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Nationwide
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18 April 2025
As if! The year is flying by in a flourish of Gatsby parties, midnight cowboys, and jousting knights!
But there are plenty more new musicals still yet to have their glittering opening night across the country – and here’s a handy list for you to seek out which you’ll be attending!
Remember, we’ve only included shows that have never been seen professionally in a full run on UK stages before, and we’ve excluded concert productions. One of the greatest places to see new musicals before anybody else is the Edinburgh Fringe, where a wad of shows have already been revealed. Keep an eye on the site on the lead-up to August as we pick the ones we’re most excited for, and bring you action from the city itself.
Want a top selection in audio form? Try out the WhatsOnStage Podcast now:
Without any further ado, on with the musicals…
Here We Are
Stephen Sondheim’s final musical was first seen in New York in 2024, and it’s heading to the National Theatre in April. Inspired by two films – The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie and The Exterminating Angel – by Luis Buñuel, it follows a group of guests who find themselves unable to leave a dinner party. The cast includes Tracie Bennett and Denis O’Hare (Tartuffe), who took part in the world premiere. They’ll also be joined by an all-star cast including (deep breath) Rory Kinnear, Chumisa Dornford-May, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Richard Fleeshman, Harry Hadden-Paton, Cameron Johnson, Jane Krakowski, Martha Plimpton and Paulo Szot.
Performances run in the National’s Lyttelton Theatre from 25 April to 28 June
The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry
Rachel Joyce’s novel has been adapted for the stage with tunes by Passenger! When Harold Fry, a grey and lonely man, receives a letter from an old friend, he decides to walk from South Devon to Berwick-upon-Tweed to post his reply. Starring are Mark Addy as Harold with Jenna Russell as his wife, Maureen, and WhatsOnStage Award winner Jack Wolfe as The Balladeer.
Plays at the Minerva Theatre in Chichester from 5 May to 14 June
Shucked
Guaranteeing a shucking good time, the new musical comedy will receive both its UK and open-air premiere this summer! Set in a rural community isolated from the world by a wall of economy-driving corn stalks, Shucked follows what happens when the crop begins to fail and a young woman leaves behind Cob County to try and find someone who can save her town. The cast is pretty sweet as well!
Plays at Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre from 10 May to 14 June
Come Fall in Love – The DDLJ Musical
Hit romcom and India’s longest-running blockbuster movie Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge, also known as DDLJ, is adapted into the rechristened musical Come Fall in Love – directed by Aditya Chopra, with book and lyrics by Nell Benjamin, music by Vishal Dadlani and Sheykhar Ravjiani and choreography by Rob Ashford. Expect major production values, Bollywood mashed up with musical theatre – and with a recently revealed cast to boot!
Plays at Opera House, Manchester from 29 May to 21 June
Disney’s Hercules
Bless our souls! Hercules is heading to the West End. Productions have been seen in New Jersey and Hamburg, and Luke Brady will “Go the Distance” and play the titular Greek hero during its much-anticipated run at Theatre Royal Drury Lane.
Plays at Theatre Royal Drury Lane from 6 June
Lovestuck
A range of major producing houses in London are presenting new musicals this summer – the Lyric Hammersmith, the National Theatre, and here, Stratford East will prepare Lovestuck, written by the two creators of My Dad Wrote a Porno, while music is by triple-platinum singer-songwriter Bryn Christopher with Martin Batchelar. See who’s starring!
Plays at Stratford East from 6 June to 12 July
King of Pangea
Martin Storrow’s new musical is another to open at the King’s Head Theatre in north London this year, and seems to be a folk musical love letter to the worlds we create for ourselves to escape from the realities we’d rather not face after intense loss. It’s based on Storrow’s own experiences, so expect something stirring and moving. Having been in development in the US for several years, we’re excited to see what lands on our shores.
Plays at the King’s Head Theatre from 7 June to 6 July
The Ministry of Lesbian Affairs
Iman Qureshi’s musical comedy follows a lesbian choir striving for a place on the Pride mainstage – and the cast features a host of famous faces. This one has been seen before at Soho Theatre, but as it sold out and newly expanded, we couldn’t resist breaking our own rule and plugging another chance for our readers to see it!
Plays at Kiln Theatre from 13 June to 12 July
Indigo
Featuring music and lyrics by Scott Evan Davis and a book by Kait Kerrigan, Indigo celebrates the bonds that unite a family. It tells the story of three generations of women navigating their need to reach one another and explores themes of living with Alzheimer’s, autism, and synaesthesia.
Plays at Curve’s Studio Theatre in Leicester from 26 June to 19 July
Sing Street: A New Musical
A certain 2020 lockdown cut short the dreams of Sing Street on Broadway but led to Dónal Finn, Adam Bregman, and more starring in a Boston staging in 2022. Now, the show, which follows a 16-year-old Dubliner trying to form a band in the 1980s, will have its UK premiere, and we can’t wait for casting news. This new version of the show will feature much-loved hits from the film as well as original additions. It’ll light you up!
Plays at Lyric Hammersmith Theatre from 8 July to 23 August
Nessie
Honestly, we’re surprised that it has taken this long for a musical about the Loch Ness Monster to reach UK stages. But with book, music, and lyrics by Shonagh Murray, Nessie will see audiences take the plunge into the rich waters of a fantastical tale of a monster revealed to the wider public. Pitlochry Festival Theatre puts remarkably few steps wrong, so this looks very exciting.
Plays at Pitlochry Festival Theatre from 9 July to 16 August
Friends the Musical Parody
There have been a fair few musicals based on the tale of that coffee-obsessed sextet that occupied our TV screens in the 1990s and early 2000s, and the Barn Theatre now adds to the list with this touring musical, which is an audience favourite in the US, featuring book and lyrics by Bob and Tobly McSmith, with music by Asaf Gleizner.
Plays at the Barn Theatre from 14 July to 23 August, before touring
Maiden Voyage
Get familiar with the story of the first all-women racing crew of Maiden! The new musical by Mindi Dickstein and Carmel Dean has yet to announce casting, but we can’t wait to find out who’ll be playing the courageous and unexpected heroes…
Plays at Southwark Playhouse Elephant from 19 July to 23 August
Club NVRLND
This immersive musical is for the “Peter Pan generation”! It follows Wendy, who is about to get married, but with one night in NVRLND, where she is reunited with Peter, everything changes. Featuring 2000s hits from the likes of Britney Spears, Katy Perry, Justin Timberlake, and more, the musical will receive its world premiere in Edinburgh.
Plays at Assembly Checkpoint, Edinburgh from 30 July to 24 August
Anne Boleyn the Musical
No, not a Six spin-off, but this new musical, directed by Roxana Silbert with a book by Rebecca Night and music by Sam Gevers, brings musical fever to Hever (where Boleyn used to live) in a custom-built venue. No casting has been announced yet, but we can’t think of a more glorious way to bask in the open air over August.
Plays at Hever Castle from 2 to 30 August
Hot Mess
Edinburgh Festival Fringe will provide a treasure trove of new theatre, and one we’re looking forward to is Hot Mess. Jack Godfrey and Ellie Coote (the duo behind hit musical 42 Balloons), have reimagined the relationship between Earth and Humanity as a romcom.
Plays at Edinburgh Festival Fringe this summer
13 Going on 30 the Musical
Based on the 2004 film, this musical comedy follows Jenna Rink, a 13-year-old girl who magically wakes up as an adult and navigates her new life as a fashion magazine editor. As Freaky Friday proves, there’s no end to the body-swap musical pipeline, but having heard the numbers in the workshop for this, 13 Going on 30 will be a solid addition to the canon. Lucie Jones returns to star after her workshop performance, while Heathers’ Andy Fickman directs – his second “Manchester-premiering body-swap musical based on a beloved 00s film” on this list!
Plays at Manchester Opera House from 21 September to 12 October
Coven
Halloween seems perfectly apt for Coven, the new musical about the Pendle Witch Trials, to have its world premiere! Music and lyrics will be by Grammy Award-winning Daisy Chute and Rebecca Brewer, and direction by Miranda Cromwell.
Plays at Kiln Theatre from 31 October to 13 December
Disney’s Freaky Friday
Could you, like, chill for a sec? The fun-filled body-swap comedy will have its professional UK premiere in Manchester over the festive period. With music by Tom Kitt and lyrics by Brian Yorkey (Next to Normal, If/Then), the stage version was first seen in 2016 before being adapted into a Disney Channel movie two years later. Fickman directs.
Plays at HOME Manchester from 27 November to 31 December
No Such Thing as Wolves
A new musical from the writers of Horrible Histories is top of our Christmas wish-list! Birmingham Hippodrome’s festive offering is the latest from their new musical theatre department and is suitable for all the family.
Plays at the Hippodrome’s Patrick Studio from 6 December 2025 to 4 January 2026
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