London Theatre Guide: best plays on now in London, 2019
Wondering what theatre to book and what plays to see? From fringe to the West End: London's best theatre
London Theatre Guide: best plays on now in London, 2019 (Photograph: Peter Lewicki)
BEST PLAYS ON NOW
African-American drama: Death of a Salesman, Young Vic ★★★★★
This lucidly intelligent interpretation of Miller's best-known show takes the overlooked everyman, to whom attention must be paid, and gives him a new face.
read our review
Cool Britannia: Education, Education, Education, Trafalgar Studios ★★★★★
The cool Britannia of the 90s roars with life in this story about a Wandsworth comprehensive school. It comes to the West End after winning awards at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.
read our review
Avant-garde: Bronx Gothic, Young Vic ★★★★★
Okwui Okpokwasili's one-woman show is a lucid dreamscape of dance, theatre and performance art.Through pulsating movement and unsettling vocal lyricism it explores one woman’s experience of memory loss, sexual awakening and friendship.
read our review
Starry cast: The Starry Messenger, Wyndham's Theatre ★★★★★
Ferris Bueller filmed star turned Broadway veteran Matthew Broderick shines in The Starry Messenger, a sensitive though somewhat lacklustre exploration of a man's mid-life crisis.
read our review
Virtual reality: War of the Worlds the immersive experience ★★★★★
Immersive theatre company dotdotdot return to London with a new experience based on The War of The Worlds. Don a VR headset and become a character in the story
read our review
Zany: Dead Dog in a Suitcase, Lyric Hammersmith ★★★★★
Dead Dog in a Suitcase (and other love songs), Kneehigh’s zany update of The Beggar’s Opera, will make you laugh, only to punch you right where it hurts
read our review
Voyeurs: ANNA, National Theatre ★★★★★
With ANNA, the National Theatre audience becomes part of Cold War surveillance, with a pair of headphones allowing you to listen into a young wife's secrets.
read our review
Al fresco: Our Town, Regent's Park Open Air Theatre ★★★★★
Do humans ever really realise life as they live it? Such is the question at the heart of Our Town, the Pulitzer Prize-winning play written by Thornton Wilder in 1938, which is revived at Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre.
read our review
HMS Windrush: Small Island, National Theatre ★★★★★
Andrea Levy's epic story of love, hope and racial tensions between Jamaica and Britain bursts with warmth and vitality in this transportive stage adaptation.
read our review
Political extremes: Rosmerholm, Duke of Yorks Theatre ★★★★★
Ibsen's overlooked study of political extremism feels newly relevant in this slick revival led by TV stars Tom Burke and Hayley Atwell.
read our review
Family secrets: All My Sons, The Old Vic ★★★★★
The Old Vic is transformed into small town, post war America for Jeremy Herrin’s revival of All My Sons. Sally Field and Bill Pullman's superb performances make Arthur Miller's 1947 masterpiece feel newly affecting.
read our review
Swinging 60s: Sweet Charity, Donmar Warehouse ★★★★★
For Josie Rourke’s farewell production at the Donmar Warehouse, 1966 hit Sweet Charity is revived with shimmering hedonism and a delightful performance from Anne-Marie Duff.
read our review
Power women: Top Girls, National Theatre ★★★★★
Female ambition is in the spotlight as Caryl Churchill's seminal 1982 play Top Girls comes to the Lyttelton stage. The exploration of feminism, capitalism and politics is feels sharp and timely in Lyndsey Turner's lucid production.
read our review
Tradition!...: Fiddler on the Roof, Playhouse Theatre ★★★★★
Trevor Nunn brings life, laughter and authenticity to a Fiddler on the Roof revival, and it's just as delightful in the West End transfer.
read our review
Reversed romance: Betrayal, Harold Pinter Theatre ★★★★★
Harold Pinter's reversed romance reverberates with relevance in this immaculate revival starring Tom Hiddleston at his caustic best.
read our review
Easy as pie: Waitress the Musical, Adelphi Theatre ★★★★★
London gets a slice of the action as hit musical Waitress brings sweet story of pie-baking and self-discovery to the West End. The songs are fresh, but the story feels a little stale.
read our review
Feel-good true story: Come From Away, Phoenix Theatre ★★★★★
This utterly heart-warming musical about those stranded in a tiny Canadian town in the aftermath of 9/11 will restore your faith in humanity and leave you with a huge smile.
read our review
Courtroom drama: Witness for the Prosecution, County Hall ★★★★★
Director Lucy Bailey takes over London Country Hall for an immersive, site-specific production of Agatha Christie's Witness for the Prosecution.
read our review
Exceeds expectation: Hamilton, Victoria Palace Theatre ★★★★★
The London transfer of Lin-Manuel Miranda's magnificent hip-hop music is every bit as brilliant as we had hoped. Make it your mission to get tickets.
read our review
Party with Gatsby: The Great Gatsby immersive theatre ★★★★★
The roaring twenties come to life with sparkle, drama and a large yet intimate party in this immersive production of F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby.
read our review
Pure magic: Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, Palace Theatre ★★★★★
find out how to get tickets
Delightful disaster: The Play That Goes Wrong, Duchess Theatre ★★★★★
Slapstick silliness reigns supreme in this behind-the-scene play about an ill-fated production. Even those who are fearful of farce will find themselves won over by the infectious comic talents of Mischief Theatre Company.
And Mischief Theatre's follow up show, A Comedy About A Bank Robbery which is now running at the Criterion Theatre, is more of the same irresistible silliness. It would be a crime to miss it.
read our review
Side-splitting satire: The Book of Mormon, Prince of Wales Theatre ★★★★★
Musicals don't come much funnier than this whipsmart satire by South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone. The story of two Mormons travelling about as far from Salt Lake City as you can get still shocks and delights.
book now
African-American drama: Death of a Salesman, Young Vic ★★★★★
This lucidly intelligent interpretation of Miller's best-known show takes the overlooked everyman, to whom attention must be paid, and gives him a new face.
read our review
Cool Britannia: Education, Education, Education, Trafalgar Studios ★★★★★
The cool Britannia of the 90s roars with life in this story about a Wandsworth comprehensive school. It comes to the West End after winning awards at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.
read our review
Avant-garde: Bronx Gothic, Young Vic ★★★★★
Okwui Okpokwasili's one-woman show is a lucid dreamscape of dance, theatre and performance art.Through pulsating movement and unsettling vocal lyricism it explores one woman’s experience of memory loss, sexual awakening and friendship.
read our review
Starry cast: The Starry Messenger, Wyndham's Theatre ★★★★★
Ferris Bueller filmed star turned Broadway veteran Matthew Broderick shines in The Starry Messenger, a sensitive though somewhat lacklustre exploration of a man's mid-life crisis.
read our review
Virtual reality: War of the Worlds the immersive experience ★★★★★
Immersive theatre company dotdotdot return to London with a new experience based on The War of The Worlds. Don a VR headset and become a character in the story
read our review
Zany: Dead Dog in a Suitcase, Lyric Hammersmith ★★★★★
Dead Dog in a Suitcase (and other love songs), Kneehigh’s zany update of The Beggar’s Opera, will make you laugh, only to punch you right where it hurts
read our review
Voyeurs: ANNA, National Theatre ★★★★★
With ANNA, the National Theatre audience becomes part of Cold War surveillance, with a pair of headphones allowing you to listen into a young wife's secrets.
read our review
Al fresco: Our Town, Regent's Park Open Air Theatre ★★★★★
Do humans ever really realise life as they live it? Such is the question at the heart of Our Town, the Pulitzer Prize-winning play written by Thornton Wilder in 1938, which is revived at Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre.
read our review
HMS Windrush: Small Island, National Theatre ★★★★★
Andrea Levy's epic story of love, hope and racial tensions between Jamaica and Britain bursts with warmth and vitality in this transportive stage adaptation.
read our review
Political extremes: Rosmerholm, Duke of Yorks Theatre ★★★★★
Ibsen's overlooked study of political extremism feels newly relevant in this slick revival led by TV stars Tom Burke and Hayley Atwell.
read our review
Family secrets: All My Sons, The Old Vic ★★★★★
The Old Vic is transformed into small town, post war America for Jeremy Herrin’s revival of All My Sons. Sally Field and Bill Pullman's superb performances make Arthur Miller's 1947 masterpiece feel newly affecting.
read our review
Swinging 60s: Sweet Charity, Donmar Warehouse ★★★★★
For Josie Rourke’s farewell production at the Donmar Warehouse, 1966 hit Sweet Charity is revived with shimmering hedonism and a delightful performance from Anne-Marie Duff.
read our review
Power women: Top Girls, National Theatre ★★★★★
Female ambition is in the spotlight as Caryl Churchill's seminal 1982 play Top Girls comes to the Lyttelton stage. The exploration of feminism, capitalism and politics is feels sharp and timely in Lyndsey Turner's lucid production.
read our review
Tradition!...: Fiddler on the Roof, Playhouse Theatre ★★★★★
Trevor Nunn brings life, laughter and authenticity to a Fiddler on the Roof revival, and it's just as delightful in the West End transfer.
read our review
Reversed romance: Betrayal, Harold Pinter Theatre ★★★★★
Harold Pinter's reversed romance reverberates with relevance in this immaculate revival starring Tom Hiddleston at his caustic best.
read our review
Easy as pie: Waitress the Musical, Adelphi Theatre ★★★★★
London gets a slice of the action as hit musical Waitress brings sweet story of pie-baking and self-discovery to the West End. The songs are fresh, but the story feels a little stale.
read our review
Feel-good true story: Come From Away, Phoenix Theatre ★★★★★
This utterly heart-warming musical about those stranded in a tiny Canadian town in the aftermath of 9/11 will restore your faith in humanity and leave you with a huge smile.
read our review
Courtroom drama: Witness for the Prosecution, County Hall ★★★★★
Director Lucy Bailey takes over London Country Hall for an immersive, site-specific production of Agatha Christie's Witness for the Prosecution.
read our review
Exceeds expectation: Hamilton, Victoria Palace Theatre ★★★★★
The London transfer of Lin-Manuel Miranda's magnificent hip-hop music is every bit as brilliant as we had hoped. Make it your mission to get tickets.
read our review
Party with Gatsby: The Great Gatsby immersive theatre ★★★★★
The roaring twenties come to life with sparkle, drama and a large yet intimate party in this immersive production of F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby.
read our review
Pure magic: Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, Palace Theatre ★★★★★
Whether or not you approve of the script (no spoilers here) Harry Potter and the Cursed Child is every bit as magical as we'd hoped on stage. The sheer theatrical spectacle is enough to make you wonder if maybe, just maybe, there might be some wizards involved.
Performances and staging are of the superlative quality you'd expect and the atmosphere as the story unfolds is electric. Unfortunately, tickets are about as elusive as a Hogwarts letter.
find out how to get tickets
Delightful disaster: The Play That Goes Wrong, Duchess Theatre ★★★★★
Slapstick silliness reigns supreme in this behind-the-scene play about an ill-fated production. Even those who are fearful of farce will find themselves won over by the infectious comic talents of Mischief Theatre Company.
And Mischief Theatre's follow up show, A Comedy About A Bank Robbery which is now running at the Criterion Theatre, is more of the same irresistible silliness. It would be a crime to miss it.
read our review
Drag queen teen: Everybody's Talking about Jamie, Apollo Theatre ★★★★★
Teen drag queen musical Everybody's Talking About Jamie is a young, fun and fresh celebration of being a little bit different.
Arabian nights: Aladdin, Prince Edward Theatre ★★★★★
Sparkle, spectacle and sheer showmanship makes this new Disney musical just as megawatt and magical as expected. Children will be enchanted by the love story and beloved songs; even the grumpiest of grown ups will forgive the cheesy Americanisation when the hilarious Genie emerges from the lamp.
read our review
read our review
Musicals don't come much funnier than this whipsmart satire by South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone. The story of two Mormons travelling about as far from Salt Lake City as you can get still shocks and delights.
book now
