London Theatre: Looking for a great musical to watch.

Those are two completely different musicals; one is family friendly, and the other definitely not so. If you're a fan of South Park, I heartily recommend Book of Mormon (I've seen it 5 times now!) It could possibly be interpreted as a little offensive and possibly slightly crude, but it is the funniest thing I've ever seen and has won loads of awards.

Book of Mormon runs a ticket lottery 2 hours before each performance. get to the theatre about 5:15 for the evening show, and 12:15 for the matinee, you can put your name into a drawing to be allowed to purchase up to 2 tickets for £20 apiece.

Once inside any theatre, you aren't really allowed to change seats. For BOM, that's a moot point as it will be sold out.

BOM is one of the most irreverent musicals ever staged and for many folks totally offensive. For me, hysterically funny. For others, blasphemy. As noted it will be SRO and at this point unless you are willing to pay an outrageous price for tickets seeing The Lion King, Wicked, Jersey Boys, Mamma Mia or Phantom are musicals you should consider. http://www.tkts.co.uk/whats-on-sale/

Lastly, going to theatre is not like seeing a movie or attending a sparsely populated baseball game so no, you can't move to better seats. Rather gauche.

so no, you can't move to better seats.

I've moved to better seats many times at shows that didn't sell out. The ushers have never said a peep about it.
If anything is "gauche", that would be The Book of Mormon;)

I really liked both Billy Elliot and Wicked. I've seen both The Book of Mormon and The Lion King and while I enjoyed both, neither is among my favorites.

http://theatremonkey.com is a great source for determining where to buy tickets and where to sit. They will tell you which agent operates the official box office and the associated fees. They also have seating charts with reviews.

I have changed seats in London theatres, but you are very unlikely to have this opportunity at the shows you mentioned; they will likely be full houses. The times I have done it have been at theatres that were less than half full.

If you haven't seen Wicked, I highly recommend... We have seen it 3 times, just booked our 4th for London this summer!

Lion King was ok - more so if you have kids with you.

I am dying to see Book of Mormon!! :)

Another vote for Lion King or Wicked. I thought the Book of Mormon was funny (although some parts I cringed) but visually it doesn't come close to the other two productions. And Lion King and Wicked both have multiple beautiful songs. Book of Mormon songs are clever but for the most part, those are not the songs I hum to myself while walking down the street. Just wanted to point out that difference.

I just saw Phantom of the Opera in March at Her Majesty's Theatre. It's a long-running favorite with stirring music and great sets. My whole family thoroughly enjoyed it.

The Lion King is fabulous!!!!

When I'm in London I try to see theatre I wouldn't see in the USA. Why go to a foreign country to see an American musical? Find the latest big hit in London and see that. Be the first to see it before it comes to NYC. Get some bragging rights!

Agree with John -- seeing something new or totally British (loved the long-running Agatha Christie play "The Mousetrap") rather than a musical that's touring the U.S.

It's not a musical, but in September I saw War Horse in London. It was phenomenal!

We've seen Mama Mia multiple times on London. Always fun! You should be able to get good discounted seats at the TKTS booth in Leicester Square.

Or if you can't find a musical/play you like -- see what is on British television. Compare and contrast to American TV programming. (And you won't need to dress up for an evening out.)

Lion King, Wicked, Phantom of The Opera, War Horse...all terrific.

Not a musical, but a good, funny farce recently transferred to the West End is 'The Play That Goes Wrong.' We saw it and the sequel 'Peter Pan Goes Wrong' in Glasgow and it is very funny.

Jean-Paul: If you are interested in a musical without all the glitz and noise and would prefer a quiet romantic musical check out "Once". The principal song "Falling Softly" won an Oscar. If you miss this you can rent the DVD with the same title on which the musical is based.

Sorry, Geor, Once closed in March. Good thing you caught it when you did.

I will be in London in June and I just purchased tickets for Gypsy based on a friends recommendation. I had a tough time finding the direct website to buy tickets without additional fees but after searching for the show directly on twitter I was able to get a direct website where I bought 3rd row center for face value with no extra fees. I used this site to purchase the tickets: http://www.atgtickets.com/

A couple of people recommended seeing something totally different from what you can see in New York. I love musicals and never turn down a chance to see a good one. However, when in London I would much rather have a real British musical experience. Google Brick Lane Music Hall. We are going this summer and it sounds fantastic! The matinees serve lunch and the night performances serve dinner. The reviews are awesome! (trip advisor) That being said, I'm sure it's not everyones "cup of tea." It seems like it's for an older crowd and interestingly, all the reviews were written by locals. Probably not what you're looking for but thought you should know about it.

However, when in London I would much rather have a real British
musical experience.

You seem to be under the impression that most all musicals originate on Broadway and are then imported to the West End. The reality is that it works both ways lots of stuff you see in London was born in London.