Broadway's Purpose, Liberation Will Play Los Angeles' Geffen Playhouse

Los Angeles, California's Geffen Playhouse will bring Broadway to the West Coast in the 2026-2027 season, which will include transfers of Broadway's Purpose and Liberation.

The former, which came to Broadway via Chicago's Steppenwolf, will continue on to the Geffen with its original Broadway cast intact, including two-time Tony winner Kara Young, Alana Arenas, Glenn Davis, Jon Michael Hill, LaTanya Richardson Jackson, and Harry Lennix. Performances will run November 11-December 13.

Phylicia Rashad will reprise her direction of the Branden Jacobs-Jenkins play. The Broadway bow featured scenic design by Todd Rosenthal, costume design by Dede Ayite, lighting design by Amith Chandrashaker, sound design by Rob Milburn and Michael Bodeen, and hair and wig design by Nikiya Mathis. Broadway casting was by Calleri Jensen Davis, and original casting was by JC Clementz.

Bess Wohl's Liberation will perform January 27-February 28, 2027, with Whitney White repeating her Broadway direction. Casting is to be announced. The run is part of a multi-theatre co-production, with additional venues to be announced.

And it's not just Broadway. The Geffen is also bringing in Off-Broadway's The Monsters and Wine in the Wilderness.

Ngozi Anyanwu's The Monsters will make its Los Angeles premiere at the company March 3-April 4, 2027, in a new staging from director Aqoye Timpo. Anyanwu, who helmed her play's Off-Broadway bow with Manhattan Theatre Club, will star in the West Coast run, with further casting to be announced.

Alice Childress' Wine in the Wilderness will play the theatre June 2-July 4, 2027, with Tony winner LaChanze at the helm. LaChanze previously directed the title for a 2025 bow at Off-Broadway's Classic Stage Company. The Geffen run is being produced in association with LaChanze Productions.

Geffen will also host a world premiere for Grace McLeod's Closing Costs, performing March 31-May 2, 2027. Hannah Wolf will direct the work, a farce set amidst the wild L.A. housing market. The premiere is being produced in association with IAMA Theatre Company.

"In times of deep chaos, it may feel logical to pull back, to shrink, to stave off efforts toward the future. But we must reach out, we must expand, and call in. We must continue to provide a beautiful, unique place to dream in the dark,” says Artistic Director Tarell Alvin McCraney in a statement."'Lord, we know what we are, but not what we may be.' Ophelia, from Hamlet. This season reflects our deep need to see what we may be. We know, and will continue, to show up, do great work, and reach toward our goal of making and presenting mind‑dazzling, heart‑engaging, formidable art for our community, with our city, and before the world.”

"Tarell is a visionary, and his artistic prowess has sparked a profound creative evolution at the Geffen, bringing forward new voices and bold stories with every season, and the 2026-2027 lineup continues that momentum," adds Executive Director and CEO Gil Cates, Jr. "We’re thrilled for our loyal audience to experience what’s ahead, and equally excited to welcome new community members from across Los Angeles and Southern California. Looking forward, we’re developing plans to embrace a more global audience as L.A. prepares to host the LA28 Olympics, and being located directly across from the Olympic Village at UCLA is a once‑in‑a‑theatre’s‑lifetime opportunity. What we’re building today will resonate in the years leading up and beyond, and we can’t wait to share it with the world."

Visit GeffenPlayhouse.org.