MickeyJoTheatre

Last night, after considerable anticipation, Mickey-Jo finally saw WICKED: For Good, the second film in the two part adaptation of the global musical phenomenon, Wicked. Both films have been directed by Jon M Chu and star Cynthia Erivo (The Color Purple) as Elphaba, Ariana Grande (13 the Musical) as Glinda, and Jonathan Bailey (Company) as Fiyero. The supporting cast also includes Marissa Bode, Et...

One of London's most anticipated new theatrical openings this year has been a much talked about stage adaptation of THE HUNGER GAMES, based on the young adult dystopian novel by Suzanne Collins which has also been adapted for film. The brand new production, written by Connor McPherson and directed by Matthew Dunster, is now playing at the purpose built Troubadour Theatre Canary Wharf and celebrate...

After starring in back to back off-Broadway musicals, the name on everybody's lips is rising star Matt Rodin. Of course, his face may be familiar to anyone who caught him as Jamie on the most recent US Tour of Company or from his multi-year, game filled red carpet coverage for outlets such as Broadway.com. After enjoying many of his performances and looking up to him in the theatre industry for ye...

On only the second day of Mickey-Jo's most recent trip to New York, he headed to City Center and caught the penultimate performance of BAT BOY, the venue's annual gala presentation. A cult hit musical first seen around the millennium, this revival starred Taylor Trensch alongside Kerry Butler, who returned to the show having played a role in its original off-Broadway run. Check out what Mickey-Jo...

Mickey-Jo has officially arrived back in New York City for another marathon theatre trip filled with as many Broadway and Off-Broadway shows as possible. Ahead of sharing plenty of review and vlog-style coverage, Mickey-Jo is letting you know which shows he plans to see, which he is still considering and which he will deliberately avoid... Check out Mickey-Jo's thoughts on what's currently playing...

It has been announced today that the Tony Award winning musical AVENUE Q is heading back to the West End for a 20th anniversary production that is being called a 'revisal'. Find out why I'm excited for the irreverent, fuzzy show to return, who I would like to see starring in it, and what we might expect in terms of updates to the material... • 00:00 | introduction 01:44 | what we know 08:50 | what...

This week Mickey-Jo was invited to review the opening night performance of a new West End production of OTHELLO at Theatre Royal, Haymarket. The Shakespearean tragedy starred David Harewood and Toby Jones and was directed by Tom Morris in the first of a series of contemporary Shakespearean productions. Check our this full review to find out what Mickey-Jo thought of the direction, performances, an...

With more high profile plays and musicals receiving their world premiere productions in the UK, audiences are asking whether these West End shows will ever get a Broadway transfer. From celebrated musicals like The Curious Case of Benjamin Button and the recent revival of Evita to highly anticipated new adaptations like Paddington the Musical and The Hunger Games, New York theatre fans are eager t...

On either side of the Atlantic, from Keanu Reeves and George Clooney to Bryan Cranston and Nicole Scherzinger, the theatre industry has been no stranger to celebrity casting. It perhaps isn't a surprise, then, that The Stage newspaper ran two opposing opinion pieces about whether or not this type of stunt casting was in fact damaging the industry on a fundamental level. Through these differing per...

After considerable anticipation, it has now been announced that stage and screen star Luke Evans will play Dr Frank n Furter in the upcoming Broadway revival of Richard O'Brien's The Rocky Horror Show. The iconic role, played famously on screen by Tim Curry, has lately been the subject of some debate with many suggesting that the role ought to be played by trans or non binary actors. Check out tod...

The new musical HOT MESS by Jack Godfrey and Ellie Coote, an award winning hit which debuted at this year's Edinburgh Festival Fringe, has recently opened at Southwark Playhouse Elephant. The show, which focuses on climate change via an allegorical narrative with a relationship between embodiments of the Earth and Humanity, stars Danielle Steers and Tobias Turley. Check out this full review of the...

The acclaimed Mischief Theatre company, AKA the hysterical minds behind The Play That Goes Wrong, The Comedy about a Bank Robbery, and more, have announced today that they will premiere their first ever musical. The show, titled Thespians, will be set in Ancient Greece, and will debut at the Mercury Theatre in Colchester before touring to a handful of UK regional theatres in Guildford, Cardiff, Ma...

After premiering at Bristol Old Vic, the new musical STARTER FOR TEN is back in an enhanced production than returned to the same venue as well as touring to Birmingham Rep. The show adapts the 2003 novel of the same name by David Nicholls, following a young man named Brian whose lifelong dream is to appear as a contestant on the prolific TV quiz competition, University Challenge. Check out this fu...

Get Down Tonight, a new musical Mickey-Jo first enjoyed at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, has transferred to London, and is now playing at the Charing Cross Theatre. Mickey-Jo sat down with its new leading man Ross Harmon, a rising West End star who plays Harry Casey in the story of how he became the celebrated songwriter behind KC and the Sunshine Band. Check out Mickey-Jo's chat with Ross as we...

With the stage adaptation of THE HUNGER GAMES having welcomed audiences to its first preview performances earlier this week, a conversation about the nature of these shows has been ignited. In 2025, the reception, implementation and necessity of previews is called into question as prices show increasingly little difference from regular shows and audiences are faster than ever before to take to soc...

Earlier this month Mickey-Jo travelled to San Diego, California to see some new musicals including HUZZAH! at the Old Globe. Check out this full video review to find out what Mickey-Jo thought of the show, and its potential future... • 00:00 | introduction 02:45 | overview 07:18 | synopsis 13:25 | material 19:30 | performances 24:33 | future life About Mickey-Jo: As one of the leading voices in th...

Mickey-Jo was recently invited to attend another gala night at the West End production of CABARET, currently running at the Kit Kat Club at the Playhouse Theatre in London. The production, directed by Rebecca Frecknall and originally starring Eddie Redmayne and Jessie Buckley has recently welcomed new stars in Reeve Carney (Hadestown) as The Emcee and Eva Noblezada (The Great Gatsby) who returns t...

West End and Broadway star Ramin Karimloo has led some of the world's most iconic musicals, including The Phantom of the Opera, Les Misérables, and more, and has performed as an actor on major stages around the world. Mickey-Jo sat down with Ramin last week to discuss Roam, the new musical he'll be leading in concert next month at the Shaftesbury Theatre in London alongside a stellar cast includin...

Mickey-Jo recently returned to the West End production of HADESTOWN at the Lyric Theatre to see the show's newest cast member, Nicola Roberts, in the role of Persephone. Nicola, who is best known for having been a member of the pop group Girls Aloud, made her West End debut five years ago in the sadly short lived revival of CITY OF ANGELS, and now returns to the stage to join a talented cast in th...

It has been announced that a new production of Andrew Lloyd Webber's CATS will be among next summer's season at Regent's Park Open Air Theatre. This new, outdoor production, to be directed and choreographed by the venue's artistic director Drew McOnie, is the latest in a string of non-replica stagings of the musical. Find out everything we know so far about the upcoming revival, what we can infer...

One of the most anticipated, major theatrical openings of 2026 is the world premiere of THE GREATEST SHOWMAN. The long awaited and hugely anticipated stage adaptation of the live action movie musical begins performances in Bristol in March 2026 ahead of an expected West End run. Today, the cast for this production has been announced as well as the full creative team, and Mickey-Jo is discussing bo...

This week, Mickey-Jo had the chance to sit down with one of his favourite performers, the brilliant Melanie La Barrie. Mel is currently appearing in Mary Page Marlowe at the Old Vic and rehearsing for three upcoming concert performances of a new musical based on The Book Thief. Best known to audiences for starring in & Juliet in the West End and on Broadway, and for her WhatsOnStage Award winn...

One of the Royal Shakespeare Company's latest openings is a new adaptation of CYRANO DE BERGERAC starring Adrian Lester. The new text has been written by Director Simon Evans with the grime poet Debris Stevenson. Having seen multiple different interpretations of this narrative, find out why Mickey-Jo thought this one was, perhaps, definitive in this full review. • 00:00 | introduction 02:01 | syno...

In the current Broadway season, one of the most anticipated new musicals is the upcoming stage adaptation of THE LOST BOYS. With the show having recently started revealing its material and announced its principal cast, Mickey-Jo is sharing thoughts and insights about everything we know about it so far. • 00:00 | introduction 02:40 | what is the show about? 08:36 | the producers / creatives 15:32 |...

Last weekend Mickey-Jo flew to San Diego to catch one of the final performances of THE HEART, a new musical receiving its world premiere production at La Jolla Playhouse. The show, written by Ian and Anne Eisendrath and Kait Kerrigan, combines a medical drama plot with an EDM score in order to tell the story of a life saving heart transplant. Check out Mickey-Jo's thoughts about the show, the sens...