Over the past 12 months, I’ve seen 80 different shows, a huge variety of plays, musicals, pantomimes and cinema screenings. Many of these shows would have passed me by had it not been for the generosity of Nottingham Theatre Royal and the RSC for their complimentary press tickets, and for Elemental Theatre and East Midlands Theatre for inviting me to write guest reviews for their websites. Many thanks to Phil and Tom for these opportunities. I would also like to take a brief moment to thank all of my various plus ones across the year – Paula, Tom, Aoife, Karen, Abbie, Alex, Martin, Rachel, Lis, Mum, Dad and Auntie Penny. Here’s to more exciting theatre in 2026!
Honourable mentions
As always, I have to take some time to mention the wonderful amateur productions that I have seen this year, from groups including Lace Market Theatre, Leicester Little Theatre, Belper Players, Derby Youth Musical Theatre, Derby Shakespeare Company, East Bridgford Drama Group, Beeston Musical Theatre Group and NUH. It is a joy watching people performing theatre not because it pays the bills but because it is what they enjoy doing. I don’t ever write critical reviews for amateur theatre – instead I use this website to celebrate am dram, and hope to continue to do so for years to come. I’m already looking forward to The Cat’s Meow at Lace Market Theatre and Cinderella from NUH in January, so keep your eyes out for blog posts about these productions next month!
And now, without further ado, on with the list…
10. & Juliet (UK Tour)
This is a show that I never expected to like as much as I did. Jukebox musicals have never been my favourite, and the premise for this production sounded incredibly corny – a reimagined Romeo & Juliet, where Juliet survives whilst Romeo is binned off. Yet what followed was an incredible evening of entertainment, one that poked fun at Shakespearean stereotypes, wowed us with amazing performances of some of the best pop songs of the last twenty years, and offered an interesting commentary on gender and identity. The reason this scores so highly on my favourites is the fact that my enjoyment was so unexpected – it has stuck in my mind, and made me reevaluate my opinion on jukebox musicals.
9. Inside No. 9: Stage|Fright (Wyndham’s Theatre)
A play so good, I saw it twice! Being a huge fan of the TV show, you’d think I’d know what to expect from a stage version – but the whole point of Inside No. 9 is to expect the unexpected, and this show was so full of twists and turns that it was impossible to predict exactly what was going to happen next. Perhaps every twist didn’t work quite as well as one would hope, but with Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith at the helm, you know you are in safe hands, and the final “Number 9” reference will make you shake your head in disbelief that the pair made it through nine TV series without ever making that joke. One only hopes that a recorded version will make it to our TV screens one day so that I can experience it all over again.
8. The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe (UK Tour)
As a big fan of C.S. Lewis’s novels growing up, this was a real hit of nostalgia for me. The sheer magic of the lamppost rising up amidst the snow took me right back to my childhood, whilst every favourite character was perfectly realised, including Mr Tumnus, Mr and Mrs Beaver and, of course, the legendary Aslan. Stuck somewhere between a play and a musical, this was a wonderful night of theatre. Firmly aimed at families, it doesn’t matter if you’re seven or seventy, there is something here for everyone to enjoy.
7. To Kill A Mockingbird (UK Tour)
Having never read the book or seen the film, I went into this knowing very little other than the name Atticus Finch. This intricate tale makes for a long play that whizzes by in the blink of an eye, thanks to some wonderful characterisation, incredibly likeable protagonists and intense courtroom scenes. The way the set slotted together to bring to life a huge variety of different scenes helped bring a little bit of extra magic to this most tragic of stories.
6. Measure for Measure (RSC)
This is the point in this list where the shows really kick up a notch. The RSC’s take on Shakespeare’s notorious “problem play” is breathtaking and heartbreaking. The end of act one will leave you frozen to your seat, unable to tear your eyes away from the horrific acts that are soundtracked by Elvis’s “I can’t help falling in love with you”. The ending is suitably downbeat, a revision from Shakespeare’s original that seems inevitable given the tone of the rest of the play. There is not much to smile about here, but there is an awful lot to like.
5. Be More Chill (Old Joint Stock)
Despite being aware of the soundtrack for a few years, I never expected to be such a big fan of “Be More Chill”. The story is a bit odd – a mix of high school teen drama and sci fi, following a young boy who gets a super computer chip embedded in his brain to help him appear cooler at school. But the sheer energy of the cast, the intense choreography, and incredible vocals all combined to turn this into one of my favourite musicals I have seen this year. Jack Carr’s performance is a standout, but there were no weak links in this cast – and being performed in the intimate setting of the Old Joint Stock Theatre simply added to the appeal.
4. Hamlet Hail To The Thief (RSC)
The RSC produced three different versions of Hamlet this year (the others being the Titanic-set retelling starring Luke Thallon, and a modernised version under the title “Fat Ham”), but this one stood head and shoulders above the rest. Using incidental music from Radiohead’s album, this heavily condensed version of the classic Shakespeare tale featured one of the best Ophelia portrayals I have seen from Ami Tredrea, whilst the bloody ending turned the violence up to 11 as events spiralled out of Claudius’ control. Perhaps not the best introduction to the story for those unfamiliar, but for me, this was right up my street.
3. Hadestown, Original Broadway Cast (Lyric Theatre)
For the second year running, “Hadestown” makes it to my top ten, but occupying a higher place this time thanks to the original Broadway cast, who returned to the show for a special run earlier this year. The tickets sold out in a single afternoon (I was nervously waiting in an online queue for about three hours to secure mine), and anyone lucky enough to get them were treated to top notch performances from Reeve Carney and Eva Noblezada, who have since gone on to star together in “Cabaret” (and also get married to each other in real life). But the star of the show is André de Shields as Hermes, who, at 79 years old, is still the coolest person on the stage, full of charisma, charm and killer dance moves. For fans, this was a real treat – and with one of the performances being filmed, I’m sure we can look forward to hearing this sad song all over again in the near future.
2. Girls and Boys (Nottingham Playhouse)
Dennis Kelly’s one-woman play, starring Aisling Loftus, is by no means an easy watch, although there are moments of comedy sprinkled throughout, which helps to make Loftus’ character endearing and gets the audience immediately invested in her story. When the tragedy hits (and boy, does it hit), it will tear out your heart and leave you gasping for breath. The graphic detail in Loftus’ later speeches makes for some of the most upsetting theatre I have ever seen – but better to feel traumatised by a piece of theatre than to feel nothing at all. This piece will stay with me for a very long time.
1. Stereophonic (Duke of York’s Theatre)
Unlike “Girls and Boys”, which was a quick, action-packed piece of theatre, “Stereophonic” is long and features a plot that is fairly uneventful. Yet this fly-on-the-wall drama of a band (not too dissimilar from Fleetwood Mac) recording an album in the seventies is captivating stuff. The flashes of music that we get helps to liven things up, but it is the characters that drive this show, each one complicated and real. One of the most dramatic moments in this play features several attempts to tune a snare drum. Any other more exciting pieces of drama are mostly left offstage – we hear about the breakdowns of the characters’ relationships during snippets of conversations, rather than seeing any huge climax. This will not be to everyone’s tastes, and that’s fine. But for me, this is some of the finest theatre around. Incredible.
So there you go – what do you think? Do you agree? Disagree with a passion? Let me know in the comments!
2026 will be full of more great shows, I’m sure – and I’ll be kicking it off in January with visits to see “The Hunger Games” and “Hercules” in the West End, whilst also catching “A Christmas Carol Goes Wrong” on tour in Nottingham. For now, have a merry Christmas and I’ll see you in the new year!
Tom Morley, December 2025
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