No longer booking
  • Venue Gielgud Theatre, London
  • Performance dates Booking to 6 January 2024
  • Running time 2 hours and 30 minutes (including interval)
  • Age guidelines Children under the age of 16 must be accompanied by and sat next to a ticketholder who is at least 18 years old. Children under the age of 3 will not be admitted.

★★★★★ “Unmissable musical theatre” – The Times

Celebrate the extraordinary legacy of musicals composer Stephen Sondheim with Cameron Mackintosh’s new musical revue Stephen Sondheim’s Old Friends.

Following a spectacular concert held in May 2022 to celebrate the life and work of Broadway composer and lyricist Stephen Sondheim, Cameron Mackintosh presents Stephen Sondheim’s Old Friends in the West End, at the Gielgud Theatre.

An extraordinary cast includes multi-Tony Award winning Broadway legend Bernadette Peters, plus Miss Saigon and Les Mis star Lea Salonga, and West End stars Clare Burt (Flowers for Mrs Harris), Janie Dee (Follies), Bonnie Langford (Anything Goes), Joanna Riding (Follies), Jeremy Secomb (Sweeney Todd), Beatrice Penny-Touré (Phantom), Christine Allado (Hamilton), Bradley Jaden (Wicked, Les Miserables) and Jac Yarrow (Joseph).

Stephen Sondheim, who died in 2021, was one of the greatest ever writers of musicals, including Sweeney Todd, Follies, A Little Night Music, Sunday in the Park with George, Assassins and Company.

Conceived and created with Stephen Sondheim’s input and blessing, this extraordinary new musical revue follows the two previous official Sondheim revues, Side by Side by Sondheim and Putting it Together, as being the definitive celebration of the work of a musicals genius.

The show is directed by Matthew Bourne with Julia McKenzie, and choreography by Stephen Mear.

Stephen Sondheim’s Old Friends runs at the Gielgud Theatre in London from 21 September 2023 to 6 January 2024.

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Performance Information

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Stars and Creatives

Clare Burt
Clare Burt
Joanna Riding
Joanna Riding

Who is in the cast of Stephen Sondheim's Old Friends?

The West End show is set to star Broadway legend Bernadette Peters, with Lea Salonga (Miss Saigon), Christine Allado (Hamilton), Janie Dee (Follies), Bonnie Langford (Anything Goes), Jeremy Secomb (Sweeney Todd), Beatrice Penny-Touré (The Phantom of the Opera), Joanna Riding (Follies), Jac Yarrow (Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat), Clare Burt  (Flowers for Mrs Harris), Damian Humbley (The Great British Bake Off Musical), Bradley Jaden (Wicked, Les Miserables), Gavin Lee (Beauty and the Beast, Mary Poppins) and Jason Pennycooke (Hamilton).

The company will also include Marley Fenton, Harry Apps, Bella Brown and Monique Young.

Who are the creative team of Stephen Sondheim's Old Friends?

Conceived by Cameron Mackintosh and Stephen Sondheim, Produced by Cameron Mackintosh, Directed by Matthew Bourne, with Julia McKenzie. Choreography by Stephen Mear, Conducted by Alfonso Casado Trigo, Musical supervision by Stephen Brooker, Musical arrangements by Stephen Metcalfe, Set design by Matt Kinley, Projection design by George Reeve, Lighting design by Warren Letton, Sound design by Mick Potter.

 

Venue Information

Gielgud Theatre , 35-37 Shaftesbury Avenue, London, W1D 6AR

Nearest Tube or Train: Piccadilly Circus (Piccadilly line, Bakerloo line)

Nearest Buses: 14, 19, 38

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Critics' reviews of Stephen Sondheim's Old Friends

★★★★★ "A five-star celebration of Stephen Sondheim" - The Financial Times (Gielgud Theatre)

★★★★★ "This is unmissable musical theatre" - The Times (Gielgud Theatre)

★★★★★ "a knockout tribute to the master of musicals" - The Telegraph (Gielgud Theatre)

★★★★★ "Perfectly crafted West End love letter to one of the greats" - What's On Stage (Gielgud Theatre)

★★★★★ "A stellar tribute to Stephen Sondheim" - The Sunday Times (Gielgud Theatre)

★★★★★ "It's a love-letter, a love-in, a gathering of old friends" - Daily Mail (Gielgud Theatre)

★★★★★ "The quality just keeps coming in Matthew Bourne's fluid, expertly drilled show" - Mail on Sunday (Gielgud Theatre)

★★★★ "It is terrific" - The Observer (Gielgud Theatre)

★★★★ "Musical big guns pay tribute to the genius of Stephen Sondheim" - The Evening Standard (Gielgud Theatre)

★★★★ "Slick, sexy and sophisticated" - i News (Gielgud Theatre)

★★★★ "Lavish blockbuster" - The Stage (Gielgud Theatre)

Also see: Stephen Sondheim's Old Friends Reviews Round-up

Frequently Asked Questions

Stephen Sondheim's Old Friends is playing at the Gielgud Theatre in London
The running time of Stephen Sondheim's Old Friends is 2 hours and 30 minutes (including interval)
The age recommendations for Stephen Sondheim's Old Friends are: Children under the age of 16 must be accompanied by and sat next to a ticketholder who is at least 18 years old. Children under the age of 3 will not be admitted.
Yes, Stephen Sondheim's Old Friends has matinee performances on the following days: Wednesday, Saturday
No, sorry, Stephen Sondheim's Old Friends has now completed its run and is no longer on sale.

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