UK theatre industry publication The Stage has released its annual Top 100 power list of people within British theatre for 2026.
This year’s list has been drawn up by The Stage’s deputy editor Matthew Hemley, with features editor (maternity cover) Giverny Masso and reporter Katie Chambers. They also asked key industry figures to suggest people for the list.
Last year’s The Stage 100 list for 2025 saw writer James Graham top the list. This year the Number One spot is taken by actor and artistic director Michael Sheen.
Owain & Henry – Michael Sheen as Owain Glyndwwr. Photo by Kirsten McTernan
Michael Sheen, Actor and artistic director
Acclaimed actor Michael Sheen (Frost/Nixon, The Queen) launched his new theatre company, Welsh National Theatre, last year.
Productions will include a major revival of Thornton Wilder’s Our Town, which stars Sheen and is touring to venues including The Rose Theatre in Kingston. Also, Owain & Henry by Gary Owen, which will open at the Wales Millennium Centre in November 2026.
Sheen also trod the boards last year, reviving his performance as Nye Bevan in Nye, at the National Theatre and on tour.
Sonia Friedman. Photo by Jason Alden
Sonia Friedman
Jumping up from 7th place last year to the Number 2 spot in 2026 is Sonia Friedman and her Sonia Friedman Productions, by far the West End’s and increasingly Broadway’s most prolific multi-genre producer.
Friedman’s output in 2025 alone includes launching Paddington The Musical at the Savoy Theatre in London, one of the most popular shows the West End has seen in recent years.
Also last year, Friedman produced Imelda Staunton and her daughter Bessie Carter in Mrs Warren’s Profession at the Garrick Theatre; the West End transfer of Almeida Theatre smash-hit The Years at the Harold Pinter Theatre; Robert Icke’s new play Manhunt at the Royal Court; Friedman’s acclaimed, Tony Award-winning production of new play Stereophonic to the Duke of York’s Theatre; and the National Theatre transfer of The Importance of Being Earnest at the Noel Coward Theatre.
Coming up, her productions in 2026 include Mean Girls The Musical, which is touring the UK and Ireland; and a transfer of the Almeida’s acclaimed production of Ava Pickett’s new play 1536, coming to the West End’s Ambassadors Theatre. She is also co-producing the New York to London transfer of John Proctor is the Villain at the Royal Court Theatre; and producing Conor McPherson’s adaptation of The Cherry Orchard in London starring Kristin Scott Thomas.
Her continuing successful West End productions include Stranger Things: The First Shadow at the Phoenix Theatre; The Book of Mormon – which recently became the 12th longest-running musical in West End history; and Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, which celebrates its 10th birthday this year at the Palace Theatre in London. Friedman is also a co-producer of current off-West End hit KENREX, and soon-to-close Live Aid musical Just For One Day at the Shaftesbury Theatre.
On tour, Friedman currently has a revival of hit musical Sunny Afternoon.
On Broadway, she transferred from London Robert Icke’s Oedipus starring Lesley Manville and Mark Strong; and Stranger Things: The First Shadow and Harry Potter and the Cursed Child are both doing record-breaking box-office business in New York.
Less successful on Broadway was The Queen of Versailles, which closed after a short run. Coming up on Broadway is her new production of Dreamgirls.
2025 also saw the movie version of her hit Broadway production of Merrily We Roll Along, directed by her sister Maria Friedman, come to cinemas.
Andrew Lloyd Webber. Photo via PR
Andrew Lloyd Webber
Also jumping up the list, from Number 6 in 2025 to Number 3 this year, is Andrew Lloyd Webber.
Lloyd Webber’s LW Theatres is made up of 6 West End venues, including jewels in the crown the mighty London Palladium, and lavish Theatre Royal Drury Lane.
See Michael Harrison (below) for an efficient rundown of Lloyd Webber’s current producing activity, but chief amongst them was the riotous success of Jamie Lloyd’s production of Evita at the London Palladium starring Rachel Zegler.
Lloyd Webber also reunited with Tim Rice last year, to write the songs for new play-with-music Sherlock Holmes and the 12 Days of Christmas; also new Lloyd Webber musical The Illusionist is circling the West End for a rumoured late-2026 opening.
Lloyd Webber’s The Phantom of the Opera continues to do strong business at His Majesty’s Theatre, and celebrates its 40th anniversary this year.
In Lloyd Webber’s corporate world, he let go of his The Really Useful Group brand after nearly 50 years, renaming the business LW Entertainment, in line with LW Theatres and LW Tickets. The company is led by CEO James McKnight, who joined the company in December 2023 after a number of high-profile roles, including at the Harry Potter franchise at the Blair Partnership.
Nica Burns at new @sohoplace theatre. Photo by Geraint Lewis
Nica Burns
West End theatre owner and producer Nica Burns has dropped one place to Number 4 this year. Burns continues to mix commercial choices with bolder work in her portfolio of 7 London theatres.
She continues to offer her newest theatre, in-the-round space @sohoplace, to a variety of producers and companies, with current and forthcoming productions including The Spy Who Came in from the Cold, and The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind.
At least two of her seven Nimax Theatres are fully booked, with Six at the Vaudeville and The Play That Goes Wrong at the Duchess Theatre; and the Garrick Theatre looks set to see The Producers, which Nimax is co-producing, run for a long time.
The Stage Awards 2025. Michael Harrison. Photo from PR
Michael Harrison
Theatre and panto impresario Michael Harrison drops from Number 2 last year, to Number 5 this year. It has once again been a busy and successful year for Harrison, particularly through his joint partnership with Andrew Lloyd Webber – Lloyd Webber Harrison Musicals.
In 2025 the partnership included Jamie Lloyd’s extraordinary revival of Tim Rice and Lloyd Webber’s Evita, playing at the London Palladium starring Rachel Zegler.
Harrison’s reboot of Lloyd Webber’s Starlight Express continues to run at the Troubadour Wembley Park Theatre; and coming up in 2026, Michael Harrison is touring Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre’s new production of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s CATS; plus Timothy Sheader’s acclaimed production of Jesus Christ Superstar is booked into the London Palladium for Summer 2026 starring Sam Ryder.
There may also be a potential new Lloyd Webber musical, The Illusionist, heading to town.
Also in the West End is Harrison’s Olivier Award-winning musical comedy Titanique at London’s Criterion Theatre.
Michael Harrison has also forged a new relationship with Cameron Mackintosh, and is currently co-producing the UK & Ireland tour of Miss Saigon. He is also touring hit musical The Bodyguard; and this year is once again touring Annie, this time starring La Voix as Miss Hannigan.
Harrison is also developing new musicals, and will premiere Macbeth-inspired show Weird at Newcastle Theatre Royal from 28 to 31 January 2026.
And all that is before we mention his core business, which is pantomime production: through Crossroads Pantomimes, a joint venture with global producers Crossroads Live, Harrison is one of the UK’s largest and most successful panto producers, including the annual London Palladium panto, with Sleeping Beauty starring Julian Clary and Catherine Tate finishing at the weekend.
Michael Harrison also won Producer of the Year at The Stage’s annual The Stage Awards 2025.
More The Stage 100 Entries
Jamie Lloyd
Rising from Number 10 to Number 6 is director and producer Jamie Lloyd.
Jamie Lloyd arguably had the West End’s biggest success last year, with his revival of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Evita the talk of the West End throughout its run at the London Palladium. The show is also rumoured to be heading to Broadway.
Whether Lloyd is also attached to Andrew Lloyd Webber’s next new musical, The Illusionist, is currently unclear.
Jamie Lloyd’s productions this year have also included Waiting for Godot starring Keanu Reeves on Broadway, and Tom Hiddleston and Hayley Atwell in a five-star production of Much Ado About Nothing at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane.
Indhu Rubasingham & Kate Varah
The National Theatre’s management team of Indhu Rubasingham and Kate Varah drop down from Number 5 to Number 7 in 2026.
Artistic Director Indhu Rubasingham’s first season at the National featured a range of productions including Hamlet, Bacchae, the return of Ballet Shoes, and The Playboy of the Western World.
Coming up the season looks especially exciting with a revival of Christopher Hampton’s Les Liaisons Dangereuses directed by Marianne Elliott, starring Aidan Turner and Lesley Manville; a new production of Summerfolk; a stage adaptation of hit movie PRIDE The Musical; and Terence Rattigan’s drama Man and Boy starring Ben Daniels.
Cameron Mackintosh
Holding his place at Number 8 is Cameron Mackintosh, arguably the world’s most successful producer. His company’s accounts for last year show turnover up 18% to £234 million, which includes his 8 Delfont Mackintosh London theatres. That exceeds their pre-Covid sales in 2019.
This year, Cameron Mackintosh will be celebrating the 40th anniversary of hit Lloyd Webber musical The Phantom of the Opera, at His Majesty’s Theatre.
2027 will see another Mackintosh milestone, with the impresario celebrating 60 years producing musical theatre.
His current productions also include Oliver! at the West End’s Gielgud Theatre, Hamilton at the Victoria Palace Theatre, and Mary Poppins and Miss Saigon on tour. And, of course, Les Misérables at the Sondheim Theatre, which celebrated its 40th anniversary in London in 2025.
Other co-productions include the Les Misérables The Arena Spectacular world tour continues, including 2026 dates at the Royal Albert Hall in London and Radio City Music Hall in New York.
Rosemary Squire & Howard Panter
Trafalgar Entertainment’s Howard Panter and Rosemary Squire hold their position at Number 9.
Trafalgar owns or operates 21 venues around the UK and internationally, including the Trafalgar Theatre in the West End, and the Theatre Royal Sydney in Australia.
A major new venue for Trafalgar in 2027 will be the British Airways Theatre (formerly the Olympia Theatre), which is part of the massive new Olympia redevelopment in London. Trafalgar will run the new 1,575 seat venue with Broadway’s Shubert Organization.
Trafalgar are also into producing, with forthcoming productions including Cole Porter’s High Society at the Barbican Theatre starring Helen George and Felicity Kendal, and Double Indemnity on tour starring Mischa Barton. Their other recent productions have included a Barbican Theatre transfer for Fiddler on the Roof, which they also toured; and Sean Hayes in Good Night, Oscar – also at the Barbican.
Through their Jonathan Church Productions, they are producing Top Hat at the Southbank Centre (until 17 January) and the UK tour of To Kill a Mockingbird. Coming up, is a transfer into London of Shadowlands starring Hugh Bonneville, at the West End’s Aldwych Theatre, from 5 February.
Trafalgar also has a film distribution and ticketing business.
Ted Stimpson, Michael Lynas & Adam Speers
ATG Entertainment’s senior team move down from Number 4 last year, to Number 10 in 2026.
ATG is one of the world’s largest theatre owners, with 72 venues across the UK, the USA, Germany, Austria and Spain, including ATG’s London theatres the Duke of York’s Theatre and the Savoy Theatre, and a number of Broadway venues.
Their big new 1,800 seater theatre in Vienna, Theater im Prater, opens in 2027.
At the start of last year ATG purchased significant Spanish theatre owner and producer SOM Produce.
Their producing arm, ATG Productions, recently produced ART on Broadway starring James Corden, and Jamie Lloyd’s new production of Waiting for Godot starring Keanu Reeves; plus 50 First Dates The Musical at The Other Palace in London.
Their current productions include Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club in London – which celebrates 5 years in the West End in 2026, and Sunny Afternoon on tour.
To view the full Stage 100 list, see the link below.
Related News
What to expect from Pride the Musical ahead of highly anticipated transfer to the Bridge Theatre
Sonia Friedman: the new Cursed Child is “like stepping into a Ferrari… you put the pedal down and off you go”
Anne-Marie Duff stars in world premiere of Some Woman by Helen Edmundson at the National Theatre: see newly released production images
Celinde Schoenmaker in Love Never Dies in Concert
Latest News
Everything you need to know about The Traitors: Acts of Betrayal in London
Nina Raine’s sweeping new adaptation of Middlemarch arrives at the RSC: See brand-new images from the production
What to expect from Pride the Musical ahead of highly anticipated transfer to the Bridge Theatre