West End Does: Christmas returns to new London home

Chorus Productions is bringing West End Does: Christmas back for one night this December.

The festive concert will play St Marylebone Church in central London on Sunday 20 December at 7.30pm, as reported by WhatsOnStage. It is a single performance, not a run. Diaries out.

The 2026 show will be the first edition held at St Marylebone Church. The church sits just off Oxford Street, a short walk from Regent's Park. That gives this year's concert a new address and a new acoustic.

Four familiar stage performers lead the bill. Ricardo Afonso, Louise Dearman, Georgina Onuorah and Julian Ovenden will all sing as part of a shared programme. The West End here means London's main commercial theatre district, home to its biggest musicals and plays.

Rob Houchen will host the evening. He will introduce the acts and link the songs together. The role is compere for the night, rather than one of the headline singers.

Student voices are part of the plan too. Choirs from the Guildford School of Acting will perform alongside the professionals. The school, based in Surrey, trains singers, actors and theatre-makers for stage work. A choir in this context means a large group singing together, adding weight behind the soloists.

The soloists and choirs will sing with live backing. The band is made up of working West End musicians, players who earn their living in theatre pits across London. Musical director Samuel Wilson will lead them from the front, setting the tempo and shaping the sound through the night.

For fans, this means a relaxed evening rather than a full-length story. Expect seasonal songs, familiar theatre voices and plenty of joint numbers. A church can carry that sound well. Stone walls and a high ceiling do a lot of the work.

The announcement confirms the date, venue and line-up in one go. No further casting has been announced. If you want to go, head for Marylebone on 20 December.