Stage shows to see in August 2025

In the month that thousands of entertainers head up to Edinburgh for the month, there’s plenty of theatre to enjoy – but not only at the Fringe.

Though if you’re looking for which shows to book, do take a look at our handy run-down of award-winning shows to see, most eye-catching titles, and new musicals. In fact, there’s a whole guide dedicated to the Fringe!

This August, theatre audiences can enjoy performances from all-star casts, wear a Pink Ladies jacket at an immersive production, watch Anne Boleyn’s life unfold on stage at her childhood home under the stars, and maybe finally bag a ticket for the hot West End transfer of The Producers…

Every Brilliant Thing

Brilliant news! Every Brilliant Thing will celebrate ten years with a star-studded stint in London. Told from the perspective of a child who begins making a list of life’s joys for their mother amid her struggles with depression, the play spans decades, showing how the list shapes their own life. Featuring a rotating cast, performers will include Lenny Henry, Jonny Donahoe, Ambika Mod, Minnie Driver and Sue Perkins.

Plays at @sohoplace from 1 August 2025

Grease: The Immersive Movie Musical

Enjoy those summer nights at a new immersive production of Grease! Experience Secret Cinema like never before as the show plans to “blur the line between screen and reality.” For the first time, ticket buyers can purchase either free-roaming seats or designated seating. You could even “Join the Cast” and learn choreography ahead of performances, then get involved during the show!

@whatsonstage

Come with us for a sneak peek at Rydell High before Secret Cinema’s Grease hits London this summer! #Grease #Musical #Theatre #SecretCinema #London @Secret Cinema

♬ original sound – WhatsOnStage

Plays at Evolution London in Battersea Park from 1 August to 7 September 

Anne Boleyn the Musical

No, not a Six spin-off, but this new piece, directed by Roxana Silbert with a book by Rebecca Night and music by Sam Gevers, brings musical fever to Hever (where Boleyn used to live) in a custom-built venue. Emily Lane takes on the title role as the story follows Anne’s departure from her family and her time at the royal courts of Flanders and France, leading to her return to England, where she would eventually capture the attention of King Henry VIII. We can’t think of a more glorious way to bask in the open air over August.

Plays at Hever Castle from 2 to 30 August

Brigadoon

Earlier this year, in February, we treated guests at the 25th Annual WhatsOnStage Awards to a sneak preview of Brigadoon! Now, the full Lerner and Loewe production arrives in London. Directed and choreographed by the Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre’s artistic director, Drew McOnie, the story follows WW2 fighter pilots Tommy and Jeff, who crash land in the Highlands of Scotland and search for a way home. Meanwhile, sisters Fiona and Jean are preparing for a wedding in the dreamlike village of Brigadoon.

Plays at Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre from 2 August to 20 September

2:22 A Ghost Story

The spooky WhatsOnStage Award-winning play is back – this time with a real-life couple playing Jenny and Sam. Stacey Dooley and Kevin Clifton will be joined by Grant Kilburn and Shvorne Marks as Danny Robins’ nighttime tale haunts venues up and down the UK.

Tour opens at Manchester Opera House on 4 August 

A Man for All Seasons

Another production that concerns Henry VIII arrives this month! The Martin Shaw-led production of Robert Bolt’s play, which explores the events surrounding the former monarch’s demand for a divorce from Catherine of Aragon, which would clear the way for him to marry Anne Boleyn, and devout Catholic Thomas More’s extraordinary act of defiance, will spend some time in London.

Plays at Harold Pinter Theatre from 6 August 

Born With Teeth

In what our editor-in-chief called a “magnificent choice”, Ncuti Gatwa and Edward Bluemel will play two famous writers – Marlowe and Shakespeare – as they develop a tense and complex connection against a backdrop of conspiracy and surveillance. A new piece of writing by Liz Duffy Adams, Daniel Evans, co-artistic director of the RSC, will be on directing duty.

Plays at Wyndham’s Theatre from 13 August 

As You Like It

Ralph Fiennes directs Shakespeare’s pastoral comedy this summer in Bath! Set to star are Dylan Moran, Harriet Walter, Gloria Obianyo, and more as the Oscar-nominated performer’s season continues.

Plays at Theatre Royal Bath from 15 August to 6 September

Fat Ham

The Pulitzer Prize-winning Fat Ham by James Ijames will receive its UK premiere in Stratford-upon-Avon, with casting revealed! Inspired by Hamlet, it follows Juicy, a queer college student from the American South, whose life is upended at a family barbecue when the ghost of his father urges him to avenge his death.

Plays at the Royal Shakespeare Company from 15 August to 13 September

Inspector Morse: House of Ghosts

For the first time, the iconic detective series has been adapted for the stage! Tom Chambers will star as Inspector Morse in this major new touring play.

Tour opens at Birmingham Repertory Theatre on 28 August 

Deaf Republic

Part of the Royal Court’s 2025 season, Deaf Republic will receive its world premiere. Based on the poems by Ukrainian-American poet Ilya Kaminsky, it follows an occupied town that wakes up deaf after a deaf boy is killed. The piece is from Dead Centre and sign language poet Zoë McWhinney and brings together an ensemble of deaf and hearing actors, aerial performers, puppetry, live cinema and poetry.

Plays at Royal Court from 29 August to 13 September

The Producers

They must be doing something right because The Producers has bagged a West End transfer! Directed by Patrick Marber, the “hugely entertaining” production of the seminal Mel Brooks’ musical will feature Andy Nyman as Max Bialystock, Marc Antolin as Leo Bloom, Trevor Ashley as Roger de Bris, Raj Ghatak as Carmen Ghia, Harry Morrison as Franz Liebkind and Joanna Woodward as Ulla – all reprising their roles from the sold-out run at the Menier Chocolate Factory.

Plays at the Garrick Theatre from 30 August 2025