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Must-see autumn theatre, London 2016

By Lucy Brooks on 12/8/2016

Plan your nights out from now until Christmas with the 13 best plays on in London this autumn — featuring famous faces, radical rewrites and all-female Shakespeare

Ian McKellen and Patrick Stewart: No Man's Land play, photo by Luke Fontana

No Man's Land, Wyndham's Theatre

Global megastars and best friends Sirs Ian McKellen and Patrick Stewart star together in Pinter's classic play. Expect absurdism and acting prowess of the highest order.

WHEN

09 Sep 2016 – 17 Dec 2016, 7:30 PM – 10:00 PM

WHERE

Wyndham's Theatre
32 Charing Cross Road, London, WC2H 0DA

Harriet Walters in all female Shakespeare

Donmar's Female Shakespeare Trilogy, Kings Cross

Phyllida Lloyd's blockbuster series of all-female Shakespeare is completed with a new take on the Tempest. And the Donmar Warehouse is building a new temporary theatre to stage the trilogy.

WHEN

23 Sep 2016 – 17 Dec 2016, Performance times tbc

WHERE

King's Cross
On the corner of King’s Boulevard and Good’s Way King’s Cross, London, N1C

Amadeus, National Theatre

Peter Shaffer's searing story of the young Mozart returns to the National Theatre's 37 years after its superlative premiere. Director Michael Longhurst has promised a fresh, conceptual take on the classic.

WHEN

19 Oct 2016 – 31 Dec 2016, 7:30 PM – 10:00 PM

WHERE

National Theatre
South Bank, London, SE1 9PX

The Libertine, Theatre Royal Haymarket

Dominic Cooper plays history's most rakish rogue in Stephen Jeffreys' 'warts and all' play about Restoration era playboy, the Earl of Rochester. Don't blame us if his steamy antics make you blush.

WHEN

22 Sep 2016 – 03 Dec 2016, 7:30 PM – 9:00 PM

WHERE

Theatre Royal Haymarket
18 Suffolk Street, London, SW1Y 4HT

The Children, Royal Court

'Britain's brightest young stage writer' Lucy Kirkwood returns with an eerie new tale about dysfunctional family ties in an unstable world.

WHEN

17 Nov 2016 – 14 Jan 2017, 7:30 PM – 10:00 PM

WHERE

Royal Court Theatre
Sloane Square, London, SW1W 8AS

Coming to London, LAZARUS play: Michael C Hall ® JAN VERSWEYVELD

Lazarus, Kings Cross Theatre

David Bowie's musical comes to London. With a song book by the Starman himself and direction from maverick Ivo van Hove, it's set to be every bit as weird as you'd expect.

WHEN

25 Oct 2016 – 22 Jan 2017, Tuesday to Sunday at 8pm

WHERE

Kings Cross Theatre
King's Cross, , London, , N1C 4UR

London transfer for Nice Fish: Jim Lichtscheidl and Mark Rylance

Mark Rylance in Nice Fish, Harold Pinter Theatre

It's offishal, after making a splash across the pond, Mark Rylance's oddball comedy Nice Fish is transferring to London… and aquatic fancy dress could hook you free tickets

WHEN

15 Nov 2016 – 21 Jan 2017, 7:30 PM – 10:00 PM

WHERE

Harold Pinter Theatre
Panton Street, London, SW1Y 4DN

The Red Barn, National Theatre

Mark Strong returns to the stage to star in a taut new thriller based on the French novel La Main, adapted by David Hare.

WHEN

06 Oct 2016 – 30 Nov 2016, Running date and times TBC

WHERE

National Theatre
South Bank, London, SE1 9PX

King Lear, Old Vic

It might not be enough to redress a history of male dominance, but London's new trend for all-female Shakespeare is certainly exciting. Especially when it means the legendary Glenda Jackson will play King Lear.

WHEN

25 Oct 2016 – 03 Dec 2016, 7:30 PM – 11:00 PM

WHERE

The Old Vic
The Cut, London, SE1 8NB

Saint Joan, Donmar Warehouse

Gemma Arterton plays the original feminist mistress of war, performer of miracles and martyr in Josie Rourke's radical reworking of Bernard Shaw's play.

WHEN

09 Dec 2016 – 18 Feb 2017, 7:30 PM – 10:00 PM

WHERE

Donmar Warehouse
41 Earlham Street, Seven Dials, London, WC2H 9LX

Mary Stuart: Juliet Stevenson and Lia Williams photographed by Miles Aldridge

Mary Stuart, Almeida Theatre

Rival queens Mary and Elizabeth are brought to life by Juliet Stevenson and Lia Williams, switching parts each performance at the flip of the coin. We predict the Almeida at its bold, boundary-breaking best.

WHEN

02 Dec 2016 – 21 Jan 2017, 7:00 PM – 10:00 PM

WHERE

Almeida Theatre
Almeida Street, Islington, London, N1 1TA

Rent, St James Theatre

Updating the timeless story of impoverished artists in New York's Alphabet City, Rent the musical brings bohemian excess and 80s charm to London this winter.

WHEN

08 Dec 2016 – 28 Jan 2017, 7:30 PM – 10:00 PM

WHERE

St James Theatre
12 Palace Street, London, SW1E 5JA

Hedda Gabler, National Theatre

Visionary director Ivo van Hove makes his National Theatre debut in this modern version of Hedda Gabler, starring Ruth Wilson (The Affair, Luther).

WHEN

05 Dec 2016 – 11 Feb 2017, 7:30 PM – 10:00 PM

WHERE

National Theatre
South Bank, London, SE1 9PX

Must-see autumn theatre, London 2016

Plan your nights out from now until Christmas with the 13 best plays on in London this autumn — featuring famous faces, radical rewrites and all-female Shakespeare

No Man's Land, Wyndham's Theatre

Donmar's Female Shakespeare Trilogy, Kings Cross

Amadeus, National Theatre

The Libertine, Theatre Royal Haymarket

The Children, Royal Court

Lazarus, Kings Cross Theatre

Mark Rylance in Nice Fish, Harold Pinter Theatre

The Red Barn, National Theatre

King Lear, Old Vic

Saint Joan, Donmar Warehouse

Mary Stuart, Almeida Theatre

Rent, St James Theatre

Hedda Gabler, National Theatre

Autumn Theatre

Winter Theatre

West End Shows

Shakespeare

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