“The Greatest Showman” to ‘Come Alive’ on Stage as Musical Heads to London’s West End

Oliver Tompsett and Samantha Barks will lead the cast of the story, based on the hit 2017 film and inspired by the life of showman P.T. Barnum

NEED TO KNOW

Key Takeaways

• The stage adaptation of The Greatest Showman will debut at London’s Theatre Royal Drury Lane in spring 2027
• Oliver Tompsett and Samantha Barks lead the cast, with songs by Grammy-winning composers Benj Pasek and Justin Paul
• The production features a creative team including Tony winner Casey Nicholaw and Hamilton‘s Alex Lacamoire

The circus is headed to the West End.

Disney Theatrical Group announced on Friday, Aug. 14, that its stage adaptation of The Greatest Showman will open at London’s Theatre Royal Drury Lane in spring 2027, following its sold-out world premiere engagement at the Bristol Hippodrome earlier this year.

Oliver Tompsett will lead the company as P.T. Barnum — the role Hugh Jackman originated in the hit 2017 movie — alongside Les Misérables alum and stage veteran Samantha Barks as his wife, Charity Barnum, played onscreen by Michelle Williams.

Inspired by the famed showman’s life, the story follows Barnum as he sets out to create a spectacular new form of entertainment, assembling a troupe of performers and outsiders who become an unlikely family.

Also joining the principal cast are Ben Joyce as Phillip Carlyle, Vajèn van den Bosch as Jenny Lind and Malinda Parris as Lettie Lutz. Zac Efron, Rebecca Ferguson and Keala Settle played the respective characters in the film.

The news was revealed at Disney’s D23 Expo, where Tompsett and members of the company gave audiences a taste of what’s to come with a performance of “Come Alive,” one of the movie musical’s beloved songs.

It’s something of a full-circle moment for The Greatest Showman. Disney first announced it was developing the film into a stage musical at D23 in August 2024, though no casting, creative team or production dates were revealed at the time.

Two years later, the show is officially making its way to one of London’s most famous stages.

Like the film, the stage adaptation features songs from EGOT-winning composers Benj Pasek and Justin Paul, including “The Greatest Show,” “A Million Dreams,” “Rewrite the Stars,” “Never Enough” and the Golden Globe-winning anthem “This Is Me.” The songwriting duo has also penned new music specifically for the stage production.

It’s Pasek and Paul’s songs that made The Greatest Showman the success it is today.

The film, directed by Michael Gracey from a screenplay by Jenny Bicks and Bill Condon, opened to mixed reviews in December 2017. But positive word-of-mouth helped propel the movie to nearly $462 million at the worldwide box office.

Its soundtrack became an even bigger cultural phenomenon, cementing The Greatest Showman as the world’s best-selling album of 2018. It went on to win the Grammy Award for Best Compilation Soundtrack for Visual Media, while “This Is Me” won the Golden Globe for Best Original Song and earned an Academy Award nomination in the same category.

“It’s rare for a new film musical to capture the world’s imagination in the way The Greatest Showman has — both for its story and record-breaking soundtrack,” Anne Quart and Andrew Flatt of Disney Theatrical Group said in a statement on Friday. “The piece is fearless in its emotion: open-hearted, exuberant, and unapologetically joyous, celebrating those considered outsiders and dreamers.”

Actor-turned-scribe Tim Federle, the Emmy-nominated creator of High School Musical: The Musical: The Series, wrote The Greatest Showman musical’s book. Tony winner Casey Nicholaw (The Book of Mormon, Mean Girls) directs and choreographs.

The expansive creative team also includes Hamilton‘s Alex Lacamoire as music supervisor. He also is providing incidental and dance music arrangements and orchestrations, while Paul will handle vocal and incidental music arrangements.

Expect plenty of magic, too. Lorenzo Pisoni is behind the show’s circus creation and design, while Jeremy Chernick handles special effects and Skylar Fox serves as illusions designer.

“The show is born of a collaboration with an incredible group of artists,” Quart and Flatt continued. “We’re thrilled to begin this next chapter in our long association with Theatre Royal Drury Lane — this feels like a very special homecoming.”

Tompsett arrives at The Greatest Showman after an extensive stage career that includes & Juliet on Broadway and in the West End, as well as Pretty Woman, Kinky Boots, Rock of Ages, Wicked, We Will Rock You and Mamma Mia!.

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

Barks, meanwhile, is no stranger to Theatre Royal Drury Lane. She starred there as Elsa in the West End production of Disney’s Frozen, a role she also played in the filmed version released on Disney+.

The actress first rose to prominence as a contestant on the BBC talent competition I’d Do Anything before playing Éponine in the West End production of Les Misérables. She later reprised the role opposite Jackman in the 2012 movie adaptation of the musical.

Her other credits include Pretty Woman on Broadway and in Chicago, The Last Five Years, City of Angels and Cabaret. She also won the 2025 season of the U.K. edition of The Masked Singer.

The Greatest Showman marks the first title from 20th Century Studios, formerly 20th Century Fox, to be adapted for the stage by Disney Theatrical Group. The Seelig Group, which produced the original movie, is also a producer of the musical.

Of course, Disney Theatrical Group has a long history of bringing adaptations of hit Disney films to stages around the world. Those on Broadway alone have included Beauty and the Beast, The Lion King, Tarzan, Mary Poppins, The Little Mermaid, Aladdin, Newsies and Frozen. Elsewhere, The Hunchback of Notre Dame and Hercules have also been turned into stage musicals.

A performance schedule and ticket on-sale dates for The Greatest Showman at Theatre Royal Drury Lane will be announced at a later date.

Read the full article here