Layton Live: Layton Williams marks 20 years on stage with a UK tour in 2027

Twenty years after he first walked on to a West End stage, Layton Williams is celebrating with a show of his own. Layton Live, an evening of songs, dance and stories from his career, tours the UK from Tuesday 23 February to Sunday 4 April 2027, finishing with a London night at the Adelphi Theatre.

Speaking to BroadwayWorld this week, Williams said: "I have been really busy doing so many beautiful, crazy things the last twenty years, and when you hit a milestone like that, you really should celebrate it."

See dates and tickets for Layton Live.

From an open audition to the West End

Born in Bury, Greater Manchester, Williams went to an open audition for Billy Elliot without ever having taken a ballet class, and made his West End debut in the title role aged 12. He told BroadwayWorld he played the part for two years, calling it "the quickest, craziest baptism of fire".

He has since played Jamie in Everybody's Talking About Jamie in the West End and on tour, appeared in Cabaret, Hairspray, Kiss Me, Kate and Rent, appeared in the BBC's Bad Education and reached the final of Strictly Come Dancing in 2023. Most recently he won an Olivier Award as the Iceberg in Titanique, then took the role to Broadway and a Tony nomination. Look back at our report on his casting as Jamie.

Songs, dance and stories

Songs from Hairspray, Everybody's Talking About Jamie, Cabaret, Jesus Christ Superstar, Rent, Billy Elliot and Kiss Me, Kate are all in the mix, and a small company of dancers and live musicians joins him. "I'm trying to curate a show which is all singing, all dancing, and with beautiful anecdotes of moments in my life," he told BroadwayWorld, adding that it covers "the positive moments, but also the downfalls and how I rose from the ashes."

He cites the touring legends of old, Liza Minnelli among them, as inspiration. "I want it to be different. I want it to be sexy. I want it to be chic. It's gonna be extra!" Asked to sum up the show in one word, he chose "Fabulous!"

Two preview performances, the first in his home town, came before the tour. Speaking to the Milton Keynes Citizen ahead of his date at The Stables, he called the tour "kind of a thank you from me to you" for audiences who have followed him over two decades. The show runs for 1 hour 50 minutes, with age guidance of 10 and over.

The 2027 tour dates

There are 27 dates in all, across England, Scotland and Wales, in 2027:

• Tuesday 23 February: Corn Exchange, Newbury
• Wednesday 24 February: Royal Hall, Harrogate
• Thursday 25 February: Opera House, Manchester
• Friday 26 February: Derby Theatre, Derby
• Sunday 28 February: Royal & Derngate, Northampton
• Wednesday 3 March: Lighthouse, Poole
• Friday 5 March: Town Hall, Cheltenham
• Sunday 7 March: King's Theatre, Edinburgh
• Monday 8 March: Pavilion Theatre, Glasgow
• Tuesday 9 March: Perth Theatre, Perth
• Wednesday 10 March: Eden Court, Inverness
• Friday 12 March: Town Hall, Birmingham
• Saturday 13 March: The Hawth, Crawley
• Sunday 14 March: Corn Exchange, Ipswich
• Tuesday 16 March: New Victoria Theatre, Woking
• Thursday 18 March: Fareham Live, Fareham
• Friday 19 March: Wyvern Theatre, Swindon
• Saturday 20 March: Grand Theatre, Blackpool
• Monday 22 March: Oxford Playhouse, Oxford
• Tuesday 23 March: Northern Stage, Newcastle
• Wednesday 24 March: Theatr Clwyd, Mold
• Tuesday 30 March: New Theatre, Cardiff
• Wednesday 31 March: Theatre Royal, Brighton
• Thursday 1 April: Crucible, Sheffield
• Friday 2 April: The Stables, Wavendon, Milton Keynes
• Saturday 3 April: Anvil, Basingstoke
• Sunday 4 April: Adelphi Theatre, London

The run is strictly limited, with a single date at each venue. See dates and tickets for Layton Live.