New Musical "Raising Gays" to Stage West End Concert Reading at Garrick Theatre

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Joanna Riding, Melanie La Barrie and Damian Humbley lead the cast for the London Pride weekend event

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Exploring modern parenthood and allyship, new musical Raising Gays will launch in the West End this July with a special concert reading at the Garrick Theatre. Blending sharp comedy with emotional insights and soaring new music, this vibrant new show asks what it means to support the people you love when you don't always have the answers. The performance is set for 5 July 2026.

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Set in the quiet Somerset town of Little Malden, Raising Gays follows a group of parents navigating the joys, confusion and pitfalls of raising queer children. When they find themselves unexpectedly organising a parents' float for the town's first-ever Pride parade, their well-meaning efforts begin to unravel long-held beliefs, forcing each of them to confront their own fears and blind spots.

This concert reading, with piano accompaniment, features a cast of West End stars and rising talent including Damian Humbley (The Great British Bake Off Musical, Noël Coward Theatre; Stephen Sondheim 's Old Friends, Gielgud Theatre) as Benji Sutton-Cole, Sarah Ingram (Wicked, Apollo Victoria Theatre; Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, Twickenham Theatre) as Jenny Bennet, Melanie La Barrie (Into the Woods, Bridge Theatre; Hadestown, Lyric Theatre) as Steph Eastmond, Michael Matus (Wicked, Apollo Victoria Theatre; Singin' in the Rain, Sadler's Wells Theatre) as Paul Bennet, Joanna Riding (Carousel, Regent's Park Open Air Theatre; Billy Elliot: The Musical, Victoria Palace Theatre) as Marcie Betheridge, and Sydney Sainté (The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner, Atlantic Theater Company; BLACK COFFEE - 7 New Plays That Aren't Afraid Of The Dark, Brunch Theatre Company) as Mitch Sutton-Cole.

With the book by Micha Mirto (The Nutcracker, Disney; The Four Realms: Cross Examined, Penguin's Random House) and music and lyrics by Jordan Paul Clarke (Showstopper: The Improvised Musical, Cambridge Theatre; Mischief Movie Night, Mischief Theatre ; Cameron Mackintosh Resident Composer 2023), this script-in-hand presentation is designed to introduce the piece to the world before it embarks on its exciting journey. The presentation takes place during London Pride weekend, inviting audiences to be among the first to experience this exciting new work and to play a part in its development.

Creators Jordan Paul Clarke and Micha Mirto say, "We couldn't be more excited to share this show with an audience for the first time. It's so important to share a new musical at these early stages, and it doesn't get better than doing that in the West End the day after London Pride - plus it'll be the perfect cure for your Pride hangovers, so what's not to love?! We're immensely grateful to our producers, friends of the show at theatres around the country, and our unbelievable cast for the faith they have had in this show since day one. This is an incredibly personal show, and we cannot wait to share its humour and heart with everyone who's ever been a parent (or had one). Yes, that's all of you."

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_Originally reported by [BroadwayWorld](https://www.broadwayworld.com/westend/article/RAISING-GAYS-Musical-Will-Hold-West-End-Concert-Reading-at-Garrick-Theatre-20260507)._