Return to DC theaters for these can’t-miss performances
As the fall season gets under way, make sure to mark your calendar with this array of highly anticipated productions set to debut across DC. There's also Theatre Week (Sept. 22 - Oct. 9), which showcases plays, playwrights and wonderful venues throughout DC, Maryland and Virginia. Take advantage by checking out all the wondrous shows below - and also make sure to read up on other seasonal events and festivals and free things to do.
The Outsider – Through Sept. 24
The Keegan Theatre welcomes a new and timely comedy about the worst candidate to ever run for office. Ned Newley doesn’t want to be governor, even though he’s on the ballot. He’s awful at public speaking and his poll numbers are atrocious. However, political consultant Arthur Vance sees things from a different perspective: maybe the public is looking for a candidate just like Ned! The Outsider is a celebration of democracy and provides a gut-busting look at electoral politics.
Tickets
Keegan Theatre, 1742 Church Street NW, Washington, DC 20036
Dear Evan Hansen – Aug. 30 – Sept. 25
One of the most beloved musicals of the past decade returns to the Kennedy Center. Based on a novel by Steven Levenson (Masters of Sex) and featuring a score by Grammy, Tony and Academy Award winners Benj Pasek and Justin Paul (La La Land, The Greatest Showman) the story follows Evan Hansen, who is on the verge of a perfect life with the ideal girl, a comforting family and social acceptance in tow. However, he has some major secrets that could derail it all.
Tickets
John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, 2700 F Street NW, Washington, DC 20566
No Place to Go – Aug. 30 – Oct. 16
Bobby Smith stars in Signature Theatre’s ode to the unemployed. An “information refiner” has found that his company is moving to a (very) remote location and all the jobs are going with it. With a jazz band as his accompaniment, the sorry soul must decide whether he’s going to relocate his family or take on a new, unknown venture. Expect plenty of snappy wit along with blues, jazz and bluegrass music in a capitalist critique unlike any other.
Tickets
Signature Theatre, 4200 Campbell Avenue, Arlington, VA 22206
To Sail Around the Sun – Sept. 17
Delight your eyes and ears this National Dance Day as the local Company | E showcases a child’s same-day journey around the globe through dance, live music and storytelling. Journey through Australia, Argentina, Japan and Kazakhstan and experience the seasons accompanied by a live string quartet.
11 a.m. & 2 p.m. | Tickets
The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, 2700 F Street NW, Washington, DC 20004
Heroes of the Fourth Turning – Sept. 21 – Oct. 23
Set in the wilderness of Wyoming, Studio Theatre’s new production focuses on the last vestiges of a celebration honoring the new President of a conservative Catholic college. The lingering guests drink whiskey, talk Steve Bannon, Bojack and Thomas Aquinas and lament the current state of the Catholic right.
Tickets
Studio Theatre, 1501 14th Street NW, Washington, DC 20005
Theatre Week – Sept. 22 – Oct. 9
Celebrate the theatre season in the Washington, DC region with a weeks-long promotion from TheatreWashington. Savor the opportunity to sample the diverse and vibrant work of dozens of theaters and companies on a variety of stages across the region. There are musicals, dramas, comedies, theatre for young audiences and much more. In addition to discounted tickets, Theatre Week also includes special events (most of which are free) designed to entertain, educate and inspire.
The Trip to Bountiful – Sept. 23 – Oct. 16
Horton Foote’s classic American drama comes to the historic Ford’s Theatre with Michael Wilson directing and Nancy Robinette as Carrie Watts, our main character who longs for simpler times back in her hometown of Bountiful, Texas. Along the way, Carrie makes incredible discoveries regarding human kindness, compassion and the true meaning of home.
Tickets
Ford’s Theatre, 511 10th Street NW, Washington, DC 20004
Opera on the Field: Carmen – Sept. 25
Celebrate the 17th season of free opera broadcasts by joining Washington National Opera at Audi Field, the home stadium of D.C. United, for staging the iconic Carmen. The bold title character lives life on her own terms but runs into problems after seducing one Don José. As she sets her sights on the bullfighter Escamillo, jealousy catches up to Carmen, with shocking consequences. Gates open at 2 p.m. for pre-opera activities, with the free performance set for 4 p.m.
Gates open at 2 p.m. | More Info
Audi Field, 100 Potomac Avenue SW, Washington, DC 20024
The Notebooks of Leonardo Da Vinci – Sept. 29 – Oct. 23
Tony Award-winner and MacArthur Genius Award recipient Mary Zimmerman brings Leonardo da Vinci’s writings to life in a stunning revival. Comprised solely of text from the notebooks of the 15th-century renaissance man, the production is packed with revelations as it combines ruminations on art, science and the human spirit.
Tickets
Michael R. Klein Theatre, 450 7th Street NW, Washington, DC 20004
TINA: The Tina Turner Musical – Oct. 4-23
Filled with timeless songs and written by Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Katori Hall, TINA is a powerhouse musical about the Queen of Rock n’ Roll. Tina Turner’s story, which rattles with resilience and rhythm, is transformed into a compelling narrative punctuated by the songwriter’s unforgettable, chart-topping classics.
Tickets
The National Theatre, 1321 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20004
Broadway Center Stage: Guys and Dolls – Oct. 7-16
Classic Broadway comes to DC’s pre-eminent venue in the form of Guys and Dolls, Frank Loesser’s iconic and ideal take on the musical comedy. Situated in 1950s Manhattan within a crowd of gamblers, gangsters and showgirls, the play is a crowd-pleaser from start to finish, decorated with songs that will have you dancing in the aisles, including “I’ve Never Been in Love Before,” “Adelaide’s Lament” and “Luck Be a Lady”.
Tickets
The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, 2700 F Street NW, Washington, DC 20004
Holiday – Oct. 7 – Nov. 6
Arena Stage welcomes a classic romantic comedy that was adapted for the screen in 1938 in a film starring Cary Grant and Katharine Hepburn. Holiday concerns an up-and-coming Wall Street lawyer from a working class background who hopes to retire as soon as he possibly can. His affluent fiancée doesn’t approve while her more unconventional sister is thrilled by the idea. Issues of class and social hierarchy lie at the center of what remains a relevant commentary on what makes life worth living.
Tickets
Arena Stage, 1101 6th Street SW, Washington, DC 20024
Hamilton – Through Oct. 9
One of the most acclaimed productions in American history comes back to DC’s pre-eminent stage. The Tony Award-winning sensation about the Founding Father who came to the U.S. as an immigrant from the British-colonized West Indies to become George Washington’s trusted advisor takes the spotlight inside the Kennedy Center’s 2,362-seat Opera House. Lin-Manuel Miranda’s musical blends jazz, rap and hip-hop, and transforms the tale of America’s first Treasury Secretary with a diverse cast.
Tickets
The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, 2700 F Street NW, Washington, DC 20004
The Color Purple – Through Oct. 9
The 2016 Tony Award winner for Best Musical Revival will wow audiences at Virginia’s Signature Theatre in the late summer and early fall of 2022. Based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel by Alice Walker that was later turned into an Academy Award-winning film by Steven Spielberg, this musical uses jazz, blues, ragtime and gospel to tell the story of a young woman’s struggle towards love and triumph in the American South.
Tickets
Signature Theatre, 4200 Campbell Avenue, Arlington, VA 22206
Sanctuary City – Oct. 21 – Nov. 27
Penned by Pulitzer Prize winner Martyna Majok, Sanctuary City tells a powerful story of two young DREAMers fighting to establish themselves in America. Poignant, timely and captivatingly dramatic, the riveting tale illuminates the challenges these friends face and how much they’re willing to risk for each other.
Tickets
Arena Stage, 1101 6th Street SW, Washington, DC 20024
Elegies: A Song Cycle – Oct. 22 – Nov. 20
Tony Award-winning composer and lyricist William Finn has crafted a soaring tribute to lost loved ones – including friends, family, his dogs and victims of major tragedies. The lives, losses and loves of people both real and fictional are honored with theatricality and songs brimming with spirit, soul and life’s infinite joys.
Tickets
Keegan Theatre, 1742 Church Street NW, Washington, DC 20036
Both Sides Now: Joni Mitchell and Leonard Cohen – Nov. 1-13
Two of the greatest and most influential songwriters and storytellers to grip listeners (and readers) over the last 50 years, Joni Mitchell and Leonard Cohen were longtime friends and one-time lovers. Signature Theatre honors their seismic song catalogues with Both Sides Now. Expect to hear essentials such as “Hallelujah,” “Big Yellow Taxi,” “Suzanne” and many, many more.
Tickets
Signature Theatre, 4200 Campbell Avenue, Arlington, VA 22206
Into the Woods – Nov. 8 – Jan. 29, 2023
Stephen Sondheim’s fairy tale mash-up musical comes to Virginia’s Signature Theatre. A baker and his wife want to reverse a witch’s curse so that they can have a child together. However, their quest becomes much more complicated, with Little Red Ridinghood, Jack and his beanstalk, Cinderella and Rapunzel all eventually getting involved. A beautiful score highlights this darkly humorous journey into the imagination.
Tickets
Signature Theatre, 4200 Campbell Avenue, Arlington, VA 22206
People, Places & Things – Nov. 9 – Dec. 11
Director David Muse helms his first production inside the new Victor Shargai Theatre with this powerful examination of the desire to escape. Emma, an aspiring actress, is also struggling with addiction and an obsession with control. The narrative drops the audience into a disorienting world of intoxication, as Emma tries to rebound and recover her life – and the people, place and things in it.
Tickets
Studio Theatre, 1501 14th Street NW, Washington, DC 20005
Much Ado About Nothing – Nov. 10 – Dec. 11
The essential romantic comedy written by one William Shakespeare concerns a group of soldiers returning home after years of war, trading in their uniforms for wedding bands. Two ex-lovers, Beatrice and Benedick, are about to be reunited, but not before a faked death, terrible law enforcement practices, an interrupted wedding and plenty of double crossing. The Bard’s funniest play is not to be missed.
Tickets & Info
Chicago – Nov. 15-27
One of the great American musicals in Broadway’s decorated history celebrates its 25th anniversary by coming to the second-oldest theatre in America. Chicago is the tale of Roxie Hart and her rise to dubious fame after murdering her lover, filled with sensational intrigue, unforgettable songs and great dancing. Whether you’ve seen the Academy Award-winning film or have never heard of the play before, Chicago makes for a highlight of this DC theater season.
Tickets
The National Theatre, 1321 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20004
The Day You Begin – Nov. 19 – Dec. 18
The Kennedy Center commissioned the family-friendly play of the season adapted from Education Artist-in-Residence Jacqueline Woodson’s beloved picture book. With music by Tosha Reagon, The Day You Begin is about embracing new places and people and discovering your own courage along the way. The musical is recommended for ages 5 and over.
Tickets
The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, 2700 F Street NW, Washington, DC 20004
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