Scottish Theatre Highlights: December 2025

There’s no escaping pantomime season (would you want to?), and Glasgow is leading the charge. At The King’s Theatre, Elaine C. Smith and Johnny Mac dive under the sea for The Little Mermaid (Until 4 Jan), promising aquatic chaos and two of Scotland’s most reliable panto powerhouses. A few streets away, the Tron Theatre doubles down with Gallus in Weegieland (Until 4 Jan), Johnny McKnight’s annual festive fever dream with glitter and Glaswegian wit.

Edinburgh counters with something more storybook. The Royal Lyceum’s Cinderella: A Fairytale (Until 3 Jan) blends puppetry and live music to re-enchant the tale.

At Summerhall, panto arrives for the very first time with Snow White Comes to Summerhall (11-14 Dec). Notably, the titular Snow White is described as curious and independent, and with gender neutral pronouns! It promises a welcome twist on the old fairytale, fitting for Summerhall's dedication to boundary-pushing programming. 

Olivia Hemmati rehearsing as Ella in the Royal Lyceum's production of Cinderella: A Fairytale

Dundee Rep answers with Jack and the Beanstalk (Until 30 Dec), a musical where Caroline the Highland cow steals the spotlight in a locally-infused twist on the tale. And if you can't get enough of the fee-fi-fo-fum, you can also catch a Jack and the Beanstalk panto at Festival Theatre in Edinburgh (13 Dec-11 Jan). In Glasgow, the Citizens Theatre returns triumphantly to its Christmas slot with Beauty and the Beast (2-31 Dec).

For those needing a break from holiday sparkle, the Traverse Theatre offers two quieter, sharper palate cleansers. Untethered: A Rehearsed Reading (6 Dec) introduces a woman who doesn’t realise she’s dead. The performance is tagged as immersive, offering what could be a collaborative exploration of the cyclical nature of life and death – fitting, perhaps, for a season insistent on merriment while the world outside reminds us of the wintering death required for rebirth. In a similar vein, Finding Balance: Winter (16 Dec) gathers fresh texts and experiments for an end-of-year scratch night.

Finally, Òran Mór wraps up the season with It’s a Wonderful Life… Mostly (15–28 Dec), a brand new show riffing on the beloved film. Whether it's established pantomimes you're after, or new works leveraging the fullness of the season, December theatre programming this year tries to make the festivities a bit less one-note.