October Preview: 40 Shows To Treat Yourself To This Month
- All That Dazzles
- Sep 29
- 8 min read
Spooky season is upon us! As the nights get darker and Halloween draws closer, Halloween brings with it a whole bunch of treats with very little tricks to be found. Here are 40 of the best shows opening in October:
THE SOON LIFE (Southwark Playhouse Borough)
1st – 18th October
A heartfelt, hilarious, and honest original production delivers a funny, gripping, fly-on-the-wall portrait of a woman on the cusp of change.
LIFERS (Southwark Playhouse Borough)
1st – 25th October
Darkly funny and unflinchingly honest, this play challenges what we think we know about crime, punishment, and redemption in a compelling look at ageing, and the stories we tell ourselves to survive.
Tickets from https://southwarkplayhouse.co.uk/productions/lifers/
BLUE/ORANGE (Greenwich Theatre)
1st – 25th October
Joe Penhall’s exquisitely sharp 'state of the nation' classic celebrates its 25th anniversary with an updated production bringing new vibrancy to the powerful and provocative play, tackling issues of race, mental health and institutional power.
Tickets from https://greenwichtheatre.org.uk/events/blueorange/
CHARLEY’S AUNT (The Watermill)
3rd October – 15th November
Schemes, dreams, and classic comic confusion meet hidden identities, mistaken identities, and new identities in this glamourous glow-up of Brandon Thomas’ much-loved farce.
Tickets from watermill.org.uk
MISS SAIGON (UK & Ireland Tour)
4th October – 1st August 2026
Seann Miley Moore stars as The Engineer in this new production of Boublil and Schönberg’s legendary musical. The tour kicks off in Newcastle and moves to Edinburgh at the end of the month.
Dates and tickets at www.miss-saigon.com
DA VINCI’S LAUNDRY (Riverside Studios)
6th – 25th October
A blistering new satirical comedy set in the champagne-soaked, morally compromised world of high-end art. A razor-sharp ride through masterpieces, money laundering, romance, and how the art world stopped being about art and became about power.
MATILDA (UK & Ireland Tour)
6th October – 17th January 2027
As the West End production celebrates 15 years on stage, the acclaimed musical adaptation of Roald Dahl’s beloved back kicks off a new tour at Curve Leicester, touring all over the UK and Ireland into 2027.
Dates and tickets at www.matildathemusical.com.
DARKFIELD (Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park)
7th October – 2nd November
The pioneering immersive theatre producers will do their biggest ever London residency featuring a collection of four immersive audio experiences in shipping containers.
Tickets from www.darkfield.org
RAGDOLL (Jermyn Street Theatre)
9th October – 15th November
inspired by the trial of Patty Hearst. Katherine Moar’s follow up to Farm Hall plunges us into the psychedelic swirl of celebrity, violence, and scandal of 1970s America.
Tickets from www.jermynstreettheatre.co.uk
THE SEAGULL (Royal Lyceum Theatre)
9th October – 1st November
Caroline Quentin stars in a darkly comic reimagining of Anton Chekhov's widely loved masterpiece, blending sharp-edged comedy and emotionally rich drama into a timeless story of vanity, creative hunger, and the cost of dreams.
Tickets from lyceum.org.uk
MACBETH (The Other Place)
9th October – 6th December
Sam Heughan and Lia Williams are Macbeth and Lady Macbeth in Shakespeare’s story of love, power and ambition.
Tickets from https://www.rsc.org.uk/macbeth/
YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN (Hope Mill Theatre)
10th October – 30th November
Ore Oduba stars in the regional premiere of Mel Brooks’ comedy classic as part of the Hope Mill Theatre’s 10th anniversary celebrations.
FANNY (King’s Head Theatre)
10th October – 15th November
A joyful and irreverent comedy celebrating music, family and – at last – the work of a composer overlooked because of her sex.
SUNNY AFTERNOON (UK Tour)
10th October – 30th May
The music and story of The Kinks returns for a brand new tour, kicking off in Manchester this month.
Dates and tickets at hekinksmusical.com/uktour
THE UNBELIEVERS (Royal Court)
10th October – 29th November
Marianne Elliott directs this new play about family, memory and hope from Nick Payne in a startling portrait of motherhood, faith, family – and the lengths we go to for those we refuse to forget.
Tickets from https://royalcourttheatre.com/
SAFE SPACE (Minerva Theatre)
11th October – 8th November
This whip-smart, hilarious and bracing new play from Jamie Bogyo takes us into the volatile quicksand of campus politics in the dying months of Obama’s presidency, and asks how – and if – we can escape the past.
Tickets from cft.org.uk
PERSONALITY – THE LLOYD PRICE MUSICAL (Southbank Centre)
11th October
Cedric Neal, Zoe Birkett, Marcus Collins and Clive Rowe are among the cast assembled for the London stage premiere of this new musical following a critically acclaimed run in Chicago and a showcase in London last year.
Tickets from https://allthatdazzles.londontheatredirect.com/musical/personality-the-lloyd-price-musical-tickets
THE MAIDS (Donmar Warehouse)
13th October – 29th November
Kip Williams writes and directs the new translation of Jean Genet’s ompelling, timely parable of modern identity and the destructive desire to both emulate and annihilate those we idolize.
Tickets from www.donmarwarehouse.com
HOT MESS (Southwark Playhouse Elephant)
16th October – 8th November
Danielle Steers and Tobias Turley star in the London transfer of the latest show from Jack Godfrey and Ellie Coote, reimagining the climate crisis as the ultimate breakup between Earth and Humanity.
LITTLE BROTHER (Soho Theatre)
16th October – 22nd November
A darkly comic play set in Belfast about sibling love, self-destruction, and what it means to save someone who doesn’t want to be saved
Tickets from www.sohotheatre.com
THE WANDERERS (Marylebone Theatre)
17th October – 29th November
A story about longing, connection, and the invisible threads that bind us across generations. Can we ever truly escape the inheritance of our past
THE ASSEMBLED PARTIES (Hampstead Theatre)
17th October – 22nd November
Tony Award-nominated actress Jennifer Westfeldt stars alongside Tracy-Ann Oberman in the European premiere of Richard Greenberg’s virtuosic comedy-drama.
CROCODILE FEVER (Arcola Theatre)
17th October – 22nd November
The London premiere of this award-winning dark comedy takes two Northern Irish sisters on a journey of 80s anthems, Asmat Tribe legends and chain-saw-wielding revenge.
WHO’S AFRAID OF VIRGINIA WOOLF (Curve Leicester)
18th October – 8th November
Cathy Tyson and Patrick Robinson star in a new production of Edward Albee’s epoch-defining masterpiece in this witty, hugely entertaining, provocative and lacerating study of a marriage in crisis.
HEDDA (Orange Tree Theatre)
18th October – 22nd November
Tanika Gupta adapts a bold new version of Henrik Ibsen’s classic drama about blackmail, secrecy and power.
Tickets from https://orangetreetheatre.co.uk/whats-on/hedda/
BARRIERS (UK Tour)
18th October – 29th November
A heartwarming and revolutionary production exploring queer topics through the lens of a deaf and hearing relationship, stressing the importance of acknowledging and speaking up about issues surrounding LGBTQ+ and deaf communities.
More information at www.deafinitelytheatre.co.uk
THE BOOK THIEF IN CONCERT (Prince Of Wales Theatre)
19th & 26th October
Based on the best-selling novel by Markus Zusa, a concert version of the musical stage adaptation heads to London for the first time for 3 performances, with a cast led by Melanie La Barrie as Death.
Tickets from www.thebookthiefmusical.com
THE HUNGER GAMES ON STAGE (Troubadour Theatre Canary Wharf)
From 20th October
The first-ever stage adaptation of Suzanne Collins’s internationally acclaimed book opens a brand new theatre in London, adapted by Conor McPherson with Mia Carragher leading the cast as Katniss Everdeen.
Tickets from www.thehungergamesonstage.com
WENDY & PETER PAN (Barbican Theatre)
21st October – 22nd November
The London premiere of Ella Hickson’s exhilarating take on JM Barrie’s beloved classic stars Toby Stephens, Lolita Chakrabarti and Daniel Krikler.
THIS LITTLE EARTH (Arcola Theatre)
22nd October – 15th November
Jessica Norman’s debut full-length play explores a world where truth has become increasingly elusive in a story about love, survival and the dangerous pursuit of truth.
KINDLING (Park Theatre)
22nd October – 15th November
Following five perimenopausal women who travel to Wales to scatter their mutual friend’s ashes, but get lost in a forest which leads to secrets, unspoken rivalries and more coming to the surface.
Tickets from www.parktheatre.co.uk
OTHELLO (Theatre Royal Haymarket)
23rd October – 17th January
David Harewood, Toby Jones and Caitlin FitzGerald star in an explosive new production of Shakespeare’s epic story of manipulation, jealousy and toxic masculinity exploring the darker side of power, rage and desire.
MIDSOMER MURDERS: THE KILLINGS AT BADGER’S DRIFT (UK Tour)
24th October – 18th April
The world premiere of Guy Unsworth’s adaptation of the well loved book and TV series comes to the stage for the first time with a tour kicking off at Richmond.
Dates and tickets at Midsomeronstage.com
MAMMA MIA! (UK Tour)
24th October – 2nd August
Here we go again, as the sensational feel-good musical embarks on another tour of the UK featuring no shortage of ABBA hits and potential fathers, with Jenn Griffin leading the cast as Donna. How can you resist it?
Dates and tickets at mamma-mia.com.
EUREKA DAY (Nottingham Playhouse)
25th October – 15th November
Jenna Russell stars in the UK regional premiere of this laugh-out-loud play that shows how even the most enlightened communities are just one epidemic away from complete turmoil.
Tickets from nottinghamplayhouse.co.uk
ELF THE MUSICAL (Aldwych Theatre)
28th October – 3rd January
Christmas comes early to the West End with the return of the festive favourite starring Joel Montague as Buddy alongside Carrie Hope Fle
tcher as Jovie and Aled Jones as Walter Hobbs.
THE MEAT KINGS! (inc) OF BROOKLYN HEIGHTS (Park Theatre)
30th October – 29th November
The world premiere of the 2024 Papatango New Writing Prize winner carves into the dark underbelly of America’s anti-immigration policies and the brutal sacrifices that drive the pursuit of prosperity.
Tickets from https://allthatdazzles.londontheatredirect.com/play/the-meat-kings-inc-of-brooklyn-heights-tickets
GWENDA’S GARAGE (Southwark Playhouse Borough)
30th October – 29th November
The world premiere of the next big British musical is a joyful, exuberant, queer, call to arms, fired by fun, feminism, friendship, and above all an affirming belief in the power of collective action.
FATHERLAND (Hampstead Theatre)
31st October – 29th November
The world premiere of this sharp, tender and darkly funny new play about the chaos of connection, and how sometimes the only way forward is through a snowstorm on the M6.
Tickets from hampsteadtheatre.com
COVEN (Kiln Theatre)
31st October – 13th December
A thrilling new musical combining uplifting anthems and powerful melodies in a fresh reinterrogation of the true story of the Pendle Witch Trials. With power in their veins and the earth beneath their feet, 13 women rise above the forces that seek to silence them.
What are you most looking forward to seeing in October?
Let me know in the comments or on all my socials - @ATDazzles on X, Instagram, Threads, Facebook and TikTok, and look out for reviews of many of them on the website over the next month as well as conversations with the stars of some of these shows on my podcast All That Chat, returning with new episodes this month.
To have your show included in the November preview or any other monthly post, send me an email with details of your show and I’ll include as many as possible.
See you in the theatre!