2025 has been a great year for theatre and the perfect place to reflect on it is in my 2025 stagey round up. At the end of 2024, whilst I’m a musical theatre girl at heart, I decided that my aim in 2025 was to see more plays and this year I succeeded increasing my percentage of plays seen from 5% through to 29% so mission accomplished!! I have also had a huge amount of stagey highlights including being in the rehearsal room of The Mad Ones, Love Quirks and Midnight at The Palace, attend the Lion King’s event to meet their new Simba, Hope Maine, meeting the cast and director Billy Porter of This Bitter Earth, getting an advance look at the pro shot of Next to Normal, I also got the chance to do things such as Prison Island in Maidstone, try the new Phantom of the Opera afternoon tea, attend the launch night of the Room Where It Happens and go to the launch of the Versace exhibition.

This year I saw a total of 75 shows as well as directing Everybody’s Talking About Jamie and producing a Pride concert.

Here are some stats to sum my blog’s year up –

• A total of 87 reviews on this website top of numerous opinion pieces and ‘top 10’s.
• 13% were 5 star, 63% 4 star reviews, 18% 3 star reviews and 6% 2 star reviews making my average rating 3.9 stars.
• My most visited theatre as an audience member was the New Wimbledon Theatre which I visited 6 times.
• 78% of the shows I attended were professional and 22% were amateur shows (exactly the same breakdown as last year).
• The types of shows I saw were – 56% musical theatre, 29% plays, 4% concerts, 4% pantomimes and 7% other types which included dance and drag.
• £825 spent on tickets that were not gifted.

Want to know my stagey highlights well crack open the quality streets and grab yourself a glass of mulled wine and have a read of my 2025 round up. Let me know if you agree.

Best West End Musical – Evita

Whilst 2024 was Brat Summer 2025 was Evita summer and it was the show everybody was talking about for very good reason. I had already brought into the Jamie Lloyd hype after Sunset Boulevard (see my best musical of 2024). It also cemented Rachel Zegler in the hearts of Londoners with thousands turning up to see her perform ‘Don’t Cry For Me Argentina’ on the balcony.

I summed up the show as follows:

Jamie Lloyd’s production of Evita breathes not only fresh air into Evita but fire into it’s belly. This show has the magic ingredients of fusing a career defining performance by Zegler and Jamie Lloyd’s ingenious vision realised live on stage.

You can read my full thoughts on Evita here

Second Place – Hadestown

Whilst Hadestown isn’t a new kid on the block, or indeed in the West End this year saw a new cast take to the stage and a repeat visit for me. This is a show that grows on me each time I see it and the 2025 cast continued this trend for me. Cedric Neal was worth the ticket price alone,  Victoria Hamilton-Barritt played Persephone and her physicality in the role was a site to behold – she threw her whole body into this part which was an utter delight. Whilst some of the cast have changed since the mesmerising book and the soaring music means you should wait for no one to get to the Lyric Theatre.

Read my full review of Hadestown here

Best Touring Musical – & Juliet

I saw & Juliet quite a few times in the West End and I was even lucky enough to be at the West End launch of the show so it felt only fitting that I now saw it on tour, luckily it didn’t disappoint. A jukebox musical with Max Martin’s music which shows that there is life for Juliet after Romeo’s death. I summed up my thoughts as follows:

& Juliet is a brilliant example of what can be done when jukebox musicals are done well, brilliant songs, a story that entertains as well as poses food for thought, combined with an epic set, lighting and costume design. It just leaves me to say that this show is pretty ‘Fuckin’ Perfect.’

Read my full review of the & Juliet tour here

Runner Up – Cruel Intentions

With both of my favourite touring shows coming from New Wimbledon Theatre it feels like the right time to shout out this venue and all of the top notch shows that they get!!

Interestingly Cruel Intentions was my favorite fringe musical last year and this was my third time seeing the show, with it improving every time I saw it. The musical harnesses the nostalgia factor along with a 90’s jukebox score which had the 90’s child in me in heaven throughout. Cruel Intentions is a fun show, especially if you are looking for a nostalgia boost with a camp, upbeat 90’s score that can’t help but win you over.

The full review of Cruel Intentions at New Wimbledon Theatre is here.

Best Fringe Musical – Hot Mess

Jack Godfrey musicals have hit my best musical list 2 years in a row with Babies at The Other Palace being runner up last year anf Hot Mess was one of my few 5 star reviews this year. Hot Mess isn’t your typical boy meets girl love story, boy does indeed meet girl but this time girl is Earth and boy is Humanity, making what could be one of the most iconic couplings in history. The book by Ellie Coote is wickedly clever, with the show packed full of analogy and despite knowing, at least roughly, that Humanity will end up destroying their relationship, the end the story never feels predictable or forced and this metaphor works surprisingly well throughout all of the show. After the show I was desperate for a cast recording and my Christmas wishes came true so even if you missed the show I recommend checking out the cast recording.

I summed up the show here –

With a book and music that both entertains and educates and a cast that are perfect for their roles, Hot Mess is far from a mess and instead is set to be a hot success.

My full review of Hot Mess at Southwark Playhouse can be found here.

Runner Up – The Mad Ones

After a run off Broadway, then a run in Birmingham it felt like this show had been a long time coming for London. The show deals with coming of age and the pressures surrounding it, as well as grief. The story by Kait Kerrigan and Bree Lowdermilk is incredibly relatable and it is this relatability that makes the show a success. Added into the mix a score I want to hear on repeat I’d love for this show to have a future.

Read my full thoughts on The Mad Ones here

Best Play – Inter Alia

Inter Alia is a new play by Suzie Miller, the writer that brought us Prima Facie. This play keeps the legal system at its heart again but this time the focus is on Jessica Parks, a female judge in the Crown court who is juggling her busy professional life along with being a wife and a mother to her son Harry. She prides herself as being a judge where survivors of sexual assault are treated with dignity in her court room, that is until accusations land closer to home and Jessica Parks tries to separate the professional from the personal.

My thoughts are summed up here –

Theatre is great when it makes you feel something but it is a rare piece that can make you feel this much and so strongly….Inter Alia is a show that leaves you with questions instead of answers but questions provoke conversation and this is a topic that needs to be discussed.

The show then hit our big screens with NT Live and I had a return visit in this different format and the show is now transferring to the West End and I 100% recommend getting tickets. You can find them here.

You can check out my full review of Inter Alia here

Runner Up – Giant

Giant was on my too see list for some time and I was determined to see it before it closed, and this resulted in my most expensive ticket purchase of the year! Luckily it was worth it! The show looked at Roald Dahl with his life in flux, on the cusp of publishing The Witches and shortly after publishing a book review about the siege of West Beruit by the Israeli army which was deemed anti-Semitic. His publishers send staff member, Jessica Stone to represent the American arm of the publishing house and his good friend Tom Maschler to represent the UK office. They gather at Dahl’s house try to get him to retract his comments but what prevails is a war of words.

It was great to witness John Lithgow who plays Dahl in this role and it was easy to understand why he won the Olivier for this role. Giant was undoubtedly one of the most thought provoking nights at the theatre I have had for some time and even quietly shocking. A combination of of an incredibly probing script beautifully acted ensures that this will be a play I remember for some time. Broadway are lucky with this landing on American shores in March.

My full review of Giant is here

Best Am Dram Show – Jesus Christ Superstar by Centre Stage

This year I reviewed 12 amateur shows, saw a further 5 to support friends and local groups, spent a year on the committee for my local group, directed a production of Everybody’s Talking About Jamie, produced a Pride concert, spent a year on the board of the theatre of a local theatre and finally commenced directing an amateur production of We Will Rock You, so I think its safe to say that amateur theatre is a huge part of my life and something I am passionate about. I therefore love seeing high quality amateur theatre as it really drives the reputation of the genre. I am luckily enough to live in an area where there is a lot of very talented groups around so choosing this category is hard, especially knowing how much blood, sweat and tears go into each show.

This year I saw 17 amateur dramatic shows and whilst many of the were of an incredibly high standard my favorite was Jesus Christ Superstar by Centre Stage. They really leant into the rock feel of this musical as well as embracing innovative staging, impeccable attention to detail and overall a show that felt both faithful to the iconic score and bold in its storytelling choices.

You can read my full thoughts Jesus Christ Superstar here.

Runner Up – Assassins by Sedos

Last year Centre Stage was my runner up in this category for their production of The Little Mermaid and Sedos won for their production of The Color Purple and both of them were also in my list in 2023, these 2 societies inclusion for 3 years in a row now speaks volumes as to the quality of both of these societies shows.

Despite Assassins being written by Stephen Sondheim and John Weidman over 30 years ago this remains one of Sondheim’s most relevant works. Dan Edge was the director of Sedos’ production and his concept was brilliantly considered. Edge moved the show from its traditional carnival type setting to a Political convention. Each moment is played out perfectly in this new setting and the ending was the icing on the cake. I am a big fan of shows being reinvented in new and relevant ways for a modern audience and Sedos gave us an exemplary display of how it should be done.

Read my review of Assassins by Sedos here.

Best Concert – Rachel Zegler at The London Palladium.

If summer time was Evita summer than Rachel Zegler was at the forefront of it. With plaudits all round for her performance of Eva Peron it was only fitting that she was to return to the London stage with her own show. The show featured songs from Evita that Eva didn’t sing, her own music as well as a guest performance from Andrew Lloyd Webber himself. It was a brilliantly put together concert which gave the audience just a little bit more insight into her star quality.

Runner Up – Lee Mead

I will start this with a confession, I have had a soft spot for Lee Mead since he appeared on our TV screens some 18 years ago and since then he has grown to be one of the West End’s leading men. The show itself took us on a journey, not only through his career but to other songs that helped shape and influence him, peppered with explanations for the song choices and anecdotes about his life.

I summed up my thoughts here –

Lee Mead’s concert is a wonderful night at the theatre, fans of Lee will love it but so will musical theatre fans generally. A great selection of songs performed by one of the West Ends most talented men…..what more could you want from a concert?

Read my review of Lee Mead in concert can be found here.

Best Dance Show – The Genesis

The Genesis was performed by The Copenhagen Collective, a group of 17 acrobats from across the world who have come together to form a unique theatrical acrobatic experience. ‘The Genesis’ is their first show which promised to focus on the depths of human connection and the power of unity. My first word to describe the piece would be breath-taking. The cast consistently are climbing each other in more and more inventive ways, tumbling and forming tableaus with just their bodies that I didn’t imagine possible. It was breath-taking way to spend an hour, marveling at just what the human body can do when it works in unison with others.

The full review of The Genesis can be found here.

Runner Up – The Empire Strips Back

One thing I love about running this website is the breadth of shows that I get to see and going from The Genesis to The Empire Strips Back could not be a more perfect example of this if I tried.

The Empire Strips Back transports London audience to a galaxy far far away to a world where the Star Wars characters you know and love are live on stage…performing burlesque. The production values on the show are brilliant – the characters are easily identifiable with iconic costumes converted to make the show a steamy one. The costumes cannot be praised enough – underneath the easily identifiable costumes was lingerie that fitted in well with the original costume and the attention to detail as to how the costume was going to be removed should also be commended. The combination of the familiar costumes combined with the strip tease element really made this a burlesque show to remember.

Read the review of The Empire Strips Back here.

Most Disappointing Show – 101 Dalmatians

I never like to focus on the negatives but the question I always get asked is about which show I was most disappointed by. This year my answer to it is 101m Dalmatians. This is not to say that the show is ‘bad,’ but more than I was disappointed by it and what it could have been. I must commend the cast who were fabulous but the main problem was that the show wasn’t sure what it was, was it a musical or was it a pantomime, the tonal shift became confusing and equally the book struggled in making me care about the human characters.

Read my review of 101 Dalmatians here.

Best Stagey Activity – Phantom of the Opera Afternoon Tea

I was lucky enough to be invited along to some wonderfully stagey events this year. A highlight was The Phantom of the Opera afternoon tea at Sofitel St James. Combining musical theatre and food (along with champagne) is a huge way to my heart and the attention to detail in this afternoon tea (in 3 acts no less) was perfectly executed. The hotel is a French one which instantly conjures up the Paris Opera house where the show is set and the fact that it is meters away from His Majesties Theatre means it could not be better situated. My only problem with it was that I need to return sooner than is probably sensible!

You can read my full thoughts of The Phantom of the Opera Afternoon Tea here.

Runner Up – The Room Where It Happens

The Room Where It Happens is London’s newest stagey bar and I was lucky enough to be invited to the press launch. The bar operates with a combination of singing waiters and a sing song for everyone around the piano. To top it off they have a great selection of drinks including stagey themed cocktails. It is the perfect stagey night out and testament to this is the fact that I have returned since the press launch with friends!

My full review of the Room Where It Happens Is here

Most Read Article – 110 Musical Theatre Quiz Questions

For the second year in a row this was my most read article. Clearly lots of you out there like to test your musical theatre knowledge!! You can read all 110 quiz questions here to see what the fuss was about!

Other notable mentions…..

There were a few shows that I haven’t mentioned above in my 2025 stagey round up that I wanted to shout out for various reasons. They are:

The Diana Mixtape – A brilliantly hilarious and camp evening spent watching 5 drag queens play Diana and telling her life story through the medium of pop songs! It was one of the most fun nights I’ve had at the theatre for some time.

Sabrage – A show that is hard to classify but self described as a cabaret blending acrobatics, French glamour and high end spectacle. Its a night where you learn to expect the unexpected and as a result you have a night out unlike anywhere else in London.

Grease Secret Cinema – Having been to previous iterations of Secret Cinema this one was very different. Inside the venue it is like the movie of Grease has come alive in one room and whilst the film played the live performances are what really set this event apart. It was an innovative spectacle that gave me chills.

Hopefully this 2025 stagey round up gives you a flavour of my stagey year. I would like to thank YOU for reading my reviews and therefore giving me a chance to review these shows. I also want to thank all of my guest reviewers and the PR’s for inviting me. I can’t wait to see what 2026 brings. I already have Beetlejuice, Jesus Christ Superstar, American Psycho, The JOnathan Larson Project, Cable Street, Jo in concert and Diversity in Concert in my diary.

If you liked my 2025 stagey round up you might also like my 2024 stage round up, 2023 stagey round up and my 2022 stagey round up