Great theatre doesn’t stop at Broadway. Every year, schools and community playhouses around the world produce shows that foster a love of theatre in their communities, and create the next generation of artists—with shows ranging from time-tested classics to new modern hits. But the question remains: What shows get produced the most?
Guide: How To Build Your Own Custom Program with PLAYBILLDER
Fortunately, we at Playbill have data from the hundreds of schools and community theatres that got their programs from PLAYBILLDER, Playbill’s program-building service, last year. Last week, we told you what were the 20 most popular shows with schools and community theatres that designed and printed their programs through PLAYBILLDER in 2025, and you may have noticed that they were all musicals. But what of the plays? Well, we've also put together a list of the most popular plays, and here they are:
- A Midsummer Night's Dream
- Almost, Maine
- Little Women
- The Outsiders
- Peter and the Starcatcher
- The Importance of Being Earnest
- The Play That Goes Wrong
- Romeo and Juliet
- Radium Girls
- Our Town
- Twelfth Night
- Puffs
- Macbeth
- The Crucible
- Arsenic and Old Lace
- Steel Magnolias
- 12 Angry Jurors
- The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe
- She Kills Monsters
- (tie) Trap and Much Ado About Nothing
The list includes many perennial favorites, including, unsurprisingly, several plays by Shakespeare, alongside classics such as Our Town, The Crucible, and The Importance of Being Earnest. While the musicals list showed a bent toward dark comedy—with shows like Beetlejuice Jr., The Addams Family, and Little Shop of Horrors being among the most popular—that trend does not carry over to the plays. The only dark comedy to make it into the top 20 was Arsenic and Old Lace at number 15.
The Outsiders (the play version) shot into the top five this year, interest in the property no doubt bolstered by the Tony-winning musical adaptation. While rights to perform the musical are not available yet, Christopher Sergel's play adaptation of S.E. Hinton's novel is enjoying its popularity by proxy.
Take a look below at some of the creative cover designs that schools and community theatres created for their PLAYBILLDER programs for these shows:
Ross Sheppard High School's A Midsummer Night's Dream
Lake Plains Players' Almost, Maine
Pembroke Hill School's Little Women
Half Hollow Hills High School's The Outsiders
Pewaukee High School's Peter and the Starcatcher
Apex High School's The Importance of Being Earnest
Oakton High School's The Play That Goes Wrong
Wayzata High School's Romeo and Juliet
Wellington High School's Radium Girls
John Champe High School's Our Town
Spring Mills High School's Twelfth Night
Oyster Bay High School's Puffs
Columbia Independent School's Macbeth
Heritage Theatre Boosters' The Crucible
Bernards High School's Arsenic and Old Lace
Clinton Brick Street Players' Steel Magnolias
North Little Rock High School's 12 Angry Jurors
Garner Magnet High School's The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe
Pocket Community Theatre's She Kills Monsters
Riverdale Country School's TRAP
Dana Hall School's Much Ado About Nothing
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To design Broadway-quality programs for your next show or special event, head to PLAYBILLDER.com. Or select from one of our over 1,500 pre-populated productions with Playbill Express. Who knows, you might just be featured in our next PLAYBILLDER Spotlight! And if you are looking for a beautiful way to display your Playbills, click here to purchase Playbill frames.
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