Musicals v Plays

The Musicals
The Sound Of Music (Palladium)
Andrew Lloyd Webber's revival of Rodgers and Hammerstein's classic. Cast via BBC1 reality show How Do You Solve A Problem Like Maria? after talks with Scarlett Johansson broke down.
Our rating: ***
Ticket sales: More than £15million.
Top ticket price: £55.
Booking until: April.
Earliest availability: 15 January.

Dirty Dancing (Aldwych)
Based on the 1987 film starring Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey. A huge hit with fans of the movie.
Our rating: ***
Ticket sales: £12 million.
Top ticket price: £59.50.
Booking until: March 2008.
Earliest availability: 3 August.

Spamalot (Palace)
Eric Idle's musical loosely inspired by 1975 cinematic romp Monty Python And The Holy Grail.
Our rating: ***
Ticket sales: £7.5 million.
Top ticket price: £60.
Booking until: May.
Earliest availability: today

Evita (Adelphi)
Michael Grandage's revival of Andrew Lloyd Webber's 1976 musical.
Our rating: ****
Ticket sales: £2million.
Top ticket price: £59.
Booking until: April.
Earliest availability: 15 January.

Wicked (Apollo Victoria)
Broadway hit telling the story of the Wicked Witch from The Wizard Of Oz.
Our rating: ****
Ticket sales: £6million.
Top ticket price: £55.
Booking until: February.
Earliest availability: Today.

Cabaret (Lyric)
Kander and Ebb musical set in Thirties Berlin revived by Rufus Norris and starring Anna Maxwell Martin.
Our rating: ****
Ticket sales: Unknown.
Top ticket price: £50.
Booking until: April.
Earliest availability: Today.

Porgy And Bess (Savoy)
Trevor Nunn's reworking of George Gershwin's classic 1935 opera as a musical.
Our rating: ****
Ticket sales: Unknown.
Top ticket price: £60
Booking until: March.
Earliest availability: Today.

Daddy Cool (Shaftesbury) The hits of Boney M. Stars Michelle Collins and Harvey from So Solid Crew.
Our rating: ***
Ticket sales: £1.6 million.
Top ticket price: £45.
Booking until: September.
Earliest availability: Today.

Billy Elliot (Victoria Palace) Stephen Daldry's musical about a boy who dances his way to the Royal Ballet.
Our rating: ****
Ticket sales: £20million.
Top ticket price: £55.
Booking until: October.
Earliest availability:Today.

Guys And Dolls (Piccadilly)
Successful revival of Frank Loesser's homage to New York's petty criminals, gamblers and broads. Our rating: ***
Ticket sales: Unknown.
Top ticket price: £55.
Booking until: February.
Earliest availability: Monday.

The Plays

Rock 'N' Roll (Duke of York's)
Tom Stoppard's Czechoslovakian music and politics saga.
Our rating: ****
Top ticket price: £45.
Booking until: February.
Earliest availability: Today.

Frost/Nixon (Gielgud)
Drama documenting the inside story of David Frost's TV interviews with former president Richard Nixon, starring Frank Langella as Nixon and Michael Sheen as Frost.
Our rating: *****
Top ticket price: £45.
Booking until: February.
Earliest availability: Today.

The 39 Steps (Criterion) Irreverent adaptation of John Buchan's classic spy tale directed by Maria Aitken. One of this year's surprise hits.
Our rating: ***
Top ticket price: £39.
Booking until: April.
Earliest availability: Today.

Amy's View (Garrick)
Opened last night. Sir Peter Hall's revival of David Hare's drama on the relationship between an actress daughter and her mother.
Our rating: ***
Top ticket price: £45.
Booking until: March.
Earliest availability: Today.

A Moon For The Misbegotten (Old Vic) Kevin Spacey's current play at the Old Vic, a revival of Eugene O'Neill's mournful character study, in which he stars alongside Eve Best.
Our rating: ***
Top ticket price: £45.
Booking until: December.
Earliest availability: Today.

A Voyage Round My Father (Wyndham's)John Mortimer's lifeaffirming family saga vividly brought to life by Derek Jacobi.
Our rating: ****
Top ticket price: £45.
Booking until: December.
Earliest availability: Today.

Coming Up:
Six Dance Lessons In Six Weeks (Haymarket)
Starts previewing Thursday. Hollywood star Billy Zane and Claire Bloom star in a comedy about a Florida dance teacher and an elderly woman.
Top ticket price: £45.
Booking until: March.
Earliest availability: Thursday.

The History Boys (Wyndham's)
Starts previewing Thursday. Alan Bennett's National Theatre triumph, also the subject of a recent film, gets its West End debut.
op ticket price: £44.25.
Booking until: April.
Earliest availability: 21 December.

Love Song (New Ambassadors)
Starts previewing Saturday. Romantic ensemble drama starring Scream actress Neve Campbell and Cillian Murphy.
Top ticket price: £42.50.
Booking until: March.
Earliest availability: Friday.

Equus (Gielgud)
Starts previewing 16 February. Peter Shaffer's controversial 1973 play featuring Harry Potter star Daniel Radcliffe as a disturbed stable boy. Also featuring Richard Griffiths.
Top ticket price: £48.75.
Booking until: June.
Earliest availability: 16 February.