Ride - 2023 - West End Articles Page 4

Looking back over 2025, it appears I sat in a dark room and wrote barely legible thoughts into a notebook on about 150-odd occasions. By the grace of God and the BroadwayWorld UK editor, I saw a real smörgåsbord of delights, everything from highly anticipated West End theatre to opera, dance, circus, cabaret, comedy and immersive theatre.

What's happening off-Broadway? BroadwayWorld is here to guide you through the top picks for theatre this month. Start the new year off right with shows featuring big stars, like An Ark with Ian McKellen and more.

How do you measure a year? In overtures? In dance breaks? Standing ovations? Today, we measure 2025 in Broadway shows. Before we get wrapped up in the spring season ahead, BroadwayWorld wants to stop and salute the shows that made this year great.

The Brunton continue to provide some of the best Scottish panto's in the country with another fantastic pantomime in this year's production of The Wizard of Oz.

Audible Theater will soon present the world premiere of The Disappear, a new comedy written and directed by BAFTA Award nominee Erica Schmidt – featuring Dylan Baker, Madeline Brewer, Kelvin Harrison Jr., Hamish Linklater, Anna Mirodin, and Miriam Silverman.

Manhattan Theatre Club has announced complete casting for the world premiere of The Balusters, by Tony Award and Pulitzer Prize winner David Lindsay-Abaire, directed by Tony Award winner Kenny Leon.

The American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers has shared the top holiday songs that listeners are flocking to this season, including tracks from Ariana Grande, Meghan Trainor, Kelly Clarkson, and more.

The world premiere of All Out: Comedy About Ambition by Simon Rich, with direction by Tony Award-winner Alex Timbers, begins performances on December 12 at the Nederlander Theatre. Meet the cast of All Out here!

The Pew Center for Arts & Heritage (the Center) announced that it has awarded $8.6 million to 44 Philadelphia-area cultural organizations and artists. Leanr more here!

Original musicals that aren’t based on movies are becoming all too rare these days. Most of the fare tends to be adaptations of popular films, and these musicals can vary in quality. However, every once in a while, something fresh or unique breaks through and becomes a success. It makes me so happy that is what happened with the 2023 Best Musical Tony Winner Kimberly Akimbo.

Celebrate the winter holidays with cheer and plenty of good music with these 15 shows. There's something for everyone in this list – family-friendly shows you can take your kids to, queer celebrations, and more.

Audible Theater will present the world premiere of The Disappear, a new comedy written and directed by BAFTA Award nominee Erica Schmidt, starring Madeline Brewer and more.

The National Chamber Ensemble is pleased to announce the results of the 2025 Nancy Peery Marriott Young Artist Competition. This year's event showcased an outstanding group of talented young pianists from Maryland, Washington DC and Virginia.

PUBLIC – THE MUSICAL, a standout hit from Edinburgh’s 2023 Fringe Festival will have a new life at Leicester’s Curve, running in the Studio Theatre beginning in May.

Audible Theater eill present the world premiere of The Disappear, a new comedy written and directed by BAFTA Award nominee Erica Schmidt.

David Archuleta has released his holiday EP, My Only Wish, featuring 3 new original holiday songs co-written by Archuleta as well as two remastered tracks from his Winter in The Air holiday album. Listen to it here.

Lyric Opera of Chicago will present Richard Strauss’s explosive masterpiece Salome. This gory operatic thrill ride returns to Lyric for the first time in 20 years.

Tony Award winner Nicole Scherzinger is among the star-studded lineup set to perform in The Wonderful World of Disney: Holiday Spectacular, returning to ABC for its 10th year. 

The North American tour of the critically acclaimed bestselling novel WATER FOR ELEPHANTS, hailed as a Critic's Pick by The New York Times, is coming to the Ohio Theatre June 9-14, 2025.

Next week, 54 BELOW will present some of the brightest stars from Broadway, cabaret, jazz, and beyond, including David Yazbek, Mary Porter, Maggie Solimine and more.

Pianist and composer Chloe Flower has released her new album, She Composed: The Holidays, just in time for the holiday season. The album serves as the first-ever instrumental holiday album entirely made up of music composed by women. Listen to it now.

The Vancouver Symphony Orchestra USA's 2025/26 season will continue with a holiday music celebration featuring Tony-nominated singer-actress Liz Callaway.

Social media’s role on Broadway has been increasing over the last couple of years. Shows like The Great Gatsby and Maybe Happy Ending have been able to ride social media virality to either help overcome early struggles, or outperform expectations based on critical and awards reception.

Westport Country Playhouse will present a Script in Hand playreading of a new play, “The Machine.' The plot focuses on a poet suffering writer’s block, artificial intelligence, and the tricky questions that arise when technology starts writing art. 

Samuel D. Hunter’s plays have quietly shaped contemporary American drama. Known for their compassionate look at working-class lives in his native Idaho, Hunter’s works explore faith, loneliness, community, and redemption with remarkable empathy. Hunter (finally) just made his Broadway debut in 2025 with Little Bear Ridge Road, now running at the Booth Theatre.