With characters such as Trekkie Monster and Lucy the Slut, the debut musical by Robert Lopez and Jeff Marx (music and lyrics) has been described as "Sesame Street" meets "South Park."

Avenue Q started life in 2002 with an Off-Broadway run at the 200-seat Vineyard Theatre, where it was extended four times. It then opened at the Golden Theatre on Broadway in July 2003 to critical acclaim. The show went on to win three 2004 Tonys: Best Musical, Best Original Score of a Musical and Best Book of a Musical.

In Avenue Q Jeff Whitty’s book follows the story of bright-eyed college student Princeton (Jon Robyns), who can only afford to live in the down-market New York street of the show’s title. With a variety of weird neighbors, Princeton goes on a journey of self-discovery.

For the London production, Ann Harada reprises her Broadway performance as Christmas Eve, for which she won an Outer Critics Circle Award. The show has been cast in collaboration with London’s Theatre Royal Stratford East, who helped the producers find hundreds of musical performers of all backgrounds bringing together a mix of young newcomers and seasoned West End performers. After New York, London will be the show’s third production, the other being Las Vegas, where the show ended its run on May 28 to make way for Monty Python’s Spamalot.

For more on Avenue Q, which is booking until Sept. 30, call (0)870 850 9175.