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The WhatsOnStage Podcast

WhatsOnStage managing editor Alex Wood and chief theatre critic Sarah Crompton host a weekly podcast on all things theatrical. News, views, frank exchanges and lists offer an unmissable guide to what's happening on stage (and in film and on television) now, in the past and in future.

List of episodes

4 of 16 episodes
Episode 172 June 4, 2026

Bonus episode: New musicals special with Redcliffe team, Sam Tutty and Christiani Pitts

n this bumper episode, we are celebrating the world of new musicals with two great insights into the experience of staging new world. In the first part, we bring you our on-stage discussion with the music team of Redcliffe, Jordan Luke Gage’s brand new musical having its world premiere at Southwark Playhouse Borough. In part two, we head across the Atlantic to talk to Sam Tutty and Christiani Pitts, the two “strangers” bring baked goods to the masses in the five-star musical Two Strangers (Carry A Cake Across New York), playing now on Broadway – ahead of this Sunday’s Tony Awards.

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Episode 171 May 29, 2026

The Best Plays Of The Century Part Five: the years 2008/9

As part of their long-running series, Alex and Sarah end the 00s with a bumper exploration of two pivotal years for playwriting this century – with Jez Butterworth’s Jerusalem, Lucy Prebble’s Enron, John Logan’s Red, Lynn Nottage’s Ruined and so many more to mull over. But which plays will be Sarah’s top picks? And what have we forgotten from the month before?

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Episode 170 May 27, 2026

Bonus episode: Sara Bareilles on ten years of Waitress and new musical The Interestings

Ten years on from Waitress’ Broadway bow, we had a virtual chat with composer and lyricist Sara Bareilles to discuss the lasting and profound effect of the show, from its much-loved numbers to its now-instantly recognisable characters. What’s more, Bareilles is working on a brand new musical, and reflects on this new experience as she prepares to bring it to the stage.

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Episode 169 May 27, 2026

Are theatre tickets really getting cheaper?

In another busy week Sarah and Alex sit down to discuss whether Peter Schaffer’s Equus is really the Adolescence of its day – and how relevant Brecht’s warnings about totalitarianism and war still feel. Plus a new report on theatre pricing prompts some new thinking…

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About the hosts

Sarah Crompton
Sarah Crompton

WhatsOnStage's chief theatre critic, broadcaster and writer Sarah Crompton is an authority on all things culture, having written for The Observer, Vogue, The Sunday Times and more.

Alex Wood
Alex Wood

Editor-in-chief of WhatsOnStage and co-producer of the WhatsOnStage Awards, Alex Wood has worked at WOS for almost a decade

Latest Videos

Sting in an interview with WhatsOnStage

Sting discusses his upcoming West End debut and The Last Ship musical’s voyage to London

The 17-time Grammy Award winner is set to anchor down at Theatre Royal Drury Lane!