An all-star line-up of Herods will join Sam Ryder’s Jesus for the Theatre Royal Drury Lane run of the new London Palladium production of Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice’s Jesus Christ Superstar.
Due to play the London Palladium until 5 September, the production which marks singer/songwriter Sam Ryder’s West End debut will then play a limited 12-week season at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane from 16 October 2026 to 9 January 2027.
Golden Globe Award-winner Matt Bomer (The Boys in the Band, Broadway) will make his West End debut as Herod from 16-31 October, award-winning actor, comedian and presenter Rob Brydon (Gavin and Stacey) will step into the role from 2-7 November, followed by BAFTA Award-winning actor, writer and comedian Reece Shearsmith (The League of Gentlemen) from 9-14 November, award-winning comedian, actor and drag performer Bob The Drag Queen (RuPaul’s Drag Race) from 16-21 November, double Olivier Award winner Michael Ball (Hairspray, Sweeney Todd) from 23 November to 5 December, triple Olivier Award winner Simon Russell Beale (The Lehman Trilogy, Spamalot) from 7-12 December, and award-winning comedian and actor Omid Djalili (Oliver!) from 14-19 December.
Olivier Award winner Layton Williams (Everybody’s Talking About Jamie, Titanique) will follow a two-week run as Herod at the Palladium in August by taking to the stage of the Theatre Royal Drury Lane from 21 December 2026 to 2 January 2027. The identity of the actor who will play Herod for the final week of performances (4-9 January 2027) will be announced at a later date.
Apart from Ryder, Palladium cast members who will also transfer to Theatre Royal Drury Lane include Desmonda Cathabel as Mary Magdalene, David Thaxton as Pontius Pilate, Bob Harms as Caiaphas, Matty J as Annas and Phil King as Peter. The Drury Lane company will also include Koko Alexandra, Jasmine Jules Andrews, Courtney Arango, Amy Barker, Alistair Beattie, Daniel Bowskill, Jahlil M Burke, Martha Burton, Marcelo Cervone, Sarah Freer, Sebastian Goffin, Alexander Kranz, Owen Lloyd ,Milo McCarthy, Dan Moore, Cherece Richards, Kyle Richardson, Olivia Saunders, Toyan Thomas-Browne, Charley Warburton and Lillie-Pearl Wildman.
Presented by Michael Harrison for Lloyd Webber Harrison Musicals, by arrangement with LW Entertainment, the acclaimed Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre production features choreography by Drew McOnie, design by Tom Scutt, music supervision by Tom Deering, lighting design by Lee Curran and sound design by Adam Fisher. The fight director is Kate Waters and the casting director is David Grindrod for Grindrod Burton Casting.
Winner of the 2017 Olivier Award for Best Musical Revival and the 2016 Evening Standard Award for Best Musical, the production sold out consecutive runs at the Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre in 2016 and 2017 before playing a West End transfer season at the Barbican in 2019. The production also embarked on an extensive North American tour in 2019 before returning to Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre in a concert version during the summer of 2020. The production also toured the UK in 2023 and 2024.
Angela Thomas
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