Back in 2017, The Greatest Showman opened in cinemas to mixed reviews and a box office that was nothing to get excited about.
However, word of mouth spread that the Hugh Jackman-led PT Barnum original musical was a hidden gem.
Suddenly fans were attending multiple singalongs as the film hit No 1 in February after its December release, the first film to do so since Titanic.
Yet the real success story beyond the box office was the movie’s soundtrack which matched The Beatles’ Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band as the album that has spent the sixth most time at No 1 across 28 non-consecutive weeks.
Following Disney’s acquisition of 20th Century Fox, it was only a matter of time before The Greatest Showman stage musical was announced.
According to Deadline, The Greatest Showman theatrical production will open in Bristol, UK around March 2026 ahead of a transfer to London’s West End and Broadway. All the favourite hit songs will be included plus five new tracks penned by Pasek and Paul who wrote and composed the movie’s musical numbers. One of them “is a rousing, rallying anthem called Show Goes On” which will end Act One.
The Tony Award-winning director of The Book of Mormon, Casey Nicholas, will helm the new Disney musical, which will sadly not star Hugh Jackman. Following a March try out at the Bristol Hippodrome, The Greatest Showman is expected to open at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane around late 2026. Open auditions kick off next month across the UK and Ireland and you can find out more about them here.