Jesus Christ Superstar Tickets at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane
Sam Ryder's Gethsemane is a thing to behold, with standing ovations to boot.
All-in: the price you pick is the price you pay.
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020 7193 9050 · Monday to Saturday 8am to 8pm, Sunday 10am to 8pm
Help choosing your seat
Who Is Jesus Christ Superstar Best For?
- Anyone who wants to hear a great voice at full stretch. Ryder's Gethsemane (he came second at Eurovision in 2022) draws a standing ovation night after night in the middle of the second act, which almost nothing else in London does.
- People who know the score. 'I Don't Know How to Love Him', 'Gethsemane' and 'Superstar' are all in it.
- Anyone who saw this staging at Regent's Park and wants it again at scale. Same director, same designer, same choreographer, in a 1,996-seat theatre.
- People who like a rock concert as much as a musical. There is a live band on scaffolding above the stage and the show leans fully into that.
- Not for you if you want story above music and effect. This is a score delivered at full power, not a play, and the reviews were consistent on that point.
About Jesus Christ Superstar at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane
This is the Regent's Park Open Air Theatre production, first seen in 2016, where it won an Olivier Award. Tim Sheader directs, Drew McOnie choreographs and Tom Scutt designs, the same three who made it a decade ago.
It played the London Palladium from June to September 2026 and sold well enough that the producers added a strictly limited 12-week season at Drury Lane, opening six weeks later on 16 October. It is the same production, and the leading cast all move with it.
Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber's show follows the last days of Jesus through the eyes of Judas, which is the thing most people do not know about it. It began as a concept album in 1970 and was staged on Broadway the year after. This production, which opened at the Palladium this summer, is its first in the West End for thirty years.
The staging is closer to a gig than to a conventional musical. Scutt's set is scaffolding, spotlights and smoke, with a cross-shaped ramp bisecting the stage and the band playing on a level above it. The set does not change. A block of audience members watch onstage from inside the set itself.
Based on the Regent's Park Open Air Theatre production. Music by Andrew Lloyd Webber, lyrics by Tim Rice.
What's Jesus Christ Superstar About?
The last week of the life of Jesus, told by the man who betrays him.
Judas thinks the movement has lost its way, that Jesus has started believing what his followers say about him, and that the poor have been forgotten. He goes to the authorities. What follows is the arrest, the trial in front of Pontius Pilate, and the crucifixion.
There is no spoken dialogue. The whole thing is sung, which is why it was a record before it was ever a show.
Performance Schedule
2 hours 5 minutes, including one interval.
| Day | Matinee | Evening |
|---|---|---|
| Monday | - | 7:30pm |
| Tuesday | - | 7:30pm |
| Wednesday | - | 7:30pm |
| Thursday | 2:30pm | 7:30pm |
| Friday | - | 7:30pm |
| Saturday | 2:30pm | 7:30pm |
| Sunday | - | - |
Eight performances a week, with matinees on Thursday and Saturday. There is no Sunday performance.
Christmas and New Year are different, and worth checking before you book. There are extra matinees on Tuesday 22 and Wednesday 23 December. There are no performances on 24, 25 and 28 December. There is no matinee on Boxing Day, evening only. There are two performances on Sunday 27 December, which is the only Sunday in the run. New Year's Eve is a matinee with no evening, and New Year's Day is an evening with no matinee.
The season ends on Saturday 9 January 2027.
Best Seats for Jesus Christ Superstar
Drury Lane holds 1,996 across four levels, and this show plays big and loud, so the usual rules apply with one addition: the band sits high above the stage, and the set is built upwards.
- Middle of the Stalls, rows F to K. Close enough for the voices, far enough back to take in a set that goes up as well as across.
- The Grand Circle is the value pick at this theatre. It always is at Drury Lane, and on a show with this much spectacle the height helps rather than hurts.
- Stalls row M side blocks have an empty row in front of them. More legroom than anything else at the price, and nobody's head in the way.
- Ask about free booster cushions if you are bringing children. The theatre has them, and it is worth asking early rather than at the interval.
Full detail by level is in the Tickets and Best Seats tab. The theatre hasn't listed any accessible performances for this run yet. Anyone with access requirements should speak to the Theatre Royal Drury Lane's own access team, who handle that for the venue, not us.
Call us on 020 7193 9050 and we will tell you what is actually available on your date.
Cast and Creative Team
Sam Ryder plays Jesus, the West End debut he made at the Palladium this summer. Tyrone Huntley is Judas, the role he created at Regent's Park in 2016. Desmonda Cathabel is Mary Magdalene, and 'I Don't Know How to Love Him' has truly become hers. The full cast is in the Cast and Creatives tab.
King Herod changes through the run
Herod is played by a run of guests, each for a week or a few weeks, so the date you book decides who you see.
| Herod | Dates |
|---|---|
| Matt Bomer | 16 to 31 October |
| Rob Brydon | 2 to 7 November |
| Reece Shearsmith | 9 to 14 November |
| Bob The Drag Queen | 16 to 21 November |
| Michael Ball | 23 November to 5 December |
| Simon Russell Beale | 7 to 12 December |
| Omid Djalili | 14 to 19 December |
| Layton Williams | 21 December to 2 January |
| To be announced | 4 to 9 January |
Directed by Tim Sheader, choreography by Drew McOnie, design by Tom Scutt, musical direction by Tom Deering.
Book Your Jesus Christ Superstar Tickets
Jesus Christ Superstar is at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane from 16 October 2026 to 9 January 2027, eight performances a week.
Tickets from £27.50 midweek and £35 at weekends. All-in: the price you pick is the price you pay.
Book tickets • Call us on 020 7193 9050 and a real person will help you pick your date and your seats.
Dates & tickets
FAQs
2 hours 5 minutes, including one interval.
Evening performances start at 7:30pm and finish at about 9:35pm. The Thursday and Saturday matinees start at 2:30pm and finish at about 4:35pm.
From £27.50 midweek and £35 at weekends, rising to £245 and £275 for the very best seats. Midweek evenings are the cheapest in the run. Our prices are all-in, so the price you see is what you pay.
Eight performers are named so far, each for a week or two, and the Herod for the final week, 4 to 9 January, has not been announced. The table above gives the dates. If you are booking around a particular name, call us and we will make sure the date matches.
He is the principal and plays the role throughout the run. As with any West End lead, we cannot guarantee a particular performer on a particular date, and no theatre will.
The theatre advises age 10 and up. Children under 4 are not admitted at all, and under-16s must be accompanied by an adult. It contains an onstage crucifixion, imitation blood, pyrotechnics and loud rock music.
Yes. There is no spoken dialogue at all, which is unusual and is why it works as a record.
No. The show tells it, and it tells it from Judas's point of view rather than as scripture.
Yes, the same staging with the same principals, moving to Drury Lane after a six-week gap. The King Herod line-up is different.
Rows F to K in the middle of the Stalls if you want the best of it. The Grand Circle is the value option and sees the height of the set well. Call us and we will match a seat to your budget.
Yes, and you can see them. They play from a scaffolding level above the stage, which is part of the design.
Theatre Royal Drury Lane is on Catherine Street, WC2B 5JF. Covent Garden and Holborn are both a short walk. The closest stops are on the Aldwych, two minutes away, served by the 1, 9, 15, 23, 26, 59, 68, 76, 87, 91, 172, 188, 243, 341 and SL6.
Saturday 9 January 2027. It is billed as a strictly limited 12-week season.
Where to Sit at Drury Lane for Jesus Christ Superstar
A 1,996-seat theatre and a show built upwards: scaffolding, a cross-shaped ramp, and the band on a level above the stage. That changes the usual calculation slightly, because there is as much to see above the stage floor as on it.
The Stalls
Rows F to K in the middle are what we book when a caller leaves the choice to us. The voices land properly from there and you still take in the height of the set.
The front rows put you under a tall design and close to a company that comes into the auditorium. Cheaper, lively, and you lose the top of the picture.
Row M side blocks are the one to ask for. There is an empty row in front of them, so the legroom is better than anything else at that price and nobody is sitting in your eyeline.
The Royal Circle and Grand Circle
The Grand Circle is the value seat at Drury Lane, and on this show the elevation is an advantage rather than a compromise. You see the shape of McOnie's choreography and the full height of the design from up here.
The Royal Circle is the premium level and priced accordingly. Excellent, and not necessary to enjoy this show.
Price bands
Midweek runs from £27.50, weekends from £35, and the top seats reach £245 midweek and £275 at weekends. Midweek evenings are the cheapest tickets in the run, and every date in the Christmas fortnight starts at £35.
Call us on 020 7193 9050 and we will tell you what the difference between two bands actually buys on your date.
Seating plan
Dates & tickets
Booking now
Getting to the Theatre Royal Drury Lane
The theatre is on Catherine Street, London WC2B 5JF, just off the Strand and Aldwych, a couple of minutes from Covent Garden piazza.
Covent Garden (Piccadilly) and Holborn (Piccadilly and Central) are the nearest tubes, with Temple and Charing Cross a little further. The closest stops are on the Aldwych, two minutes away, served by the 1, 9, 15, 23, 26, 59, 68, 76, 87, 91, 172, 188, 243, 341 and SL6.
Arrive 15 to 20 minutes before the performance, no later. It is a big building with bag checks and a busy foyer, and the queues build.
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The Auditorium
1,996 seats across four levels: Stalls, Royal Circle, Grand Circle and Balcony. The building is Grade I listed, the oldest continuously working theatre site in London, and was refurbished in 2021.
Boxes are available on some performances, and free booster cushions are available on request.
The full guide, level by level, is in our Theatre Royal Drury Lane guide.
Address
Catherine Street, London WC2B 5JF
Nearest Tube
Covent Garden
Jesus Christ Superstar Cast
| Role | Performer |
|---|---|
| Jesus | Sam Ryder |
| Judas Iscariot | Tyrone Huntley |
| Mary Magdalene | Desmonda Cathabel |
| Pontius Pilate | David Thaxton |
| Caiaphas | Bob Harms |
| Annas | Matty J |
| Peter | Phil King |
| Simon / alternate Judas | Billy Nevers |
King Herod is played by a run of guest stars, and the dates for each are in the Overview.
Sam Ryder finished second at Eurovision in 2022 with 'Spaceman'. This is his West End debut.
Tyrone Huntley was Olivier-nominated for playing Judas in the 2016 Regent's Park staging, and returns to it here.
Desmonda Cathabel plays Mary Magdalene and sings 'I Don't Know How to Love Him'. Born in Jakarta and trained at the Royal Academy of Music, she was named Stephen Sondheim Society Student Performer of the Year in 2022, and has since played Eurydice in Hadestown at the Lyric, Princess Jasmine on the Aladdin tour, alternate Kim in Miss Saigon at Sheffield Crucible and Lorene in From Here to Eternity at Charing Cross. Critics singled her out again and again.
Creative Team
| Role | Name |
|---|---|
| Music | Andrew Lloyd Webber |
| Lyrics | Tim Rice |
| Director | Tim Sheader |
| Choreographer | Drew McOnie |
| Designer | Tom Scutt |
| Musical Director | Tom Deering |
What the Critics Said About Jesus Christ Superstar
The production opened at the London Palladium on 7 July 2026 and was reviewed across the national press. Ratings ran from three stars to five.
They agreed about the singing. The Times called Gethsemane "sensational, a one-man rock opera that prompts an in-show standing ovation". The Telegraph said it was "so sublime it invites (and gets) its own standing ovation". The Independent called it "a showstopper".
They had doubts about his acting. The Times found Ryder "wooden when having to silently find his place among the ensemble", and The Stage described "a posturing, presentational flavour". Even the five-star Telegraph raised it before arguing past it.
Desmonda Cathabel drew praise everywhere. The Telegraph called her "sensational", and The Independent "stellar... glamorous as a 60s chanteuse".
Audiences have been warmer than the critics, at 4.5 out of 5 across several hundred verified reviews, and the Palladium season sold well enough to add this twelve-week run.
Read what the critics said in full.
Gallery
Jesus Christ Superstar
Theatre Royal Drury Lane
