Shakespeare, Too Darn Hot and Tom, Dick or Harry. This new production is brought to the stage by an internationally renowned creative team under Tony Award-winning director Bartlett Sher and features a world-class company of West End and Broadway performers and musicians.
Hailed as 'the ultimate Broadway musical from the golden age’ (Financial Times), Kiss Me, Kate is a simple love story...about two people who just can't stand each other.
When: Ends 14th September 2024.
Where: Barbican Theatre, Silk St, EC2Y 8DS.
Web: www.kissmekate.
The Curtains Rise on Hello Dolly
One of the most iconic musicals of all time opens at The London Palladium, tomorrow. With a talented cast, including Imelda Staunton and an unforgettable score by the legendary Jerry Herman, Hello, Dolly! promises to be a real show-stopper.
Performances start on Saturday 6 July 2024 for a strictly limited 10-week season.
When: 6th July to 14th September 2024.
Where: The London Palladium, W1F 7TF.
When It Happens to You Opens This Month
From New York Times best-selling author Tawni O’Dell comes the powerful true story of a mother desperately trying to hold her family together after a devastating event changes the course of their lives.
Amanda Abbington (Sherlock, Mr Selfridge) will lead an ensemble cast in this electric piece of new writing that mines the depths of human courage and the resolve to survive following a shattering incident. Directed by Park Theatre’s artistic director Jez Bond, this pacy theatrical page-turner propels the audience into the heart of an unmissable drama-fuelled by tears, laughter, hope and love.
When: 31st July to 31st August 2024.
Where: Park Theatre, Finsbury Park, N4 3JP.
Web: www.parktheatre.co.uk.
Phantom of the Opera Celebrates 15,000 Performances
This Andrew Lloyd Webber favourite has celebrated its 15,000th performance in the West End, making it only the third production in history to reach this milestone after The Mousetrap and Les Misérables. The show premiered at Her Majesty’s Theatre (now His Majesty’s Theatre) on 9 October 1986 and is currently booking until March 2025.
The Phantom of the Opera is widely considered one of the most beautiful and spectacular productions in history, playing to over 160 million people in 46 territories and 195 cities in 21 languages. Andrew Lloyd Webber’s romantic, haunting and soaring score includes Music of the Night, All I Ask of You, Wishing You Were Somehow Here Again, Masquerade and the iconic title song.
When: Booking to 29th March 2025.
Where: His Majesty's Theatre, SW1Y 4QL.
Web: www.hismajestystheatre.
Fiddler On the Roof Headlines at Regent's Park Open Air Theatre
It’s 1905 in the tiny village of Anatevka where Tevye, a Jewish milkman, lives his life by their proud traditions. For his five daughters, that means a visit from the matchmaker… But as each daughter challenges his beliefs, against the backdrop of a changing world, can Tevye hold on to his roots, or must he bend to the will of his children and learn to embrace the unfamiliar?
In a new production directed by Jordan Fein (Oklahoma, Young Vic), and featuring glorious songs, ‘If I Were A Rich Man’, ‘Tradition’, ‘Matchmaker’ and ‘Sunrise, Sunset’, this classic musical of joy, revolution and community is an exuberant celebration of love and life.
Presented by arrangement with Music Theatre International.
When: 27th July to 21st September 2024.
Where: Regent's Park Open Air Theatre, NW1 4NU.
Web: www.fiddlerontheroof.
Cake: The Marie Antoinette Playlist Heads to The Other Palace
Following electrifying try-out performances at The Lyric Theatre last year, Bill Kenwright Ltd and Paul-Taylor Mills present the brand-new musical, come gig, come ballet, now back for a full reign.
Combining a multi-genre pop score with 18th century France, Cake: The Marie Antoinette Playlist, retells a story that sparked a revolution. Marie Antoinette’s reign was blighted by gossip and scandal. But when she is implicated in a crime to defraud the crown jewellers of a diamond necklace, it is not just her reputation at stake, but the monarchy and France itself.
Cake was originally commissioned by Paul Taylor-Mills (Heathers; In the Heights) and promises to re-define our expectations of what a musical can be.
When: 13th September to 10th November 2024.
Where: The Other Palace, SW1E 5JA.
Web: theotherpalace.co.uk.
Closer to Heaven - Run Extended
Due to popular demand, Jonathan Harvey’s Closer to Heaven, with original music by the Pet Shop Boys, will be extending its run at the Turbine Theatre this summer.
Audiences can step back in time as the theatre transforms into “Vic’s Club” for an evening that promises to be anything but old fashioned. With a book by one of Britain’s most celebrated writers, Jonathan Harvey, Closer to Heaven features an original club score by Pet Shop Boys and originally premiered at the Arts Theatre in 2001.
When: Extended to 27th July 2024.
Where: Turbine Theatre, SW118AB.