National Theatre announces 2027 season including West Side Story, Emma Corrin, Uzo Aduba, Tracy Letts and Joan Armatrading musical

The National Theatre has announced its 2027 programme.

The Olivier Theatre will host two new plays based on political events. Major, a world premiere by James Graham, reunites the writer with director Jeremy Herrin following This House and runs next spring/summer. The play explores John Major’s arrival as Prime Minister following Margaret Thatcher’s resignation and the political changes of the period.

Later in the season, The Great Indaba, written by Moira Buffini and directed by Rubasingham, will dramatise the 1998 meeting in South Africa involving Nelson Mandela’s National Unity Government and political rivals from Northern Ireland, which contributed to progress towards the Good Friday Agreement. The production is a co-production with MGC.

The Olivier will host a new production of West Side Story – which we’ve covered here.

In the Dorfman at the end of next year, Oladipo Agboluaje’s The Adeyemis – A Family Saga will have its world premiere, directed by Lucian Msamati in his National Theatre directing debut. Uzo Aduba will make her National Theatre debut as Helen. The play draws on Agboluaje’s 1997 work Iya-Ile – The First Wife, expanding its story into an epic family drama set against Nigeria’s recent history.

Before that, Samira, a new play by Carmen Nasr, will play in the Dorfman from 4 February to 13 March. Directed by Emily Burns, the production is set during the Arab Spring and explores political upheaval, authenticity and the pursuit of truth. The cast includes May Calamawy in the title role, Joshua McGuire as Dan, Lily Olufemi-Bywaters as Maya, Sirine Saba as Rana, Karim Saleh as Kamil and Antonia Salib as Amira.

Get an in-depth analysis of the new season with Indhu Rubasingham in our free podcast:

Natasha Gordon will adapt Bernardine Evaristo’s novel Mr Loverman for the stage, with Paulette Randall directing in the Lyttelton from 25 February to 17 April. The production follows Morris, a British Caribbean man whose family and relationships span six decades between Antigua and London.

The cast includes Gary Beadle as Morris, Gabrielle Brooks as Maxine/Young Merty, Llewella Gideon as Merty/Augustina, Terique Jarrett as Daniel/Young Barry, Jenny Jules as Candaisy/Odette, Suzette Llewellyn as Asseleitha/Cynthia, Jo Martin as Carmel and Danny Sapani as Barry.

A new British musical will also premiere in the Dorfman next sprng. Glorious Madness features music and lyrics by Joan Armatrading, with a book by Iman Qureshi and direction by Phyllida Lloyd. The production is a co-production with KPPL Productions and uses Armatrading’s songs within an original love story.

Early next year, Michael Grandage will return to the National Theatre to direct Tennessee Williams’ Suddenly Last Summer – which we’ve covered in more detail here.

Indhu Rubasingham, director and co-chief executive of the National Theatre, said: “Next year’s programme brings together a remarkable range of work that looks across the last century to explore the perspectives, cultures and conflicts that continue to shape our world. Some of these stories are unfamiliar, some are rediscovered, and others are boldly reimagined for the times we are living in.

“From new musicals and immersive theatre, to filmed productions translated into local languages and plays interwoven in repertory, each of these shows is shaped by extraordinary artists and united by themes of resilience and hope. Above all, at a time when we’re constantly asking what’s true, this programme puts the experience of truth at its heart.”

Richard Eyre will direct David Hare’s Plenty in the Lyttelton. The production, staged ahead of Hare’s 80th birthday and the play’s 50th anniversary, will star Emilia Clarke in her National Theatre debut.

Robert Hastie, the National Theatre’s deputy artistic director, will direct Tom Stoppard’s Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead. The production marks 60 years since the play’s original London and Broadway productions and will feature Mawaan Rizwan as Rosencrantz and George Fouracres as Guildenstern.

The National Theatre will also return to repertory theatre in 2027, with Paul Mescal, Tracy Letts, Monica Dolan and many more appearing in Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman and Tom Murphy’s A Whistle in the Dark in the Lyttelton. We’ve covered that, with a casting breakdown, here.

Punchdrunk will mark the 50th anniversary of the National Theatre’s South Bank home with Ghostlight, a new immersive production conceived and directed by Punchdrunk founder and artistic director Felix Barrett and curated by writer Lucy Kirkwood. The company has previously collaborated with the National Theatre on Faust, The Masque of the Red Death and The Drowned Man.

Beyond the South Bank, the National Theatre’s stage adaptation of Noel Streatfeild’s Ballet Shoes, adapted by Kendall Feaver and directed by Katy Rudd, will tour the UK. Expect tour dates to be revealed tomorrow.

The Rise and Fall of Little Voice by Jim Cartwright will tour directly from its Dorfman run to seven regional theatres. Directed by Hastie, the cast includes Francesca Mills, Jill Halfpenny and Paul Chuckle.

National Theatre at Home will add more than 25 titles to its streaming catalogue in 2027. New subscribers will also be offered a seven-day free trial, giving access to the service’s catalogue of more than 100 productions.

Take Your Seats, the National Theatre’s free streaming initiative on YouTube, will return in March 2027 with Rubasingham’s production of The Jungle Book. Adapted by Anupama Chandrasekhar, the production will be captioned in Arabic, Hindi, Portuguese (Brazil), Spanish and Tamil, alongside English.