It’s the last week to qualify for Tony Award nominations so there is a slew of openings to get in under the wire in Best Bets: April 20th – April 26th.
But there’s more than that. Take a look.
SCHMIGADOON! – Nederlander Theatre – New York, NY – Now – September 6th
OPENING NIGHT: 4/20/26
When this original series launched on Apple, everyone who loved musicals asked, when will this be a proper stage musical? The wait is over as Schmigadoon! is here!
The series was a joyful parody of musicals and musical styles and had parodies of just about every major musical you could envision from the 1940s to the 1970s. Season 1 used the 40s/50s musicals and Season 2 parodied the musicals from the 1960s and 70s. This stage musical uses just the first season’s storylines.
If you saw the show you’ll remember songs like Corn Puddin’, Somewhere Love Is Waiting for You, You Done Tamed Me, Tribulation and, of course, the title song.
Cinco Paul, who wrote all the songs and lyrics for the show is credited with the book, music and lyrics for Schmigadoon! Christopher Gattelli directs and choreographed.
Alex Brightman, Sara Chase, Max Clayton, Ayaan Diop, Ana Gasteyer, Ann Harada, Ivan Hernandez, McKenzie Kurtz, Isabelle McCalla, Brad Oscar and Maulik Pancholy star.
I loved the show and can’t wait to see how this musical transfers from television to the stage.
For tickets and more information, please go HERE.
THE BALUSTERS – Samuel J. Friedman Theatre – New York, NY – Now – May 24th
OPENING NIGHT: 4/21/26
A new play by David Lindsay-Abaire is always a reason to be excited. This one sounds rich with possibilities for precisely his style of writing.
The Vernon Point Neighborhood Association has a new board member and proposes something so outrageous it pits the neighbors against each other.
The proposal? Putting up a stop sign on the most beautiful block in the community. Sounds innocuous enough, doesn’t it?
Doing battle in The Balusters are: Marylouise Burke, Kayli Carter, Ricardo Chavira, Carl Clemons-Hopkins, Margaret Colin, Michael Esper, Maria-Christina Oliveras, Anika Noni Rose, Richard Thomas and Jeena Yi.
Kenny Leon directs.
For tickets and more information, please go HERE.
BEACHES: A NEW MUSICAL – Majestic Theatre – New York, NY – Now – September 6th
OPENING NIGHT: 4/22/26
Two girls meet on the beach in Atlantic City and remain life-long friends. “Cee Cee” Bloom grows up to be a singer and actress and her friend “Bertie”becomes a lawyer. (Bertie is the new name for the character of Hillary in the film.)
Jessica Vosk and Kelli Barrett star in this musical which has a book by Iris Rainer Dart (who wrote the novel on which the film was based) and Thom Thomas. The songs were written by Mike Stoller with lyrics by Dart.
If you remember this movie well, you know that are a lot of hurdles these two women face before audiences heard Wind Beneath My Wings. That appears to be the final song in this musical so expect a few tears along the way.
Lonny Price co-directs with Matt Cowart. Jennifer Rias is the choreographer.
For tickets and more information, please go HERE.
FLOWER DRUM SONG – East West Players – Los Angeles, CA – Now – May 31st
OPENING NIGHT: 4/23/26
In 2002, Center Theatre Group in Los Angeles presented a revised version of the Rodgers & Hammerstein musical Flower Drum Song at the Mark Taper Forum. The production, which I enjoyed very much, starred Lea Salonga and Jose Llana. It featured an all-Asian American cast and the book, by David Henry Hwang, was majorly updated.
Flash forward to 2026 and East West Players is putting on a production of the same musical with a new newly revised book by David Henry Hwang.
The musical takes place in the 1960s in the nightclubs of San Francisco’s Chinatown. That’s where Mei-Li finds herself after escaping communism. Grace Yoo plays Mei-Li, Scott Keiji Takeda plays Ta who is keenly interested in Mei-Li even though he’s also interested in a Chinese American showgirl, Linda Low (Krista Marie Yu). Marc Oka plays Wang, Ta’s father, while Gedde Watanabe plays Chin, a close family friend of the Wangs.
Key songs include I Enjoy Being a Girl, I Am Going to Like It Here and You Are Beautiful.
Lily Tung Crystal directs.
For tickets and more information, please go HERE.
THE ROCKY HORROR SHOW – Studio 54 – New York, NY – Now – November 29th (EXTENDED)
OPENING NIGHT: 4/23/26
It’s astounding. Time has been fleeting as it’s been 26 years since the last Broadway production of the musical that introduced the world to a certain sweet transvestite from transexual Transylvania.
Sam Pinkleton directs this second revival. Having seen Oh Mary! and Head Over Heels, I can’t imagine anyone doing a better job.
Brad Majors and Janet Weiss (slut!) are played by Andrew Durand and Stephanie Hsu. Riff Raff is played by Amber Gray. Magenta and Columbia are played by Juliette Lewis and Michaela Jaé Rodriguez. Making his Broadway debut as Frank-N-Furter is Luke Evans.
For you completists: Rachel Dratch plays the Narrator, Harvey Guillén plays Eddie and Dr. Scott and Josh Rivera plays Rocky.
If you want to come up to the lab and see what’s on the slab AKA tickets and more information, please go HERE.
FAULT – Chicago Shakespeare Theater – Chicago, CA – Now – May 24th
OPENING NIGHT: 4/24/26
This world premiere play by Scooter Pietsch seems like a mid 21st century War of the Roses. Lucy and Jerry Green have been married for 30 years. But not all of those 30 years have been blissful and past lies and betrayals have these two at each other’s throats. They are truly at war with each other.
Enrico Colantoni and Rebecca Spence play the dueling couple. Nick Marini plays the only other character, Shaun. In a video on the CST website, director Jason Alexander alludes to, “a very unusual circumstance that might or might not bring it [the marriage] back together.” Make of that what you will.
Alexander has directed two productions of Pietsch’s Windfall (no relation to the play at the Steppenwolf Theatre). He also directed an admirable production of Sweeney Todd at the La Mirada Center for the Performing Arts earlier this year.
For tickets and more information, please go HERE.
THROUGH HER WINDOW PART II – Seattle Symphony – Seattle, WA – April 24th
I’m sorry I didn’t catch that there was a Through Her Window Part I, because this program centered on female-identifying composers is utterly compelling.
The program was curated by composer/flutist Valerie Coleman and features two Seattle Symphony’s musicians: Principal Oboist Mary Lynch VanderKolk for whom much of this music was written, flutist Demarre McGill and pianist Jieun Kim.
The program opens with VanderKolk’s oboe and piano arrangement of Florence Price’s Three Songs. The concert continues with Coleman’s Danza de la Mariposa for Solo Flute; Alyssa Mercedes Men’s Los Sueños de Mis Aubelos; Danae Venson’s …of clay and Elise Winkler’s First Flight.
This is a brief 50-minute concert, but there are two performances (one at 7:00 PM and the other at 9:00 PM).
For tickets and more information, please go HERE.
GRACE PERVADES – Theatre Royal Haymarket – London, England – April 24th – July 11th
A new play by David Hare (Plenty, Skylight, The Kudas Kiss, Stuff Happens) starring Ralph Fiennes (the best Hamlet I’ve ever seen) and Miranda Raison (Anne Boleyn and The River) is all I need to know to recommend Grace Pervades.
Told over the course of 25 scenes, the show depicts two Victorian theatre legends: Henry Irving and Ellen Terry.
They were both professional partners and sometime lovers.
Jordan Metcalfe and Ruby Ashbourne Serkis play her children Edward and Edith.
Jeremy Herrin (Wolf Hall Parts One & Two) directs.
For tickets and more information, please go HERE.
JOE TURNER’S COME AND GONE – Barrymore Theatre – New York, NY – Now – July 26th
OPENING NIGHT: April 25th
This second revival of August Wilson’s 1984 is playing in the same theater where the original Broadway production took place.
In Wilson’s play, Herald Loomis arrives at a boarding house a deeply broken man. He was illegally forced into chained labor and is trying to find his wife.
Joshua Boone plays Herald and Savannah Commodore plays his daughter Zonia. Cedric the Entertainer and Taraji P. Henson play Seth and Bertha Holly who run the boarding house Loomis goes to. Ruben Santiago-Hudson plays Bynum Walker, the conjurer whom Herald sees to reconnect with his identity and heritage.
This is chronologically the second of Wilson’s ten play Pittsburgh Cycle.
Debbie Allen directs.
For tickets and more information, please go HERE.
THE LOST BOYS – Palace Theatre – New York, NY – Now – November 22nd
OPENING NIGHT: April 26th
Joel Schumacher directed the 1987 film on which this new musical is based. The movie took place in California where a couple of teenage brothers discover their town is a hotbed of vampires. The filmed stared Corey Feldman, Jami Gertz, Corey Haim, Edward Hermann, Barnard Hughes, Jason Patrick, Kiefer Sutherland and Dianne Wiest.
David Hornsby and Chris Hoch have written the book for this musical and The Rescues have written the music and lyrics. They’re an LA-based indie rock band.
Starring in this musical are LJ Benet, Shoshana Bean, Ali Louis Bourzgui, Jennifer Duka, Brian Flores, Miguel Gil, Sean Grandillo, Dean Maupin, Paul Alexander Nolan, Benjamin Pajak and Maria Wirries.
Michael Arden, recovering from The Queen of Versailles, directs. Advance word from theatergoers is this last-minute entry into the Tony Awards is a high-flying success with some serious bite.
For tickets and more information, please go HERE.
KENREX – Lucille Lortel Theatre – New York, NY – Now – June 27th
OPENING NIGHT: April 26th
It came as a surprise to many that Jack Holden took the Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Play this year. Many had expected Bryan Cranston to do so. Holden takes on 35 characters in this play that received universally acclaim when it was first performed.
Holden wrote the play about the murder of Ken Rex McElroy. He terrorized the town of Skidmore, Missouri. In spite of 21 indictments, he wasn’t convicted on any of those charges until his last indictment for second-degree assault.
He was murdered in late June of 1981 with bullets from multiple firearms. There were a lot of witnesses, but nobody has ever come forward to identify the shooter or shooters and no one has taken responsibility for his death.
Ed Stambollouian, who co-wrote the play with Holden, directs.
Given the recent awards for KENREX, I anticipate ticket sales will be robust and an extension or two is in the offing.
For tickets and more information, please go HERE.
That’s all for Best Bets: April 20th – April 26th.
Enjoy your week! Go see a show!
Main Photo: Jack Holden in Kenrex (Photo by Manuel Harlan/Courtesy the Production)
Correction: An earlier version of this story mis-identified actress Rebecca Spence as Rebecca Spencer. Cultural Attachéd regrets the error.