When you think of stage shows and muscials, the West End in London and Broadway both spring to mind, and whilst most shows cross the pond there are still a number that have not yet arrived in old blighty.

So ahead of the Tony Awards this weekend, the MarkMeets Entertainment team take a look at some of the biggest hits from the Great White Way yet to arrive in London

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Whilst avid theatre goers know that Hamilton opens in just over 150 days- not that we’re counting – and we know we (finally) have Dreamgirls here, thanks to 30 years of pestering from Sonia ‘superproducer’ Friedman, and we’re very grateful that the Young Vic will be presenting the UK premiere of Fun Home.

But there’s a bucketload of Broadway hits that seem to have got stuck at JFK airport on their way over and we’d like to know when we’re going to get our chance to see them please. Ahead of this weekend’s Tony Awards, we round up six of them below…

1. Bright Star

Steve Martin and Edie Brickell’s musical won the Drama Desk Award for outstanding music last year and we think that it should shoot over the Atlantic for a run, even just so we can get a selfie with Martin. This show first saw light way back in 2013 and is inspired by their Grammy-winning bluegrass album Love Has Come for You, and tells a story of love and redemption in the American south during the 1920s and ’40s.

Dream casting: Savannah Stevenson as editor Alice Murphy.

2. Newsies

Hey Disney… it’s been five years since Newsies premiered on Broadway, FIVE years, what are you playing at? With music by Disney legend Alan Menken, lyrics by Jack Feldman, and a book by Harvey Fierstein, this show about the Newsboys Strike of 1899 won two Tony Awards in 2012. A recording of the stage show was broadcast to UK cinemas earlier this year, piquing the interest of Disney fangirls and boys nationwide. But there’s still no sign of this show making front page news any time soon.

Dream casting: Well, it has to be Jeremy Jordan right?

3. Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812

Like Dear Evan Hansen it’s perhaps a bit early to be screaming at producers for not bringing this over yet, considering it only opened at the Imperial Theatre six months ago. But unlike the former, Dave Malloy’s show, a musical adaptation of Tolstoy’s War and Peace, has been knocking around for five years so it’s hardly a spring chicken. With 12 nominations, this could be the big surprise at this year’s Tony Awards.

4. Waitress

Sara Bareilles‘ musical first premiered at the American Repertory Theater in 2015 and tells the story of a waitress in an unhappy marriage who gets pregnant and begins an affair with her gynecologist. With a staunch following on this side of the pond already, a West End transfer has been talked about for some time now, and auditions have apparently been taking place, but a venue for the show is yet to be announced. We think it’s about time they served it up to London audiences.

Dream casting: Emma Kingston as Jenna, the role originated by Jessie Mueller.

5. Dear Evan Hansen

Dear Evan Hansen is transferring to the West End’s Noel Coward Theatre soon!! (Updated Oct 2019)

Information and official tickets https://seatplan.com/london/noel-coward-theatre/

Having only opened on Broadway in December it’s perhaps unfair to be asking when the transfer is already, but seriously… WHERE IS THE TRANSFER? In the same year as their Academy Award success with La La Land, writing duo Pasek & Paul (Dogfight, Edges) also hit a homerun with this musical about a high school student with a social anxiety disorder. Nominated for nine Tony Awards this year, Dear Evan Hansen has been a runaway hit with musical fans on both sides of the ocean. We hear that Cameron Mackintosh is keen to bring this over but we’re happy to wait until lead actor Ben Platt – of Pitch Perfect fame – is available.

Dream casting: If Ben Platt doesn’t transfer with it we’ll take Tyrone Huntley as Evan.

6. Something Rotten!

I mean, guys, this is about Shakespeare, so why it hasn’t come over yet beggars belief – it’s practically a British musical by default! This fun show, which opened on Broadway two years ago and closed in January, follows the Bottom brothers who struggle to compete with their contemporary, William Shakespeare. When one of them meets Nostradamus’ less gifted nephew they learn the key to success is in musicals. It sounds bonkers, and it is bonkers, which is just what we need in town right now. Not even a squeak of a rumour on this one though.

Dream casting: Simon Lipkin as the Bard and Peter Polycarpou as Thomas Nostradamus.

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