The year’s best show so far, say the critics

Garrick Theatre

Now transferred to the West End, the Menier Chocolate Factory revival of Mel Brooks‘ musical The Producers has gone down even better with the critics. The reviewers lavished praise on Brooks, director Patrick Marber, and stars Andy Nyman and Mark Antolin who play the Broadway producers who try to create a flop in an effort to fleece their backers, the flop in question being a tribute to Hitler. The average rating of 4.5⭑ is as high as any current West End show. Reviews of the original Menier run are included after the reviews of the West End opening.

[Links to full reviews are included but a number are behind paywalls and therefore may not be accessible]

5 stars ⭑⭑⭑⭑⭑

It’s ‘the funniest show in London’ said the Standard’s Nick Curtis. ‘I honestly can’t find fault with it.’ For Chris Omaweng at LondonTheatre1 it was ‘a fantastic night out, just the tonic for anyone who doesn’t mind generous doses of impertinence delivered with exuberance and joy’.

The Times’ Clive Davis declared: ‘this feels like the show we need right now: a comedy that holds nothing sacred except the right to hold nothing sacred. Marber, the choreographer Lorin Latarro and the costume designer Paul Farnsworth blend spectacle, discipline and daftness. The chorus are supremely well drilled’.

Theo Bosanquet at WhatsOnStage called it ‘a giant slab of feel-good escapism and genuine hilarity’. He said: ‘It’s anchored by a pair of outstanding performances from Andy Nyman and Marc Antolin’. BroadwayWorld‘s Aliya Al-Hassan was pleased to see: ‘The whole main cast returns to the show and don’t miss a beat with their energy, deft movement and incredible comic timing. The ensemble is one of the best I have seen, each actor bringing huge character to the smallest parts.’

Anya Ryan at LondonTheatre announced: ‘Only a true misery guts could pick faults in Patrick Marber’s revival of Mel Brooks’s The Producers.’ (Andrjez Lukowski at Time Out take note!) She found: ‘it delivers one belly laugh after another. And still, there is so much more to this production than good, old-fashioned tomfoolery. Sewn together with an unceasing ability to laugh at itself, it is a musical as radical and joyously subversive as when it first appeared on film in 1967.’

4 stars ⭑⭑⭑⭑

The Telegraph’s Dominic Cavendish referred to it as ‘a winningly funny proposition for a new generation – and Marber pulls out all the stops to raise the Garrick roof.’ Paul Vale for The Stage noted that Patrick Marber ‘saturates this slick musical comedy with a wealth of physical gags, exquisitely timed double takes and an expertly judged sense of the absurd that enhances the show’s momentum.’ Adam Bloodworth at CityAM labelled it ‘a comic masterpiece’.

3 stars ⭑⭑⭑

Only Andrzej Lukowski of Time Out was lukewarm: ‘The Producers is a fine musical that had its moment a quarter century ago.’ But he added ruefully: ‘you’d have to be made of stone not to laugh at it’.

Critics’ Average Rating 4.5⭑

Value rating 50 (Value rating is the Average Critic Rating divided by the typical ticket price.)

The Producers can be seen at the Garrick Theatre until 19 September 2026.  Buy tickets directly from the theatre

Read Paul Seven’s review of The Producers here

Reviews from the run at the Menier –

Aliya Al-Hassan in BroadwayWorld (5) gave top marks: ’It’s far from subtle, but is funny, irreverant and witty.’ She praised the stars: ‘Nyman revels in his lank-haired, slightly chaotic persona. He has a palpable chemistry with Marc Antolin‘s adorably coy and neurotic Bloom.’ And the creative team: ‘Patrick Marber shows astute direction in his first musical. Lorin Latarro’s vibrant choreography defies the constrictions of the space, never seeming to be over-crowded or too busy.’

Helen Hawkins on The Arts Desk (5) called it ‘an uproarious adult panto.’ She said,  ‘Andy Nyman is the dynamo of the show, a convincing wheeler-dealer…His Leo Bloom, Marc Antolin, is spot on too, nervous and silly, but equally amiable’

The Guardian’s Arifa Akbar (4) said, ‘Still so original, and delightfully – daringly – funny, it is revived by director Patrick Marber with such vigour, sparkle and controlled wildness that it renders itself the London show of the festival season – funnier, camper and more outre than pantomime.’ She found it ‘irresistible, absurd and joyful, both celebrating and sending up the power of theatre. A blast of a show.’

WhatsOnStage’s Sarah Crompton (4) declared, ‘It’s not at all subtle, but speeds along with such pleasure at its own absurdity that it’s hugely entertaining.’ She said, ‘Nyman and Antolin anchor the show while everyone else goes so far over the top that the roof is in danger of coming off. Both Harry Morrison as the Nazi-loving author of the show and Trevor Ashley as the fabulously gay director Roger de Bris are unleashed into wild excess’.

Matthew Hemley for The Stage (4) pointed out, ‘this is a musical that still guarantees laugh after laugh after laugh, with a genuinely brilliant score from Brooks.’ He continued, ‘Marber keeps the show whizzing along, and Lorin Latarro’s slick choreography makes brilliant use of a tight space’. He described the stars:  ‘Nyman and Antolin work delightfully together, Nyman a ball of frustrated energy, Antolin on top form as his nervy, blanket-hugging sidekick. They sing and dance wonderfully, and they’re very funny, too – both the physical and verbal comedy is a genuine treat.’ He went  on, ‘The highlight, however, comes in the form of Trevor Ashley’s Roger De Bris, the director tasked with helming Springtime for Hitler, who eventually finds himself playing the Nazi leader…(his) expressions, voice and comic timing are spot on. His Judy Garland-infused Hitler is a wonder.’

The Financial Times‘ Sarah Hemming (4★) said, ‘director Patrick Marber, choreographer Lorin Latarro and the versatile cast go at it with unadulterated glee, plundering every cliché in the book and mischievously pickpocketing the musicals tradition.’ She continued, ‘At its heart are Nyman and Antolin, both terrific and a wonderful double act’ and concluded, ‘Despite all the absurdity…it’s rather sweet: a ridiculous love-letter to friendship and to the sheer craziness and passion of show business.’

Over at LondonTheatre (4) Olivia Rook showered praise all round and picked out various members of the cast: ‘Trevor Ashley is perfectly cast as the scene-stealing director Roger De Bris…Harry Morrison also gives a stand-out performance as the crazed Hitler fanatic Franz, spitting out his words with relish in a throaty German accent, and Joanna Woodward’s endearing, Marilyn Monroe-esque Ulla is a delight.’

Time Out’s Andrzej Lukowski (4) decided, ‘The Producers is a bit dated, a bit slow in getting going… But its pillorying of fascist iconography remains hysterically funny and steely sharp – perhaps sharper than it was before.’

Although Dominic Cavendish at The Telegraph (4) spent a chunk of his review comparing Nyman and Antolin unfavourably with the stars of the original movie, nevertheless he found it ‘perfectly suited for the festive need for cheer’.

Louis Chilton in The Independent (4) commented, ‘as a satire both of fascist nationalism and showbiz, The Producers remains ever-relevant. Directed by Patrick Marber … this production does a lot with a small, intimate stage; Lorin Latarro’s choreography is showy and dynamic – but lets the comedy rightfully hoard the focus…The jokes are rapid, the satire outrageous. How could it possibly fail?’

Critics’ Average Rating of Menier production 4.2★

If you’ve seen The Producers at the Garrick Theatre or the Menier Chocolate Factory, please share your review and rating below