This Month in the West End (April 2026)

Shehrazade Zafar-Arif 30 April, 2026, 13:45

April has been an exciting month for theatre, with the Olivier Awards taking place, along with announcements for new star-studded shows such as The Lives of Others and Amadeus coming to the West End, plus the return of musical theatre favourite RENT and a highly anticipated West End transfer for Arcadia. Here's your monthly recap of some of the most thrilling pieces of news that broke in April.

Olivier Awards 2026: Full list of winners announced

The 50th annual Olivier Awards took place on 12 April at the Royal Albert Hall, hosted by Ted Lasso's Nick Mohammed. The biggest winner of the night was Paddington the Musical, who walked away with seven Olivier Awards for Best New Musical, Best Actor in a Musical, Best Actor in a Supporting Role in a Musical, Best Actress in a Supporting Role in a Musical, Best Director for Luke Sheppard, Best Costume Design, and Best Set Design for Tom Pye and Ash J Woodward. Into the Woods walked away with Best Musical Revival, Punch took home Best New Play, All My Sons won Best Revival, and Oh, Mary nabbed Best New Entertainment or Comedy Play. Rosamund Pike and Rachel Zegler won Best Actress and Best Actress in a Musical for Inter Alia and Evita respectively, while James Hameed and Arti Shah shared Best Actor in a Musical for Paddington the Musical and Jack Holden took home Best Actor for Kenrex.

Paddington the Musical subsequently announced that it would be extending until 13 February 2028, while Into the Woods announced that it would be transferring to the West End this autumn.

Christine Baranski and Richard E Grant to star in HAY FEVER

Christine Baranski and Richard E. Grant. Headshots provided by production.

Tony Award winner Christine Baranski will make her West End debut alongside Academy Award nominee Richard E. Grant in a new production of Noel Coward's Hay Fever, a comedy where an eccentric family terrorises their guests during a weekend getaway. Directed by Emily Burns, Hay Fever will play at Wyndham's Theatre from 22 September to 12 December 2026.

Keira Knightley, Luke Thompson, and Stephen Dillane to star in THE LIVES OF OTHERS

The cast of The Lives of Others. Photo provided by production.

A major new stage adaptation of the Oscar-winning Cold War spy drama, The Lives of Others, is coming to the Adelphi Theatre. Directed by Robert Icke, it will star the award-winning Keira Knightley as Christa-Maria Sieland, an actress in 1980s East Berlin and girlfriend to rebellious playwright Georg Dreyman (played by Bridgerton's Luke Thompson), who finds herself under surveillance from Stasi agent Ged Wiesler (played by Games of Thrones' Stephen Dillane). The Lives of Others will run from 14 October 2026 to 9 January 2027.

Michael Sheen and Callum Scott Howells to star in AMADEUS

Artwork provided by production.

Michael Sheen and Callum Scott Howells will return to the West End in the first major revival of Peter Shaffer's Amadeus in over a decade. Sheen will play embittered court composer Antonio Salieri, who becomes consumed by jealousy and obsession when he's upstaged by eccentric musical prodigy Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, played by Howells. This will mark Michael Sheen's return to the West End after twenty years. Amadeus, directed by Jeremy Herrin, will play at the Noel Coward Theatre from 17 April to 7 August 2026.

Kristin Scott Thomas to star in THE CHERRY ORCHARD

Kristin Scott Thomas. Headshot provided by production.

Olivier and Tony Award nominated director Ian Rickson and celebrated playwright Conor McPherson are bringing a brand new production of Anton Chekhov's last play, The Cherry Orchard, to the Harold Pinter Theatre. BAFTA and Olivier Award-winning actress Kristin Scott Thomas will play aristocratic Russian landowner Lyubov Ranevskaya, who returns to her childhood estate after years abroad to find it under threat from a changing world. The Cherry Orchard will run from 3 October 2026 to 9 January 2027.

RENT to return to the West End

Artwork provided by production.

Jonathan Larson's beloved rock musical RENT, which follows a group of impoverished young bohemians in Manhattan's East Village, is returning to the West End, celebrating its 30th anniversary with a new revival. More details around dates, venue, and casting will be revealed soon, but for now we know RENT will be hitting the West End in autumn 2026.

All-female revival of GLENGARRY GLEN ROSS to open at the Old Vic

Rosa Salazar and Indira Varma. Headshots provided by production.

A new revival of David Mamet's Pulitzer Prize-winning drama, Glengarry Glen Ross, will play at the Old Vic from 4 June to 18 July 2026. Adapted into a film in 1992, the play follows four real estate agents in Chicago who are driven to extreme, illegal lengths to bring in more sales or risk getting fired. The revival will feature an all-female cast, with Rosa Salazar as Roma and Olivier Award-winning actress Indira Varma as Lavene.

Samantha Barks returns to LES MISERABLES

Samantha Barks. Photo provided by production.

Samantha Barks, who previously played Eponine, will be returning to the West End production of Les Miserables at the Sondheim Theatre in the role of Fantine, for eight performances only, prior to joining the star-studded cast of the Les Miserables Arena World Tour.

JOHN PROCTOR IS THE VILLAIN to transfer to the West End

Photo provided by production.

After a critically-acclaimed, sold-out run at the Royal Court Theatre, John Proctor is the Villain will be transferring to Wyndham's Theatre for a strictly limited 12-week season. Written by Kimberly Belflower and directed by Tony Award-winner Danya Taymor (The Outsiders), the seven-time Tony Award-nominated John Proctor is the Villain is a revisionist take on Arthur Miller's The Crucible following five girls in rural Georgia. It will now run from 2 February to 24 April 2027.

ARCADIA to transfer to the West End

The cast of Arcadia. Photo provided by production.

Carrie Cracknell's sold-out and critically acclaimed Old Vic production of Tom Stoppard's Arcadia will be transferring to the Duke of York's Theatre from 20 June to 12 September. Taking place across two timelines in 1809 and the modern day and exploring a historical scandal, the 2026 revival of Arcadia received two Olivier Award nominations this year. This transfer will mark the second time that it's been performed at the Duke of York's.

WHITE RABBIT RED RABBIT to return to West End

Headshots provided by production.

Nasim Soleimanpour and Omar Elerian are bringing the genre-defying, boundary-pushing White Rabbit Red Rabbit back to the West End. It will run at at the Duchess Theatre from 8 June to 2 November 2026, and feature a star-studded roster of rotating performers, including David Harewood, David Tennant, Luke Thompson, Jodie Whittaker, Kunal Nayyer, Riz Ahmed, Asim Chaudhry, Jo Joyner, Archie Madekwe, and Kathryn Hunter.

Young Vic announces 2026/27 season

Artwork provided by production.

The Young Vic has announced its upcoming new season running from September 2026 to July 2027. The thrilling line-up includes the world premiere of a new stage adaptation of classic road trip film Thelma & Louise, an adaptation of Christian Kracht's best-selling novel Eurotrash starring Ben Whishaw and Kathryn Hunter, and the first UK staging in twenty years of August Wilson's Gem of the Ocean, among others.

Jamie Muscato and Joy Woods to star in CABARET

Headshot of Jamie Muscato by Connor Harris. Headshot of Joy Woods by Jenny Anderson.

New casting has been announced for the multi award-winning, critically acclaimed West End production of Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club, with Olivier Award nominee Jamie Muscato and Tony and Grammy Award nominee Joy Woods joining from May 2026. Muscato will play Emcee and Woods will play Sally Bowles.

Full cast announced for the final extension of HERCULES

The cast of Hercules. Photo provided by production.

The West End production of Hercules has announced the cast for its final extension at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane. Bradley Gibson, who originated the title role in its world premiere production back in 2023, is returning to play Hercules. Hercules will complete its run on 5 September 2026.

What London shows are opening in May 2026

There are some thrilling new shows opening across London this month. You can witness the ghostly phenomenon Beetlejuice the Musical arrive to haunt the West End, sink into a Victorian mystery with Sherlock Holmes in the gorgeous outdoor Regent's Park Out Air Theatre, or fall in love with a brand-new musical like Dark of the Moon. Find the full list of new shows opening this month here.

What London shows are closing in May 2026

We're also saying goodbye to several productions this month, so make sure you catch them before they leave the stage. Andrew Lloyd Webber’s much-loved and unforgettable classic Starlight Express is taking its last bows on 3 May. Heartbreaking historical drama Shadowlands, starring Hugh Bonneville, is closing on 9 May. Jonathan Lynn's delightfully satirical I'm Sorry, Prime Minister also ends on 9 May, as does A Mirrored Monet, the new musical celebrating the legacy of Impressionist painter Claude Monet. Cynthia Erivo's dazzling one-woman version of Dracula is also leaving us on 30 May.

And finally, here are some of the biggest shows we reviewed in March.

THE PRICE at Marylebone Theatre

★★★★

Artwork for THE PRICE at Marylebone Theatre Artwork provided by production.

Directed by Olivier-nominated director Jonathan Munby, Arthur Miller's searing family drama The Price, written in 1967 as a response to the Vietnam War, follows two estranged brothers who reunite in a cluttered New York attic to sell their late father's possessions. Starring Henry Goodman, it is an explosive, intimate family portrait where memory, regret, and emotional inheritance collide. Read our review of The Price.

ONE FLEW OVER THE CUCKOO’S NEST at The Old Vic

★★★★

Photo provided by production.

Dale Wasserman's stage adapation of Ken Kessey's 1962 novel, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, follows the inmates of a psychiatric facility, ruled over by the terrifying Nurse Ratched. This bold new staging explores the novel's themes of colonialism and systemic oppression in a powerful modern light. Read our review of One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest.

AVENUE Q at Shaftesbury Theatre

★★★★★

AVENUE Q. Noah Harrison (Princeton) and Company. Photo by Matt Crockett Noah Harrison and the cast of Avenue Q. Photo by Matt Crockett.

The highly anticipated Broadway sensation, Avenue Q, is a quirky, outrageous parody of Sesame Street, following a group of misfits living in New York, trying to navigate the realities of adulthood - and all played by cuddly puppets. We gave this hilarious, mischievous, and irresistibly charming musical five stars! Read our review of Avenue Q.

JOHN PROCTOR IS THE VILLAIN at the Royal Court Theatre

★★★★

The cast of John Proctor is the Villain. Photo provided by production.

Written by Kimberly Belflower and directed by Tony Award-winner Danya Taymor, John Proctor is the Villain is a revisionist take on Arthur Miller's The Crucible following five girls in rural Georgia who find themselves debating and challenging The Crucible's themes of power, gender inequality, and female sexuality, in a clever, witty, and unexpected homage. Read our review of John Proctor is the Villain.

KINKY BOOTS at London Coliseum

★★★★★

The Cast of Kinky Boots at the London Coliseum The cast of Kinky Boots. Photo provided by production.

Kinky Boots is the musical adaptation of the classic comedy British film based on true events, in which a shoe factory owner teams up with a drag queen to create a line of sturdy, stylish boots for drag queens. This funny, uplifting musical packed with unforgettable songs has become a worldwide favourite, but especially here in Britain. Read our review of Kinky Boots.

LES LIAISONS DANGEREUSES at the National Theatre

★★★★

Aidan Turner and Lesley Manville. Photo by Sarah Lee.

Based on Choderlos de Laclos's scandalous 18th century novel, Les Liaisons Dangereuses stars Aidan Turner and Lesley Manville as the Vicomte Sebastien de Valmont and the Marquise Isabelle de Merteuil, a pair of amoral, scheming, and power-hungry lovers-turned-rivals who amuse themselves by ruining others. It's a thrilling story of manipulation, seduction, and betrayal that offers a scathing commentary on social vice. Read our review of Les Liaisons Dangereuses.

And that's it for this month! But if you're hungry for more theatre inspiration, check out our list of the 8 Best New London Theatre Openings in May 2026. And if the Olivier Awards got you excited, here are all the Olivier-nominated shows you can watch in London this year.