Four of Cincinnati’s theaters have announced their upcoming seasons. Here are the shows mapped out by artistic directors Bridget Leak (Know Theatre), Brian Isaac Phillips (Cincinnati Shakespeare Company) and Blake Robison (Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park). Also listed are touring productions to be presented by Broadway in Cincinnati at downtown’s Aronoff Center.
JULY 2025
A Midsummer Night’s Dream by William Shakespeare (Cincy Shakes’ Free Shakespeare in the Park, July 11-Aug. 31). The classic comedy features tomfoolery, magical mischief and love in the woods — at parks across the Tri-State.
The Play That Goes Wrong by Henry Lewis, Jonathan Sayer and Henry Shields (Cincy Shakes, July 18-Aug. 10). A reprise of 2024’s very funny theatrical disaster, with most of the same cast.
AUGUST 2025
Where the Mountain Meets the Sea by Jeff Augustin. (Playhouse/Rosenthal Shelterhouse, Aug. 30-Sept. 28). From the 2020 Humana Festival in Louisville. With lyrical storytelling and live folk music by the Bengsons, it weaves a tale of rediscovering love and the bond between a son and his Haitian immigrant father. Directed by Playhouse favorite Timothy Douglas.
SEPTEMBER 2025
An Enemy of the People by Henrik Ibsen, adapted by Amy Herzog (Cincy Shakes, Sept. 5-20). What happens when one person’s truth becomes a community’s greatest threat? Ibsen’s 1882 play asks how far are we willing to go to stand up for what’s right. Herzog’s adaptation won the 2024 Tony for Best Revival of a Play.
Back to the Future: The Musical (Broadway in Cincinnati, Sept. 9-21). Using original tunes by Alan Silvestri and Glen Ballard, this show follows Marty McFly as he’s transported back to 1955 in eccentric Doc Brown’s time machine. Needing to fix a disrupted timeline, he has to fix the present, escape the past and send himself…back to the future.
King James by Rajiv Joseph (Know Theatre, Sept. 11-27). A comedy about basketball, superstar LeBron James and Cleveland, where two fans weather the highs and lows of friendship and sports worship.
Mythic by Marcus Stevens and Oran Eldor (Playhouse/Rouse Theatre, Sept. 20-Oct. 19). Making its U.S. premiere with Broadway ambitions, the ancient Greek myth of Persephone is turned on its ear as a pop-rock musical comedy. Staged by Tony winner Kathleen Marshall.
OCTOBER 2025
Dracula: A Comedy of Terrors by Gordon Greenberg and Steve Rosen (Cincy Shakes, Oct. 3-Nov. 1). A hilarious take on the world’s most famous vampire for the Halloween season.
The Notebook (Broadway in Cincinnati, Oct. 14-26). Nicholas Sparks’ 1996 best-selling romantic novel is now a musical about the power of love. Allie and Noah, from different worlds, share a lifetime of love despite forces that threaten to pull them apart.
The Heart Sellers by Lloyd Suh (Playhouse/Rosenthal Theatre, Oct. 25-Nov. 23). A moving new comedy about two Asian immigrants, Luna and Jane, who find friendship while preparing a turkey for their first American Thanksgiving.
NOVEMBER 2025
Love’s Labour’s Lost by William Shakespeare (Cincy Shakes, Nov. 14-Dec. 6). The comedy becomes an ’80s-inspired high school romp, blending classic mischief and romance with vintage fashion, neon colors and rad vibes.
A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens, adapted by Blake Robison (Playhouse/Rouse Theatre, Nov. 21-Dec. 28). Ebenezer Scrooge, haunted on Christmas Eve, changes his grouchy ways. Know Theatre’s Bridget Leak directs.
Die Hard Is a Christmas Movie by A.J. Baldwin and Alexx Rouse (Know Theatre, Nov. 28-Dec. 21). A 2024 holiday hit, the classic action film is the starting point for a story of a family willing to risk it all to make it to Christmas morning … or die hard trying. Cincinnati Playhouse’s Tatiana Godfrey directs.
DECEMBER 2025
Because You’re Mine, created by Matt Cusack and Allison Kelly (Playhouse/Rosenthal Theatre, Dec. 3-23). Great loves and country music love songs from Johnny and June, George and Tammy and many more!
Every Christmas Story Ever Told (And Then Some) by Michael Carleton, James FitzGerald and John K. Alvarez (Cincy Shakes, Dec. 11-28) Back for its 20th season, this very amusing mashup crashes contemporary comedy into familiar holiday tales. Jeremy Dubin stages it again.
Hamilton by Lin-Manuel Miranda (Broadway in Cincinnati, Dec. 16, 2025-Jan. 4, 2026). The mega-hit, winner of 11 Tony Awards and choreographed by Cincinnatian Andy Blankenbuehler, portrays America’s Founding Fathers through the filter of hip-hop, jazz and R&B.
JANUARY 2026
Hell’s Kitchen by Alicia Keys (Broadway in Cincinnati, Jan. 13-25, 2026). A semi-autobiographical musical story by Grammy winner Keys about growing up in 1990s New York. It explores the dynamics of a mother-daughter relationship amid a young woman’s quest for identity.
Little Women by Louisa May Alcott, adapted by Lauren M. Gunderson (Playhouse, Rouse Theatre, Jan. 17-Feb. 15, 2026) Director Joanie Schultz stages this new adaptation of the classic story by putting novelist Alcott into the spotlight as Jo March.
Serials (Know Theatre, Jan. 26, Feb. 9 & 23, March 9 & 23, 2026). Know’s Monday night episodic theater party that’s been around since 2014.
A Soldier’s Play by Charles Fuller (Cincy Shakes, Jan. 30-Feb. 15, 2026). An unflinching examination of racism on a segregated WWII Army base. A 1981 Pulitzer Prize winner and Tony winner for best revival. (Cincinnati Playhouse staged it in 1983.) Guest director Chris Edwards.
FEBRUARY 2026
Mary’s Wedding by Stephen Massicotte (Playhouse/Rosenthal Shelterhouse, Feb. 7-March 8, 2026). In this poetic, romantic dreamscape drama, a young couple discovers the thrill of first love on the eve of World War I. (Staged by Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati in 2008.)
Shucked by Brandy Clark, Shane McAnally and Robert Horn (Broadway in Cincinnati, Feb. 10-22, 2026). More silly jokes than kernels on a corncob fill this story of a woman who leaves her small town to find out why the corn crop is dying. The New York Post said, “the audience sits in a state of perpetual giggle.”
Constellations by Nick Payne (Know Theatre, Feb. 12-21, 2026). Marianne, a physicist, and Roland, a beekeeper, whose stories and various possible outcomes are explored through multiverse theory, free will…and honey. Bridget Leak directs.
Mrs. Christie by Heidi Armbruster (Playhouse/Rouse Theatre, Feb. 28-March 29, 2026). The curious, real-life 1926 disappearance of Agatha Christie sets the stage for this charming comedy as a devoted superfan tries to solve the case 100 years later. Directed by Joanie Schultz.
MARCH 2026
The Wiz by William Ferdinand Brown (Broadway in Cincinnati, March 3-15, 2026). A groundbreaking twist on The Wizard of Oz that won the 1975 Tony Award. Its score features soul, gospel rock and ’70s funk, performed by an all-Black cast that will “groove on down the road.”
Othello by William Shakespeare (Cincy Shakes, March 6-29, 2026). The intense and timeless tragedy of jealousy, passion and betrayal, staged by Candice Handy as a fully classical Elizabethan production.
Tenderly: The Rosemary Clooney Musical by Janet Yates Vogt and Mark Friedman (Playhouse/ Rosenthal Shelterhouse, March 21-May 17, 2026). This musical biography features many of Clooney’s signature songs. It also offers a personal portrait of the beloved entertainer who began life in Maysville, Kentucky. Directed by Michael Marotta (who acted in the Playhouse’s 2014 production).
Chicago by John Kander & Fred Ebb (Broadway in Cincinnati, March 24-29, 2026) The classic satire about corruption in the administration of criminal justice and the concept of the “celebrity criminal.” This tour is based on the 1996 Broadway production, the longest-running American musical revival on Broadway – 11,000-plus performances as of February 2025.
The Ravenside Occurrence by Derek J. Snow (Know Theatre, March 27-April 18, 2026). A world premiere about four headstrong women who break out of an asylum in 1876 and hide out in a haunted, abandoned London inn. With an original score for a string quartet.
APRIL 2026
The Piano Lesson by August Wilson (Playhouse/Rouse Theatre, April 11-May 3, 2026). A clash over the fate of a family’s heirloom piano sets the stage for this explosive Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award-winning masterpiece. Directed by Lou Bellamy.
Pericles by William Shakespeare (Cincy Shakes, April 17-May 3, 2026). Rarely produced, this tale of an adventurous prince gets a sci-fi reimagining to kick off Cincy Shakes’ multi-year endeavor to produce Shakespeare’s entire canon for a second time. CSC veteran Giles Davies returns for the title role.
Water for Elephants by Rick Elice (Broadway in Cincinnati, April 21-May 3, 2026). Adapted from Sara Gruen’s 2006 novel, this 2024 Broadway hit tells the story of Jacob, a young veterinarian, who joins a traveling circus after his parents die during the Great Depression. He falls in love with Marlena, wife of the jealous ringmaster. A folk score by PigPen Theatre Co., inspired by music from the 1930s, supports circus acts, lifelike puppets, aerial silk performances and acrobatics.
MAY 2026
Suffs by Shaina Taub (Broadway in Cincinnati, May 12-17). A 2024 Tony Award-winning musical about women who won the right to vote through the Suffrage Movement in 1920 with the ratification of the 19th Amendment to the Constitution in 1920.
Emma by Jane Austen, adapted by Kate Hamill (Cincy Shakes, May 22-June 14, 2026). Candice Handy will direct this portrait of a headstrong matchmaker convinced she can’t personally fall in love. Cincy Shakes previously produced Hamill’s adaptations of Austen’s Pride and Prejudice and Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women.
The 23rd Annual Cincinnati Fringe Festival (Know Theatre and beyond, May 29-June 13, 2026). Cincinnati’s summer theater party.
JUNE 2026
Disney’s The Lion King by Julie Taymor (Broadway in Cincinnati, June 10-July 5). The landmark musical has been seen worldwide by more than 100 million people. The story of hope and adventure offers stunning visuals and amazing puppets in a telling praised for creativity and memorable music.
This story is featured in CityBeat’s March 5 print edition.
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This article appears in Mar 5-18, 2025.