With tickets starting at £135,  you could fly to Skopelos, the idyllic Greek village that inspired the whole venture, for less. Now, it is a package: Mamma Mia!

The play reflected the general anxiety of England over succession of leadership. A Marvellous Party review, Stream.theatre: what better than a dash of Noël Coward to keep the spirits up?

It is the best new British musical since Billy Elliot. Read the full review, In a nutshell: "Catherine Johnson's witty and ingenious script weaves Abba's famous songs around characters you care about, in an involving story about a strong-willed single mum and her 20-year-old daughter who wants to find out who her father is before she gets married." Best PC games 2020: the must-play titles you don’t want to miss.

The play has been adapted numerous times for opera, stage, screen and musical theatre.

The big news is that this is just what was needed. The play begins with a framing device in which a drunkard is deceived into thinking he is a nobleman who then watches the “play” itself, which depicts a nobleman, Petruchio, who marries an outspoken, intelligent and bad-tempered shrew named Katherine.

You have reached the limit of free articles. Dennis Kelly has adapted Roald Dahl's famous story for the stage, while Aussie comedian Tim Minchin has come up with a smashing score that combines take-home melodies with delicious lyrical wit. The play is an unflattering depiction of the short reign of Richard III of England and is believed to have been written in approximately 1591. The play has also been the basis for numerous operatic, film and literary adaptations.

Read the full review, Address: Upper Ground, Bishop's, London SE1 9PX, In a nutshell:"Lesley Manville is perfect as mega-rich Claire Zachanassian, the anti-heroine who delivers the ultimate payback in The Visit, Tony Kushner's reworking of this 1956 satirical tragicomedy of murderous revenge. The human presence creating the animal magic is openly signalled in the costumes and puppetry. Top 10 UFOs Caught On Video In Recent Years, Top 10 TV Shows That Wasted Great Concepts, Top 10 Bizarre Musical Genres That You Need In Your Life, 10 Awesome Horror Movie Details You Probably Missed, Top 10 Truly Disturbing Facts About Japan’s Suicide Forest, Top 10 Space Movies Judged By Actual Astronauts, Top 10 Things You Won’t Believe Are Contagious, Top 10 Successful Inventions That Just Up And Died, Top 10 Mysterious Facts About Russia’s Secret Metro-2 Railway.

Read the full review, Buy Everybody's Talking About Jamie tickets, Address: 404 Strand, Covent Garden, London WC2R 0NH, In a nutshell:"The latest wheeze from those incorrigible scamps Mischief (the team behind The Play That Goes Wrong) – fringe whizz-kids turned theatrical world-leaders in the art of comic incompetence, who have joined forces for this show with ace magicians Penn & Teller. "

Read the full review, Address: Shaftesbury Ave, Soho, London W1D 6AR, In a nutshell:"A delightfully silly stage spin-off to Ben Elton’s Shakespeare sitcom, starring David Mitchell in his West End debut as the Bard, reprising the enjoyably pompous indignation of his TV performance, only at a shoutier pitch.

Often regarded as archetypal, the play tells of the dangers of the lust for power and the betrayal of friends. The plot is ripest poppycock, with anachronistic gags a-gogo." It will raise the benchmark for family entertainment for years to come."

Moses and Kitch, two down-and-out young black males who are a bit like bickering brothers, shoot the breeze in a trigger-happy urban environment,  in this bleak parable of the black American underclass." And yet, for all that calculation, the over-riding impression is one of freshness – of potentially incongruous elements flowing together quite naturally."

This is the first West End musical with an all-female lead creative team.

We rely on advertising to help fund our award-winning journalism. The play is sometimes classified as a tragedy (as in the earliest quarto); but it more correctly belongs to the histories, as classified in the First Folio.

Use this to keep your opponent on their toes.

Read the full review, Address: 17 Wilton Rd, Pimlico, London SW1V 1LG, In a nutshell: "No one could accuse Wicked of being a great musical – indeed at times it's a bit of a mess – but it proves far more enjoyable than I had dared to hope, and deserves a wider audience than adolescent schoolgirls." Read the full review, In a nutshell: "Lucy Bailey directs this entertaining adaptation of Agatha Christie's Twenties courtroom murder mystery, in which a man is accused of killing a widow in order to inherit her wealth. The work revolves around four central characters: Othello, his wife Desdemona, his lieutenant Cassio and his trusted advisor Iago. She loses contact with her twin brother, Sebastian, whom she believes dead. Posing as a man and masquerading as a young page under the name Cesario, she enters the service of Duke Orsino. Read the full review, In a nutshell: "Lin-Manuel Miranda’s musical phenomenon – the most talked-about musical of the century – retells the life and times of Alexander Hamilton (c1755 – 1804), first Secretary of the US Treasury, using a predominantly non-white cast and a welter of rap music."

you agree to our Terms & Conditions and to our Privacy Policy, which includes our Cookie Use, Get the Best of London Life, Culture and Style, By entering my email I agree to the CultureWhisper, London Theatre Guide: best plays on now in London, 2019 (Photograph: Peter Lewicki), Whether or not you approve of the script (no spoilers here), Your update on what’s on in London from theatre to visual arts, from fashion to pop-ups and more…. (And check your email). Maxine Peake stars as the local proto-feminist midwife called on to deliberate on whether a young woman, Sally Poppy, convicted of killing an 11 year old girl, is pregnant, potentially saving her from the hangman’s noose." The protagonist of the play is Marcus Brutus and the central psychological drama is his struggle between the conflicting demands of honor, patriotism and friendship. There is no doubt that Mr Shakespeare is the greatest writer of modern English to date – his plays have been made into movies, his sonnets have appeared in books and music, and his works translated in to hundreds of different languages. There's something slightly chilly about it all; it's easier to admire than to love. Read the full review, In a nutshell: "The songs may not be memorable, but it is exuberant, and, like the colourful extravaganza that the Africans put on at the end (stringing together all of the lies the naughty Mormon has told them) it works in a way that is rather mystifying... Trey Parker and Matt Stone (the fellows behind South Park) and Robert Lopez (the chap behind Avenue Q), have created something that, God have mercy upon my soul, I found very funny."

The power of Ibsen's original ideas is still there, but risks being lost as the three timelines confusingly overlap, intersect and diverge." This is the singularly greatest romance ever written and has been continuously adapted to each generation in musicals, cinema and the theatre. A surreal fable set in a world where everyone, and indeed everything, is at war with each other (cats have allied with the French), it's an eerie echo of the war that is being raged every day on social media." The ballads are meltingly lovely, and the comic songs very funny indeed. Read the full review, Address: Charing Cross Rd, Covent Garden, London WC2H 0DA, In a nutshell:"The highly personal swansong from Tom Stoppard, our greatest living playwright, takes in more than 50 years of Jewish family life in supposedly cultivated Vienna, and builds to an emotionally devastating conclusion as the eradication of the Nazi era is confronted.

Read the full review, Address: 41 Earlham St, Seven Dials, London WC2H 9LX, In a nutshell:"This restrained, rigorous revival of Caryl Churchill’s 2000 play proves our greatest female playwright is quite possibly a soothsayer. War of the Worlds the immersive experience.

It tells the story of Jamie New (sharp, sassy, and delightfully out there and vulnerable), a gay teenager at a northern comprehensive, who, platinum-blond cropped hair shining like a beacon, decides to make his name as a cross-dresser." The leading character, Viola, is shipwrecked on the shores of Illyria during the opening scenes. At the time of its creation and first performance, Queen Elizabeth, a strong ruler, was elderly and had refused to name a successor, leading to worries that a civil war similar to that of Rome might break out after her death. An unforgettable adieu." Read the full review, In a nutshell:  "Written and performed by the legendary South African actor John Kani – starring opposite Antony Sher – this play is a compelling if cursory exploration of the legacy of Apartheid as expressed through the fast-flowering yet prickly rapport between a dying white South African actor and the elderly black male nurse who comes to tend to him." This tragedy is believed to have been written in approximately 1603. This musical retelling of the life of Tina Turner combines the aesthetic finesse of British director Phyllida Lloyd with the political instincts of Memphis-born, Olivier nominated playwright Katori Hall." Read the full review, In a nutshell: "Based on Dolly Parton’s revenge comedy about three harassed female office-workers who hold their loathsome male boss hostage, humiliating him and transforming their work-place, this is a colourful, feelgood musical – but also flimsy and slight.” Read the full review, Address: Charing Cross Rd, London WC2H 0JP, In a nutshell:"The denizens of Gander, Newfoundland, a remote spot off the Atlantic, laid on a warm welcome for thousands of disorientated and distressed air-passengers stranded there after the closure of American airspace on September 11, 2001. His contribution to the English language is probably larger than that of anyone else. Like many of Shakespeare’s comedies, this one centers on mistaken identity.

Best Playbook – Bears . Read the full review, Address: Old Compton St, Soho, London W1D 4HS, In a nutshell: "With a script by Downton Abbey writer Julian Fellowes and songs from the 1964 film (as well as newer numbers), this glorious musical stars Zizi Strallen as the magical nanny."