Frontmezzjunkies reports: From Paranormal Activity to Much Ado About Nothing, the Broadway play season is filling up with stars, classics, new work, and plenty of reasons to celebrate
By Ross
What exactly is one supposed to do when one show arrives, leads to a second, becomes three and then four, and suddenly I am looking at a week chock full of theatrical invitations too good to scroll past? All those plays arriving on Broadway this fall and winter, and I suspect I will be drawn in more than I can even imagine. And honestly, I am mostly content knowing it.
The fall begins with something that could hardly be more inappropriate for me, the Broadway staging of Paranormal Activity. The thriller from Levi Holloway and Felix Barrett began previews on August 14 at the August Wilson Theatre, bringing the horror franchise to Broadway. I have already written about my somewhat questionable relationship with theatrical fear, so reluctantly and most tentatively, I am going to find myself, quite soon, sitting directly in the path of a Broadway ghost story. Probably with my knees pulled close to my face. And I hope I’m going to be ok with that.
Next up comes School Girls; Or, The African Mean Girls Play, Jocelyn Bioh’s sharply funny play set at a Ghanaian boarding school in 1986. The Broadway production begins previews September 8 at Manhattan Theatre Club‘s Samuel J. Friedman Theatre, with Whitney White (Broadway’s Liberation) directing. Denée Benton, Patina Miller, Jasmine Amy Rogers and an ensemble of performers bring Bioh’s story of friendship, beauty, ambition and teenage rivalry to Broadway. It was one of those productions that slipped through my fingers when it first arrived on an off-Broadway stage, so I’m really thrilled about getting the chance to see it as it schools us all on Broadway.
And then there is The Imaginary Invalid, with Bill Irwin taking on Molière’s classic comedy in a new adaptation directed by Brandon J. Dirden. Previews begin September 25 at the Todd Haimes Theatre. The premise alone sounds like exactly the sort of theatrical chaos I want to see on a Broadway stage: a wealthy hypochondriac determined to solve his medical problems by marrying his daughter to a doctor.
But if there is one cast that immediately jumps off the page, it is the one taking the California highway to Other Desert Cities. Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Ed Harris, Allison Janney, Joe Keery and Lily Rabe are taking on Jon Robin Baitz’s family drama, with previews beginning September 29 at the Hudson Theatre. I have already written about this production’s arrival, and seeing that cast come together, directed by Tony Award winner John Benjamin Hickey, remains one of those Broadway prospects that makes my heart sing with anticipation.
Billy Crystal follows with 860, his new solo play about the loss of his Pacific Palisades home in the 2025 wildfires. Previews begin October 1 at the Imperial Theatre. The title comes from the address of the house, and the production promises to combine personal memories, video, and Crystal’s unmistakable comic voice. There is something about the idea of seeing a performer who has spent decades making audiences laugh turn a devastating experience into a personal theatre engagement that makes me very curious to visit this address.
Soon after, Broadway gives us not just one, but A Few Good Men. Aaron Sorkin’s courtroom drama, once again, calls to order Bradley Whitford alongside Tom Blyth. The revival begins previews October 8 at Lincoln Center‘s Vivian Beaumont Theatre. Whitford appeared in the original Broadway production, which gives this return an intriguing connection to the play’s first life onstage.
On October 31, Shakespeare arrives in the form of Much Ado About Nothing, with Tom Hiddleston and Hayley Atwell as Benedick and Beatrice, with the always intriguing Jamie Lloyd directing. The production began its life in London’s West End, and I have eagerly been following its journey to Broadway with enormous excitement. Shakespeare, two major screen actors, Jamie Lloyd, and a ten-week Broadway engagement? Yes, how could I not be thrilled, for more reasons than one.
November brings the West End transfer, Inter Alia, with Rosamund Pike making her Broadway debut in Suzie Miller’s follow-up to Prima Facie. Pike originated the role in London’s National Theatre production and went on to win an Olivier Award for her performance. The Broadway production begins previews November 10 at the Music Box Theatre. This was one of the many shows I was lucky to see during my May London Theatrical Trip, and for me, this is one of those productions that I’ll happily revisit.
And the list doesn’t stop there. Awake and Sing! is scheduled for December, with Danny Burstein, Jessica Hecht, and Jeremy Shamos leading Clifford Odets’s revival. Montauk, starring Laura Linney, is planned for spring 2027. Cat on a Hot Tin Roof is also headed for spring 2027. Three Days of Rain is returning once again, but this time without Julia Roberts. These rainy days are with Heated Rivalry‘s François Arnaud, David Corenswet, and Yvonne Strahovski. Each sounds delicious, if you’re asking me.
What is exciting about this group of plays is the way the season moves between entirely different theatrical experiences, playing with our emotions and our brains equally. There are starry revivals, major new productions, comedy, family drama, courtroom drama, Shakespeare, solo performance, and plays arriving from London. There are actors I have wanted to see onstage, plays I already know, and titles that I am only now discovering.
So yes, Broadway’s musicals have already given me plenty of reasons to get excited (as written about here). The plays have now made the whole adventure considerably more thrilling. And most likely, gratifying. And I wouldn’t have it any other way.
