Dog Man: The Musical makes UK pit-stop at Wales Millennium Centre

Nation Cymru staff

A hilarious and heartfelt new musical based on Dog Man – the worldwide bestselling book series by Dav Pilkey – is set to visit Cardiff during its European premiere this autumn.

Dog Man: The Musical comes to the UK after playing to packed houses in the US where it had multiple sell-out Off-Broadway seasons and US tours, and arrives at Wales Millennium Centre on Friday 16 – Saturday 17 October.

Since it launched to critical acclaim in 2016, Dav Pilkey’s international hit book series Dog Man has more than 70 million copies in print worldwide and has been translated into 48 languages, including Welsh, with five of the titles currently in the Amazon UK top 50 best-selling children’s books.

The Dreamworks animated film based on the books was released earlier in 2025 to great acclaim and box office success. Dog Man: The Musical, originally produced by TheaterWorksUSA, premiered off-Broadway in June 2019 at the Lucille Lortel Theatre, extending due to popular demand. The production returned to New York at New World Stages in March 2023.

Best friends George and Harold have been creating comics for years, but now that they’re 10, they figure it’s time to level up and write a musical based on their favourite character, Dog Man, the crime-biting sensation who is part dog, part man, and all hero – how hard could it be?

With the head of a dog and the body of a policeman, Dog Man loves to fight crime and chew on the furniture. But while trying his best to be a good boy, can he save the city from Flippy the cyborg fish and his army of Beasty Buildings?

Can he catch Petey, the world’s most evil cat, who has cloned himself to exact revenge on the doggy do-gooder? And will George and Harold finish their show before lunchtime?

Cast announcement

The cast has just been announced for the UK tour of the European premiere of Dog Man: The Musical.

Casting includes Vanessa Dumatey (I’m Every Woman, Hackney Empire & UK Tour; The Tina Turner Musical, Aldwych Theatre, West End) as Flippy, Sam Kipling (Les Misérables, Sondheim Theatre; The Mikado Wilton’s Music Hall & UK Tour) as Petey, Peter Lavery (Becoming Nancy, Birmingham Repertory Theatre; Jack and the Beanstalk, Ipswich Regent Theatre) as Harold, Ricardo Mendes (Carmen, ENO London Coliseum; Pinocchio, The Alhambra Theatre) as George, Rebecca-Jo Roberts (Beauty and the Beast, The Theatre Chipping Norton; Stalled: A New Musical, King’s Head Theatre) as L’il Petey and Renan Teadoro (Anyone Can Whistle, Southwark Playhouse; I Am Harvey Milk, European Premiere) as Dog Man. The cast is completed by Richener Bissereth, Shannon Bourne and Robert Wilkes.

The tour will have only on Welsh visit on its extensive UK run, with that being at Cardiff’s Wales Millennium Centre from 16-17 October.

This epic musical adventure has a book and lyrics by Kevin Del Aguila (two-time Emmy Award-winning writer of the PBS show Peg + Cat), music by Brad Alexander (Drama Desk-nominated See Rock City & Other Destinations); and is directed and choreographed by Jen Wineman (NY: Less Than 50%).

Its creator, Dav Pilkey was diagnosed with ADHD and dyslexia as a child. He was so disruptive in class that his teachers made him sit out in the hallway every day. Luckily, Dav loved to draw and make up stories, so he spent his time in the hallway creating his own original comic books – the very first adventures of Dog Man and Captain Underpants.

Since then, Dav has written and illustrated a number of bestselling and award-winning children’s books, including the Caldecott Honor book The Paperboy. His Captain Underpants series and Dog Man graphic novels have sold millions of copies worldwide and have been translated into many languages. Dav lives in the Pacific Northwest with his wife. His stories explore universally positive themes that celebrate the triumph of the good-hearted.

Dog Man: The Musical comes to Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff from 16-17 October. More info and tickets here.

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