JACK AND THE BEANSTALK, Lyric Hammersmith Theatre's 2025 Pantomime, Begins Performances

The Lyric Hammersmith Theatre is presenting Jack and the Beanstalk as its pantomime for 2025. Reuniting the team behind this year's magical adventure Aladdin (currently running until 05 January 2025), award-winning writer Sonia Jalaly and director Nicholai La Barrie (Lyric Associate Director) join forces once again and continue the Lyric's long history of bringing some of the finest and most entertaining pantomimes to London.

This brand-new take on the GIANT fairy tale will play in the Main House from Saturday 15 November 2025 – Sunday 04 January 2026.

Sonia Jalaly, Writer, said: "I'm so excited to be reunited with Nicholai La Barrie, Daisy the Cow and the good people of Hammersmith for another chaotic Christmas adventure. Let's go!”

Nicholai La Barrie, Director, said: “Jack and the Beanstalk will be a lively, uproarious pantomime, bursting with humour, magic, and a heart-warming adventure that will captivate audiences in West London and beyond. I'm excited to join forces with Sonia Jalaly once more as part of the Lyric's 130th year to bring this enchanting story to life, filled with laugh-out-loud moments, catchy pop songs, and an abundance of festive cheer. Our hope is to create a truly unforgettable experience that families will treasure and remember long after the curtain falls.”

Following 2024's magical Aladdin, writer Sonia Jalaly and Nicholai La Barrie are climbing back on board to bring the classic Lyric twist to this epic fairy tale. Expect beanstalk-sized chaos, side-splitting comedy, chart-topping tunes and much more.

Also announced, is the return of family-favourite Raymond Briggs' Father Christmas, the critically acclaimed production adapted by Pins and Needles, playing in the Studio from Wednesday 19 November – Saturday 27 December 2025. Directed by Emma Earle and Designed by Zoe Squire, the production is filled with live music and puppetry and is perfect for under 6-year-olds and their families. Since being published in 1973, the late Raymond Briggs' much-loved children's book has been adapted for stage and screen and has now entertained thousands of families at the Lyric Hammersmith Theatre for the last 14 years.

“Join Santa as he awakes from a dream of sun, sea and sand only to find it is the busiest day of the year: Christmas Eve. Watch as he prepares for his Christmas deliveries, feeds his reindeer and finally takes flight into the snowy night. Back for another brilliant year, Christmas isn't Christmas without this Lyric family favourite, co-produced with the Olivier Award-nominated Pins & Needles Productions.”

JACK AND THE BEANSTALK

Sonia Jalaly is a writer and theatre maker from Manchester. Her credits for the Lyric include Aladdin (2024) and Jack and the Beanstalk (2022). Her theatre credits include: Catch (commissioned and toured by Clean Break) and Happy Birthday Without You (toured to Kiln Theatre and Paines Plough's Roundabout at the Edinburgh Fringe). She has also devised and written a number of community theatre shows: Cold Chips And Pick N Mix (Royal Exchange Theatre); Bump (Kiln Theatre); We Want To Be Frank and The Competition (Company Three) and She Is On Her Way (Clean Break). She was a member of BBC Writersroom Comedy Room 2018 and has since written for a number of CBBC and CBeebies shows including Supertato, Class Dismissed, Justin's House, Swashbuckle and Biff and Chip.

Nicholai La Barrie is a theatre and film director, Associate Director of the Lyric Hammersmith Theatre and has been a MOBO Fellow. His credits as director for the Lyric include: Aladdin (2024), God of Carnage; Jack and the Beanstalk (2022), and as a dramaturge; Feels and The Mob Reformers. His work in theatre includes: Romeo & Juliet (Manchester Royal Exchange); Tina - The Tina Turner Musical (as Resident Director, Australia & previously West End); Portrait For Posterity (Arcola Theatre); Statements After an Arrest Under the Immorality Act (Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama); Grey, There is Nothing There (Oval House), White (Edinburgh Festival); Gob (London International Festival of Theatre); The Book of Disquiet (Blue Elephant Theatre); I'll Take You There (Gate Theatre) and Chet Baker: Speedball (606 Jazz Club). His film credits include: Hamlet Sort Of, North East South West, Aingeal and Dark Stranger (2009 Official selection Caribbean film festival).

FATHER CHRISTMAS

Raymond Briggs (Writer) was born in London in 1934. He was the author of the hugely successful children's books Father Christmas and The Snowman. These books have been translated into many languages and adapted into films, stage shows and animations. His other books include Fungus the Bogeyman, The Bear, Ug, When the Wind Blows, Ethel & Ernest, a biography of his parents, and his latest, Time for Lights Out, a contemplation on old age, told through words and pictures.

Pins and Needles Productions is an award-winning, female-led theatre company based in Bristol, led by Director/Designer partnership Emma Earle and Zoe Squire. They create imaginative, transformational theatre for all ages and are passionate about finding playful ways to tell stories full of heart, humour and magic. Pins and Needles Productions are well known for their bold adaptations of children's books and are incredibly proud to have been trusted to adapt two of Raymond Briggs' classic books for the stage; Father Christmas and The Bear. Recent work includes OZ, a new adaptation of L. Frank Baum's The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, which played at Tobacco Factory Theatres in 2021; Oi Frog & Friends!, produced by Kenny Wax Family Entertainment, which was nominated for an Olivier Award for Best Family Show in 2020; and Select A Quest, an online interactive adventure. In 2018, they won the UK Theatre award for Best Show for Children and Young People for Little Mermaid, co-produced with the egg, Theatre Royal Bath, and their musical adaptation of Mr Popper's Penguins has toured the USA extensively, following runs in the West End and New York. Work for older audiences includes Flies by Oliver Lansley and their current project in development, an immersive, non-linear adaptation of The War of the Worlds by Matt Grinter.

ABOUT THE LYRIC HAMMERSMITH THEATRE

The Lyric Hammersmith Theatre produces bold and relevant world-class theatre from the heart of Hammersmith, the theatre's home for nearly 130 years. Under the leadership of its joint CEOs, Artistic Director Rachel O'Riordan and Executive Director Amy Belson, it is committed to being vital to, and representative of, the local community. A major force in London and UK theatre, the Lyric produces adventurous and acclaimed theatrical work that tells the stories that matter.

The Lyric Hammersmith Theatre has a national reputation for ground-breaking work to develop and nurture the next generation of talent, providing opportunities for young people to discover the power of creativity and to experience the life changing impact of theatre.

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