Barrington Stage Adds World Premieres From S. Asher Gelman, Phanésia Pharel, More to 2026 Season

Massachusetts' Barrington Stage Company has added three world premieres to its upcoming summer season.

S. Asher Gelman's The Zionists: A Family Storm will make its premiere on the company's Boyd-Quinson Theater in a co-production with Miami New Drama, with Chloe Treat directing. The work follows a Jewish family that finds themselves trapped indoors with a storm raging outside during a family reunion in the Caribbean. In the aftermath of October 7, long-held grievances intermingle with new political fears. Performances will run June 16–July 3, with opening night set for June 20.

Also newly added to the Boyd-Quinson season is Simon Stephens' solo Vanya, originally performed Off-Broadway and in London by Andrew Scott. BSC Artistic Director Alan Paul will direct this new production of the Chekhov adaptation, with BSC Associate Artist Mark H. Dold starring. Performances will run October 8-24, with an October 11 opening.

As previously announced, the company's Boyd-Quinson season also includes a 50th anniversary revival of A Chorus Line, performing July 15-August 8 (opening night will be July 19) on the Boyd-Quinson stage; and director Gordon Greenberg's revival of Michael Frayn's backstage comedy Noises Off, performing August 19-September 6 (August 23 is opening night) in the same venue.

The company's St. Germain Stage is also getting some new programming. Phanésia Pharel (The Waterfall)'s Dead Girl's Quinceañera will make its world premiere August 5-29, in a co-production with Goodman Theatre and Hartford Stage that will officially open August 9. Hartford Stage Artistic Director Melia Bensussen will direct the comedy, which follows three teenage girls trying to find their friend who goes missing from her quinceañera.

Alex Rugman's The Urmetazoan will make its own world premiere on the St. Germain Stage September 30-October 25, following two sisters preparing for one to leave Earth on a deep space mission. Jack Serio (Well, I'll Let You Go) will direct. Opening night will be October 4.

Both St. Germain premieres join a previously announced season including Debra Jo Rupp (That '70s Show) starring in Driving Miss Daisy opposite Ray Anthony Thomas and Matthew Korinko, performing May 27-June 21 (opening May 30) and directed by former BSC Artistic Director Julianne Boyd; and the world premiere of Keelay Gipson's Estate Sale, directed by Steph Paul and performing June 30-July 25 (opening July 5).

“BSC’s season is a thrilling reflection of who we are right now as a society, wrestling with division and longing for connection," says Artistic Director Paul in a statement. "At the Boyd-Quinson Theater, the searing, timely world premiere of The Zionists dives headfirst into identity and the fault lines of our political moment, while the virtuosic tour-de-force of Vanya presents one actor embodying the full spectrum of the human contradiction. At the St. Germain Stage, between the sharp wit and heart of Dead Girl’s Quinceañera and the cosmic intimacy of The Urmetazoan, we’re exploring mystery, memory, and the ties that bind across generations—and even galaxies. It’s an exciting season because it’s alive and designed to bring us together in the dark to experience something unforgettable.” 

Tickets are available via season subscriptions at BarringtonStageCo.org. Single tickets will go on sale in early spring.