7 West End theatre shows closing in November 2026 

Kimberly Akimbo

Tony Award-winning musical Kimberly Akimbo is taking its final bow after a touching run at Hampstead Theatre with a story that explores youth, ageing, and the life you never expected.  

Maria Friedman, who is best known for her Olivier-winning roles in Merrily We Roll Along and Chess, leads the cast of Kimberly Akimbo as Kimberly Levaco – a teenager living with a rare rapid-ageing condition. Despite her rare genetic condition and the threat of possible felony charges looming over her head, Kimberly remains determinedly optimistic, ready to embark on the adventure of her life.  

Don’t miss this funny, heartbreaking gem that audiences have fallen for before it leaves the West End. 

• Theatre: Hampstead Theatre 
• Closing date: 14 November 

Kimberly Akimbo

Hampstead Theatre, London

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An Oak Tree

Catch Tim Crouch’s audacious and intimate play, An Oak Tree, before it departs the West End. The two-hander production is known for its extraordinary premise, in which a different guest performer joins Crouch on stage at every performance, having never seen or read the piece before.

Over the past two decades, more than 350 performers have taken on the challenge, including Geoffrey Rush, Peter Dinklage, David Tennant and Jessie Buckley. The groundbreaking production has welcomed an extraordinary roster of talent this time around too, such as George Fouracres, Jack Holden, Katie Leung and Khalid Abdalla, plus a mystery guest closing out the run on 14 November.

At its heart, An Oak Tree is a bold and absurdly comic story of loss, suggestion and the power of the mind. It focuses on a father who loses his daughter in a car accident, the driver of the car that killed her being a stage hypnotist, and the two men meeting for the first time when the father volunteers for the hypnotist’s act.

• Theatre: The Other Palace
• Closing date: 15 November

An Oak Tree

The Other Palace, London

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Some Woman

See Shameless actress Anne-Marie Duff in her return to the National Theatre since her acclaimed performance as Lady Macbeth in Macbeth in 2018 in Helen Edmundson’s powerful new play Some Woman. 

The drama explores the interior life of an ordinary woman who has spent much of her life being overlooked. That is until things start to shift following a shocking encounter on a station platform and she begins to question the life she has quietly accepted for herself. Some Woman is a moving, compelling and intimate drama about identity, self-worth and finding the courage to be heard. 

• Theatre: Dorfman Theatre 
• Closing date: 21 November 

Some Woman

National Theatre - Dorfman Theatre, London

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Carmen

Bizet’s fiery opera Carmen reaches its thrilling climax this month.

The ever-popular opera includes an unforgettable score boasting a host of Spanish-inspired melodies, including Carmen’s sensual ‘Habanera’ and ‘Seguidilla’ arias and Don José’s tender ‘Flower Song’, ‘La fleur que tu m’avais jetée’ (The flower that you threw to me).

Carmen is set under the oppressive heat of the Spanish sun, and depicts themes of lust, violence and destructive desire. It is also a visually stunning, musically exhilarating production of opera’s most beloved tragedy starring Ginger Costa-Jackson and Ramona Zaharia in the fiery title role, alongside Russell Thomas and Valentyn Dytiuk as the jealous and despairing Don José.

• Theatre: Royal Opera House
• Closing date: 21 November

Carmen

Royal Opera House, London

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The Pianist

Experience the world-premiere musical adaptation of pianist and composer Władysław Szpilman’s remarkable memoir The Pianist and the critically acclaimed 2002 film of the same name.  

Daniel Krikler leads the cast in this powerful, poignant story of survival, with new lyrics setting Szpilman’s own compositions. The musical marks the first time that Szpilman’s story has been told alongside his score.  

The story starts in 1945 in the immediate aftermath of the Second World War, and sees Szpilman struggling to write his memoir until the memories of family and friends come to life to help him grapple with sharing his story. It charts Szpilman’s life as a Jewish pianist working for Polish radio in Warsaw at the outbreak of the war, before the growing horrors happening around him.  

• Theatre: Park Theatre  
• Closing date: 21 November  

The Pianist

Park Theatre, London

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Franz & Marie

See this haunting new folk musical reimagining of Büchner’s Woyzeck set in the world of 19th-century European folklore with themes of love, war and sacrifice. 

Franz & Marie focuses on a platoon of young soldiers stationed in an isolated outpost for months awaiting further orders. Among them is Franz Woyzeck – a man haunted by nightmares, who experiences hallucinations that blur the line between reality and trauma, and lives for two people: his girlfriend Marie, and their baby, Georgie. 

The musical stars Brenock O’Connor and Jade Oswald, who lead a 14-strong actor-musician company in a production unlike anything else in the West End. 

• Theatre: Charing Cross Theatre 
• Closing date: 14 November 

Franz & Marie

Charing Cross Theatre, London

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Manon

Kenneth MacMillan’s celebrated 1974 ballet Manon closes this month after a rapturous run at the Royal Opera House.

The ballet is an adaptation of the 1731 novel L’Histoire du Chevalier des Grieux et de Manon Lescaut by Abbé Prévost, and explores the seedy underbelly of 18th-century and is an emotionally-charge tragic love story told through dance. It follows Manon, who is native to this hedonistic underworld, but caught between the steadfast man she loves, and the temptations of the dark world she inhabits.       

Manon also includes music from Jules Massenet and orchestration by Martin Yates, and is considered to be one of The Royal Ballet’s signature works.    

• Theatre: Royal Opera House    
• Closing date: 25 November    

Manon

Royal Opera House, London

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