The annual event, which attracts thousands of adults and children into central London each year, is the largest yet and joins forces with the London 2012 Festival – comprising 12,000 events and performances involving over 25,000 artists from all 204 participating nations due to compete in this year's Games – to celebrate the very best of London's art and culture ahead of the Olympic and Paralympic Games.

West End Live is filled with theatres shows and live bands all performing on a bespoke open air stage.

The cast of Top Hat The Musical (scene pictured below) will open the show on Saturday morning, followed with scenes from the West End's biggest hit musicals such as Wicked, Billy Elliot The Musical and Sweeney Todd.

During the afternoon, excerpts from crowd-pleasing classic productions such as Ghost The Musical, We Will Rock You, Rock Of Ages and Les Misérables will be showcased.

On Sunday, the cast of Stomp are set to get everyone on their feet as they start the day's events, followed by children's favourites The Wizard Of Oz, Shrek The Musical, The Lion King and Matilda The Musical.

During the afternoon, performances from musical theatre stars Louise Dearman, Mark Evans, Alex Gaumond and Daniel Boys will also feature.


As well as watching London's biggest names in theatre, Londoners can enjoy a host of stands and exhibitions, including offerings from favourite attractions Ripley's Believe It Or Not!, Madame Tussauds and The London Dungeon.

As 2012 marks the largest sporting event coming to the UK, the West End is pulling out all the stops to ensure visitors also get a taste of the best of British culture.

West End Live runs from Saturday (June 23) from 11am to 6pm and Sunday (June 24) from noon until 6pm.

The London 2012 Festival runs through until September 9.

Click here for more information on West End Live 2012.   

To find out more about the London 2012 Festival click here.

Book your West End theatre tickets via insidethegames by clicking here.

Contact the writer of this story at [email protected]


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