Wills Mercado will play the title role in Stick Man at the Bloomsbury Theatre this Christmas, while Sam Makepeace-Beach leads a second company for the show's first festive season in Sheffield.
Wills Mercado, recently in Dark of the Moon at the Charing Cross Theatre, heads the London company of Stick Man, the Freckle Productions staging of the picture book by Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler. The run at the Bloomsbury Theatre, from Thursday 3 December 2026 to Sunday 3 January 2027, is the show's 15th festive season in the capital and its third at that address.
Alongside Mercado, Lalany Samuel makes a professional debut as Stick Lady Love. Liam Bradbury, whose credits include Longitude at Upstairs at the Gatehouse and an Italian tour of Romeo and Juliet, is the Actor Muso. Erin Rowlett, part of the company of The Pianist at Mayflower Studios and Park Theatre, covers as swing.
A separate company opens at The Montgomery on Saturday 5 December 2026 and stays until Sunday 3 January 2027. The historic building is the newest addition to the Sheffield Theatres family, and this is the first time Stick Man has spent Christmas in the city.
Sam Makepeace-Beach, who has been in the show before at Leeds Playhouse, takes the title role there, with a southern tour of The Night Before Christmas also among the credits. Freya Stephenson, seen in The Snow Queen at The Albany in Deptford and My Pet Star at the Marlowe Theatre, is Stick Lady Love. Toby Baddeley, from Whodunnit Unrehearsed 4 at Park Theatre and She Stoops to Conquer at New Forest Open Air Theatre, is the Actor Muso. Rosie Malone, who has already worked on the show in Singapore, the UAE and on a UK tour, returns as swing and resident director.
That Sheffield company then takes the production abroad in the new year, appearing at KidsFest in Hong Kong from Wednesday 17 to Sunday 21 February 2027 and in Singapore from Thursday 25 to Sunday 28 February 2027.
The story follows a morning run that goes badly wrong. Stick Man is mistaken for a dog's toy, woven into a swan's nest and very nearly burned on a fire, all while trying to get home to his family tree in time for Christmas. The stage version tells it with puppetry, songs, live music and a cast of three.
Executive producer Jennifer Sutherland said: "We are so excited to announce the cast that will be helping us to celebrate Stick Man's 15th festive season in London. Our joyful adaptation of Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler's much-loved story has grown into a fabulous festive tradition."
Sutherland added: "It's incredibly important to us that families across the UK can share in high-quality live theatre together, and we can't wait to welcome audiences in both cities to celebrate with us this winter."
Mark Kane directs, working from the original production by Sally Cookson, whose other work includes A Monster Calls at the Old Vic. Designs are by Katie Sykes, lighting by Elanor Higgins and music by Benji Bower, with Brian Hargreaves as musical director. Freckle Productions also brought Zog, Zog and the Flying Doctors and The Baddies to the stage.
Donaldson's book first appeared in 2007 and has since been translated into 23 languages. The 2015 Magic Light Pictures animation, voiced by Martin Freeman, Jennifer Saunders and Hugh Bonneville, is still the most-viewed Christmas Day programme on UK television.
Critics are invited to the London production on Saturday 5 December 2026 at 1pm, and to the Sheffield production on Wednesday 9 December 2026 at 1.15pm.
