Last week Disney announced that Frozen will be taking its final bow in September, shocking fans around the world who assumed that the acclaimed musical would continue running for years to come.
The show, which reimagined the 2013 blockbuster animation, had not only pulled in the crowds (nearly three million people have bought tickets to see Frozen since its September 2021 opening) but it picked up some stellar reviews, too: "It’s still refreshing to see a show with two female leads, where romantic love takes a back seat to sibling affection," said the Standard.
On the closing, Michael Grandage, whose award-winning production company worked on the musical, said: "Frozen opened in the UK on the heels of the pandemic, and it was glorious to welcome back audiences, many of whom were coming to the theatre for the first time. To introduce so many to the power of theatre and hopefully cultivate a lifelong love for it, has been an immense privilege."
There are quite a few other shows closing in the West End over the next couple of months. With that in mind, here are the tickets to grab now before its too late.
Hamnet, closing February 17
Maggie O’Farrell’s bestselling book about William Shakespeare’s son Hamnet who dies of the plague, and how the playwright and his wife Agnes Hathaway deal with their grief, was prime fodder for the Royal Shakespeare Company to adapt for the stage. Arriving in London from the RSC’s Stratford home last October, the Standard described it as a "a solid, elegant take" on the original.
The Garrick Theatre, Buy tickets here
The Time Traveller's Wife: The Musical, closing February 24
With original songs from Grammy Award winners Joss Stone and Eurythmics' Dave Stewart, this stage adaptation of Audrey Niffenegger’s best-selling novel, which premiered at Chester's Storyhouse theatre last autumn, offers an interesting, if a slightly unrealised, musical update.
The Apollo, Buy tickets here
The Enfield Haunting, closing March 2
The Enfield Haunting, which stars Catherine Tate and David Threlfall, reimagines the true story of supernatural activity in an east London home in the Seventies. "The draw, of course, is Tate, returning to a play in the West End for the first time since The Vote at the Donmar Warehouse in 2015," said the Standard.
Ambassadors Theatre, Buy tickets here
The Unfriend, closing March 2
The Unfriend follows a couple who meet "a lusty, Trump-loving widow from Denver, USA" on holiday, and agree to swap details – assuming they'll never see her again of course. So they get a real shock when Elsa turns up in London.
"What a hoot. Amanda Abbington, Reece Shearsmith and Frances Barber excel in this uproarious, if somewhat contrived, comedy of English embarrassment by former Doctor Who and Sherlock showrunner Steven Moffat," said the Standard's Nick Curtis.
Wyndham's Theatre, Buy tickets here
The Motive and the Cue, closing March 23
Johnny Flynn and Mark Gatiss play actors Richard Burton and John Gielgud in this acclaimed production from Oscar-winning director Sam Mendes. It's 1964 and Burton, who is newly married to Elizabeth Taylor, will play Hamlet in Gielgud's latest Broadway show.
Noël Coward Theatre, Buy tickets here
My Neighbour Totoro, closing March 23
A reimagining of the 1988 anime, My Neighbour Totoro tells the story of two young sisters, Satsuki and Mei, who move to the country in post-war Japan. Their mother is ill, so they live alone with their doting father who encourages them to play outside and lean into their imaginations, which they do. The Olivier award-winning RSC adaptation, which is returning to the Barbican after a sell-out run last year, is directed by Phelim McDermott and has a set by Tom Pye, costumes by Kimie Nakano and sound by Tony Gayle.
