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More than 25 productions offer $25, $45 and $65 tickets, Sept. 24 – Oct. 11
Theatre Week features many productions produced for the first time in the DC area and in some cases, the world! Venus by Steve Yockey is a cosmic dark comedy about the worst first date known to womankind, premiering at Woolly Mammoth Theatre (and directed by their new Artistic Director Reggie D. White). In commemoration of America’s 250th anniversary, Step Afrika! premieres The Fruits of Our Labor—a powerful new production exploring rhythm, resilience and the unfinished story of the American experience at Arena Stage. And for young audiences, DC’s own playwright Dani Stoller has the world premiere of her new show, Beatrice Likes the Dark, at Adventure Theatre MTC.
Sometimes you want to see a new reimagining of a story you know and love. Theatre Week has a few! Check out Merrily We Roll Along at Signature Theatre or The Legend of Sleepy Hollow at Washington Stage Guild. Somewhere Over the Border at Mosaic Theater is an updated retelling of The Wizard of Oz from Brian Quijada, the co-creator and star of Mexodus, which just completed back-to-back Off-Broadway runs. And Measure for Measure at Folger Theatre, directed by DC favorite Psalmeyene 24, offers considerations into societal upheaval and asks whose voices are silenced and whose voices break through.
Going a little bit meta, you can see the stories of extraordinary artists who lived extraordinary lives unfold on stage. Garbo: El artista que salvó al mundo (Garbo: The Artist Who Saved The World) at GALA Hispanic Theatre tells the story of a frustrated theatre dreamer who becomes one of World War II’s most brilliant double agents. In the play’s only American engagement, the company of The Score – led by Brian Cox (HBO’s Succession) – brings the story of Johann Sebastian Bach’s reluctant visit to the court of Frederick II, Europe’s most ambitious and dangerous leader, to Shakespeare Theatre Company. August Wilson’s Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom introduces us to the legendary American blues singer in a co-production between Round House Theatre and Olney Theatre Center. And Theater J presents The Flying Lovers of Vitebsk, the pre-fame story of Bella and Marc Chagall as two young dreamers whose love transformed the world around them.
Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company
The Helen Hayes Awards are “DC’s Tonys” – or as we like to say, The Tonys are the Helen Hayes Awards of New York. During Theatre Week, you can see the work of some of the recent recipients of this prestigious award on stage. Five-time Helen Hayes Award recipient and ceremony director Ashleigh King takes the stage as Sweet Sue in Some Like It Hot at Olney Theatre Center. Come from Away at Ford’s Theatre was the recipient of the 2017 Helen Hayes Award for Outstanding Musical and makes a 10th anniversary return. The shows you see during Theatre Week will be the nominees you hear about in 2027!
Theatre Week
How do we create joy? Through the arts, through theatre, through culture and through connection. Feel the energy of the great artists of DC theatre in Make a Scene!, Theatre Week’s free musical theatre concert that celebrates the power of performance on Tuesday, Sept. 29 on the floating stage at District Wharf. Enjoy happy hour drink specials and hear some of your favorite musical theatre classics and new songs you’ll come to love. Best of all, you’ll meet some of the area’s most talented performers – the heart of our theatre community. Get free tickets beginning Sept. 9.
Discover more about DC's spectacular theater scene and check out some of the most exciting productions in DC this fall.
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