Broadway productions we’re still waiting to see in the UK

In 2026, the West End will finally welcome Beetlejuice – after saying his name more than three times each year!

With the ghost with the most on his way to the UK, as well as Kimberly Akimbo skating into London, John Proctor is the Villain getting the “Green Light” for its UK premiere, Something Rotten! egg-citingly arriving in Manchester, the regional premiere of Fun Home, and Jaja’s African Hairbraiding opening up shop, it got us thinking about other productions we’d like to see on these shores…

Anastasia

Okay, this is one Broadway musical where the hype seems to have died down pretty quickly. That being said, the most gorgeous score by Stephen Flaherty and Lynn Ahrens lives on in my heart and is one I hope to hear performed on stage one day in the UK. Tanyel Gumushan

Cats: The Jellicle Ball

Jellicles can and jellicles do! We’re all looking forward to Drew McOnie’s take on the Andrew Lloyd Webber classic next summer, debuting at the Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre ahead of a nationwide tour, but we’re still keeping our claws crossed that the hit Off-Broadway reimagining of Cats (transferring to the Great White Way in the spring) finds a new home on these shores at some point in the future. The production fully embraces New York ballroom culture and we’re ready for it to make memories in the UK! Tom Millward

Death Becomes Her

This show may be living its best life on Broadway right now, but I’m quietly hoping it proves its title wrong and finds a way to live forever… preferably with a West End transfer! Alex Braybrooke

Hell’s Kitchen

Alicia Keys’ music already has such a strong presence in so many lives, so seeing it reimagined on Broadway must feel especially powerful. I can only hope this heartfelt celebration eventually makes its way to the West End so I can experience it live. Alex Braybrooke

Illinoise

Justin Peck’s Sufjan Stevens folk dance musical was quite the underdog during the 2023 to 2024 Broadway season, opening just in the nick of time to be considered. It’s a coming-of-age campfire story of new love and old heartbreak, set to the songs of Stevens’s 2006 album Illinois, which is performed live in its entirety by a band with vocalists. Sadler’s Wells could be a lovely home for it. Tanyel Gumushan

Lempicka

Interwar artist Tamara de Lempicka’s life plays out on stage in a new musical by Carson Kreitzer and Matt Gould. Directed by Rachel Chavkin (of Hadestown adoration), it garnered a cult following on Broadway – with big love for its camp pop numbers and the cast, which featured Eden Espinosa, Amber Iman, and Beth Leavel, but despite that, its stay was short-lived. Our sister site called it a “big swing” in a highly competitive field of IPs and star casting. A couple of years on, if the show were to return on these shores, perhaps it’ll already have that leg up to thrive. Tanyel Gumushan

Maybe Happy Ending

Arguably the surprise hit of the 2024-25 Broadway season was Michael Arden’s production of Maybe Happy Ending, which rapidly became a fan favourite across the pond and ended up being crowned Best Musical and picking up five further wins at the Tony Awards. Fingers crossed that these heartwarming helper-bots can fall in love all over again on this side of the Atlantic. Tom Millward

The Outsiders

The Tony Award-winning musical has been a hit for a reason, one of the stand-out new musicals since the pandemic and continuing to delight in New York. Based on the 1960s novel and the 1980s film, the famed Rumble sequence could be a big London sensation. With producers said to be scouting out West End theatres, maybe we’ll get our wish in the new year… Alex Wood 

Purpose

Brandon Jacobs-Jenkins is one of those stars perpetually on the rise – and a lot of his plays, like Gloria and An Octoroon, have been blockbuster successes in London. This Pulitzer-winning premium offering about an African-American Chicago family could be next success. Alex Wood

Honourable mentions / Ones to consider: Jagged Little Pill, Aida, Water for Elephants, Tarzan, The Notebook, A Doll’s House, Purlie Victorious