Words: Millie Rogers

Curtain up! With an abundance of brilliant stage productions in the West End this year, it was a tough job to whittle things down to a manageable six choices, and a majority of our most-enjoyed shows just happened to be musical theatre…

#1 Evita

After several years away Evita graced the West End once more, making its historic return with Rachel Zegler in the lead role. The Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice classic made its way to the London Palladium this year with visionary director Jamie Lloyd after his success with Sunset Boulevard the previous season that was award-winning on both sides of the Atlantic. It truly was Evita summer as audiences flocked from across the country to see Zegler belt out ‘Don’t Cry For Me Argentina’ every night from the balcony of the Palladium to the descamisados that lined the streets in order to get a glimpse of the performance. Meanwhile, inside the venue Zegler was joined by a stellar cast including Diego Andres Rodriguez as Che, James Olivas as Peron and Bella Brown as The Mistress who all gave career-defining performances. However, the true standout performance was from the ensemble, rolling down stairs and serving in-sync choreo.

#2 Cabaret

Despite the revival opening in 2021, Cabaret is still one of the most relevant and influential shows in the West End. With its rotating cast Cabaret is a show that continues to feel fresh despite coming up to its 60th birthday, and that is in part due to its storyline, set in Berlin in 1929-30, but it is mostly due to the actors that have graced the Kit Kat jazz club stage (formally known as The Playhouse Theatre) and their impeccable chemistry that each Sally and Emcee have managed to have. With Marisha Wallace and Billy Porter opening the year to Hannah Dodd and Rob Madge taking over for the summer and finally real-life couple Eva Noblezada and Reeve Carney closing out the year, Cabaret has not struggled to get stars on the stage to blow audiences away. With its themes of political upheaval and facism Cabaret is holding a mirror up to modern day audiences and their acceptance of changes in the shifting political landscape. 

#3 Titanique 

Imagine Celine Dion on the Titanic… well, that’s the premise of Titanique The Musical. It is a kooky, crazy 90-minute extravaganza that tells the story of Jack and Rose on the the doomed Edwardian liner told through the music of Celine. Sailing into the West End in December 2024 it’s docked in The Criterion Theatre in Piccadilly Circus and has no plans of leaving anytime soon, with its original cast – including the likes of Layton Williams, Lauren Drew and Jordan Luke Gage – managing to gather the giants of the West End in order entertain audiences night after night. With songs such as I’m Alive and Taking Chances, Titanique adds a comical twist to the Celine hits and, leaving audiences in fits of laughter with drag race performances and the Iceberg Bitch. This show is doing something completely unique in the West End and is a must-see.

#4 Shucked

Corn, they’re talking corn. That’s right it’s a show about corn and more specifically the town of Cobb County. Having seen a summer stint at Regent Park Open Air Theatre, Shucked makes its way from Broadway to London to entertain audiences with the endearing story of Maizy and Beau as their wedding plans come to an abrupt halt after the town’s corn crop begins to die and how the town of Cobb County pulls together to save their home and the young couple’s marriage. Jam-packed with slapstick jokes and lyrical puns Shucked pulls off the heartwarming and the comedic incredibly well, becoming a show audiences are already longing to see in the West End in 2026.

#5 Hadestown

After returning to London’s West End in 2024, Hadestown is showing no signs of going anywhere. Telling the story of the Greek tragedy of Orpheus and Eurydice, Hadestown pulls influences from folk, rock and jazz and musicalizes the sound of the underworld. With Hermes as our narrator we meet the young couple and come to understand how Eurydice arrives at Hadestown as well as Orpheus’s journey to save her. Alongside the story of the young couple we also see the breakdown and reunification of Hades and Persphone and how their love makes the world go round. A tale of love and heartbreak and is one worthy of booking on a trip to the West End.

#6 A Streetcar Named Desire

A Streetcar Named Desire has played two stints in the West End and has also had a run on Broadway, so it is safe to say that this is the defining production of the show. With leading stars Paul Mescal, Patsy Ferran and Anjana Vasan at the helm the show was guaranteed to be a success. Set in steamy New Orleans, Tennessee Williams’ 1947 play is psychological drama about sisters Blanche DuBois and Stella and how their lives clash at the hands of Stella’s husband Stanley Kowalski. This leads to the mental breakdown of DuBois as she is stripped of her past and dignity. With dark lighting, rain curtains and intense instrumentals A Streetcar Named Desire was a show that captured audiences’ imagination and emotion, night after night.