London run ended 16 August 2026. The current UK tour has no London dates.

Dog Man is touring the UK until June 2027, with prices varying by city. See UK tour dates on ATG Tickets

Dog Man: The Musical at a glance

Show
Dog Man: The Musical
Status
Queen Elizabeth Hall run closed 16 August 2026
Theatre
Queen Elizabeth Hall, Southbank Centre, Belvedere Road, London SE1 8XX
Run
29 July – 16 August 2026 (European premiere)
Genre
Family musical
Running time
1 hour 15 minutes, no interval
Age guidance
5+; under-12s with an adult; flashing lights and haze
Book and lyrics
Kevin Del Aguila
Music
Brad Alexander
Director and choreographer
Jen Wineman
Cast
Renan Teodoro (Dog Man), Ricardo Mendes (George), Peter Lavery (Harold), Sam Kipling (Petey), Rebecca-Jo Roberts (Li'l Petey), Vanessa Dumatey (Flippy)
Based on
The Dog Man graphic novels by Dav Pilkey
Now
UK tour to June 2027; no London dates

Looking back: Dog Man at the Southbank Centre

3.5
★★★☆☆

LTH Retrospective Rating

Retrospective by the London Theatre Hub editorial team. Last updated: 23 September 2026.

The Verdict

Dog Man: The Musical closed at the Southbank Centre's Queen Elizabeth Hall on 16 August 2026 after a three-week summer-holiday season, the London stop and European premiere of a UK tour that began in Leicester in July. The show first played Off-Broadway in 2019 and is built squarely for the children who devour Dav Pilkey's books.

Critics were split along predictable lines. Family-focused reviewers were enthusiastic: All That Dazzles called it "hilarious and whimsical, crafty and smart". Time Out gave three stars, finding it charming but saying the songs were pleasant rather than memorable and the production looked exposed on the large Queen Elizabeth Hall stage. Theatre Weekly, also three stars, said it "lands in London with a whimper rather than a woof", citing sound balance problems and forgettable songs. The Guardian felt it leaned on the books' chaos more than their pathos. What almost every review agreed on was the reaction of the young audience, who cheered, laughed and howled along throughout.

What Made It Special

  • A European premiere. The first production outside North America of a musical that began Off-Broadway at the Lucille Lortel Theatre in 2019.
  • Built for its readers. The show keeps the books' flip-book silliness, with George and Harold presenting their own comic-book hero on stage.
  • A short, interval-free hour. At about 75 minutes, the right length for a first theatre trip.
  • A summer-holiday London stop. Three weeks at the Southbank Centre in the middle of the school break, as part of a UK tour.
  • Honest caveat. Adults without a Dog Man fan in tow were less convinced than the children around them.

Everything You Need to Know

What happens in Dog Man: The Musical?

The show is framed as a production put on by George and Harold, the best friends who create the Dog Man comics in Dav Pilkey's books. They introduce their hero and tell his story on stage, complete with their own commentary.

Part dog, part cop

Dog Man is a crime-fighter who is part dog and part police officer: the loyalty and nose of a dog, and the badge of a cop. He is brave, well-meaning and easily distracted, which makes him a hero and a liability in roughly equal measure.

The villains

His arch-enemy is Petey, a scheming cat with big plans, joined by Flippy, a fish with a grudge. Complicating things is Li'l Petey, a kitten whose kindness keeps getting in the way of Petey's villainy.

The spirit of the books

As in the novels, the story moves fast, doubles back on itself and never takes itself seriously. Reviewers noted that audiences who already knew the books followed it best.