One Day: The Musical – Royal Lyceum Theatre, Edinburgh: Beautiful and poignant – the sweetest highs and the lowest lows (theatre review)

It’s telling when the merch for a play includes branded tissues and hats that say ‘I <3 crying.’ If, like me, you’ve read the book or watched the series, then you know how it ends. If not – I’m sure you could hazard a guess. It’s a sad story, built on years of bad timing, crossed wires, grief, loss and the ultimate heartbreak. But like any great story, there’s more to it than that.

David Greig’s stage adaptation of One Day gives us the necessary highs:  the connection, the joy, the little moments of sunshine that make us care, opening our hearts just to break them in the lowest of lows. And that’s how you end up with a sobbing audience and a standing ovation.

The world premiere of One Day: The Musical feels particularly well placed at the Royal Lyceum Theatre in Edinburgh, the city where it all began. It’s here that Emma (Sharon Rose) and Dexter (Jamie Muscato) meet the day of their graduation, on St Swithin’s Day, and become cosmically tied to each other. From then on we revisit them every year on the same date. Spanning 20 years, we see glimpses of their lives unfolding, whether together or apart.

The passing years are marked by a large New Year’s Eve–style countdown clock, while in-the-round seating and a revolving stage help establish the rhythm of time passing. Sometimes the stage moves quickly, sometimes slowly, creating a natural cadence to the story.

By adapting the book into a musical, we experience more of the warmth and silliness of the story, punctuated by catchy songs like Em and Dex, which I was humming all the way home. The format allows for beautiful, poignant moments on stage like when the ensemble curls around a telephone line as a distressed Dexter desperately tries to call Emma. We watch the instant, evolving chemistry between the friends-to-lovers live on stage, and the audience collectively holds its breath when the sudden blackout comes during the bicycle scene.

With a book, film and series to live up to, One Day: The Musical has a hill to climb to prove itself a worthy addition to the catalogue. Ending on the green grass of Arthur’s Seat, I can safely say the musical rises to the challenge. The music adds rhythm to the story, propelling us forward in time, and halting us in lingering, painful moments. In doing so, the performance mirrors life itself and the messy way we experience memories, offering a more urgent perspective on the story, emphasising the significance of one day and asking us to take nothing for granted.

One Day: The Musical is at Royal Lyceum Theatre, Edinburgh, 17th March till 19th April 2026