King Kong The Musical Rumoured to Be Coming to London’s West End

King Kong could be coming to London. According to London Theatre Direct, although the dates and venue are to be confirmed, the giant ape could be visiting the West End. In 2017, a stage production of King Kong was announced to be running at the Vaults in Waterloo, with the story taken from the classic tale by Daniel Clarkson.

With that said, there has yet to be a full-blown, modern musical production at the West End. The original South African musical did have a successful run at the West End in 1961, and ran for a whopping 201 performances. Jack Hylton was in charge of the production, and was praised for his incredible stage show.

Over the years, London has had a thriving theatre scene, and has been a launchpad for new performances. The staging and performances from Cruel Britannia: After Frankenstein is just one example here, but goes to show how smaller productions are often met with a positive reception from UK theatre buffs.

King Kong has Been Explored a Lot over the Years

Ever since Fay Wray charmed the gorilla in the 1933 movie, it’s had a major part to play in epic cinema. Successive filmmakers have been constantly trying to outdo the previous release by going bigger and better, and when you take into account the latest special effects, it’s not hard to see why it presents so much opportunity.

It’s not just other movies and musical productions that the 1933 release has inspired, either. It’s even inspired numerous games. There are a number of role-playing games out there based on the film, and there are also instant win games. Titles like King Kong Crash Climber take inspiration from the cinematic masterpiece. Each round starts with King Kong attempting to latch onto a building, and if you make a successful grab, you can then achieve the first prize level. From there, you can choose to collect or climb. As the years have gone by, even more content has come out, showing how much potential the theme offers, and how much there is still to be explored.

The King Kong Musical has been a Huge Hit

The Broadway production of King Kong was written by Jack Thorne, who is a Tony and Olivier Award-winning writer. Drew McOnie, who has worked on Jesus Christ Superstar in the past, was also responsible for the choreography, with Marius de Vries taking care of the score.

His career has seen him working on huge productions that span theatre and film, with his best work being La La Land. The production on Broadway cost $35 million in total and garnered a great deal of attention because of its intricate and technical aspects. One thing of note was the huge King Kong puppet that was used as part of the stage show.

As for London, the musical was announced to be making its debut in 2021, but it never materialised. With that said, it’s only a matter of time until we see it announced, especially given the success of the Broadway production and how advanced robotics and puppetry have become over the years.
With the West End offering so many shows each year, competition is high, but there is a market for King Kong to make his triumphant return to London once again.