Autumn 2025 preview – top plays and musicals to see

Crunchy leaves, pumpkin-spiced hot beverages and some absolute gems in the theatre… these are a few of our favourite things!

As autumn draws closer, there’s a variety of shows to look forward to in the new season. As always, we’ll be rounding up our monthly picks, and there’s a special podcast episode on the way, too.

So as the nights draw in, there’s nothing to be scared of this spooky season, not with these shows arriving soon!

It is also worth mentioning these fantastic shows that are returning to more stages this autumn for a future life (we’ve not included them below as there’d be too much going on!).

In the West End we have the likes of The Importance of Being Earnest, The Producers, Punch, Elf and The Spy Who Came in from the Cold all transferring, while on tour, there is The Bodyguard, Here and Now, Inside No 9, Matilda The Musical, Starter For Ten, and To Kill A Mockingbird, to name just a few. As always, keep an eye out here on WhatsOnStage for all your stage news!

Small Acts of Love

The return of the Citizens Theatre in Glasgow has been many years in the making, so it always needed a headline-grabbing, bold work to kickstart its new era. Step forward Frances Poet, who has produced a new play based on the tragedy around the Lockerbie bombing in 1988, with original songs by Ricky Ross of Deacon Blue.

Plays from 9 September to 4 October

Clarkston

WhatsOnStage Award-winner Joe Locke will make his West End debut in the play, penned by Samuel D Hunter, which makes its UK premiere. The piece follows Jake, a young man travelling west in search of meaning, who crosses paths with Chris during a night shift at a Costco in a small American town. As their relationship grows, they begin to imagine a new future. Ruaridh Mollica and Sophie Melville round out the cast.

Plays at the Trafalgar Theatre from 17 September to 22 November

Follies

Broadway is coming to Belfast, baby! Cameron Menzies directs the much-loved Stephen Sondheim-James Goldman musical, following his hit revival of Into the Woods.

Plays at Grand Opera House, Belfast from 13 to 20 September

13 Going On 30

Thirty and flirty and thriving in Manchester! The musical adaptation of the much-loved chick flick will enjoy a fully-staged run with Lucie Jones, David Hunter and Grace Mouat starring.

Plays at Manchester Opera House from 21 September to 12 October

Hamlet

Olivier Award winner Hiran Abeysekera tackles the title character of this Shakespearean revival at the National! It’s part of Indhu Rubasingham‘s jam-packed inaugural season as the venue’s new director.

Plays in the Lyttelton Theatre from 25 September to 22 November

The Weir

Conor McPherson is directing his Olivier Award-winning play for the very first time. Settle down in a rural County Leitrim pub as the regulars share stories about folklore, ghosts, and fairies with a young woman recently arrived from Dublin, before she tells her tale. Brendan Gleeson makes his West End debut in the piece.

Plays at the Harold Pinter Theatre from 11 September to 6 December

Charley’s Aunt

WhatsOnStage Award winner Rob Madge’s new take on Brandon Thomas’ Charley’s Aunt is making its way to Newbury. Starring Jonathan Case and Maggie Service, we’ve been informed that this adaptation “keeps all the quick wit, comedy, and elaborate ruses of the original, but views love, relationships, and identity through a modern lens in a fresh and playful update”.

Plays at the Watermill Theatre, from 3 October to 15 November

Miss Saigon

Summer may be over, but the heat is still on in Saigon! This classic musical is heading out on a new tour this autumn in a brand-new production, visiting places it has never before played in. Meet the cast here!

Tour opens at Newcastle Theatre Royal, from 4 to 25 October

Young Frankenstein

This Halloween, Ore Oduba will be “Puttin’ on the Ritz” up north as he takes on the role of Dr Frederick Frankenstein in the upcoming production of Mel Brooks’ Young Frankenstein The Musical.

Plays at Manchester’s Hope Mill Theatre, from 10 October to 30 November, before transferring to Liverpool

The Hunger Games

We volunteer as tribute to be among the first to experience this all-new stage adaptation of The Hunger Games! Playing out in a custom-built theatre in Canary Wharf in the Capitol (sorry – capital), the first of Suzanne Collins’ novels and hit Lionsgate movies will play out on stage with some pretty epic-looking stunts.

Plays at Troubadour Canary Wharf Theatre from 20 October

Wendy and Peter Pan

This autumn, head to Neverland in a retelling of JM Barrie’s Peter Pan. Ella Hickson’s take promises to be dark and witty, but still perfect for families, as the RSC adaptation is flying into the Barbican for a limited run with Toby Stephens as Captain Hook.

Plays at the Barbican from 21 October to 22 November

Othello

David Harewood returns to the role of Othello in a new revival, directed by Tom Morris. Also featuring in Shakespeare’s tragedy is Toby Jones as Iago and Caitlin FitzGerald as Desdemona, while PJ Harvey will provide the tunes. Don’t miss it – or you’ll be majorly jealous.

Plays at Theatre Royal Haymarket from 23 October 2025 to 17 January 2026

Coven

A new musical based on the Pendle witch trials? With the first performance on Halloween? Sign us up! Lauryn Redding, Diana Vickers and Gabrielle Brooks are among the cast bringing the piece brewed up by Daisy Chute and Rebecca Brewer to life.

Plays at Kiln Theatre from 31 October to 13 December

Paddington the Musical

London’s favourite bear is making his grand arrival to the West End in a new musical, and he’s in safe paws – sorry, hands. The world premiere musical has tunes written by Tom Fletcher, a book by Jessica Swale, and direction from Luke Sheppard. Principal casting was just confirmed, and there are some familiar faces telling the story of this marmalade-loving mischief-maker!

Plays at the Savoy Theatre from 1 November

All My Sons

Arthur Miller’s All My Sons returns to the West End with a cast led by Bryan Cranston. The actor reunites with director Ivo Van Hove to tell the 1947 tale that secured Miller as a major playwright.

Plays at the Wyndham’s Theatre from 14 November 2025 to 7 March 2026

Ride the Cyclone

The cult classic clatters its way into the capital! Jacob Richmond and Brooke Maxwell’s show follows six teenagers who are killed in a rollercoaster accident. Trapped in limbo, they are offered a chance to return to life — if they can convince an enigmatic figure that they are the one most deserving of a second chance.

Plays at Southwark Playhouse Elephant from 14 November 2025 to 10 January 2026

The Sound of Music

The hills of Leicester will be alive this Christmas with a new revival of The Sound of Music! Director Nikolai Foster is reuniting with Molly Lynch and David Seadon-Young, alongside some stage favourites. These are more than a few of our favourite things!

Plays at Curve, Leicester from 22 November 2025 to 11 January 2026

The BFG

The RSC’s BIG new show this Christmas is a stage adaptation of Roald Dahl’s The BFG! John Leader is taking on the title role as part of an ensemble of 18 actors. A troupe of puppeteers has been confirmed to work with Leader at different points within the play to represent the changes in height and size of the character, according to our perspective at the time. It sounds like a giant undertaking!

Plays at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon from 25 November 2025 to 31 January 2026

Freaky Friday

No, we cannot chill for a sec – Freaky Friday will finally receive its UK premiere this autumn! It couldn’t be more timely as the teen flick is back on the big screen in a recently released sequel, but on stage, Andy Fickman, the director behind Heathers, is on board, alongside Next to Normal songwriting duo Tom Kitt and Brian Yorkey.

Plays at HOME in Manchester from 27 November to 31 December

Pinocchio

This year’s open-air staging at Shakespeare’s Globe is a new musical adaptation of Pinocchio. We’d be lying if we said we weren’t intrigued – what with Sean Holmes, Charlie Josephine and Jim Fortune on the team. Plus, the string selection is already supplied!

Plays at Shakespeare’s Globe from 29 November 2025 to 4 January 2026

Into the Woods

We wished – and it came true! Into the Woods is back in London later this year in a new revival directed by Jordan Fein. Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine’s moving musical weaves together Grimms’ fairytales as a baker and his wife embark on a quest to reverse a curse cast upon them by the witch. We cannot wait to see Tom Scutt’s designs for this one!

Plays at the Bridge Theatre from 2 December 2025 to 18 April 2026

The Playboy of the Western World

Two Derry Girls will reunite in a revival at the National Theatre! John Millington Synge’s Irish classic is about youth and self-discovery, and honours the rich heritage and influence of Irish drama on British theatre. It will feature Nicola Coughlan and Siobhán McSweeney in the cast.

Plays in the Lyttelton Theatre from 4 December 2025 to 28 February 2026