Again! Step, kick, kick, leap, kick, touch… Again! God, I hope I get it… Originally devised, directed, and choreographed by Michael Bennett with a score by Marvin Hamlisch, the 1975 musical *A Chorus Line* returns to London this summer in a fresh production directed by Nikolai Foster and starring Adam Cooper and Carly Mercedes Dyer.

Cooper plays Zach, the domineering director-choreographer casting the chorus for a new Broadway musical who puts the hopefuls through the wringer – physically and...

Learn all about the history of 'A Chorus Line' in London and New York

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The iconic musical plays at Sadler's Wells this summer in an exciting new production starring Adam Cooper and Carly Mercedes Dyer.

A musical version of a chick flick? With spectacular fashion shows, epic backstabbing and a diva who’ll chill your soul, it could well be groundbreaking. *The Devil Wears Prada* struts into the West End this autumn. With an original score by Elton John and a cast led by Vanessa Williams and Matt Henry, start planning your outfit for the most stylish show in town! 

Based on the bestselling novel by Lauren Weisberger and the film starring Meryl Streep and Anne Hathaway, protagonist Andrea “Andy”...

Everything you need to know about 'The Devil Wears Prada' in the West End

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Elton John's musical version of the hit novel and film arrives at London's Dominion Theatre this autumn, starring Vanessa Williams and Matt Henry.


We’re spoiled for choice when it comes to shows in London, and it can be hard to keep up with everything that’s opening – we all have busy lives and it isn’t possible to fit everything in. Fortunately, second chances do sometimes arise!

A whole host of plays and musicals are being reprised in the West End this spring and summer, from celebrated musicals to classic drama and exciting contemporary writing. If it’s a show you’ve loved before, different cast members and venues can provide a whole...

Catch these incredible theatre shows as they return to the stage in London

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From *Sister Act* and *Hadestown* to *Standing at the Sky's Edge*, there's a wealth of fantastic shows coming into town – so don't miss out!

Make a joyful noise! West End favourite [Lee Mead](https://www.londontheatre.co.uk/stars-on-stage/lee-mead) will join the cast of [*Sister Act*](https://www.londontheatre.co.uk/show/28926-sister-act) at the [Dominion Theatre](https://www.londontheatre.co.uk/theatres/dominion-theatre) this June.

Mead is best known for his West End performances in *Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Legally Blonde*, [*Wicked*](https://www.londontheatre.co.uk/show/313-wicked-tickets), and, most...

Lee Mead to join 'Sister Act' West End cast

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The London theatre veteran will join Ruth Jones, Alexandra Burke, and more in the musical based on the hit movie, which currently stars Beverley Knight.

The magic returns! [*My Neighbour Totoro*](https://www.londontheatre.co.uk/show/25389-my-neighbour-totoro-tickets), the stage adaptation of Hayao Miyazaki's beloved same-named Studio Ghibli movie, will transfer to the West End in 2025. The [Gillian Lynne Theatre](https://www.londontheatre.co.uk/theatres/gillian-lynne-theatre) will host the 34-week run from 8 March to 2 November 2025. Opening night is 20 March.

*My Neighbour Totoro* follows two sisters, Satsuki and Mei, who move to the...

'My Neighbour Totoro' sets West End transfer

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Following two seasons at the Barbican Centre, the acclaimed play adapted from the classic Studio Ghibli film will play a 34-week run at the Gillian Lynne Theatre.

All hail Macbeth! *Macbeth*, starring [David Tennant](https://www.londontheatre.co.uk/stars-on-stage/david-tennant) in the title role and Cush Jumbo as Lady Macbeth, will play in the West End this autumn, with performances running at the Harold Pinter Theatre from 1 October to 14 December.

The production comes to the West End from a critically acclaimed premiere at the Donmar Warehouse in fall 2023, with the entire original cast returning. Alongside Tennant (*Doctor Who*) and Jumbo (*The Good...

David Tennant and Cush Jumbo-led 'Macbeth' to transfer to the West End

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The critically acclaimed production played the Donmar Warehouse in 2023, also starring Tennant and Jumbo, and will now have a two-month run in the West End.

Truth is, no one can do what he does. Born Reginald Kenneth Dwight in 1947, Elton John has been one of the world’s most successful pop stars and songwriters since he released “Your Song” in 1970. 

Collaborating with lyricist Bernie Taupin, some of his greatest hits include “Tiny Dancer”, “Rocket Man”, “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road”, “I’m Still Standing”, “Are You Ready for Love”, and, of course, “Candle in the Wind”, which was revised as a tribute to Princess Diana following her death and became a...

Explore the fantastic stage musicals of Elton John ahead of 'The Devil Wears Prada'

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Follow our guide to the shows composed by legendary pop star Elton John, including *The Lion King, Billy Elliot, Tammy Faye*, and the forthcoming West End musical *The Devil Wears Prada*.  

Revivals of musicals are often every bit as revelatory as new takes on classic plays. In recent years, Daniel Fish’s *Oklahoma!* imbued the 1943 Rodgers and Hammerstein classic with a chillingly contemporary significance without changing a word, and Jamie Lloyd’s stripped back *Sunset Boulevard* recently swept the Olivier Awards.

This summer, *Starlight Express* makes a spectacular return in a specially designed auditorium. There’s star casting aplenty as Imelda Staunton leads *Hello, Dolly!*...

Experience London shows in a new light with tickets to West End musical revivals

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Relive all the joy of classic West End musicals as they return to London in 2024, including *Hello, Dolly!*, *Starlight Express*, and *Kiss Me, Kate*.

The [London Palladium](https://www.londontheatre.co.uk/theatres/london-palladium) will show a *Robin Hood* pantomime in December, continuing its annual tradition of presenting a panto each Christmas season. Performances will run from 7 December 2024 to 12 January 2025.

The star-studded cast includes [Julian Clary](https://www.londontheatre.co.uk/stars-on-stage/julian-clary) as Robin Hood, Jane McDonald as Maid Marion, Paul Zerdin as Will Scarlet, [Nigel...

Jane McDonald, Julian Clary to lead 'Robin Hood' panto in December

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Numerous award-winning West End actors will join the ninth annual panto at the historic venue, with performances running from December 2024 to January 2025.

*2:22 — A Ghost Story* is set to return to London’s West End for a strictly limited 10-week. The play will open at the Gielgud Theatre on 25 May.

The play premiered at the Noël Coward Theatre in 2020, and featured Lily Allen, Julia Chan, Hadley Fraser, and Jake Wood. A number of famous faces have gone on to star in the production, including Giovanna Fletcher, Tom Felton, Laura Whitmore, Cheryl, and Sophia Bush, among others. This run at the Gielgud marks the play's seventh West End season. ...

'2:22 — A Ghost Story' to return to the West End

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A number of famous faces have starred in *2:22 — A Ghost Story*, including Giovanna Fletcher, Tom Felton, Laura Whitmore, Cheryl, and Sophia Bush. 

Find out the full cast for *Jitney* at the Old Vic ahead of its summer engagement. Jitney begins previews at the [Old Vic](https://www.londontheatre.co.uk/theatres/old-vic-theatre) on 9 June, with an opening night on 15 June and performances to 9 July. [*Jitney* tickets are on sale now.](https://www.londontheatre.co.uk/show/24719-jitney)

The August Wilson play *Jitney* follows taxi-rank manager Jim Becker and a group of unlicensed drivers in the Pittsburgh Hill district. *Jitney* is a play in August Wilson’s Pittsburgh Cycle, a collection of plays that document life in 20th-century America. *Jitney* follows life in 1970s Pittsburgh.

The *Jitney* London cast includes Geoff Aymer as Doub, Nnabiko Ejimofor as Shealy, Leanne Henlon as Rena, Solomon Israel as Youngblood, Wil Johnson as JIm Becker, Dayo Koleosho as Philmore, Leemore Marrett Jr as Booster, Tony Marshall as Fielding and Sule Rimi as Turnbo. Lindon Alexander, Lincoln Conway, Blair Gyabaah and Yolanda Ovide are Jitney understudies.

Tinuke Craig directs *Jitney* for the co-production between Headlong and Leeds Playhouse. *Jitney* includes set and costume design by Alex Lowde, lighting design by Elliot Griggs and sound design and composition by Max Perryment.

*Jitney* is at the Old Vic. 

[*Jitney* tickets are on sale now.](https://www.londontheatre.co.uk/show/24719-jitney)

*Photo: Jitney cast (Photo by Sharron Wallace)*

‘Jitney’, starring Sule Rimi, announces full cast

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The Leeds Playhouse 2021 production of August Wilson’s *Jitney* parks up in London. The taxi driving play will run for a limited engagement at the Old Vic. *Jitney* tickets are available on London Theatre now.

Set in 1970s Pittsburgh, the *Jitney* play follows Jim Becker, a taxi-rank manager who oversees a group of unlicensed drivers that ferry people across the Pittsburgh Hill District. These drivers aren’t your ordinary taxi employees though. They’ll head to places which few people would dare visit.

But when they’re not driving, they’re whiling the hours away in their taxi rank, a home away from home. They heal old wounds, new tensions rise to the surface, but more importantly they’re always there for one another.

*Jitney* is part of August Wilson’s Pittsburgh Cycle — a series of plays that examine the Black experience throughout the 20th century. Each play tackles a different decade: *Jitney* focuses on the 1970s. The Pittsburgh Cycle includes *Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom*, *The Piano Lesson* and *King Hedley II*. Even though Jitney focuses on 1970s America, it was the first play to premiere in the cycle.
August Wilson's theatre legacy was celebrated in 2005, with the August Wilson Theatre named in his honour.  

Tickets to *Jitney* are available now. Book your *Jitney* tickets on London Theatre today.


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A slice of life in a taxi rank by one of America’s best playwrights. The hit Leeds Playhouse production transfers to London for a limited run. 
August Wilson’s moving picture of segregation and hope in 1970s Pittsburgh was a groundbreaking event when it premiered, and continues to speak to us now.
Learn more about tickets to *Jitney* at The Old Vic today.

Park yourselves at the Old Vic this summer and see August Wilson’s *Jitney* onstage. Book *Jitney* tickets in London on TodayTix.

The *Jitney* play explores life in 1970s Pittsburgh through events and decisions made at a taxi rank. At the start of the play, audiences meet Jim Becker, a taxi-rank manager who looks out for a group of drivers as they usher people around the city. However, his drivers go to places most taximen would avoid, notably the Pittsburgh Hill district. In the early 20th century, the Pittsburgh Hill district thrived, but over the years, many of its residents live below the poverty line. 

When the taxi drivers aren't ferrying people around the city, they spend hours at the taxi rank. So much so, their place of work is now a second home. As the drivers sit and talk, they look out for one another by healing each others problems. But in a post-Vietnam America, awkward political conversations are commonplace. Throughout *Jitney*, eight men try to work, live and ultimately survive in a newly-segregated world.

Book *Jitney* tickets in London on TodayTix.

## What to Watch For

- The *Jitney* play is one of 10 works in August Wilson’s Pittsburgh Cycle. The Pittsburgh Cycle explore what it meant to be Black in the United States throughout the 20th century. Each play focuses on a decade — *Jitney* explores life as a Black American in 1970s Pittsburgh.
- August Wilson died in 2005, the same year his final play in the Pittsburgh Cycle, *Radio Golf*, premiered. *Radio Golf* eventually opened on Broadway in 2007. Wilson’s legacy is honoured with the renaming of a Broadway theatre: the August Wilson Theatre.
- This *Jitney* production opened at Leeds Playhouse in 2021. *Jitney* in London transfers to the Old Vic as part of the Old Vic’s 2022 season, including [*The 47th*](https://www.todaytix.com/london/shows/24720-the-47th). 
- Tinuke Craig directs *Jitney*. Craig’s previous directorial credits include *The Color Purple* at Leicester Curve.

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You’ll be mouthing the words “car service” for some while to come following the vivid [Old Vic](https://www.londontheatre.co.uk/theatres/the-old-vic) revival of [*Jitney*](https://www.londontheatre.co.uk/show/24719-jitney), the 1982 play by August Wilson that arrives in London as a co-production with Leeds Playhouse and Headlong and that will continue on tour following this monthlong engagement. (This staging was first seen in Leeds last October.) 

The play’s previous London incarnation – imported from New York – won the Olivier for Best Play 20 years ago, and if this production doesn’t quite have the unmistakable stamp of authenticity provided back then by an American cast, it’s always a pleasure to welcome Wilson to a London stage. Director Tinuke Craig follows up her acclaimed regional theatre revival of the musical *The Color Purple*, confirming anew a keen eye and ear for the American repertoire. 

*Jitney* was the first of Wilson’s extraordinary sequence of plays to be written chronicling the African-American experience across the 20th century, though not the first to come to attention. By the time it was done Off Broadway at the start of this century, the Tony and Pulitzer prize-winner’s name had long been made by such masterworks as *Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom* and *Joe Turner’s Come and Gone*. Its belated 2017 Broadway premiere won a Tony. 

You can certainly find here dramatic elements that a then-embryonic playwright would go on to fine-tune elsewhere: a father-son drama that anticipates similar tensions in *Fences*, and a neurodiverse character – a regular passenger called Philmore (Dayo Koleosho) – who will be rewritten in various ways later in Wilson’s canon. 

At times, you can feel the play’s mechanics grinding a tad obviously: characters speak in the sorts of set-piece monologues Wilson would later raise to a high art, and some of the plot details feel gerrymandered. 

Chief among those is an ending engineered so that the play’s most feckless character, the 39-year-old ex-con Booster (played on press night by a far-younger understudy, Blair Gyabaah, making his professional stage debut to applause from his castmates), can mature in front of our eyes in the final moments. 

The more abundant pluses of the evening come with Wilson’s gift for capturing humankind, collectively and singly, in all its contradictions, and Craig’s matching talent for knitting an all-male (with one exception) ensemble into a harmonious whole. 

Though the opening sequence feels a tad overplayed, as if the cast are finding both their stage footing alongside their accents, the mood settles as the company eases into roles that come with opportunities amply rewarded here.

Wil Johnson, for starters, is immediately commanding as Becker, the manager of the jitney station in Pittsburgh’s Hill District, where fares are noted on a chalkboard toward the rear of Alex Lowde’s single set. (The door through which the cast enters and exits gets a workout worthy of French farce.) 

As calls for rides come in, these men attempt to make sense of various familial and amorous reckonings and obligations, not to mention the potentially imminent demolition of a locale that has been a decades-long home for the longest-serving drivers. 

A widower at odds with his scowling, seemingly affectless son, Becker is glimpsed in lowering scene changes that hint at tragedy to come: indeed, the onstage goings-on between the scenes are here integral to proceedings that find an aural echo in Max Perryment’s evocative sound design, not least a nod towards the wreckers’ ball that risks upending this particular community forever. 

If that inter-generational conflict poses one of the play’s decisive face-offs, so, too, does the showdown between the gossipy Turnbo (a springy, trigger-happy Sule Rimi) and the hotblooded Vietnam vet Youngblood (Solomon Israel), whose social engagements are entirely (and nearly ruinously) misunderstood by his senior colleague. 

An environment where money matters – whether that be a four dollar cab ride or a scant fifty cents – the jitney station hosts the anxieties, dreams, and prospects of a cross-section of people glimpsed at their own decisive turning points.

The cast to a man delivers, as does Leanne Henlon as Rena, Youngblood’s girlfriend who discovers only belatedly what her 24-year-old partner has in mind for her and their young son. I especially liked Geoff Aymer, who amidst an excitable assemblage pulls the audience towards him with his calm, sage reading of one of the play’s senior figures, Doub, a Korean War vet who maintains that the white man is sufficiently uninterested in Black men’s lives to even bother to be racist. 

As in *Ma Rainey* (which does bring several white characters onstage), you are aware of the presence of the white world beyond even as Wilson posits a theatrical landscape not defined by opposition: these people are their own, staking out common ground as part of a collection of characters, and plays, without equal in the American theatre.

I love the exchange at the top of the second act pitting Lena Horne against Sarah Vaughan, not least coming in the very week in which it was announced that the legendary Horne is having a Broadway theatre named for her. 

The gathering interplay makes a room full of invaluable theatre personages out of some sharply observed individuals. Wilson would go on to write better-crafted, more poetic plays, but even his early writing deserves attention: *Jitney* is very much worth the ride. 

[*Jitney is at The Old Vic to 9 July. Book Jitney tickets on London Theatre.*](https://www.londontheatre.co.uk/show/24719-jitney)

*Photo credit: The Jitney company (Photo courtesy of production)*

'Jitney' review — August Wilson's drama is worth the ride

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A Christmas Carol | Old Vic - LON [24716] 

A Christmas Carol | Old Vic

A Christmas Carol fills the auditorium to the brim with mince pies, music and merriment. A unique staging immerses the audience in London’s longest running adaptation of this beloved festive favourite.

The Old Vic, originally named the Royal Coburg Theatre, was designed in 1818 by Rudolph Cabanel. Its name was later changed to the Royal Victoria Theatre, then the Royal Victoria Hall, before it took on its nickname of 'The Old Vic' as its official name in 1925. 

The Old Vic has housed acclaimed performances with such celebrated actors as John Gielgud’s *Hamlet*, Laurence Olivier’s *Macbeth* and *Othello* in 1937, and Judi Dench’s Juliet in *Romeo and Juliet*, which was privately performed for The Queen in 1957.

In 1963, the Old Vic became the home base of the [National Theatre](https://www.londontheatre.co.uk/theatres/national-theatre) of Great Britain during its formation under Laurence Olivier. The theatre continued to host the National Theatre until the move to South Bank in 1976. 

There are two entrances to the Old Vic: one on The Cut and the other on Waterloo Road, which is an accessible entrance. In 2019, 'Penny', an accessible basement cafe and bar was opened, offering drinks, sandwiches and snacks. 

## Old Vic Seating Information

The auditorium has three levels - Stalls, Dress Circle, and the Lilian Baylis Circle.

Despite the Dress Circle overhang, this doesn’t affect the view due to pillars. There is also a staggered rake that will be noticeable from row J to allow better viewing.

The Lilian Baylis Circle is high above the ground and overhangs the Dress Circle at row C meaning row E will miss the top of the stage. There are also standing seats available at the sides of this circle.

‘Jitney’, starring Sule Rimi, announces full cast

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