Jinkx Monsoon will make her London West End debut this summer, stepping into the role of Mary Todd Lincoln in “Oh, Mary!” at Trafalgar Theatre for a six-week run from Aug. 17 to Sept. 26.
Monsoon, the first and only drag queen to win “RuPaul’s Drag Race” twice, previously played the role on Broadway, where her eight-week engagement sold out, with a subsequent encore run earning praise. The booking at Trafalgar marks her first appearance on a West End stage.
The announcement comes as the Olivier Award-winning production navigates a sequence of Mary Todd Lincolns across the summer. Catherine Tate, who currently holds the role, plays her final performance on July 18. Cole Escola – who originated the part and won the Tony Award for Best Leading Actor in a Play for it – will then reprise their performance for four weeks from July 20 to Aug. 15, before Monsoon takes over. Casting for the role from Sept. 28 onward has yet to be announced.
Monsoon can presently be seen as Judy Garland in Peter Quilter’s “End of the Rainbow” at Soho Theatre, Walthamstow. Her Broadway résumé also includes “Matron ‘Mama’ Morton” in “Chicago,” where she broke box office records during an extended 10-week run, Audrey in an off-Broadway production of “Little Shop of Horrors” opposite Corbin Bleu, and Ruth in the Tony-nominated revival “Pirates! The Penzance Musical,” which earned her a Drama League Award nomination. On screen, she appeared as the Maestro in “Doctor Who” for the BBC and Disney+.
Written by Tony Award winner Cole Escola and directed by Tony Award winner Sam Pinkleton, “Oh, Mary!” is a dark comedy set in the weeks before Abraham Lincoln’s assassination, charting Mary Todd Lincoln’s unrequited longings, alcoholism and suppressed desires. The 80-minute one-act play premiered off-Broadway at the Lucille Lortel Theatre in January 2024 before transferring to Broadway’s Lyceum Theatre in July of that year. It arrived in the West End on Dec. 3, 2025, and claimed Best Entertainment or Comedy Play at this year’s Olivier Awards. A U.S. national tour is scheduled to launch this autumn.
“Oh, Mary!” is booking at Trafalgar Theatre through Jan. 2, 2027.
Source: variety.com
