2026 Season Announcement

A Midsummer Night’s Dream
By William Shakespeare
Directed by Marcela Lorca
March 13 – October 25, 2026
Angus Bowmer Theatre

“The course of true love never did run smooth”
When Hermia, Lysander, Helena, and Demetrius flee into the woods, they do it in pursuit of personal freedom and their one true love. But making their way through the forest is particularly tricky under the influence of the mischievous Puck’s spells. The line between truth and illusion blurs as the couples are drawn into a dream world that is as dark and mysterious as it is marvelous and full of wonder, where magic reigns and nothing is quite as it seems. Shakespeare’s timeless romantic comedy returns to OSF with original music by Justin Huertas (Lizard Boy) in an enchanting production, under the direction of Marcela Lorca (The Count of Monte Cristo).

Come From Away
Book, Music, and Lyrics by Irene Sankoff and David Hein
Directed by Laurie Woolery
March 14 – October 24, 2026
Angus Bowmer Theatre

The day the world stopped
In the hours following September 11, 2001, as planes were grounded and uncertainty swept the globe, 7,000 stranded air travelers landed in the remote town of Gander, Newfoundland. With no time to prepare, the people of Gander opened their homes, their hearts, and their lives to these complete strangers. This Tony and Olivier Award–winning musical, based on that astonishing true story, unfolds through a propulsive, folk-inspired score and a cast of unforgettable real-life characters. A heart-forward, joyful celebration of resilience, Come From Away reminds audiences of all ages of the power of community in the darkest of times.

A Raisin in the Sun
By Lorraine Hansberry
Directed by Tim Bond
March 15 – July 19, 2026
Angus Bowmer Theatre

“What happens to a dream deferred?”
On the South Side of 1950s Chicago, the Younger family lives under one roof, bound together by love, struggle, and shelved dreams. When a life insurance check arrives after the death of their father, it sparks a chance to break free—from poverty, from their cramped apartment, and from the limits of a deeply segregated society. But each family member sees a different future, and the choices they make test everything they believe about identity, pride, and possibility. One of the greatest American dramas ever written, Lorraine Hansberry’s A Raisin in the Sun is fierce, tender, and as urgent now as when it first debuted in 1959. OSF Artistic Director Tim Bond brings to life a powerful revival of this seminal work The New York Times called “The play that changed American theatre forever.”

Yellow Face
By David Henry Hwang
Directed by May Adrales
August 5 – October 23, 2026
Angus Bowmer Theatre

A smart, semi-autobiographical comedy about the masks we wear
When DHH—a Chinese American playwright and staunch activist—protests the casting of a white actor in Miss Saigon, he never imagines he’ll make the same mistake himself. But after accidentally casting a white actor in the lead Asian role of his own play, he scrambles to cover his tracks, spinning an increasingly ridiculous web of half-truths, media frenzy, and personal contradictions. Pulitzer Prize finalist Yellow Face is a laugh-out-loud mockumentary that skewers the worlds of theatre, identity politics, and public image with razor-sharp wit. Fresh off a thrilling Broadway run, David Henry Hwang’s hilarious and thought-provoking Tony-nominated play comes to OSF in a new production directed by May Adrales (Vietgone).

You Are Cordially Invited to the End of the World!
By Keiko Green
Directed by Zi Alikhan
April 16 – August 21, 2026
Thomas Theatre

A raucous comedy about the unthinkable
Greg’s been so good: he recycles, eats right, loves his wife, and has only a slightly uncomfortable relationship with his grown-up kid. But when he’s faced with a terminal illness, he becomes obsessed with the fate of the planet while his wife and child try to cope with their own worlds ending. This play about grief—and cringe-y family dinners, and lawnmowers, and Greta Thunberg, and gay bars, and awkward support groups—is an exquisitely touching and hilarious play that anyone who’s ever lost a loved one (or laughed at a funeral) can relate to.

King Hedley II
By August Wilson
Directed by Tim Bond
July 16 – October 24, 2026
Thomas Theatre

“I want everybody to know that King Hedley II is here...”
It’s 1985, and King returns to his family and community, determined to take control of his life after having served seven years in prison. He patches together odd jobs—some legal, some not, hoping to open a video store and build a new future. Two-time Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright August Wilson has created a mythic and metaphysical landscape full of unabashed lyricism amongst the crumbling black neighborhood of Pittsburgh’s Hill District. Like the hero of a Greek tragedy, King seeks redemption from a past that still haunts him: the murder that changed his life, old vendettas that won’t die, and an explosive secret his mother has kept hidden. Director Tim Bond brings his love of August Wilson, along with a powerhouse cast, to this poetically tragic epic about systems of violence and intergenerational poverty, the ninth play in Wilson’s American Century Cycle.

King Hedley II continues OSF’s commitment to August Wilson’s monumental American Century Cycle.

Smote This, A Comedy About God...and Other Serious $H*T
Created and performed by Rodney Gardiner
Directed by Raz Golden
August 27 – October 24, 2026
Thomas Theatre

An encore of the hit solo show from Rodney Gardiner
Back by popular demand, this sharp and hilarious solo show follows actor Rodney Gardiner as he attempts to abandon God—no easy feat for a devoutly raised, undocumented Black boy growing up in tumultuous 1980s Miami. For young Rodney, dealing with racial unrest, an immigration crisis, and the drug war is just another Tuesday. Smote This spins an entertaining web of personal stories and hilarious tangents that land with equal parts heart and heat. OSF is thrilled to welcome back Rodney, who has riveted our audiences for years in everything from musicals to Shakespeare.

The Taming of the Shrew
By William Shakespeare
Directed by Shana Cooper
June 5 – October 11, 2026
Allen Elizabethan Theatre

All’s fair in the war of love
Sweet-natured Bianca has her choice of suitors, but there’s a problem: she can’t get married until her older sister, Kate, also gets hitched. And Kate—strong-willed, sharp-tongued—is not onboard with any of that. When a stranger, Petruchio, comes to town, he hatches a plan to win Kate, but it’s not easy romancing an unbothered single woman who dishes out insults at lightning speed. Wordplay crackles and passions run high as this iconoclastic couple forges an unconventional path to love in this uproarious Shakespeare comedy. Directed by Shana Cooper (The Unfortunates, Indecent), this bold production turns the tables on tradition, inviting us to question everything we think we know about courtship, gender, and power.

Henry IV, Part One
By William Shakespeare
Directed by Rosa Joshi
June 6 – October 10, 2026
Allen Elizabethan Theatre

A kingdom on the brink
King Henry IV is in trouble: a faction of his allies, including a valiant youngster named Hotspur, have turned on him and are now gunning for his throne. And his own son, Prince Hal, is no help, spending all his time languishing with his low-life drinking buddies and a corrupt knight, Falstaff, who holds a strange sway over the kid. Will Hal ever come around and act like the king he will be one day? Shakespeare’s iconic history play is a stirring coming-of-age story, filled with humor, romance, and intrigue. Associate Artistic Director Rosa Joshi (Henry V, Julius Caesar) directs.

Emma
By Kate Hamill
Based on the novel by Jane Austen
Directed by Meredith McDonough
June 7 – October 9, 2026
Allen Elizabethan Theatre

Game. Set. Matchmake.
Jane Austen’s beloved Regency-era heroine takes center stage in this fast, funny, feminist adaptation by Kate Hamill, featuring contemporary pop music and a screwball-comedy spirit. Emma believes she has it all figured out, especially when it comes to other people’s love lives. The self-appointed matchmaker means well, but in a world with few options for women beyond marriage, her meddling leads to a bevy of misadventures, mishaps and misunderstandings, leading her to confront the difference between toying with matters of the heart and truly experiencing them. Meredith McDonough makes her OSF directorial debut with a bold, genre-bending romp that turns Austen on her head.