Philip Glass and Phelim McDermott's collaborative piece Tao of Glass has opened at @sohoplace in the West End, running in the round until 12 September 2026. The production is billed as the West End premiere of a show first staged at the Manchester International Festival in 2019, where WhatsOnStage gave it a five-star review (WhatsOnStage).

The piece is an evening of two acts, mixing puppetry, Glass's music and what has been described as pseudo-memoir (WhatsOnStage). It was inspired by a dream, according to WhatsOnStage, and consists of ten meditations (WhatsOnStage). Philip Glass's official website calls it Glass and McDermott's "most personal collaboration yet" (Philip Glass).

The first act tells a story about McDermott, Glass and children's author Maurice Sendak nearly collaborating on a retelling of Sendak's picture book In the Night Kitchen — a project that never came together but sits at the heart of the show (WhatsOnStage).

McDermott performs in the piece himself, alongside puppeteers Sarah Wright, Janet Etuk and Vic Llewellyn. The band is led by Chris Varalaro. Fly Davis is the designer, and production photography is by Johan Persson (WhatsOnStage).

Factory International — the organisation behind the Manchester International Festival — co-presents the West End run with Improbable, McDermott's own company, and Nica Burns, the theatre owner and producer whose @sohoplace venue sits at 4 Soho Place, Charing Cross (Factory International; Philip Glass). McDermott wrote the piece. @sohoplace is one of the Nimax Theatres group of West End venues, and its website lists the booking period through to 12 September (Nimax Theatres; @sohoplace).

What makes the production stand out is the meeting of two very different careers. Glass, now in his late eighties, is one of the most performed composers of contemporary classical music, with a body of work spanning opera, film scores and concert pieces. McDermott is a director and performer known for blending improvisation, puppetry and physical theatre — a co-founder of Improbable, the company behind staged productions including Shockheaded Peter and the improvisational Impro series. Their partnership stretches back more than two decades, including earlier collaborations on Glass operas staged by Improbable.

The venue itself adds a particular framing. @sohoplace opened in 2022 as the first new-build West End theatre in 50 years, and its in-the-round layout — no proscenium arch, audience on all sides — suits a piece built around intimate storytelling and visual artistry. Scheduled performances are listed through late August (Philip Glass; Philip Glass).