When I started reviewing theater for the Hill Rag in 1984, as a wide-eyed novice to the local performing arts scene, I remember thinking, “How much theater could there be to fill a weekly column?” A lot, it turned out.

I still mourn the loss of the companies I once frequented, among them Leslie Jacobson’s Horizons and Bart Whiteman’s Source, where the work was always challenging, insightful, and fueled by passion and purpose.

By the same token, I marveled at the slow but steady growth of companies like Woolly Mammoth, who went from performing in a church on G Street to operating their own gorgeous downtown space.

And I was frequently left in awe by the soaring works of legendary directors like Joy Zinoman, Zelda Fitzgerald, and Michael Kahn.

There was even a point in my reviewing career that I was at the Kennedy Center so often — back in the days when Peter Sellars turned the nation’s performing arts center into a mind-warping experimental playground — I used to joke it was my second home.

In 40 years, I’ve watched the D.C. theater landscape evolve and only get bigger and more consequential. The thrill of what happens on local stages remains as electric, eclectic, and energetic as ever, fueled by the notion that the greatest works of theater provide an experience like few others: the chance to explore ideas, both contemporary and classic, the chance to be delighted and entertained, and the chance to revisit history through the eyes of playwrights long departed from this mortal plane.

1ST STAGE

1524 Spring Hill Rd.
Mclean, Va.
703-854-1856
www.1ststage.org

• The Waverly Gallery — An elderly matriarch has run an art gallery in a small Greenwich Village hotel for many years, but now management wants to replace her gallery with a coffee shop. By Kenneth Lonergan, Academy Award-winning writer of Manchester by the Sea and directed by Alex Levy (9/12-10/6)
• Laughs in Spanish — Mariana, the director of a swanky modern art gallery, faces a serious dilemma: her showroom has become an active crime scene. Alexis Scheer’s joyous snapshot of Cuban and Colombian-American culture follows Mariana and her larger-than-life mother, a film and television star determined to save the show (12/12-12/29)
• The Lake Effect — During a fierce Cleveland mid-winter storm, estranged siblings are reunited by their father’s sudden death. As they close his failing Indian restaurant, they must confront the painful memories and secrets that drove them apart. By Pulitzer Prize finalist Rajiv Joseph. Directed by Alex Levy (1/30-2/16)
• hang — Three unnamed characters are present in the same room. One and Two are overseeing a judicial process, while Three, a Black woman, is determining the fate of a man who has committed a crime against her and her family. debbie tucker green’s provocative, darkly humorous play was a hit in London in 2015. Directed by Deidra LaWan Starnes (3/13-30)
• The Piano Lesson — August Wilson’s Pulitzer Prize-winning drama is the fourth in his extraordinary “American Century Cycle.” Set in Pittsburgh in the 1930s, Berniece and her brother Boy Willie navigate the complexities of their past centered around an heirloom piano. Directed by Danielle A. Drakes (6/5-22)

AVANT BARD

2700 S. Lang Street
Arlington, Va.
703-418-4808
www.avantbard.org

• 9th Annual Free Scripts in Play Festival — A staged reading festival that showcases new works by playwrights. This year’s festival takes place the first three weekends in October at various area art galleries and features Killing Mockingbirds by Bridget Grace Sheaff, Radio Free America by Allyson Currin, and Rude Mechanics by Eric Hissom. Visit www.avantbard.org for dates, venues, and times. Tickets are free (Oct.)
• The Margriad — Séamus Miller weaves together four of Shakespeare’s history plays — Henry VI Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, and Richard III — to tell the complete, epic story of Queen Margaret of Anjou. Six actors take on all the roles, and three different actors portray Margaret at various stages of her life (3/6-29)
• The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark — Avant Bard closes its 35th season with a bold new interpretation of Shakespeare’s Hamlet, directed by Kathleen Akerley known for her cerebral and innovative approach to classical texts (5/1-24)

BALTIMORE CENTER STAGE

700 N. Calvert St.
Baltimore, Md.
410-332-0033
www.centerstage.org

• Oh Happy Day — An impending flood is the least of one family’s troubles in this outrageous reimagining of Noah’s Ark. Written by and starring two-time Tony Award Nominee Jordan E. Cooper and featuring original songs by Grammy Award-Winning Gospel Artist Donald Lawrence (9/19-10/13)
• Pride & Prejudice — Kate Hamill’s bold and playful take on Jane Austen’s beloved romance offers a progressive view of the expectations of and about women. Directed by Ken-Matt Martin (10/17-11/10)
• Black Nativity — Kevin McAllister directs the holiday classic featuring a fusion of blues, soul, jazz, spirituals, jubilant dance, and the powerful words of Langston Hughes (11/30-12/22)

CREATIVE CAULDRON

410 South Maple Ave.
Falls Church, Va.
703-436-9948
www.creativecauldron.org

• Sondheim Tribute Review — This musical revue celebrating the work of the legendary Stephen Sondheim features eight performers who will delve into the Sondheim songbook, including Assassins, Company, Follies, The Frogs, Into the Woods, Sweeney Todd, and Merrily We Roll Along. Matt Conner directs (10/3-27)
• Alice in Wonderland — A musical adaptation of the classic Lewis Carroll tale in a new bi-lingual format (11/8-24)
• Madeline’s Christmas — A musical adaptation of the Ludwig Bemelmans classic children’s book sets in motion the adventures of the brave and resourceful Madeline (12/6-22)
• Holiday Cabarets — Creative Cauldron’s favorite performer and talented newcomers perform in an intimate cabaret setting with special table seating and featuring selections curated by Matt Conner (12/9-18)
• Steel Magnolias — Truvy’s Beauty Salon in Chinquapin, Louisiana, is a hot spot where six brassy southern women come to laugh, gossip, and share the most intimate details of their lives and loves. Robert Harling’s beloved dramedy is celebrating its 30th anniversary (2/13-3/9)

DC THEATRE WEEK

Various Locations
www.theatreweek.org
www.todaytix.com

The annual celebration of our city’s vibrant theater scene runs from September 26 to October 13. The annual event, presented by Theatre Washington, producers of the Helen Hayes Awards, offers both free events and $20, $40, and $60 tickets to over 30 productions available exclusively on TodayTix. Click here to see all the current theater deals available

• Kickoff Fest — A free interactive event that features performances, workshops, conversations, free samples of locally-made food & drinks, giveaways, and more fun from over 45 D.C.-area theatres (9/28, 1-5 p.m., Arena Stage)

EVERYMAN THEATRE

315 West Fayette St.
Baltimore, Md,
410-752-2208
www.everymantheatre.org

• POTUS — Selina Fillinger’s satire, subtitled, “Or, Behind Every Great Dumbass are Seven Women Trying to Keep Him Alive,” is about the seven brazen women who must save a bumbling President and the world from falling apart (Now-9/29)
• Queens Girl: Black in the Green Mountains — Poetry, music, and dance combine to tell the story of Jacqueline Marie Butler’s years at Bennington College in Vermont amidst the raging Vietnam war and the Kent State shootings (10/20-11/17)
• And Then There Were None — Agatha Christie’s adaptation of one of her most famous works still packs a punch for mystery-lovers everywhere. A mysterious host who knows everyone’s secrets lures ten strangers to a mansion on a secluded island. One by one, they start to disappear. Directed by Noah Himmelstein (12/1-1/5)
• Primary Trust — Reginald L. Douglas directs this thought-provoking new play in which a shy and gentle man is forced to rejoin society after being fired from his bookstore job (2/2-3/2)
• Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf — Edward Albee’s explosive domestic masterpiece (3/23-4/20)
• The Mystery of Irma Vep — Two actors play multiple roles with breakneck costume changes in Charles Ludlam’s definitive drag-horror spoof. Directed by Joseph W. Ritsch (5/18-6/22)

EXPATS THEATRE

Atlas Arts Center
1333 H St. NE
www.ExPatsTheatre.com

• Marlene — A celebration of one of the most enigmatic and dazzling icons of the 20th century who defied many social and gender conventions of her time. In the dressing room of a Paris theater, an aging Marlene Dietrich is getting ready for a singing performance. In intimate backstage conversations, she blisters many of her Hollywood contemporaries, reveals delicate memories of her countless affairs with famous lovers, and flirts with her assistant Vivia. Starring Karin Rosnizeck as Dietrich (9/28-10/20)
• Testosterone — A macho son overcomes his inability to feel fear by putting himself in dangerous situations, and the resulting chaos disrupts his family’s life. Written by German playwright Rebekka Kricheldorf (3/15-4/6)

FLYING V THEATRE

Silver Spring Black Box Theatre
8641 Colesville Road
Silver Spring, Md.
www.flyingvtheatre.com

• Astro Boy and the God of Comics — Pop culture icon Astro Boy and his creator, Osamu Tezuka, the “Father of Manga,” embark on a retro-futuristic race against time over ten “episodes” in a single performance every night (10/19-11/3)

FOLGER THEATRE

201 E. Capitol St. SE
202-544-7077
www.folger.edu

• Romeo & Juliet — Raymond O. Caldwell directs Shakespeare’s timeless story of star-crossed lovers who are enmeshed in the violent politics of their warring families (10/1-11/10)
• A Room in the Castle — Lauren M. Gunderson’s inventive play finds Hamlet‘s Ophelia, her handmaid, and Queen Gertrude on the other end of the wild prince’s antics and realizing just how dangerous life in this castle has become. As Ophelia withstands Hamlet’s assaults and insults, Gertrude comes to see how far gone her son truly is. Directed by Kaja Dunn (3/4-4/6)
• Twelfth Night — A playful interpretation of the beloved Shakespeare comedy that brings gender fluidity, mistaken identities, and what it means to move between worlds into a joyful discovery of love. Direced by Mei Ann Teo (5/13-6/22)

GALA HISPANIC THEATRE

3333 14th St. NW
202-234-7174
www.galatheatre.org

• The 22+ Weddings of Hugo — Hugo, a quiet postal clerk, keeps getting married and married… and married. Based on a true story, Gustavo Ott’s comedy is a raucous tale of “a beautiful crime” (Now-9/29)
• Frida Libre — Shy, quiet Alex wants to be a luchador. His life changes when he meets brave and colorful Frida, a vibrant girl who dreams of being a doctor. The pair discover how true friendship can transform dreams into reality. Inspired by the childhood of legendary Mexican painter Frida Kahlo (10/12-26)
• XX Fuego Flamenco Festival — The popular festival turns 20 this year and features three weekends of thrilling performances (11/7-11/23)
• Las hermanas Palacios (The Palacios Sisters) — Spanish playwright Lope de Vega’s most performed work addresses the people’s right to rebel against the abuse of power. Written in 1613 and based on historic events, it tells the story of Fuente Ovejuna, a town whose citizens are forced to suffer under the rigors of an arrogant, corrupt, ruthless government. But they unite, take up arms, and confront authority. Directed by José Luis Arellano (2/6-3/2)
• Choke — This World Premiere tells the story of a family undergoing a medical crisis that unleashes intergenerational conflict as they fight against a corporation. family that mirrors the battle that the family has to fight against a corporation (4/24-5/18)
• Columbia Heights Bolero Bar — The U.S. Premiere of Rubén León’s cabaret-style immersive musical mosaic featuring famous boleros (6/11-29)

HAPPENSTANCE THEATER

www.happenstancetheater.com

• Cabaret Noir — A series of dark, comic vignettes inspired by film noir and featuring Femmes Fatales, fedoras, trench coats, torch songs, intrigue, and shadows. At the Baltimore Theater Project. 45 West Preston St. in Baltimore, Md. (10/24-11/10)

KEEGAN THEATRE

1742 Church St. NW
202-265-3767
www.keegantheatre.com

• The Woman in Black — Stephen Mallatratt adapts Susan Hill’s bok in which a lawyer obsessed with a curse that he believes has been cast over him engages a skeptical young actor to help him exorcise the fear that grips his soul (10/12-11/17)
• An Irish Carol — The Keegan holiday tradition, set in a Dublin pub and based on the classic by Charles Dickents, returns. Written by Matthew J. Keenan and directed by Mark A. Rhea (12/4-31)
• Hand to God — A young man finds an outlet for his anxiety at the Christian Puppet Ministry, in the devoutly religious, relatively quiet small town of Cypress, Texas. Things get weird when his puppet takes on a shocking personality of its own (2/1-3/2)
• #Charlottesville — Priyanka Shetty gives a tour-de-force performance about the power of witnessing, constructed from interviews with residents of Charlottesville impacted by events surrounding 2017’s “Unite the Right” rally and counter-protests (3/22-4/13)
• Falsettos — William Finn and James Lapine’s Tony-winning musical traverses gay relationships, bar mitvahs, baseball and AIDS (5/10-6/15)
• Apropos of Nothing, A Comedy — The D.C. Premiere of Greg Kalleres’s comedy about love, irony, and cliche (7/12-8/10)

KENNEDY CENTER

202-467-4600
www.kennedy-center.org

• Clue — Based on the fan-favorite 1985 Paramount movie and inspired by the classic Hasbro board game, Clue is the ultimate comedy whodunit (9/17-10/6, Opera House)
• Shear Madness — With more than 18,000 performances under its beauty shop chair, the interactive comedy is the second longest-running play in the history of American Theater (Ongoing, Theater Lab)
• Broadway Center Stage: The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee — With a knockout cast that includes Noah Galvin, Beanie Feldstein, and Kevin McHale, this beloved musical by William Finn kicks off an incredibly impressive Broadway Center Stage season (10/11-20, Eisenhower)
• Champions of Magic — Sure, it’s not strictly theater, but it’s close enough. An explosive all-new show featuring thrilling and mind-bending illusions, combining spectacle and showmanship (11/19-12/1, Eisenhower)
• & Juliet — What would happen next if Juliet didn’t end it all over Romeo? This musical, which incorporates a host of pop anthems, including “Since U Been Gone‚” “Roar,” “…Baby One More Time,” “Larger Than Life‚” and “Can’t Stop the Feeling!”, answers that question (12/17-1/5, Opera House)
• Life of Pi — An epic story of perseverance and hope as a 16-year-old boy survives a shipwreck on a lifeboat with four companions — a hyena, a zebra, an orangutan, and a Royal Bengal tiger. Celebrated for its immense, cinematic and inventive stagecraft (12/17-1/5, Eisenhower)
• Broadway Center Stage: Schmigadoon! — A World Premiere musical based on the popular Apple TV series and with book, lyrics, and music by that show’s creator, Cinco Paul. No word on the casting yet, but there has been speculation that at least some of the show’s original cast might be part of the fun (1/31-2/9, Eisenhower)
• Eureka Day — A private California elementary school with a Board of Directors that values inclusion above all else is forced to reconsider the school’s liberal vaccine policy after an outbreak of the mumps. A timely work by Jonathan Spector (3/4-22)
• Broadway Center Stage: Legally Blonde — Based on the hit movie. When the effervescent Elle Woods is dumped by her boyfriend, she follows him to Harvard Law School, determined to win him back and, in the process, uncovers her own inner-laywer (6/6-15, Eisenhower)
• Les Misérables — Alain Boublil and Claude-Michel Schönberg’s Tony Award-winning phenomenon changed the world of musical theater. Now, Cameron Mackintosh’s acclaimed production returns to the very Opera House where it had its pre-Broadway run in 1986 (6/11-7/13, Opera House)

MOSAIC THEATER

Atlas Arts Center
1333 H St. NE
202-399-7993, x501
www.mosaictheater.org

• Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar and Grill — Director Reginald L. Douglas sets up an immersive nightclub experience for a 1959 rendezvous with Billie Holiday as she takes the audience through her greatest songs and deepest personal traumas. Roz White stars (Now-10/13)
• The Art of Care — An innovative theatrical event exploring our humanity at a time in our world when care often feels in short supply. The interactive genre-breaking devised play combines movement, music, and multimedia with the insights of caregivers, medical professionals, policymakers, and everyday citizens (10/31-11/24)
• cullud wattah — In 2016, a General Motors employee finds herself on the cusp of a promotion until her sister begins participating in protests accusing the company of poisoning the water in Flint, Michigan in Erika Dickerson-Despenza’s award-winning drama. Directed by Danielle A. Drakes (4/3-27)
• Andy Warhol in Iran — In 1976, Andy Warhol was asked to create pop-art portraits of the royals in Tehran, but the artist is taken hostage by a University student eager to publicize his group’s demands. Based on a true story. Serge Seiden directs (5/29-6/29)

NATIONAL THEATRE

1321 Pennsylvania Ave. NW
202-628-6161
www.thenationaldc.org

• Mean Girls — The fetch musical based on Tina Fey’s movie returns to the National, where it premiered ahead of Broadway in 2017. Get your Regina on (10/15-20)
• The Life and Music of George Michael — A special one-person show that celebrates the performance and sound of one of the biggest international icons of our time (10/25)
• SIX — The six wives of Henry VIII take the microphone to remix five hundred years of historical heartbreak in this wildly popular musical (11/12-12/1)
• A Beautiful Noise: The Neil Diamond Musical — Created in collaboration with Neil Diamond, the musical tells the uplifting true story of how a Brooklyn kid became a chart-busting American pop icon (12/3-8)
• The Hip Hop Nutcracker — A holiday mash-up directed and choreographed by Jennifer Weber. The contemporary dance spectacle is a re-mixed and re-imagined version of the classic, smashing hip hop dance and Tchaikovsky’s timeless music together. Featuring a powerhouse cast of a dozen all-star dancers, a DJ, a violinist, and MC Kurtis Blow, one of hip hop’s founding fathers, who opens the show with a short set (12/20-22)
• TINA – The Tina Turner Musical — The inspiring journey of a woman who broke barriers and became the Queen of Rock n’ Roll (1/24-26)
• Shucked — The Tony Award–winning corn-fed musical comedy features a score by the Grammy Award–winning songwriting team of Brandy Clark and Shane McAnally (Opens 2/25)

NU SASS

DCAC
2438 18th St. NW
www.nusass.com

• Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Are Dead — Fifteen years ago, Nu Sass launched itself with this Tom Stoppard 1966 classic. They’re reviving it with an all-new production in which Hamlet’s background characters take center stage (9/20-10/5)
• The Pliant Girls — Nu Sass teams up with Theatre Prometheus to present Meghan Brown’s adaptation of Aeschylus’ The Suppliants, which tells the story of fifty sisters seeking protection after murdering the fifty brothers they would have been forced to marry (10/18-11/9, Montgomery College Community Arts Center in Silver Spring)
• A Bright Room Called Day — Nu Sass partners with Pinky Swear Productions for a co-production of Tony Kushner’s haunting 1985 play that juxtaposes 1980s America with 1930s Berlin (10/25-11/16)

OLNEY THEATRE CENTER

2001 Olney-Sandy Spring Rd.
Olney, Md.
301-924-3400
www.olneytheatre.org

• Eisenhower: This Piece of Ground — Tony Award winner John Rubinstein (Pippin) stars as President Dwight D. Eisenhower in a candid and fascinating fictional eavesdropping on the 34th President at his Gettysburg, Pennsylvania farm in 1962 (9/27-10/20, Mulitz-Gudelsky Theatre Lab)
• Disney’s Frozen — Disney has asked a select few regional theaters to take a shot at creating their own productions of the musical based on the animated classic, and Olney was among them. Alan Muraoka directs what is sure to be a blockbuster (10/24-1/5, Roberts Mainstage)
• A Christmas Carol — Paul Morella’s one-man adaptation of the Dickens’ holiday classic returns for its 15th anniversary year (11/29-12/29, Theatre Lab)
• Waitress — Jenna is stuck in a lousy marriage and dreaming of an escape while she bakes pies and waits tables at her small town’s local diner. The regional premiere of the beloved musical by Grammy Award-winner Sara Bareilles (2/13-3/30, Mainstage)
• Sleepova — Four Black British teenagers cope with their own unique challenges of disability, sexuality, religion, and family at a sleepover party. Written by Matilda Feyiṣayọ Ibini and directed by Paige Hernandez (3/26-4/27, Theatre Lab)
• Little Miss Perfect — Joriah Kwamé became a viral TikTok star with his song “Little Miss Perfect,” which garnered over ten million views and launched this new musical co-produced with Goodspeed Musicals (5/15-6/22, Mainstage)
• Kim’s Convenience — The inspiration for the hit Netflix series of the same name (6/25-7/27, Theatre Lab)
• A Midsummer Night’s Dream — The currently nomadic Synetic Theatre pays Olney a visit with one of its greatest wordless Shakespeares. Adapted by Ben Cunis and Paata Tsikurishvili (7/17-8/10, Mainstage)

RORSCHACH THEATRE

202-399-7993 x180
www.rorschachtheatre.com

• Sleeping Giant — When a firework-filled marriage proposal goes very wrong, the accompanying explosions wake up something very old that has been sleeping in the nearby lake for thousands of years. Written by Emmy-nominated Steve Yockey and presented in the company’s temporary home, a former men’s clothing store at Farragut North (10/4-11/3)

SHAKESPEARE THEATRE COMPANY

Sidney Harman Hall
610 F Street NW
202-547-1122
www.shakespearetheatre.org

• Comedy of Errors — One of Shakespeare’s funniest, zaniest plays. The cast includes the irrepressable Alex Brightman (Beetlejuice on Broadway). Directed by Simon Godwin (Now-10/13, Klein Theatre, 450 7th St. NW)
• Babbit — Two time Tony-winner Matthew Broderick makes his Shakespeare debut in Sinclair Lewis’s breathtaking political satire, adapted by Joe DiPietro and directed by Christopher Ashley (10/1-11/3, Harman Hall)
• Leopoldstat — In Tom Stoppard’s intense, personal, Tony Award-winning drama, a Jewish family traverses 60 years of history, through two world wars and the aftermath of the Holocaust. Directed by Carey Perloff (11/30-12/29, Harman)
• Kunene and the King — A celebrated classical actor faces his mortality just as he is handed the Shakespearean role of a lifetime (2/16-3/16, Klein)
• Uncle Vanya — Downton Abbey’s Hugh Bonneville stars in the Anton Chekhov classic, freshly adapted by noted playwright Conor McPherson (3/30-4/20, Harman)
• Frankenstein — Emily Burns reimagines Mary Shelley’s horror masterpiece as a chilling exploration of what it means to create a new life. The production will ride the edge of cinematic thriller and intense drama, giving thrilling new life to a familiar tale (5/27-6/22, Klein)

SIGNATURE THEATRE

4200 Campbell Ave.
Arlington, Va.
703-820-9771
www.sigtheatre.org

• Primary Trust — Eboni Booth’s 2024 Pulitzer Prize-winning play follows Kenneth, who, after a major life event, must discover the courage to open a new door and change his life (Now-10/20, Ark)
• A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum — Matthew Gardiner directs Sondheim’s irreverent Tony Award-winning musical set in ancient Rome and awash in comedic uproar (10/25-1/12, Max)
• Job — In this shocking psychological thriller, a young woman whose screaming breakdown at work has gone viral must receive an evaluation from a crisis therapist before she can return to her job. Matthew Gardiner directs (1/28-3/16, Ark)
• In the Heights — James Vásquez takes the reins on Lin-Manuel Miranda’s rich, Latin-infused, ebullient musical about a Washington Heights neighborhood on the brink of gentrification and a life-changing winning lottery ticket (2/11-5/4, Max)
• Hedwig and the Angry Inch — The intimate rock musical about a botched sex change operation, by John Cameron Mitchell and Stephen Trask, finally gets the Signature treatment in the capable hands of director Ethan Heard (4/15-6/22, Ark)
• The Untitled Unauthorized Hunter S. Thompson Musical — Politics, counterculture, and rock and roll collide in the drug-fueled form of Thompson, the inventor of Gonzo journalism. Music and lyrics by Joe Iconis, book by Iconis and Gregory S. Moss. Directed by Christopher Ashley (6/3-7/13, Max)

SYNETIC THEATER

800-494-8497
www.synetictheater.org

Synetic is currently in nomad mode, so it will be performing its season at various area locations, as noted

• Hamlet — A haunting and wordless adaptation of Shakespeare’s iconic masterpiece, first performed in 2002 (9/28-10/13, Thomas Jefferson Community Theatre in Arlington)
• The Immigrant — A new project from Paata and Irina Tsikurishvili based on the classic 1918 silent comedy (3/14-23, Thomas Jefferson Community Theatre in Arlington and 4/11-27 at Theater J)
• A Midsummer Night’s Dream — A magical wordless production of Shakespeare’s beloved tale of fantasy, fairies, and romance. Adapted by Ben Cunis and Paata Tsikurishvili. Choreographed by Irina Tsikurishvili (7/17-8/10, Olney Theatre Center)

THEATER ALLIANCE

202-241-2539
www.theateralliance.com

• Covenant — A legendary guitarist returns to his small-town roots, igniting rumors of a dark bargain. As secrets unravel, it’s clear that the devil might not be the only one playing a dangerous game. A bluesy, spine-chilling exploration of faith, fear, and the power of myth by York Walker (10/17-11/3, Location TBA)

THEATER J

1529 16th St. NW
202-777-3210
www.theaterj.org

• How to be a Korean Woman — A hilarious, heartfelt, and personal telling of Korean-American adoptee Sun Mee Chomet’s search for her birth family in Seoul, South Korea. Written by and starring Chomet (9/12-22)
• Prayer for the French Republic — The Benhamou family has lived in Paris for five generations. A visit from their American cousin, Molly, is quickly overshadowed by an antisemitic attack on the family’s son, Daniel. The turmoil of the event awakens the most dormant fears and breaks open the global question, “Where are we safe?” (10/30-11/24)
• Out of Character — Tony Award-winner Ari’el Stachel’s one-man show brings to life a full ensemble of characters from his past in an expansive autobiographical tale of his Yemeni Jewish mixed ethnicity, mental health, and success (1/8-26)

WASHINGTON STAGE GUILD

900 Massachusetts Ave. NW
240-582-0050
www.stageguild.org

• Faithless — An aging atheist and his two adult stepchildren — a minister suffering from a crisis of faith and his non-believer sister — come together when Gus’ teenage adopted daughter stuns them with her decision that she’d like to become a nun (9/26-10/20)
• Shaw’s Shorts — A fresh look at three of Geroge Bernard Shaw’s one-act plays, O’Flaherty VC, The Dark Lady of the Sonnets, and The Interlude at the Playhouse. Directed by Laura Giannarelli (11/21-12/15)
• Escape from the Asylum: A Madcap Mystery — In the sequel to last year’s The Victorian Ladies’ Detective Collective, three intrepid lady detectives hatch a plan to free a sane woman explorer shut away in an asylum by her husband (1/30-2/23)

WOOLLY MAMMOTH

641 D St. N
202-393-3939
www.woollymammoth.net

• The Comeuppance — On the night of their 20th high school reunion, the self-proclaimed “Multi-Ethnic Reject Group” reconnects while they pregame in Prince George’s County, Maryland. But amid the flow of reminiscing, an otherworldly presence forces the former classmates to face the past head-on. The latest by MacArthur Genius Award-winner Branden Jacobs-Jenkins (Now-10/6)
• The Ford/Hill Project — An excavation of the testimonies of Anita Hill and Christine Blasey Ford who both stood in front of one of the highest bodies of power in our country to publicly tell their stories about some of the most private moments of their lives. Four actors speak from the verbatim transcripts of these pivotal hearings in an illuminating new work created by Lee Sunday Evans and Elizabeth Marvel. One night only (10/7)
• Dance Like There’s Black People Watching — The Second City returns to Woolly Mammoth delivering a dose of brilliant Black Joy. The new show was created exclusively for Woolly Mammoth and features the troupe’s world-renowned improv, an ensemble of rising comedy stars, songs, and sketches (11/6-12/22)

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