West End Theatre reviews from the UK newspaper The Times & Sunday Times.
Here’s a selection of reviews of London shows from the theatre and arts critics at The Times newspaper.
The chief theatre critic at The Times is Clive Davis.
Also Dominic Maxwell writes theatre reviews for The Sunday Times, and comedy reviews for the Times and Sunday Times.
See below for a full run-down of star ratings and theatre opinions about West End shows in London from The Times & The Sunday Times.
Who Killed Marilyn? at the Emerald Theatre (2026)
★
“The writer Sharleen Cooper Cohen — whose credits include An Officer and a Gentleman: The Musical — rummages through no…
As You Like It at the Shakespeare's Globe (2026)
★★★
“Crazy Restoration wigs and courtly capers mark the opening of the Globe’s latest production of As You Like It, introducing…
Abigail's Party at the Harold Pinter Theatre (2026)
★★★★
A skilful revival of the suburban classic at the Harold Pinter Theatre makes Mike Leigh’s dialogue sound freshly minted.“ "Abigail’s…
Death Note The Musical at the Barbican Theatre (2026)
★★★★
“Veterans and novices alike will be enchanted.” “Ivan Menchell has constructed a clean and simple book framework telling a single…
How the Other Half Loves at the The Old Vic (2026)
★★★★
" Allam delivers a masterclass in comic timing. Every pause, every hesitation, every bumbled phrase is a delight. " "…
Game of Thrones: The Mad King at the Royal Shakespeare Company (2026)
★★★
“This family-friendly pagan venture has War Horse-style puppetry and stylised battle sequences that hint at mayhem without resorting to oceans…
I’m Every Woman - The Chaka Khan Musical at the Troubadour Wembley Park Theatre (2026)
★★★
"the music lifts the spirits. Burke is in commanding form on the vocals, and the songs from Khan’s years with…
Love’s Labour’s Lost at the Shakespeare's Globe (2026)
★
"Shakespeare's wordiest play becomes a crass dumbshow." "The result... is a crude cacophony of impenetrable Spanish accents, punctuated by groin…
Jesus Christ Superstar - London Palladium at the London Palladium (2026)
★★★
"Sam Ryder… at his charismatic best when in full song — Gethsemane is sensational." "Tim Sheader's production is somehow both…
PRIDE The Musical at the National Theatre (2026)
★★★
“There is plenty to celebrate and some absences to mourn in this endearing, efficient, often very entertaining musical of the…
Cyrano de Bergerac at the Noël Coward Theatre (2026)
★★★★★
“There is much other fine comedy here, but the ticket price is worth it for the tragic final 20 minutes…
Sinatra The Musical at the Aldwych Theatre (2026)
★★★
"A brassy band and a star with swagger." “Joel Harper-Jackson captures the swagger of the young crooner from Hoboken and…
The Truth at the Apollo Theatre (2026)
★★★
“The French playwright has assembled a polished piece of machinery which, as it unfolds at the Apollo, resembles an old-fashioned…
The Misanthrope at the National Theatre (2026)
★★
“Sandra Oh struggles, but so would anyone in the fatally cluttered romp that is Martin Crimp’s revision of a revision…
Much Ado About Nothing at the Shakespeare's Globe (2026)
★★★
"A slick sitcom of love and mischief." "This pair of frenemies function like opposing magnets whose push-me-pull-you attraction… grounds the…
Glengarry Glen Ross at the The Old Vic (2026)
★★★
"Indira Varma and the American actress Rosa Salazar lead an all-female cast through the barrage of testosterone-charged profanities and racial…
High Society at the Barbican Theatre (2026)
★★★★★
"This is the show of the summer" “Helen George, Freddie Fox and Felicity Kendal dazzle in a show of pure…
War Horse at the National Theatre - Olivier Theatre (2026)
★★★★
"The National’s thoroughbred hit deserves another canter." "If you aren’t one of the millions who have seen this on stage,…
Beetlejuice at the Prince Edward Theatre (2026)
★★★
“Prepare to be pummelled. The stage version of Beetlejuice, Tim Burton’s 1980s gothic comedy about spooky goings-on in a big…
Equus at the Menier Chocolate Factory (2026)
★★★
"Toby Stephens shines in an intense and balletic revival" "Lindsay Posner’s staging of Peter Shaffer’s drama at the Menier Chocolate…
Mother Courage and Her Children at the Shakespeare's Globe (2026)
★★
“The lumbering version of Mother Courage and Her Children at Shakespeare’s Globe in London is not going to do much…
1536 at the Ambassadors Theatre (2026)
★★★★
“The hype is justified.” “This is Henry VIII’s England. And these women talking in a very 21st-century way risk being…
A Midsummer Night's Dream at the Shakespeare's Globe (2026)
★★★★
And now comes Emily Lim’s celebratory, playful, bit-of-everything evening where, for once, the publicity has it bang-on: it’s a “communal…
Avenue Q at the Shaftesbury Theatre (2026)
★★★★
"Deliciously louche humour with smart lyrics" "Jason Moore’s production looks like an adult version of Sesame Street or The Muppets,…
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest at the The Old Vic (2026)
★★★★
“As Randle P. McMurphy, the wily, self-destructive rebel who breaks every rule in a psychiatric hospital, Pierre — best known…
Inter Alia at the Wyndham's Theatre (2026)
★★★★
"Rosamund Pike’s remarkable performance deserves a gong" "At Wyndham’s Theatre, an award-worthy turn as a conflicted judge in Suzie Miller’s…
Les Liaisons Dangereuses at the National Theatre (2026)
★★★
"Aidan Turner’s dandy lacks teeth" "Lesley Manville is the scheming Marquise de Merteuil in Marianne Elliott’s production at the National…
Les Liaisons Dangereuses at the National Theatre (2026)
★★
"Lesley Manville and Aidan Turner turn up the sexual heat — but does it work?" "She’s a proper genius, he’s…
Romeo and Juliet at the Harold Pinter Theatre (2026)
★★★
"Sadie Sink and Noah Jupe do their doomed best" "Robert Icke’s production at the Harold Pinter Theatre too often lapses…
John Proctor is the Villain at the Royal Court Theatre (2026)
★★★
"Arthur Miller for the MeToo era" "Kimberly Belflower’s Tony award-winning Broadway play about students reading The Crucible and sexual politics…
Teeth 'n' Smiles at the Duke of York's Theatre (2026)
★★★★
"Self Esteem brings jagged drama to life" "Half a century since David Hare’s play was first staged, its flailing musicians…
Teeth 'n' Smiles at the Duke of York's Theatre (2026)
★★★
"Can Self Esteem play a frazzled rock star better than Helen Mirren?" "The chart-topping singer takes the role pioneered by…
Summerfolk at the National Theatre (2026)
★★★★★
"Glorious Gorky is touching, funny and looks stunning" "The new regime at the National Theatre has delivered its first bona…
The Holy Rosenbergs at the Menier Chocolate Factory (2026)
★★★★
" Cake, comedy, and a furious row over Gaza" "Tracy-Ann Oberman leads a fine cast in the Menier’s revival of…
Marie & Rosetta at the @SohoPlace Theatre & Rose Theatre London (2026)
★★★★
"A tribute to the godmother of rock’n’roll" (Rose Theatre, Kingston) "Beverley Knight’s extraordinary vocals more than compensate for the occasional…
Dracula at the Noel Coward Theatre (2026)
★★★★
"Cynthia Erivo sinks her teeth into 23 characters" "The Wicked star puts on a commanding display in a Kip Williams…
Shadowlands at the Aldwych Theatre (2026)
★★★★
"Hugh Bonneville as CS Lewis deserves his ovations" "The actor gives a shrewdly understated performance, finding the turmoil inside a…
I’m Sorry, Prime Minister at the Apollo Theatre (2026)
★★★
"Jim Hacker in the age of woke" "Jonathan Lynn presents us with a gentle comedy that only occasionally rekindles the…
Man and Boy at the National Theatre (2026)
★★
"Even in the age of Epstein this seems a stretch" "A shady businessman offers his son up as a toy…
The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry The Musical at the Theatre Royal Haymarket (2026)
★★★
"Cosy with a dash of salt" "Rachel Joyce’s novel about one man’s epic walk across England became a film with…
Arcadia at the The Old Vic (2026)
★★★
"The past sparkles but the present flags" "The Old Vic has revived the playwright’s 1993 drama but its disquisitions on…
American Psycho at the Almeida Theatre (2026)
★★★
"Was this soulless show really worth reviving?" "Rupert Goold ends his tenure at the Almeida with a return for his…
Guess How Much I Love You? at the Royal Court Theatre (2026)
★★★★
"A couple make an impossible choice" "Luke Norris’s beautifully performed new play at the Royal Court follows Rosie Sheehy and…
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Main photo: The Times
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