When I first saw Avenue Q in the West End in 2006, I instantly fell in love with it. The genius of Sesame Street style puppets in an adult musical comedy about trying to get by in the world, blew my musical loving mind. It was an insane, hilarious, wild ride of a show. I bought the CD at the theatre that evening (remember CDs?) and listened to it over and over and over.
When it came to the New Wimbledon Theatre on tour in 2014, I couldn’t wait to take my wife along to see it. She was heavily pregnant at the time, due in less than 10 days, but I convinced her to come anyway, and she loved it as much as I knew she would.
So, you can imagine how excited we were when it was announced that Avenue Q was returning to the West End for its 20th anniversary run, this time at the Shaftesbury Theatre!
At its heart, Avenue Q is a story about the challenges of life, but told with puppets and a lot of very funny humour. I mentioned Sesame Street as a touchpoint, but it’s important to note that Avenue Q is not a parody, just that same style of puppetry and storytelling, applied to adult life. It addresses themes of unemployment, relationships, identity, money, purpose, bigotry and trying to figure out what on earth you’re doing with your life, all through the framework of humour and fun. Right from the opening number I was smiling with joy, and that feeling never really goes away.
What really struck me is just how clever the performances are. Every puppet is operated in full view, with the actor/puppeteer right there on stage, controlling, voicing, reacting, and performing at the same time, and somehow your focus stays completely on the puppet. The actors are giving two performances at once – the physical skill of operating the puppet, and the acting that brings the character to life. You see it in the facial expressions, in the energy, in the detail, and it’s so impressive throughout.
The complication of the actors having to think about their acting and puppetry at the same time is taken to another level in moments like when Kate Monster and Lucy The Slut are on stage together, both played by Emily Benjamin. Another actor, Meg Hateley is carrying and performing Lucy, while Benjamin is puppeteering Kate and performing the voices of both characters in conversation! It’s truly unbelievable and I literally did a double take when I realised what was occurring.
Emily Benjamin is excellent throughout, not just technically but emotionally as well, bringing real heart and depth to her performance of Kate Monster, especially. Noah Harrison, as Princeton and Rod, is just as strong, really expressive and full of energy. Honestly, the whole cast are fantastic. Everyone has their moment, and no one feels like they’re just there to fill space. It’s one of those shows where you could go round and find something to love about every single performer on that stage.
Oliver Jacobson as Brian leans fully into the chaos of the character, all slightly clueless ambition and big comic energy, and it works brilliantly. Amelia Kinu Muus as Christmas Eve is excellent, and when she gets her moment in ‘The More You Love Someone’, she absolutely delivers. It’s one of the few times the show leans into something a bit bigger vocally, and she has a great voice.
Dionne Ward-Anderson is great as Gary Coleman, the superintendent of Avenue Q and former child star. I did find myself wondering whether, given that the real Coleman is no longer with us, the show might have moved away from the character entirely, but it still works. There’s enough in the script to make sure the audience understands who he is, even if a younger British crowd might not have that reference point, and Ward-Anderson plays it with a nice, understated humour that keeps it grounded. I suspect some of the jokes land better in the US, but there’s more than enough here – including a little added explanation – for it to work this side of the Atlantic too.
Charlie McCullagh has some of the funniest bits as Nicky and Trekkie Monster, with songs like the classic ‘If You Were Gay’ and the ensemble number led by Kate and Trekkie, ‘The Internet is For Porn’, and he plays both roles with perfect timing.
Anna Louizos’ set looks fairly simple at first, just a street with a few doors and windows, but it’s hiding so much more. Panels open up to reveal interiors, little moments pop out of nowhere, and then for a particular event in the plot, the whole street shifts and transforms into a beautiful second location. It’s one of those designs that is more sophisticated than your first glance suggests.
Avenue Q is exactly as brilliant as it always has been. The timing is sharp, the songs are still as catchy as ever, and hearing numbers like ‘What Do You Do with a BA in English?’ and ‘The Internet Is for Porn’ live again warms my musical nerd heart!
Director Jason Moore and his team have made some smart little updates to this 20 year old production too, to allow it to stay the same but still work for modern audiences. A mixtape becomes a playlist, references to Lucy being a porn video star are shifted towards things like ‘influencer’, and there are little tweaks to a few references so they land better with a UK audience. None of it feels forced – especially if you don’t know the original by heart anyway – and it just works.
Some elements do hit a little bit differently now. ‘Everyone’s a Little Bit Racist’ is still a big, funny number, and by the end the audience are fully on board, but there’s a slight hesitation to the audience reaction that there wasn’t in 2006. When Princeton talks about telling ‘Black jokes’ and Gary ‘white jokes’, it feels momentarily a little dated – we just don’t tell jokes like that anymore. Despite this, it’s still a song that has the audience rolling in the aisles by the end.
The thing is that the show hasn’t really changed, but the world has, and you do feel that in places. There are a couple of other moments that feel slightly of their time too, but they’ve mostly left them as they are, and the audience easily lets it go.
Beyond the comedy, there’s still a real warmth to the show. There’s a love story running through it, and alongside all the ridiculousness, it still lands those little messages about life. You don’t always get your dream, most things are temporary, you just have to keep going and figure it out as you go. It sounds simple enough, but Avenue Q has always been good at saying those things without making a big deal of them.
Leaving the show, I left feeling exactly as I had hoped I would: that the show I loved all those years ago is every bit as brilliant now as it was then. Every theatrical revival faces the same challenge – recreate the magic, whilst making it feel fresh and relevant. Avenue Q certainly ticks all the boxes.
You may not always get your dream, but if your dream is a musical full of hilarious foul-mouthed puppets that still hits the mark 20 years later, Avenue Q has you covered!
Catch Avenue Q at the Shaftesbury Theatre, currently booking until 29th August 2026.
Get your tickets from avenueqmusical.co.uk
Words by Nick Barr
Photography by Matt Crockett
