Matt Willis Returns as Emcee in Kit Kat Club's Cabaret
Matt Willis is going back to the Emcee role in Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club from 14 December 2026, taking over from Skylar Astin, whose final performance in the part is on 12 December, according to WhatsOnStage.
Astin and Sarah Hyland are both making their West End debuts in the show. The West End is London's large commercial theatre district. Astin plays the Emcee, the sardonic host of the club, and Hyland plays Sally Bowles, the singer at its centre. Willis's run as the Emcee runs until 23 January 2027, and he and Hyland will take their final bows on that date.
Willis is no stranger to the role. He first rose to fame as a founding member of the pop-rock band Busted, and he trained at the Sylvia Young Theatre School. He played the Emcee at the Kit Kat Club at London's Playhouse until 23 May 2026, the production's official site confirms. His return is the second stint in the part this year.
Elsewhere in the cast, Baker Mukasa plays Clifford Bradshaw, the American writer who arrives in Berlin, and Ruthie Henshall plays Fraulein Schneider, the landlady.
The production has reached a milestone of its own. The West End staging has passed 1,900 performances, making it the longest-running production of Cabaret in West End history. Rebecca Frecknall's version opened in November 2021. The musical itself premiered on Broadway in November 1966, with music by John Kander, lyrics by Fred Ebb and a book by Joe Masteroff. It is based on a play by John Van Druten and stories by Christopher Isherwood.
A celebratory anniversary performance takes place on 20 November, with a limited number of specially priced tickets.
For anyone thinking of booking, tickets start from £35. Booking at least six weeks ahead saves £10 per ticket, the show's website says. The venue also sells a dining option called Stageside Dining, which costs £85 per person on top of the ticket price. It is available at evening performances only and must be booked in pairs. Its tables sit in stalls rows A-B and AA-BB, right around the stage, and are marked with a "T". Diners are asked to arrive 1 hour 15 minutes before the show for pre-show entertainment, and to take their seats at the table 45 minutes before the start.
Stageside Table Seats start from £200. A Cocktail Experience costs £65 per person plus the ticket price.
Willis's run and Hyland's debut both close on 23 January 2027, so the next few months will show how the cast line-up settles.
