Stephen Sondheim's Old Friends (West End)
Closed 2h 30m
Stephen Sondheim's Old Friends (West End)
94

Stephen Sondheim's Old Friends (West End) London Reviews and Tickets

94%
(503 Ratings)
Positive
96%
Mixed
2%
Negative
2%
Members say
Entertaining, Delightful, Great singing, Enchanting, Absorbing

About the Show

Bernadette Peters & Lea Salonga star in a concert celebrating the work of Stephen Sondheim.

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Show-Score Member Reviews (199)

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53 Reviews | 0 Followers
100
Riveting, Great cast, Must see, Great singing, Entertaining

See it if Unbeatable cast singing unbeatable songs

Don't see it if You don’t like Sondheim’s music

494 Reviews | 123 Followers
100
P e r f e c t i o n, Masterpieces of musical theater, Bernadette peters & lea salonga!

See it if you're a Sondheim fan (even if not) this is a treat from the musical Gods, one showstopping number after another delivered by top performers

Don't see it if you're looking for traditional musical. This is a semi-staged tribute to the great composer & lyricist that celebrates his greatest songs. Read more

56 Reviews | 3 Followers
100
Must see, Exquisite, Hilarious, Great singing, Delightful

See it if you love Sondheim performed by a truly remarkable lineup of stage performers

Don't see it if you hate joy Read more

56 Reviews | 2 Followers
100
Great singing, Must see, Masterful, Enchanting, Delightful

See it if You like the shows of a genius like SONDHEIM. Follies, Company, A Sunday in the park with George, West Side Story, Gypsy, Sweeney Todd

Don't see it if If you don't like SONDHEIM and Broadway and West End's divas.

98 Reviews | 6 Followers
100
Entertaining, Enchanting, Delightful, Ambitious, Absorbing

See it if If you love Sondheim -an absolute masterpiece and must see for love Sondheim fans. Really love this

Don't see it if If your are not a fan of love Sondheim

53 Reviews | 0 Followers
100
Great staging, Great singing, Entertaining, Delightful, Absorbing

See it if You want to hear Sondheim songs sing beautifully

Don't see it if You want a storyline

52 Reviews | 5 Followers
100
Musicality, Enchanting, Delightful, Clever, Absorbing

See it if If your a fan of Steven Sondhiems music then you will love this show full of all the wonderful songs he has written over the years

Don't see it if You don’t like musical songs Read more

57 Reviews | 3 Followers
99
Great singing, Entertaining, Enchanting, Delightful, Clever

See it if you love Stephen Sondheim tunes or a big musical number or beautiful staging. Or hearing stagey royalty like Bernadette Peters sing.

Don't see it if you want to see 'You've gotta get a gimmick' performed in a less satirical way, or are not a fan of Cameron Mackintosh (the old friend).

Critic Reviews (14)

BroadwayWorld
October 3rd, 2023

“Whether you are an old friend of Sondheim or a new one, you will leave the theatre moved, thoroughly entertained and surely breathless for a revival or three.”
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The London Evening Standard
October 4th, 2023

"This celebration of the late Stephen Sondheim assembles three generations of big guns from musical theatre – including Broadway legend Bernadette Peters, making her West End debut – to fire a selection of greatest hits at a receptive audience. Devised by Cameron Mackintosh, and focusing on works he has produced, it’s a partial, loving, starry spin through a dazzling back catalogue. Sondheim’s versatility and wit shine through."
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Time Out London
October 4th, 2023

“If you want to see a large number of Stephen Sondheim songs performed by talented people in an ultimately cosy and conservative revue, see ‘Old Friends’. If you want to understand why Sondheim was regarded as so brilliant that his nickname was literally God, see one of his musicals.”
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The Times (UK)
October 4th, 2023

"If you care about musical theatre, you cannot miss this show."
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WhatsOnStage
October 3rd, 2023

“Each song has its brilliance but the overall impact of the show – beautifully played by the orchestra, under conductor Alfonso Casado Trigo – springs from the way it knits together a lot of moments into a satisfying whole. It is both a tribute to Sondheim and an exploration of the qualities of curiosity, intelligence, humour and high seriousness that made him a giant of the theatre.”
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London Theatre
October 5th, 2023

“There’s never a doubt that the creatives are gathered to honour the man of the title, whose life is pictorially documented on the way to a giddy rendition of the ‘Old Friends’ that the cast and their audience by then have become.”
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The Telegraph (UK)
October 4th, 2023

“ ‘Old Friends’ isn’t just a virtuosic display... it’s both celebration and requiem. Peters notes in her introduction that Sondheim wanted as many people as possible to see his work, and I can’t think of a better platform. This ‘great big Broadway show’ deserves to be a great big West End hit.”
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The Stage (UK)
October 4th, 2023

“Some numbers translate better than others to a format in which their context is necessarily abbreviated; equally, while some renditions penetrate, others teeter on the brink of splashy self-indulgence...There’s much, more more, in an evening that offers up its riches like a lavish chocolate box of hard and soft centres. Sondheim fans will savour every mouthful.”
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