From Ghosts to The Witches: the best theatre to see in November in London
From fresh adaptations of beloved classics to original thought-provoking shows, London is heaving with new theatre productions this autumn.
But with so many to choose from, picking what to see in the capital can feel like a dramatic epic. So we’ve done the heavy lifting for you with a list of our top picks to watch this November.
Opening this month
The Time Traveller’s Wife: The Musical
With original songs from Grammy Award winners Joss Stone and Eurythmics’ Dave Stewart, this stage adaptation of Audrey Niffenegger’s best-selling novel, which premiered at Chester's Storyhouse theatre last autumn, is set to be a blast.
The Apollo, November 1 to March 30, 2024; theapollotheatre.co.uk
King Lear
Kenneth Branagh on the West End is always an event – most recently he played Archie Rice in John Osborne’s The Entertainer in 2016 – and the prospect of watching him do Lear is mouthwatering. Away from recent screen roles twiddling a ridiculous moustache as Poirot, playing a Nobel-winning physicist in Oppenheimer and even donning the prosthetics to play Boris Johnson in This England, fans can’t wait to see him back in a theatre getting stuck into one of Shakespeare’s greatest roles. Blow winds and crack your cheeks...
Wyndham’s Theatre, November 2 to December 9; wyndhamstheatre.co.uk
To Have and To Hold
Written by Richard Bean (One Man, Two Guvnors), this comedy about a retired Yorkshire couple bickering their way through their 61st year of marriage touches on thought-provoking themes such as growing old, errant children, matrimony and what it really means to have lived a life well.
Hampstead Theatre, November 6 to November 25; hampsteadtheatre.com
Backstairs Billy
Proper A-lister Luke Evans (I mean he starred in one of the Fast and Furious films!) and Penelope Wilton star in this new comedy about the real-life friendship between loyal servant William Tallon and Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother. Directed by Michael Grandage, who most recently directed Orlando at the Garrick Theatre with Emma Corrin, the play begins in 1979: outside the country is going through major political upheaval, but inside Clarence House it's "business as usual".
Duke of York’s, November 7 to January 7, 2024; thedukeofyorks.com
Mates in Chelsea
Taking inspiration from Wilde and Wodehouse, playwright Rory Mullarkey's latest project is a riotous comedy about viscount Theodore “Tug” Bungay who is having a 'mare of a week: his mother, Lady Agrippina, plans to cut him off, there's an oligarch who wants his castle and he's dragging his feet on marrying his demanding fiancée.
The Royal Court Theatre, November 9 to December 16; royalcourttheatre.com
Feeling Afraid as If Something Terrible is Going to Happen
Marcelo Dos Santos' acclaimed Edinburgh show, which won both a Scotsman Fringe First and The Stage Edinburgh Award, explores what happens when a neurotic stand-up comedian finally finds love. Described by critics as "faultless", “razor sharp” and "a masterclass in comic delivery", the one-hour long performance explores intimacy and anxiety in the modern day.
Bush Theatre, November 15 to December 23; bushtheatre.co.uk
The Mongol Khan
Get ready London! The epic Mongolian production #TheMongolKhan is coming to the Coliseum in November. Experience the rich cultural heritage of Mongolia in this captivating story of power, rivalry, and drama.
— The Mongol Khan (@TheMongolKhan) March 30, 2023
🎟️Priority Booking today. General Sale tomorrowhttps://t.co/LCbiawmAFp pic.twitter.com/3tIwI4fmeZ
Mongolia's leading theatre company is coming to the UK for the first time, bringing a massive 70-people ensemble together for a mesmerising reimagining of a part of its history. The visual spectacle, which has been banned in China, is set 2000 years ago and stars multi-award-winning director and actor Erdenebileg Ganbold as fictional leader Archug Khan who is caught in a savage fight for power.
London Coliseum, November 20 to December 2; londoncoliseum.org
The Witches
Roald Dahl's 1983 tale about a young boy who uncovers a society of witches has now been turned into an exhilarating musical by Olivier Award-winner Lucy Kirkwood. With direction from Lyndsey Turner (The Crucible, Under Milk Wood) and music and lyrics from Tony Award-nominee Dave Malloy (Love Around the Block, Moby-Dick) the children's classic is set to both thrill and terrify.
Olivier Theatre, November 21 to January 27, 2024; nationaltheatre.org.uk
My Neighbour Totoro
A reimagining of the 1988 anime, My Neighbour Totoro tells the story of two young sisters, Satsuki and Mei, who move to the country in post-war Japan. Their mother is ill, so they live alone with their doting father who encourages them to play outside and lean into their imaginations, which they do. The Olivier award-winning RSC adaptation, which is returning to the Barbican after a sell-out run last year, is directed by Phelim McDermott and has a set by Tom Pye, costumes by Kimie Nakano and sound by Tony Gayle.
Barbican, November 21 to March 23, 2024; barbican.org.uk
She Stoops to Conquer
Oliver Goldsmith’s 1773 classic still manages to delight and amuse audiences 250 years after its debut. In this adaptation from directors Tom Littler and Francesca Ellis, it’s Christmas time and husband and wife Mr and Mrs Hardcastle (David Horovitch and Greta Scacchi), are squabbling over how to celebrate the holiday season while awaiting the arrival of their daughter, Kate (Tanya Reynolds). Meanwhile, Tanya can’t wait to meet her future husband, Marlow (Freddie Fox), there’s a drama involving the theft of some diamonds, the butler is losing it and someone has successfully advertised Hardcastle Hall as a pub, leading to general bedlam.
Orange Tree, November 22 to January 13, 2024; orangetreetheatre.co.uk
Ghosts
Henrik Ibsen’s classic play Ghosts is coming to the atmospheric, candlelight space of the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse at the Globe, the first time the Norwegian playwright has been staged there. The revival of this story of family secrets and forbidden desire is to be revived by director Joe Hill-Gibbins, almost 150 years after it caused a furore when it premiered.
Sam Wanamaker Playhouse, November 22 to January 28, 2024; shakespearesglobe.com
The House of Bernarda Alba
In this exciting revival, playwright and screenwriter extraordinaire Alich Birch (whose TV work includes Dead Ringers, Normal People and Succession) adapts Spanish dramatist Federico García Lorca’s last play. Olivier Award-winner Harriet Walter is domineering matriarch Bernarda Alba who has tightly controlled the lives of her five daughters (who are aged between 20 and 39). After her husband dies, she imposes an eight-year mourning period on the house and in this impossibly stifling atmosphere, tensions start to rise..
Lyttelton Theatre, November 28 to January 6, 2024; nationaltheatre.org.uk
Bullring Techno Makeout Jamz
Last year, Nathan Queeley-Dennis won the Bruntwood Prize for Playwriting for Bullring Techno Makeout Jamz. Now, after a sell-out run in Edinburgh, this debut play is heading to the Royal Court for a limited three-week run. Described as a love letter to Birmingham, the one-man show unpacks modern romanticism, male friendships and black masculinity with what critics have described as “light-footed charm”.
Royal Court Upstairs, November 29 to December 20; royalcourttheatre.com
Infinite Life
The latest work of Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Annie Baker is a meditation on illness, pain and the bizarre reality of owning, and being, a body. The play, which is being directed by James Macdonald (who brought Baker’s John to life in 2018) debuted in New York last month, where it was described as an “exquisite new comic drama”, “riveting” and “weird and great”.
Dorfman Theatre, November 30 to January 13, 2024; nationaltheatre.org.uk
Already open
Elephant
Olivier award-nominee Anoushka Lucas returns to the Bush for a second run of her stellar debut play Elephant, recently nominated for an Evening Standard Theatre Award. The one-woman show is described as part gig, part piano lesson, part journey through Empire. It’s a luminous writing debut for Lucas, who performs the show. Most recently she was seen in the West End run of Oklahoma!
Bush Theatre, to November 4; bushtheatre.co.uk
untitled f*ck m*ss s**gon play
New York-based playwright Kimber Lee takes audiences on a journey through time, looking at Asian stereotypes in Western theatre and opera. Described by the Young Vic as a “powerful new satire”, the play won the The Bruntwood Prize International Award in 2019 and has been met with huge acclaim.
Young Vic, to November 4; youngvic.org
The Confessions
Award-winning playwright Alexander Zeldin’s latest project is a reflection on his mother’s eight-decade life. Beginning in Australia in 1943 and ending in London in 2021, the ambitious play follows Alice as she grows into herself, and carves out an identity outside of motherhood. The international collaboration stars Australian actors Eryn Jean Norvill and Pamela Rabe.
NT Lyttelton Theatre, to November 4; nationaltheatre.org.uk
Death of England: Closing Time
Writers Clint Dyer (Othello) and Roy Williams (Sucker Punch) reunite for the fourth and final installment of their Death of England series. They continue to explore race and class in Britain, but this time through a female lens. Sharon Duncan-Brewster (Dune) and Hayley Squires (I, Daniel Blake) star as Denise and daughter-in-law Carly in the play, who are grieving the loss of the family shop and their destroyed dreams.
The National Theatre’s Dorfman Theatre, to November 11; nationaltheatre.org.uk
Portia Coughlan
One of the theatrical talents to emerge in 2023 was actor Alison Oliver, who shone in the rather odd show Women, Beware the Devil, as well as the more straightforwardly great Dancing at Lughnasa at the NT. She is returning to the Almeida for the title role in Portia Coughlan, the 1996 play by Marina Carr. In it Portia is turning 30, haunted by her twin Gabriel who drowned when he was 15. Expect to be put through the wringer.
Almeida, to November 18; almeida.co.uk
Blue Mist
Directed by The Royal Court’s associate director, Milli Bhatia, Blue Mist is the story of three young men, Jihad, Rashid and Asif, who are trying to navigate a world which they feel like they don’t belong to. After Jihad, an aspiring journalist, wins a competition, he starts producing his own documentary which gives the trio a new sense of purpose.
The Royal Court Theatre, November 18; royalcourttheatre.com
The Ocean at the End of the Lane
The stage adaptation of Neil Gaiman’s 2013 novel premiered at the Dorfman Theatre in 2019, and transferred to the West End before touring around the UK. Now the story of a man whose imagination starts to run wild when he returns to his childhood home is back in the West End. “It’s a lovely, heartfelt show with a surging narrative thrust, a macabre undertow and some brilliantly evoked, seriously scary monsters,” said the Standard in its 2021 review.
Noel Coward Theatre, to November 25; nationaltheatre.org.uk
Flowers for Mrs Harris
Take a journey through the cobbled streets of post-war London to the magical avenues of Paris in this new trailer, for the "heart warming and wonderful" #FlowersForMrsHarris @RiversideLondon, starring @jennarusselluk as Ada Harris 🌸
— Flowers for Mrs Harris (@MrsHarrisLDN) October 27, 2023
Running until 25th Nov - book now 👉… pic.twitter.com/3wc2A57M57
Olivier award-winning stage star Jenna Russell (Piaf, The Bridges of Madison County) is Ada Harris, a cleaner working in post-war London who falls in love with a posh client’s Dior dress. Based on the 1958 novel by American writer Paul Gallico, this delightful musical, directed by Bronagh Lagan (Cruise), is sweet, uplifting and unassuming.
Riverside Studios, to November 25; riversidestudios.co.uk
Clyde’s
Five years ago, Lynn Nottage’s play Sweat, about the American rustbelt, directed by Lynette Linton, played to great acclaim at the Donmar Warehouse and its subsequent transfer to the West End. The writer and director have reunited for Clyde’s, set in a Pennsylvania truck stop, where former prisoners have been given another chance and are seeking to make the perfect sandwich.
Donmar Warehouse, to December 2; donmarwarehouse.com
Frank and Percy
Ben Weatherill’s Frank and Percy was a huge success when it premiered at the Theatre Royal Windsor in June: “With bark and bite in the most unexpected places, the play nips at the heels of those who claim sexual fluidity is the pleasure of just the young,” said the Standard. Now the play, which stars Ian McKellen and three-time Olivier award winner Roger Allam as two lonely men who connect over a love of dogs and develop a deep relationship, is transferring to The Other Palace Theatre for a 12-week run.
The Other Palace Theatre, to December 3; theotherpalace.co.uk
Noises Off
Frankly, who doesn’t need a laugh right now, and there’s no better play to get the sides splitting than Michael Frayn’s classic farce, set backstage at a comedy that is falling apart. Reviewers threw around descriptions such as “joyous” and “pure comic bliss” when the show ran earlier this year, so head over for a classic comic pick-me-up, with stars including Felicity Kendal, Jonathan Coy and Tamzin Outhwaite.
Theatre Royal Haymarket, to December 16; trh.co.uk
Sunset Boulevard
Perhaps the biggest marmalade dropper of the theatre announcements in recent months was news that Nicole Scherzinger – yes she of the Pussycat Dolls – was swapping concert arenas for the West End stage to play Norma Desmond in Sunset Boulevard. Desmond has previously been played by Patti LuPone and Glenn Close, so does Nicole measure up? Well The Standard certainly thought she stepped up: “Nicole Scherzinger smashes it,” said Nick Curtis in his five-star review.
The Savoy Theatre, to January 6, 2024; thesavoytheatre.com
Stephen Sondheim’s Old Friends
Originally a one-night-only event, this concert was created to celebrate the life of legendary composer Stephen Sondheim, who died in 2021. The show immediately sold out and went on to win the WhatsOnStage Award for Best Theatre Event; now it’s back for a 16-week run at the Gielgud Theatre.
Gielgud Theatre, to January 6, 2024; delfontmackintosh.co.uk
Dear England
For those who struggle to prise their loved one away from the telly when the Premier League is on, try this. This new play by James Graham – the playwright and screenwriter who can do no wrong – charts how Gareth Southgate turned the England team around from its nadir (or the most recent nadir) of losing to Iceland in the Euros, creating a new look team that played well and really connected with the country. After packing in the audiences at the National Theatre, this show is transferring to the Prince Edward Theatre in the West End. And if you’ve never experienced an entire theatre audience off its seats singing Sweet Caroline, then now’s the time.
Prince Edward Theatre, to January 13, 2024; nationaltheatre.org.uk
Crazy for You
This musical about a theatre-mad banker who sets out to rescue a small town venue from destruction is directed and choreographed by Tony and Olivier award-winner Susan Stroman. It stars Charlie Stemp as plucky hero Bobby Childs, and follows him as he stages a glitzy new show in a bid to save the day.
Gillian Lynne Theatre, to January 20, 2024; lwtheatres.co.uk
Mrs Doubtfire
After a run in Manchester, this comedy musical adaptation of the hit Robin Williams film has finally arrived in the West End. After losing custody of his children, out-of-work actor Daniel disguises himself as a Scottish nanny to stay in their lives, and... well, you know the rest. The beloved story now has added songs.
Shaftesbury Theatre, to January 24, 2024; shaftesburytheatre.com
