List of the longest-running West End shows
This is a list of the longest-running shows (3,000 performances or more) in the West End, a well known professional theatre district in London. Nine currently running shows (two plays, seven musicals) have played more than 3,000 performances: The Mousetrap, Les Misérables, The Phantom of the Opera, Mamma Mia!, The Lion King, Wicked, Matilda, The Book of Mormon, and The Play That Goes Wrong.
List
[edit]Unless otherwise stated, the number of performances listed is for the original West End production of the show. M denotes a musical, P denotes a straight play, R denotes a revue, D denotes a dance musical, and S denotes a special case. An asterisk indicates an announced closing date for a currently-running show. All shows that are currently running are bolded.
# | Title | Genre | Opening date |
Closing date |
Performances | Comment | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | The Mousetrap | P | 25 November 1952 | 29,547 | Currently running at the St Martin's Theatre
| ||
2 | Les Misérables | M | 8 October 1985 | 15,000 [note 1] | Currently running at the Sondheim Theatre (formerly the Queen's Theatre)
| ||
3 | The Phantom of the Opera | M | 9 October 1986 | 15,000 [note 2] | Currently running at His Majesty's Theatre
| ||
4 | The Woman in Black | P | 11 January 1989 | 4 March 2023 | 13,232 | Premiered at the Stephen Joseph Theatre in Scarborough on 12 December 1987
| |
5 | Mamma Mia! | M | 6 April 1999 | 10,100 [note 3] | Currently running at Novello Theatre
| ||
6 | Blood Brothers (revival) | M | 28 July 1988 | 10 November 2012 | 10,013 | Opened at the Albery Theatre (now the Noël Coward Theatre)
| |
7 | The Lion King | M | 19 October 1999 | 9,638 [note 4] | Currently running at Lyceum Theatre | ||
8 | Cats | M | 11 May 1981 | 11 May 2002 | 8,949 | Opened in London at the New London Theatre (now the Gillian Lynne Theatre)
| |
9 | Starlight Express | M | 27 March 1984 | 12 January 2002 | 7,406 | ||
10 | Wicked | M | 27 September 2006 | 6,762 [note 5] | Currently running at Apollo Victoria Theatre | ||
11 | No Sex Please, We're British | P | 3 June 1971 | 5 September 1987 | 6,761 | Opened at the Strand Theatre, transferred to the Garrick and Duchess Theatres during the run. | |
12 | Stomp | D | 25 September 2002 | 7 January 2018 | 6,512 | Opened at the Vaudeville Theatre
| |
13 | Chicago (revival) | M | 18 October 1997 | 1 September 2012 | 6,187 | Opened at the Adelphi Theatre
| |
14 | Buddy – The Buddy Holly Story | M | 12 October 1989 | 3 March 2002 | 5,140 | Opened at the Victoria Palace Theatre
|
|
15 | Matilda | M | 24 November 2011 | 4,670 | Currently running at Cambridge Theatre | ||
16 | We Will Rock You | M | 14 May 2002 | 31 May 2014 | 4,659 | ||
17 | Thriller - Live | R | 26 January 2009 | 15 March 2020 | 4,657 | ||
18 | Billy Elliot the Musical | M | 11 May 2005 | 9 April 2016 | 4,566 | ||
19 | Miss Saigon | M | 20 September 1989 | 30 October 1999 | 4,264 | ||
20 | The Book of Mormon | M | 21 March 2013 | 4,000[note 7] | Currently running at Prince of Wales Theatre | ||
21 | Oh! Calcutta! | R | 30 September 1970 | 2 February 1980[1] | 3,918[2] | ||
22 | Jersey Boys | M | 18 March 2008 | 26 March 2017 | 3,787 | ||
23 | The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged) | P | 7 March 1996 | 3 April 2005 | 3,744 | ||
24 | The 39 Steps | P | 14 September 2006 | 5 September 2015 | 3,731 [note 8] | ||
25 | Jesus Christ Superstar | M | 9 August 1972 | 23 August 1980 | 3,357 | ||
26 | Me and My Girl | M | 12 February 1985 | 16 January 1993 | 3,303 | This is a revival of the 1937 musical. | |
27 | Evita | M | 21 June 1978 | 18 February 1986 | 3,182 [note 10] | ||
28 | The Play That Goes Wrong | P | 14 September 2014 | 3,000 [note 11] | Currently running at Duchess Theatre |
See also
[edit]Notes
[edit]- ^ As of 28 September 2023, according to the show's official twitter. Source
- ^ As of 8 June 2024, according to the show's official twitter. Source
- ^ As of October 2024.
- ^ As of April 2024. Source
- ^ As of 24 April 2024. Source
- ^ As of 23 June 2024
- ^ As of 6 June 2024, according to the show's official twitter. Source
- ^ According to the show's official Facebook. Source
- ^ Sternfeld, Jessica (2006). The Megamusical. Indiana University Press. p. 169. ISBN 978-0-253-34793-0.
- ^ Exact number came from musicalheaven.com and This Is Theatre; 2900 given by Society of London Theatre is an estimate.
- ^ According to the show's official website, which announced it was celebrating the 2,999th performance on 19 January 2023.
References
[edit]- "Longest-running shows in West End history". Society of London Theatre. September 2023. Retrieved 15 October 2024.
- ^ "The Duchess Theatre, London", Thisistheatre.com, accessed 2 May 2020
- ^ Tynan, Kenneth, The Diaries of Kenneth Tynan, A&C Black (2002), p. 76, footnote 1