Washington, D.C.
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The complete guide to theater, dance, performance art, and visual arts in the nation's capital. Curated descriptions, honest recommendations, one click to tickets.
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25 shows
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Imagining Shakespeare: Mythmaking and Storytelling in the Regency Era
Oct 4 – Aug 2
If you're interested in literary history, Romantic-era aesthetics, or how canonical works get reinterpreted by different generations, this is essential. It's less essential for those seeking straightforward character studies or plot illustrations, but valuable for anyone curious about the visual culture surrounding Shakespeare and the politics of artistic adaptation.
Closing Soon
OCTET
Jan 14 – Feb 22
This is essential viewing for anyone exhausted by their own relationship with technology—especially if you're skeptical that theater can say something original about the subject. If you prize intimate, ideas-driven work over spectacle and find Logan Circle's independent theater scene refreshing, *Octet* justifies your faith in Studio Theatre's artistic vision.
Chez Joey
Jan 30 – Mar 15
This is essential viewing for those drawn to character-driven drama with psychological depth—particularly audiences interested in stories about performance and identity that avoid easy sentimentality. If you're looking for spectacle or uplifting narrative arcs, look elsewhere; if you appreciate productions that sit with uncomfortable truths about ambition and loss, Arena Stage's intimate Southwest Waterfront setting makes this a worthwhile investment.
The World to Come
Feb 3 – Mar 1
This is for audiences who prize character work and understated emotional truth over plot mechanics. If you're drawn to plays about overlooked populations and find beauty in small moments, you'll connect here. Skip this if you need broad comedy or dramatic fireworks—the rewards are in observation and nuance.Advertiser Creative / Image
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Special Theater Packages →
On Beckett
Feb 11 – Mar 15
If you've always found Beckett's reputation for bleakness a barrier to entry, Irwin's physicality and genuine warmth might be your gateway. Skip this if you want conventional narrative momentum, but if you appreciate watching a master performer think through complex ideas in real time, this is essential.
NOTHING UP MY SLEEVE
Feb 11 – Mar 15
Ideal for viewers who appreciate craft and technical mastery as entertainment, and who enjoy being intellectually engaged by *how* they're being deceived. Skip this if you prefer traditional narrative or need emotional catharsis; seek it out if you're fascinated by the mechanics of perception and want to experience genuine astonishment in a live setting.
THE BONNIE HAMMERSCHLAG NATIONAL CAPITAL NEW PLAY FESTIVAL
Feb 11 – Mar 15
Seek this out if you're interested in where theater is heading rather than where it's been. This is essential for playwrights, theater professionals, and audiences who want to engage with new work before it becomes canonized elsewhere—expect unpolished edges alongside genuine discoveries.
On View: Mandy Cano Villalobos
Feb 20 – Apr 5
This is essential for viewers who appreciate conceptual rigor and aren't looking for decorative art. If you're interested in how contemporary artists engage with colonialism, environmental justice, or the politics of domestic space, this will reward close looking. Skip it if you prefer work that declares its meaning upfront.
Director’s Talk: As You Like It with Dr. Farah Karim-Cooper
Ideal for Shakespeare readers and the production's audiences who want context beyond the text itself, or for anyone curious how institutional scholars think about relevance and interpretation. Skip this if you prefer experiencing theater without analytical framework—it's designed for the intellectually curious, not the casually curious.
The 2026 Anthony Hecht Poetry Prize Reading
Essential for serious poetry readers and anyone curious about what contemporary emerging poets are exploring right now. If you value discovering writers before they're widely anthologized, or you follow Shane McCrae's work, this is intimate and direct access to the current literary conversation.
The 2026 O.B. Hardison Poetry Series Finale Reading
This works best for readers already engaged with contemporary poetry who want to understand a living poet's intellectual genealogy—not an entry point for newcomers to the form. If you've ever wondered what poets read to become poets, or you're curious about the specific artists who influenced someone whose work you admire, this intimate gathering offers genuine insight.
Gallery Talk: Mandy Cano Villalobos
Essential for anyone interested in how contemporary artists engage with historical archives and environmental justice—particularly those who find traditional museum lectures too passive. Skip this if you want a polished presentation; this is thinking-in-real-time, and that's precisely the point.
Folger Salon with Debbie Finkelstein, Yunah Kae, and Austin Raetz
This works best for people genuinely curious about how scholarship happens, particularly those interested in Renaissance literature, history, or material culture. If you find archival work fascinating or want to understand what living scholars actually spend their time thinking about, come prepared to ask questions. Skip this if you prefer fully formed arguments and formal presentations.
Our Shakespeare Exhibition
Essential for scholars and serious Shakespeare students, but equally rewarding for people skeptical of Shakespeare's relevance who want to understand why his work remains contested cultural territory. This isn't a traditional biography—it's curatorial thinking about canon, legacy, and power.
Out of the Vault
Ideal for Shakespeare enthusiasts and book collectors who want to move beyond passive reading, and for theater patrons curious about how productions are researched and staged. Skip this if you're looking for a polished, narrative-driven exhibition—the appeal here is in the intellectual depth and the conversations between objects and ideas.
The 2026 Eudora Welty Lecture: Kate DiCamillo
Essential for readers who cherish DiCamillo's work and anyone curious about the living lineage of American letters—this isn't a passive lecture but a conversation between two writers separated by time. Skip this if you're looking for a casual evening; come if you want to understand how storytellers think about their work and their influences.
Family Workshop: My Shakespearean Monologue
This works beautifully for families with kids ages 8-14 who are curious about language but might find traditional Shakespeare daunting. Skip it if your family needs passive entertainment, but if you want your kids to actively play with words and discover that Shakespeare's vocabulary can express *their* voice, this delivers exactly that.
Family Workshop: From Print to Paint
This works best for families with kids who already have some exposure to Shakespeare (or who are curious about it) and enjoy hands-on art projects more than sitting still. If your child lights up at the idea of making something that will be displayed publicly, or if you want to demystify the connection between theater and visual art, this is worth your Saturday morning.
Family Workshop: Celebrations - Shakespearean Style
This works best for families with children ages 6-12 who aren't intimidated by Shakespeare and parents who want their kids to experience literary classics as living, playful things. Skip it if your family needs highly structured, performance-focused activities; this is exploratory and messy in the best way.
Family Workshop: An Ode to the Gardens
Ideal for families with children old enough to engage with Shakespeare excerpts (roughly 8+) and parents who want their kids to experience poetry as something they *make*, not just consume. Skip this if your family prefers passive performances, but if you want a morning that genuinely teaches literary thinking while getting outside, this hits differently than a typical kids' workshop.
Folger Book Club: 'Queen Hereafter' by Isabelle Schuler
This is ideal for readers interested in Shakespearean reinterpretations who want historical grounding over fantasy wish-fulfillment, and for anyone who enjoys book club conversations that dig into women's agency in pre-modern contexts. Skip it if you're looking for a straightforward escape—this demands engagement with moral ambiguity.
Folger Book Club: 'The Unbecoming of Margaret Wolf' by Isa Arsén
If you're drawn to metatheatrical examinations of artistic life—the kind that don't sentimentalize the theater world—this is essential. Skip it if you're looking for a straightforward relationship drama; Arsén is more interested in how ambition and performance corrode intimacy than in conventional emotional beats.Sondheim Award Gala
Sondheim Award Gala
If you're someone who loves musical theater but find yourself frustrated by conventional pop-song structures, this is where you belong. This gala rewards listeners who appreciate Sondheim's fractured narratives, unexpected rhyme schemes, and emotional complexity. Skip it if you're seeking a polished concert experience; come for the raw artistry of performers grappling with one of theater's most demanding catalogs.
The Humanities Lab: As You Like It
This is for people who want to understand *why* a play matters, not just experience it passively. If you've ever left a Shakespeare production wishing you'd caught more layers, or if you're the type to linger in museum galleries reading every placard, this Capitol Hill intensive will satisfy that hunger. Skip it if you prefer entertainment divorced from intellectual engagement.