Stage shows to see in September 2025

September is shaping up to be a very busy month!

Kickstarting the autumn season, we have new musical adaptations of classic flicks, starry West End debuts and a wealth of new writing to be seen up and down the country.

Without further ado, here are our top picks of productions opening this month…

Consumed

Our recent interview with playwright Karis Kelly got us even more excited for the award-winning piece, Consumed, to hit the stage. The dark comedy explores those tricky family dynamics, generational trauma, and national identity, as at a 90th birthday party, four generations of Northern Irish women reunite under one roof.

Tour begins at Belgrade Theatre, Coventry from 3 September

Cow | Deer

In an exploration of our human relationships to animals and the environment, Cow | Deer is a collaboration between Katie Mitchell, Nina Segal and Melanie Wilson and is made entirely with sound and no words.

Plays at Royal Court’s Jerwood Theatre from 4 September to 11 October

Not Your Superwoman

Previously titled Superwoman Schema, Emma Dennis-Edwards’ new work stars Golda Rosheuvel and Letitia Wright and examines the complex dynamics between a mother and daughter after the death of their family matriarch. Lynette Linton directs as part of her final season.

Plays at the Bush Theatre from 6 September to 25 October

To Kill a Mockingbird

Bartlett Sher directs Aaron Sorkin’s adaptation of Harper Lee’s seminal text. The WhatsOnStage Award-winning revival played in the West End a couple of years ago and is now touring the UK, with Richard Coyle returning to the role of Atticus Finch.

Tour begins at Leeds Playhouse from 8 September

The Land of the Living

Juliet Stevenson and Tom Wlaschiha lead David Lan’s new play set in Germany in 1945. It follows Thomas, a child stolen by the Nazis during the war, who is placed under the care of a UN relief worker who must decide whether to return him to his family or leave him with those he knows.

Plays in the Dorfman theatre from 9 September to 1 November

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. Combining original songs by Ricky Ross of Deacon Blue, Frances Poet has produced a new play based on the tragedy around the Lockerbie bombing in 1988.

Plays from 9 September to 4 October

The Lady from the Sea

Simon Stone’s new take on Ibsen sees Ellida (played by Alicia Vikander) as she questions her life with her doctor husband when a former lover reappears. The starry cast also includes Andrew Lincoln, Isobel Akuwudike, Joe Alwyn, Brendan Cowell, John Macmillan and Gracie Oddie-James.

Plays at the Bridge Theatre from 10 September to 8 November

Military Wives The Musical

New musical time! Debbie Isitt’s Military Wives The Musical is set to receive its world premiere, telling the true story of a group of women who form a choir while their partners are deployed, and some beautiful voices have been cast.

Plays at York Theatre Royal from 10 September to 27 September

Starter for Ten

Fingers on buzzers! The University Challenge-themed new musical is back, and some major changes have been made – but fear not, Mel Giedroyc and much of the original cast are still on board for 80s nostalgia and quick-fire quiz questions.

Plays at Bristol Old Vic from 10 September to 11 October, before transferring to Birmingham Rep from 22 October to 1 November

The Weir

Brendan Gleeson will make his West End debut in The Weir! Now directed by the playwright Conor McPherson, the Olivier Award-winning play is set across an evening in a rural County Leitrim pub where the regulars share stories about folklore, ghosts, and fairies with a young woman recently arrived from Dublin, before she tells her tale.

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

Bacchae

The National Theatre has a big presence on this list – and for good reason! September will mark the start of Indhu Rubasingham’s programming as director of the venue, kicking off with a new adaptation of the Greek classic. Who knows what wonders await audiences during Rubasingham’s tenure, but this is an intriguing start….

National Theatre, from 13 September

Dancing at Lughnasa

Elizabeth Newman is marking the start of her tenure as artistic director of Sheffield Theatres by staging Brian Friel’s much-loved drama in the round!

Plays at Crucible Theatre, Sheffield from 13 September to 4 October and at Royal Exchange Theatre, Manchester from 10 October to 8 November

Follies

Not long after Taylor Swift announced her upcoming album, The Life of a Showgirl, the former Weismann’s Follies girls are heading to Belfast! 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

Measure for Measure

It may be Shakespeare’s problem play, but Emily Burns is preparing to tackle it for the RSC. The director said: “Measure for Measure is 400 years old, yet shockingly modern. In this version, the psychological thriller at the heart of the play is tuned to its highest frequency — savage, uncompromising, heart-racing…”

Plays at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon from 13 September to 25 October

The Harder They Come

Reggae musical The Harder They Come will return to Stratford East as part of the venue’s 140th anniversary season. Based on the cult film, the show features songs by Jimmy Cliff and a new book by Suzan-Lori Parks, with direction by Matthew Xia.

Plays at Stratford East from 13 September to 25 October

50 First Dates

The first of two stage adaptations of much-loved rom coms on this list is the world premiere of 50 First Dates. With Georgina Castle playing art teacher Lucy Whitmore, who believes every day is Sunday, 13 October, and Josh St Clair as the womanising Henry, we could probably watch this again and again.

Plays at the Other Palace from 14 September to 16 November

Entertaining Mr Sloane

Jordan Stephens will make his stage debut as the title character in Joe Orton’s play. He’s joined by Christopher Fairbank, Tamzin Outhwaite, and Daniel Cerqueira, as they tell the story of Kath, who invites the young Mr Sloane to lodge in her family home. While her brother Ed initially disapproves, he soon develops his own interest in Sloane, while their father Kemp remains suspicious of the visitor.

Plays at the Young Vic from 15 September to 8 November 

Clarkston

WhatsOnStage Award-winner Joe Locke will make his West End debut this autumn! Clarkston 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. He’s joined by Ruaridh Mollica and Sophie Melville in the new play, penned by Samuel D Hunter.

Plays at the Trafalgar Theatre from 17 September to 22 November

The Importance of Being Earnest

Oscar Wilde’s treasured comedy about hidden identities, cucumber sandwiches, and unexpected romances is crossing the river, in a co-production with Sonia Friedman Productions. Olly Alexander leads the glitzy brand new cast – get to know them here.

Plays at the Noël Coward Theatre from 18 September 2025 to 10 January 2026

Love Quirks

New musical Love Quirks will be staged in the UK for the very first time. It follows a group of four broken-hearted flatmates who explore the tribulations of love, friendship and the blurred lines in between.

Plays at the Other Palace from 18 September to 12 October

Get Down Tonight – KC and The Sunshine Band Musical

Get to know the early life of Harry Wayne Casey, founder of KC and the Sunshine Band, in this new production! Featuring more than 20 dance music tunes from their back catalogue and set in 1970s Miami, the musical was previously seen under the title Get Down Tonight. Either way, I like it a ha a ha.

Plays at Charing Cross Theatre from 19 September to 15 November

Lord of the Flies

Nigel Williams has adapted William Golding’s novel (that we all know from school!) for the stage. Anthony Lau will direct the story of a group of young survivors grappling with survival instincts when they’re stranded on a desert island after a plane crash.

Plays at Chichester Festival Theatre from 19 September to 11 October

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

Punch

James Graham’s five-star show begins its eagerly anticipated West End transfer at the Apollo Theatre, running concurrently with a Broadway production over in New York. The piece, which tells the stirring and powerful story of Jacob Dunne, was an all-out success in Nottingham and at the Young Vic, so it’s a treat for audiences to have it presented once more.

Plays at the Apollo Theatre from 22 September to 29 November. 

Mary Page Marlowe

A whole host of Matilda alumni are coming together (many reuniting with director Matthew Warchus) in the UK premiere of this time-jumping mosaic of one woman’s life by Tracy Letts.

Plays at the Old Vic from 23 September to 1 November

Hamlet

Olivier Award winner Hiran Abeysekera plays 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

Ghost Stories

Just in time for spooky season, Jeremy Dyson and Andy Nyman‘s Ghost Stories is heading back to the capital. The piece follows Professor Goodman, a skeptic determined to debunk the paranormal, as he investigates three hauntings.

Plays at the Peacock Theatre from 30 September to 8 November

Ohio

It was one of our top picks to see at the Edinburgh Fringe, and was called a “genuine gem” by our lead critic. The Bengsons’ Ohio tells the story of Shaun’s break from the church and his experience living with degenerative hearing loss inherited from his father.

Plays at the Young Vic in London from 30 September to 24 August