The very best plays from 2017

Absolutely worth the hype

We got to see Hamilton on its third night and oh WOW. When you've listened to the soundtrack as much as we have, it would be easy to leave disappointed. But the London transfer of Broadway's most hyped musical is utterly electric. Hamilton raises the bar and sets a new standard for story-telling. It's safe to say that the show, like its title character, shall go on and on, growing into more of a phenomenon. Make it your priority to get tickets.

A masterpiece from Jez Butterworth and Sam Mendes

When Jez Butterworth's three-hour Irish saga opened at the Royal Court, interval whispers asked whether it was better than Jerusalem. By the end, those whispers were saying The Ferryman was the best play of the year. A sellout run, five-star reviews and a hoard of awards proved it. After a West End transfer and ahead of the third new cast, the show is still superlative.

A modern epic revived at the National Theatre

A superlative cast including Andrew Garfield, Denise Gough, Russell Tovey and Nathan Lane shone in this awe-inspiring revival of Tony Kushner's 1993 two-part drama.

After eight hours of intense, surreal and emotionally-charged drama around HIV/AIDS, addiction, love and loss, Angels in America ended on a timely message of ‘progress, migration, motion’.

A soulful story of Bob Dylan's songbook

Conor McPherson's 'play with music' channeled all the beauty, poetry and intensity of Bob Dylan's music into a potent story of the comings and goings of a guest house in 1934. The songs and story illuminated each other and embodied the storytelling heart of folk music to transcendence After its impressive premiere at the Old Vic in summer, Girl From the North Country comes to the the West End for early 2018.

A headline-worthy hit from James Graham

Ink was the first of what will be a hat-trick of 2017 hits for playwright James Graham. The story of Fleet Street antics and the rise of The Sun newspaper was a sellout success at The Almeida, before transferring to the West End. The documentary-style precision, lively comedy and increasingly gripping narrative built a shrewd insight into the gutter press, and our ongoing appetite for sensation.

A transfixing revival of Edward Albee's masterpiece

Among the many deaths of 2016 was playwright Edward Albee. So it was especially poignant that 2017 began with a compelling revival of his most famous play, Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?. Under James Macdonald's direction, the 1962 portrait of a viciously dysfunctional marriage felt utterly fresh, with Imelda Staunton in magnificent form as Martha.

A superlative Sondheim revival

Stephen Sondheim’s momentous 1971 musical Follies came to life with sparkle, surrealism and stunning performances in this superlative National Theatre revival by director Dominic Cooke. Imelda Staunton (again!) was on her usual magnificent form as smiley, soulful Sally and Janie Dee was the perfect foil as waspish Phyllis. Watching either one of them is an event. Together they were sensational.

A hot mess millennial woman in the spotlight

It wasn't easy being a woman in 2017. So thank god for DryWrite Theatre Company. Headed by Phoebe Waller-Bridge and Vicky Jones, and suddenly a sensation thanks to the monumental success and TV adaptation of 2013 play Fleabag, they put hot mess millennial women in the spotlight. New play Touch was like a natural extension of Fleabag, taking us from mid twenties to early thirties with the same filthy, unflinching humour.

A radically different Hamlet

Director Robert Icke's mastery for giving classic characters contemporary forms was crystallised in his production of Hamlet, which opened at the Almeida before transferring to the West End. Andrew Scott’s Prince Hamlet probed our modern-day anxieties with a sharp, unpredictable yet deeply endearing emphasis on grief. Juliet Stevenson as Gertrude was exceptional as a politician's wife who genuinely loves her child yet constantly fails to protect him.

A musical for a new age

This uplifting, unlikely tale of a teenage boy with dreams of being a drag queen was the freshest show we saw this year. With soaring pop songs courtesy of Dan Gillespie Sells and a magnetic performance from John McCrea as Jamie, it's a smart, fun celebration of being young, brave and breaking the mould.

A super-sweet lovestory

Emma Rice's final show at The Globe shone with all the imagination and originality we've come to expect. In the candlelit intimacy of the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse, winter musical Romantics Anonymous brought together two painfully shy people. It was a tender, funny and utterly feel-good delight – complete with magic chocolate.

A feat in technology

Ivo van Hove brought 80s media satire Network to life with staggeringly innovative staging. Cameras captured every single angle of the action, merging moments from the original theme into live theatre. And Bryan Cranston gave a rousing rendition of a man who's mad as hell and not going to take it anymore.