notbroadway.theater
mostly plays, mostly new york city & only $50 (or under)
LAST UPDATED: 1/17/2022
ALWAYS UPDATING! CHECK BACK REGULARLY!
Friends always ask me how I see so many plays that they’ve never even heard of. The long answer is, “I get recommendations, pay attention to playwrights whose work I’ve liked in the past and most crucially, I also subscribe to (and skim) many, many individual theater’s newsletters.” The short answer is, “It’s weirdly hard and annoying!” And EXPENSIVE.
This is a free newsletter, but it’s also an ever-updating landing page and a list of what I’m seeing, as well as what I’d like to see in-theater. But I am not a theater critic! Just a fan. And I’ll annotate when it feels right: a star* means I have tickets and a double star** means I saw something and really enjoyed it. If something disappears from this list, wellllllll, it wasn’t that good. This letter will appear in your inbox when there’s enough worthy of an update. Otherwise, please check back! Now get out there and buy some theater tickets.
currently running (and about to run)
FRANKENSTEIN'S MONSTER IS DRUNK AND THE SHEEP HAVE ALL JUMPED THE FENCES by Big Telly Theatre Company (Jan 11 – 28, 59E59)
The Immortal Jellyfish Girl by Gwendolyn Warnock & Kirjan Waage (Jan 10 - Feb 12, 59E59)
Audience by Vaclav Havel (and created by Czechoslovak-American Marionette Theatre) (Feb 2 - 19, La MaMa)
Eva Doumbia’s Autophagies (Self-Eaters) (Feb 23 - 26, The Invisible Dog Art Center)
“…combines theater and aromas, music and flavors into a hybrid experience centered around cooking”
Wolf Play by Hansol Jung (Feb 24 - March 5, MCC)**
If you missed this show at Soho Rep, make sure you catch it at MCC.
Lucy by Erica Schmidt (Jan 27 - Feb 25, Minetta Lane)
Lucy writer/director Schmitdt also wrote the recent Cyrano adaptation starring Peter Dinklage for director Joe Wright (and is currently adapting Rumpelstiltskin for Sony...)
Amani by a.k. payne (Feb 6 - March 5, Rattlesnake Theater)
Conversations After Sex by Mark O’Halloran (Feb 22 – Mar 11, Irish Arts Center)
A Bright New Boise by Samuel D. Hunter (Jan 31 - March 12, Signature Theater)
Another one from the guy who wrote The Whale (once a play, now a movie) and the recent fantastically sad & great show, A Case for the Existence of God.
The Sign in Sidney Brustein’s Window by Lorraine Hansberry (Feb 2 - March 19, BAM)
With Oscar Isaac and Rachel Brosnahan, this is the show’s first major NYC revival since the original Broadway run. (And a notably a Hansberry show that isn’t A Raisin the Sun.)
The Jungle by Joe Murphy & Joe Robertson (Feb 18 – March 19, St Ann’s Warehouse)**
The ‘critically-picked’ show is back at St Ann’s for another run, and was a huge hit the first time around. You’ll definitely want to check it out.
Public Obscenities by Shayok Misha Chowdhury (Feb 15 - March 26, Soho Rep)
MISTY by Arinzé Kene (March 3rd - April 2nd, The Shed)
ongoing, etc.
THE 18TH ANNUAL UNDER THE RADAR FESTIVAL (Jan 4 – 22, various theaters)**
Under the Radar is amazing festival with shows from all over the world being staged all over NYC. I can’t wait to see quite a few of these. Here are a few I’ll definitely be grabbing tickets to:
seven methods of killing kylie jenner by Jasmine Lee-Jones (Jan 10 - 22, Anspacher Theater)*
Moby Dick by Plexus Polaire (Jan 12 - 14, NYU Skirball)
The Indigo Room by Timothy White Eagle and The Violet Triangle (Jan 6 - 22, La MaMa)*
Protec/Attac by Peter Mills Weiss and Julia Mounsey (Jan 11 - 22, Chelsea Factory)*
THE EXPONENTIAL FESTIVAL (Jan, various theaters)
theater over $50 & probably worth it
KATE by Kate Berlant (Dec 19 - Feb 10, The Connolly Theater)**
KATE’s back through February (and twice as expensive!) Great show!
The Classical Theatre of Harlem’s Twelfth Night (Feb 11 - 19, Skirball)
A Bright New Boise by Samuel D. Hunter (Jan 31 - March 12, Signature Theater)
Fresh off the release of the film adaptation of his play, The Whale, this is Hunter’s latest work — about his home state of Idaho. (Hunter’s last show, 'A Case for the Existence of God, was fantastic.)
The Trees by Agnes Borinsky (Feb 12 – March 19, Playwrights Horizons)
The Best We Could by Emily Feldman (Feb 6 - March 26, MTC)
The Wanderers by Anna Ziegler (Jan 26 - March 26, Roundabout Theater)
Katie Holmes! Sarah Cooper! That guy Eddie Kaye Thomas from American Pie!
on the horizon
A Simulacrum by Lucas Hnath (May 25 - June 25, The Atlantic Theatre)
“Lucas is a playwright. Steve is a magician. Lucas asked Steve to show him some magic tricks. Steve did. And this is what happened.” (Lucas previously wrote the Vineyard Theatre-to-Broadway hit, Dana H.)
Grass by Branden Jacob-Jenkins (May 16 - June 25, Signature Theater)
This is my favorite playwright working today, and everyday I’m grateful we haven’t fully lost him to TV/film writing. (You’ll probably want to see this, as well as the Hunter play and the Sarah Ruhl one before it. Maybe consider a 3-play package/membership to Signature? I have.)
Quite a few theater companies have “Under 35” OR student discounts. I won’t be noting them here, but you should check for them when you’re buying tickets and you happen to be blessed with the gift of youth. (Or you have an active student ID.) Other ways to get cheaper tickets: sign up for the theater’s newsletter (they’ll often send out codes for discounts) or check TodayTix.
Limited $35 tickets with the code, SOHOREP.
Don’t sleep on the completely affordable $85/year BAM membership perk that includes 50% off same-day theater tickets (for two!) for all performances.
“Preview performances are March 3 to 8. For a limited time, preview tickets are $49 or less.“
Playwrights has their own free Young Memberships for people under 35. If you’re a full time student (any age!) you can also get heavily discounted tickets.
And don’t sleep on MTC’s 30 Under 35 if you are indeed 35 and under.