Elton is to co-host this year’s Evening Standard Theatre Awards.
The luminary will break from the European leg of his latest tour to attend the awards on November 13th at London’s Old Vic.
He will co-host the event with the newspaper’s proprietor Evgeny Lebedev.
“I think we produce some of the best theatre in the world here and I feel passionately that we must support it,” said Elton.
The ceremony will mark the 62nd year of the awards, which started in 1955 and have recognised the work of theatrical greats including Sir Laurence Olivier, Sir Richard Burton, Dame Maggie Smith, Dame Helen Mirren and Vanessa Redgrave. Recent winners have included Benedict Cumberbatch, James McAvoy, and Nicole Kidman.
Mr Lebedev commented: “In a tumultuous year for Britain, London’s theatres continue to represent the international gold standard by which productions around the world are measured. I am delighted once again to be hosting these awards, which reward the very best stage talent going.
“There could be no finer setting than the Old Vic, the scene of so many wonderful performances over the years and such an integral part of the capital’s cultural life. I am delighted to have Sir Elton John as my co-host for the 62nd Evening Standard Theatre Awards. He is a man of immense talent and a great patron of the theatre. The musicals he has composed, including Billy Elliot, which opened first in London, have entertained audiences globally.”
