There’s going to be a lorra lorra laughs & maybe a few tears along the way when popular actress Sheridan Smith once again plays Cilla Black, a role which brought her much acclaim in Jeff Pope’s BAFTA award-winning ITV series. This time, though, audiences will have the chance to see her in Bill Kenwright’s touring stage production of Cilla The Musical, also written by Pope, and opening on 23 September for a four-week season.

In light of the ‘current global circumstances’ in relation to the coronavirus, the world premiere of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s new musical Cinderella, starring Carrie Hope Fletcher, has been delayed to 28 October 2020, previewing from 9 October. Originally the much-anticipated musical was due to begin previews on 28 August.

Just the titles ‘No Woman No Cry’, ‘Exodus’ and ‘3 Little Birds’ will remind you of the iconic artist Bob Marley and it is his musical genius that will be celebrated in new show Get Up, Stand Up! Featuring the talents of Arinzé Kene, the musical will start previews at London’s Lyric Theatre on 6 February 2021 (which would have been Marley’s 76th birthday).

It’s the traditional fairy tale with a modern twist and a very modern Cinderella as played by Carrie Hope Fletcher in Andrew Lloyd Webber and David Zippel’s new musical, based on an original idea by Emerald Fennell, opening for previews at the Gillian Lynne Theatre on 28 August 2020.

Have we got news for you. Paul Merton will make his West End musical debut as Wilbur Turnblad in Hairspray at the London Coliseum from 23 April to 30 August 2020, as full casting is announced. We can’t wait to see him strutting his stuff in the new production alongside his onstage wife, as played by Michael Ball who reprises his Olivier Award-winning role.

There were rumours that the new musical version of the classic fairy tale Cinderella with music by Andrew Lloyd Webber and lyrics by David Zippel, based on an original idea by Emerald Fennell, would open on Broadway but instead it will be London’s Gillian Lynne Theatre which will host the show when it opens in September 2020. Are you going to buy tickets for the ball?

Rehearsals begin this week for Pretty Woman: The Musical, opening at London’s Piccadilly Theatre on 13 February 2020, so it’s the perfect time to share the news of full casting for the show. Aimie Atkinson and Danny Mac, playing the roles of Vivian and Edward, will be joined by Rachael Wooding, Bob Harms, Neil McDermott and Mark Holden. We have to go shopping now...

Fresh from its success at Manchester’s Hope Mill Theatre, Joseph Stein, Stephen Schwartz and Charles Strouse’s heart-warming and powerful show RAGS The Musical will transfer to London’s Park Theatre from 9 January to 8 February 2020, with Carolyn Maitland, Dave Willetts and Sam Attwater leading the cast as Rebecca, Avram and Bronfman respectively.

We want the fairy tale when Pretty Woman: The Musical opens for a 46-week season on 13 February 2020 and we now know that it will be Aimie Atkinson as Vivian and Danny Mac as Edward who will be bringing it to London’s Piccadilly Theatre.

The players are in place for the cult show Be More Chill, fresh from Broadway and now in transit to London’s The Other Palace for the UK premiere from 12 February to 3 May 2020. Scott Folan and Blake Patrick Anderson take the lead roles of Jeremy Heere and Michael Mell, while Renee Lamb and Millie O’Connell (formerly known as Catherine of Aragon and Anne Boleyn in Six The Musical) also join the line-up.

So nice to see Imelda Staunton back where she belongs, on the London stage, and this time she’s playing one of the most iconic musical theatre roles ever written, Dolly Levi, in a new West End production of Hello, Dolly! opening at the Adelphi Theatre in August 2020. The staging, also starring Jenna Russell as Irene Molloy, will see Imelda reunited with Dominic Cooke who directed the recent critically-acclaimed revival of Follies at the National Theatre.