Earlier this year, Bill Kenwright Ltd announced that it is presenting a major UK tour of the hit Broadway and West End musical Barnum, starring Lee Mead (Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat; Wicked; Legally Blonde) as the legendary showman P.T. Barnum. The tour opens at the Theatre Royal Windsor on 3 February 2026 (previews from 30 January) and the full list of venues from January - July is released today.

 

Bill Kenwright Ltd is now delighted to announce that, due to huge demand, the tour will be extending into the autumn of next year, with Matt Rawle (Cabaret; Evita; Les Misérables) reprising his critically acclaimed performance in the title role, first seen at the Watermill Theatre in 2024. The autumn leg of the tour will open at Newcastle Theatre Royal on Tuesday 12 August, with further venues through to the end of November.

 

Step right up and enter the dazzling world of P.T. Barnum, where imagination and ambition know no bounds. Hand in hand with wife Charity, Barnum’s life and career twists and turns as he schemes and dreams his way to headier heights. 

 

Barnum first took the UK by storm when it played the London Palladium, with Michael Crawford making theatrical history with a death-defying nightly tightrope walk across the stage. And now, Lee and Matt step into Barnum’s shoes and on to the tightrope! This spectacular new staging will feature an extraordinary ensemble cast of over 20 actor-musicians playing 150 instruments, acrobats and amazing international circus acts.

 

With direction by Jonathan O’Boyle (Picture You Dead; The Last Five Years) and choreography by Oti Mabuse (Strictly Come Dancing), The Observer called this production a “dazzling all-singing, all-juggling musical tribute to the 19th-century circus showman” in their five-star review when it premiered at the Watermill Theatre last year.

 

With the glorious music of multi-award-winner Cy Coleman, Michael Stewart’s lyrics and Mark Bramble’s book, Barnum features a whole host of classic show tunes including Join the Circus, Colours of My Life, Come Follow the Band and Love Makes Such Fools of Us All.

 

The creative team also includes Lee Newby (Set & Costume Designer), Matt Nicholson

(Co-Choreographer), Jai Morjaria (Lighting Designer), Tom Marshall (Sound Designer), George Dyer (Musical Supervisor, Arrangements & Orchestrations) and Amy Panter (Circus Director).

 

Barnum was originally produced on the Broadway stage by Judy Gordon, Cy Coleman, Maurice and Lois F. Rosenfield in association with Irwin Feld and Kenneth Feld.

 

 

TOUR SCHEDULE 2026

 

STARRING LEE MEAD:

               

30 Jan – 7 Feb                  Windsor Theatre Royal                              

10 – 14 Feb                       Manchester Palace Theatre                    

24 – 28 Feb                       York Grand Opera House                          

3 – 7 Mar                             Brighton Theatre Royal
10 – 14 Mar                       Portsmouth Kings Theatre                       

17 – 21 Mar                       Cardiff Wales Millennium Centre         

24 – 28 Mar                       Aylesbury Waterside Theatre                 
31 Mar – 4 Apr                  Bradford The Alhambra Theatre
7 – 11 Apr                           Cheltenham Everyman Theatre

14 – 18 April                     Dublin Bord Gáis Energy Theatre

21 – 25 Apr                        Birmingham Hippodrome
28 Apr – 2 May                 Sheffield Lyceum Theatre                

5 – 9 May                            Swindon Wyvern Theatre

19 – 23 May                      Woking New Victoria Theatre

26 – 30 May                       Nottingham Playhouse

2 – 6 Jun                              Hull New Theatre

9 – 13 Jun                           Blackpool Opera House

16 – 20 Jun                        Bournemouth Pavilion Theatre

23 – 27 Jun                        Richmond Theatre (Tickets will be on sale soon)

30 Jun – 4 Jul                    Southend Cliffs Pavilion