Tony-nominated shows we’d love to see in the UK

The Tony Awards are just around the corner!

This year, international popstar P!nk will be hosting the annual ceremony, which returns to Radio City Music Hall on Sunday, 7 June.

A wealth of British-born talent and shows are nominated for the prestigious awards, now in their 79th year. 

With the news of Liberation’s London transfer already revealed, as a team, we each decided on Tony-nominated shows we’d love to see on these shores.

Becky Shaw

I’ve adored Madeline Brewer since first seeing her in Orange is the New Black and was thrilled to catch her as Sally Bowles here at the Kit Kat Club. It’s wonderful that she is now performing on Broadway in a revival of Becky Shaw and seemingly impressing audiences – even if not Tony voters – in the title role. Gina Gionfriddo’s dark comedy has all the ingredients for a gritty, unsettling night at the theatre, reflecting on bad dates past. Tanyel Gumushan

The Lost Boys

During a recent trip to New York, I was fortunate enough to catch a preview performance of The Lost Boys and – after a handful of high-profile, vampire-themed flops on the Great “Fright” Way from Dance of the Vampires and Dracula the Musical to Lestat – I took my seat, hoping that the stage adaptation of the 1987 cult classic film would finally break the curse. And for my money, it’s driven a stake straight through said curse’s heart (and has racked up a massive 12 Tony nominations!). Aside from the epic scale of the set design, aerial stunts and compulsory gore, director Michael Arden’s production manages to evoke a gloomy, dystopian atmosphere that feels otherworldly and yet familiar to anyone who grew up in the 1980s. Fingers crossed that the singing undead fly over to the West End in the very near future. Tom Millward

Ragtime

There are some truly incredible musical revivals lighting up Broadway at the moment. Were it not for our own, exciting production of Cats opening this summer, I’d’ve picked the Jellicle Ball in a heartbeat. But instead, one pick would most definitely be Lear Debessonet’s 11-time Tony-nominated production of Ragtime, a musical that hasn’t been on these shores in almost a decade. With its pertinent themes, we feel like it could really strike a chord on this side of the Atlantic (there were persistent rumours that director Jamie Lloyd may have been interested at one point, but this seems to have been nothing more than hot air). Given how many of its leading cast members – Joshua Henry, Caissie Levy, Brandon Uranowitz, Ben Levi Ross and Nichelle Lewis – have been nominated for Tony Awards, it’d be great to have them along for a UK ride. Alex Wood

Richard O’Brien’s The Rocky Horror Show

It is with great antici…pation that we await Sam Pinkleton’s revival of the cult classic! The retro camp sci-fi has delighted fans for years, almost constantly touring here in the UK, and it would be wonderful to see a new – albeit decidedly DIY – revival. Pinkleton’s charming way with bonkers stories has been warmly welcomed by the UK theatre community (see: Oh Mary!), and we’re thrilled to see the director has more projects already planned here, so surely it’s just another step to the left to stage Rocky Horror here? Bonus points if we too get that all-star cast, led by Luke Evans. Tanyel Gumushan

Schmigadoon!

Another show that has managed to score an astounding 12 Tony nominations this year is Schmigadoon!. Many theatre fans were dismayed when Apple TV decided to pull the plug on a third season of the series that lovingly parodies stage musicals from across the decades (despite co-creator Cinco Paul stating he had already completed 25 songs that would have delved into the “mega-musicals” of the 1980s, such as Phantom of the Opera and Les Misérables). So, the notion of a stage adaptation of the show’s first season was warmly embraced by the fan base, and its Broadway premiere has not disappointed. Brimming with colour, classic choreography and inside baseball references that made me chuckle out loud, Schmigadoon! may well prove to be a necessary tonic for troubled times on our shores… and who doesn’t love a bit of corn puddin’? Tom Millward

The Balusters

David Lindsay-Abaire will have a big moment in the UK when the musical version of Kimberly Akimbo lands at the Hampstead Theatre, but over in the US he’s already picked up a lot of buzz for his new play The Balusters, which follows a small town that turns into a “neighbour-versus-neighbour battle royale” due to some local politics. It sounds brilliantly specific and universal all at the same time. The show was the most-nominated new play at this year’s Tonys, which may bode well for a London life. Alex Wood