NEWS ROUNDUP: 28 April - 4 May
- James Tradgett
- May 4
- 6 min read
Another week comes to a close, so let's have a look back at what's been happening in the world of theatre over the past 7 days, including exciting news from across the pond.
MRS DOUBTFIRE
UK & Ireland tour planned for 2026
Help is on the way dearies! Following the closure of the west end production on the 26th of April, “Mrs Doubtfire The Musical” is set to hit the road and tour the UK and Ireland from summer 2026. The show played at the Shaftesbury Theatre in the west end from the 12th of May 2023, and closed after just short of two years. Telling the story of a divorced man desperate to see his children after a cruel court ruling, who creates the beloved alter-ego and getting a job as their nanny, Mrs Doubtfire has music and lyrics by Wayne and Karey Kirkpatrick (the team behind “Something Rotten”) and a book by Karey Kirkpatrick and John O’Farrell.
The tour will open at Birmingham Hippodrome, playing from the 13th of August to the 19th of September 2026, followed by runs at Newcastle Theatre Royal (23rd Sept - 11th Oct 2026), Plymouth Theatre Royal (20th Oct - 8th Nov 2026), Leeds Grand Opera House (10th - 29th Nov 2026), Glasgow King’s Theatre (12th - 29th Jan 2027) and Southampton Mayflower (2nd - 28th Feb 2027). It has also been revealed that Gabriel Vick will reprise the titular role he first played in both Manchester and London. Further details of the tour, including more venues, dates and full cast and creatives, will be revealed at a later date.
CABARET
New casting announced for the Kit Kat Club
Wilkommen, bienvenue, welcome to our new Sally Bowles and Emcee! It has been revealed that Rob Madge (My Son’s A Queer…) will be the Kit Kat Club’s new master of ceremonies, whilst Hannah Dodd (stage debut) will takeover the role of Sally Bowles.
The pair will take over from the departing Marisha Wallace and Billy Porter on the 29th of May, performing for a limited season until the 20th of September. Between the 26-28 May, cover Sally and Emcee respectively Anne-Marie Wojna and Damon Gould will perform in the two roles. Tickets can now be purchased for all dates from the ATG website.
ACORN ANTIQUES
Victoria Wood musical to return to the stage
Based on the iconic sketch from her weekly TV show, Victoria Woods’ musical “Acorn Antiques” is set to return this autumn, in a one-off concert performance produced by Hope Mill Theatre. The show first premiered in the west end in 2005, with a star-studded cast that featured Julie Walters, Celia Imrie (who won the Olivier for best supporting actress for her performance), Josie Lawrence, Neil Morrissey and Sally Ann Tripplett.
This concert staging will perform at the Manchester Opera House on the 2nd of November 2025, and presale is currently open for ATG+ members, with tickets going on general sale on the 6th of May from the ATG website.
EVITA
Full cast announced for London Palladium production
Dont cry for them! The full cast for the London Palladium production of Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice’s musical “Evita” has been revealed, with previously announced Rachel Zegler (Eva Perón) and Diego Andres Rodriguez (Che) being joined by James Olivias (American Idiot) as Juan Perón, Aaron Lee Lambert (Hamilton) as Augustín Magdaldi, and Bella Brown (Hadestown) as the Mistress/alternate Eva.
The ensemble will comprise Carl Au, Gabriela Benedetti, Shakara Brown, Damian Buhagiar, Kyeirah D’Marni, Sally Frith, DeAngelo Jones, Lucas Koch, Natasha Leaver, Michael Lin, Dianté Lodge, Louis Mackrodt, Mireia Mambo, Mia Mullarkey, Perry O’Dea, Alysha Sontae, Monica Swayne, Jon Tsouras and Harrison Wilde. Auora Breslin, Lois Haidar, Siena Merilind-Wu and Ffion Rosalie Williams will share the role of The Child, and Myla Carmen, Barney Hudson, Nathan Louis-Fernand, Kirsty Anne Shaw, Ricardo Spriggs and Regan Bailey Walker complete the cast as Swings.
Evita will open at the London Palladium on the 14th of June, and will run until the 6th of September, with tickets now on sale from the LW Theatres website.
JUST FOR ONE DAY
Original cast recording to be released
The highly anticipated cast album from the Old Vic production of John O’Farrell’s musical “Just For One Day” is set to be released this summer, as announced at a press event at Wembley Stadium this week. Based on the famous 1985 concerts staged in both London and Philadelphia, organised by Boom Town Rats singer Bob Geldof to raise money for Famine Relief, the jukebox musical premiered at the Old Vic on the 26th of January 2024, and ran for 9 weeks, closing on the 30th of March.
Just for One Day cast recording will release on the 11th of July 2025, two days prior to the 40th anniversary of the concerts, and following its opening at the Shaftesbury Theatre in the west end. Tickets for the west end transfer are now on sale from the Shaftesbury Theatre website.
HOT MESS
Cast announced for Edinburgh Fringe world premiere
Casting for the new Jack Godfrey musical “Hot Mess”, premiering at the Edinburgh Fringe this summer, has been revealed, with west end Danielle Steers (Six, Bat Out Of Hell) and Tobias Turley (White Rose, Mamma Mia!) set to lead the line. Hot Mess is the newest musical from the team that brought us 42 Balloons.
Tickets for all performances are now on sale. Hot Mess runs from the 30th of July until the 25th of August at Pleasance Two, Pleasance Courtyard.
THE MAD ONES
Exclusive look inside the rehearsal room
On the 1st of May, TheatreTradge was invited by producers of “The Mad Ones” to attend a special press exclusive, which featured exclusive performances of several songs from the musical, as well as interviews with the cast and creatives of the show, ahead of its UK premiere at the Other Palace studio on the 7th of May, where it will run for four weeks only. Performed were three songs from the show, these were "The Proposal", "Freedom" and "Go Tonight'. We also got the chance to speak to the cast and creatives about the show and their own experiences.
You can view exclusive material on both Instagram and TikTok, with more to be released in the coming days, so keep your eyes peeled.
78TH TONY AWARDS
Full nominations revealed for 2024-25 broadway season
As we see the latest broadway season come to an end, the awards ceremonies are all a-go, with nominations for the Drama League, Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle awards all having been announced over the past couple of weeks. The latest round of Tony Awards nominations, ahead of the 78th ceremony, were announced earlier this week, and there are three shows leading the way in nominations, with Buena Vista Social Club, Death Becomes Her, Maybe Happy Ending all scoring a total of 10 nominations, in a strong year for new musicals.
Audra McDonald made history by becoming the most nominated actor in Tony awards history, notching her 11th total nomination and 6th as a leading actress for her performance as Rose in the current revival of "Gypsy". SpitLip also made a big splash, with all four members, David Cummings, Felix Hagan, Natasha Hodgson and Zoë Roberts collectively receiving three nominations (best musical, best book of a musical, best original score), becoming the first people ever to earn three nominations simultaneously on their debut broadway production. Additionally, Jak Malone received a nomination for best featured actor in a musical.
Another big winner was Kara Young, who was nominated for best supporting actress in a play for her performance in "Purpose", and became the first black actress to be Tony-nominated in four consecutive years. Sadly it wasn't all good news, as several productions were snubbed completely, including "Redwood" and "Othello", and others failed to gain any nominations in major categories. The full list of nominations cxan be found on the
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