August 12, 2025
Theatre Row This Season Is Home to Productions from Organizations and Companies with a Range of Missions, Styles, and Visions
Continuing Strategic Collaboration Across BFA Programs, Theatre Row Will Host the Celebration for the American Playwriting Foundation’s 2025 Relentless Musical Award on October 12
Theatre Row, the nonprofit-focused multi-theater anchor of Building for the Arts (BFA), today announced the productions that will be in residence at the venue in Fall 2025. The season is a genre-panorama of new works—as well as one beloved classic and one powerful forgotten work—for all types of theatergoers: whether adults or children, lovers of trenchant comedies, captivating musicals, sweeping historical dramas, or intimate solo plays. The broad range of productions exemplifies Theatre Row’s vision for and role in sustaining an expansive, democratic New York theater and performance sphere through the provision of affordable space, both for rehearsals and productions.
Theatre Row’s spaces encourage companies and artists to collaborate, produce work, and build a professional homebase for themselves. The season features three works from Theatre Row’s current Companies-in-Residence, continuing its partnerships with these vital community-based organizations to serve a wide variety of artists and audiences. These include Mint Theater Company, with Sally Carson’s probing play (a dramatization of her own 1934 novel) set in 1930s Bavaria, Crooked Cross (September 20–November 2); New York City Children’s Theater with My First Nutcracker, adapted for young audiences by Barbara Zinn Krieger and directed and choreographed by Kristen Brooke Sandler (December 6–21); and United Solo Theatre Festival, the world’s largest solo theater festival, returning to Theatre Row for its 19th season (October 14–November 23). Similarly, the Australian Theatre Festival NYC returns for a third year (September 16-21), this time with two extraordinary solo performances: SKINNY, from multi-award-winning singer Michelle Pearson, and FLICK, from celebrated writer/performer Madelaine Nunn.
Two other solo works—both accounts of true stories—offer audiences the exhilaration of a lone performer to create a whole world onstage: Julie Ridge’s one-woman show Bipolar & the English Channel, presented by The Frank Ridge Memorial Foundation; and Hannah Senesh, the story of the Jewish anti-Nazi paratrooper, retold as a play with music written and directed by David Schechter and presented by National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene (October 19-November 9, 2025).
Musical storytelling pervades the season, with two other unique takes on the musical form: the darkly comic glimpse into recovery culture, Michael Levin’s Sober Songs, presented by Sober Songs LLC (September 2–October 5); and The Art Tour, a two-person musical romantic comedy by Kyle Fackrell, presented by The Art Tour Musical LLC.
Tony Award-winning producer Roxedge Entertainment introduces New York audiences to the play Lady Patriot (September 6-20). Based on a true story, the work provides an intimate look into the prejudices and patriotism of three Civil War-era ladies: Varina Davis, Elizabeth Van Lew, and Mary Bowser. It is a hilarious examination of the stereotypes prevalent in the South during the Confederacy.
While many works this season are new plays—or, in the case of Crooked Cross, an older work that audience members will in all likelihood be seeing for the first time—there are also two fresh takes on classics: Gingold Theatrical Group’s staging of George Bernard Shaw’s iconic Pygmalion (October 2–November 22), along with the New York City Children’s Theater’s evergreen production of My First Nutcracker.
On October 12, Theatre Row hosts the celebration of this year’s winner and finalists of the Relentless Musical Award, in honor of Adam Schlesinger and Philip Seymour Hoffman (presented bi-annually, in alternating years with the Relentless Award for plays, in honor of Philip Seymour Hoffman). The award is conferred by The American Playwriting Foundation, a program of Building for the Arts, in a star-studded awards ceremony with live performances.
Cierra Cass, Theatre Row’s Director of Theatre Programs and Partnerships, said “We are thrilled to have such a robust and varied slate of performances happening at Theatre Row this fall. It is very exciting to see so many artists, both new and returning, sharing their art and passion on our stages.”
“Nearly 100 years after Clurman and his peers’ ‘fervent years’—that formative era of 20th century American theatremaking—we’re again in a time of political and artistic upheaval. With this season’s offerings, NYC artists and companies are answering the call with a bold multiplicity of voices, productions, and aesthetics. We and our partners are at the precipice of a new fervency that calls for expansive creative output, experimentation, and innovation. BFA and Theatre Row are proud to support work that engages audiences and helps push the field, and societal dialogue, forward.” said Building for the Arts President David J. Roberts.
THEATRE ROW FALL 2025 PRODUCTIONS AND EVENTS
Sober Songs LLC Presents
Michael Levin’s Sober Songs
September 2 – October 5, 2025
Set in the basement of a Brooklyn church, Sober Songs is a darkly comedic musical that follows six young adults in recovery at a local AA meeting founded by the gruff but loving “Cap.” Blending biting humor, emotional ballads, and sharp dialogue, the show evolves from light and charming to deeply emotional, offering a raw, character-driven, and emotionally authentic look at addiction, love, identity, and the complicated, messy road to sobriety. With heart, heartbreak, and cathartic honesty, Sober Songs offers a deeply human—and at times hilarious—glimpse into recovery culture.
Roxedge Entertainment
Lady Patriot
September 6-20, 2025
The inner sanctum of Confederate president Jefferson Davis has been breached. Information is leaking to the enemy. Who is the spy? No one is privy to this information except Jefferson’s advisors, and they are beyond repute. Based on a true story, Lady Patriot reveals an intimate look into the prejudices and patriotism of three ladies who lived during the Civil War: Varina Davis, Elizabeth Van Lew, and Mary Bowser. Lady Patriot combines Ted Lange’s signature comedy and drama as it peels away traditional stereotypes prevalent in the South during the Confederacy.
The Australian Theatre Festival NYC 2025
September 16-21, 2025
Direct from the Edinburgh and Adelaide Fringe Festivals, House of Oz presents Skinny, by Michelle Pearson. ‘Skinny’ is more than a word. It’s a societal chokehold. An absurd universe of shakes, shapewear and shifty surgeons. But there is an alternative. In this empowering fusion of pop, power ballads and biting comedy, multi-award-winning singer Michelle Pearson encourages us to face the mirror and embrace our bodies for all they are. Featuring songs “Pretty Hurts” (Beyonce), “I Wanna Dance With Somebody” (Whitney Houston), “Karma Police” (Radiohead), “Money” (Pink Floyd), “We Didn’t Start the Fire” (Billy Joel), and many more.
Also acclaimed at the Edinburgh and Adelaide Fringe Festivals is the Purse Prize Award-winning Flick. A nurse. Her patient. A secret. Flick is a nurse, Mark has cancer, the kind you can’t come back from. He’s also dangerously attractive. When Mark asks Flick for a favour it doesn’t take long for boundaries to blur and lives to intersect. From award winning writer/performer, Madelaine Nunn. Flick is a darkly funny thriller about life, death, and really bad decisions. Don’t miss this critically acclaimed one woman show!
Mint Theater Company
Crooked Cross
By Sally Carson
September 20 – November 2, 2025
Crooked Cross draws us into the story of the Klugers, a typical middle-class Bavarian family, facing the economic and political challenges of life in Germany between Christmas 1932 and June 1933. The heart of the play is a love story: Lexa Kluger is engaged to Moritz Weissmann, a Jewish doctor. Lexa’s brothers, Helmy and Erich, are becoming increasingly involved with the Nazi party, grateful to have “a real job with a little pay at least.” We see the rise of fascism, but we also see the yearning for belonging that drives these young men into the darkness.
The American Playwriting Foundation and Building for the Arts Present
The 2025 Relentless Musical Award Celebration
October 12, 2025
Join us for a celebration of the winner and finalists of the 2025 Relentless Musical Award, the largest annual cash prize in American theater awarded in recognition of a new musical. The evening will include a star-studded awards ceremony, as well as exclusive performances of groundbreaking new music.
United Solo Theatre Festival Fall 2025
October 14 – November 23, 2025
The world’s largest solo theatre festival returns to Theatre Row for its nineteenth season! Fall features artists from across the country and around the globe performing solo shows in a variety of genres. Classical, comedy, musicals, poetry, performance art and more from established artists and emerging voices.
National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene
Hannah Senesh (a play with music)
Written and directed by David Schechter
Developed in collaboration with Lori Wilner
Based on the diaries and poems of Hannah Senesh
Music composed and arranged by Steven Lutvak
Additional songs by Elizabeth Swados and David Schechter
October 19-November 9, 2025
This Drama Desk Award-nominated, riveting solo play with music tells the inspiring true story of Hannah, a Hungarian young woman who, on the brink of WWII, emigrates to help build a Jewish state, then daringly parachutes back behind Nazi lines to help save Jews, including her mother, from extermination.
Gingold Theatrical Group
Bernard Shaw’s Pygmalion
October 22 – November 22, 2025
Before My Fair Lady, there was Pygmalion—the razor-sharp, wildly entertaining original that redefined romantic comedy for the modern age. Set in the vibrant streets and drawing rooms of pre-WWI London, this timeless classic follows Eliza Doolittle, a spirited flower seller with big dreams, and Professor Henry Higgins, a brilliant but socially unevolved linguist who wagers he can pass her off as a duchess by teaching her to behave and to speak “properly.” But what begins as a game of manners and accents soon escalates into something far deeper—a battle of wills, a clash of class, and a search for identity that still resonates today. Don’t miss this limited run of Shaw’s most beloved play—smart, stylish, and full of heart.
The Art Tour, a new musical
November 11-22, 2025
In this romantic comedy, Thomas and Deb take their art business on a journey across the United States. Experience the joy and the struggles, the laughter and the tears, in this touching musical about love and the pursuit of art.
The Frank Ridge Memorial Foundation Presents
Bipolar & The English Channel
December 3- December 14, 2025
Bipolar & The English Channel is Julie Ridge’s story of how a casual mile-a-day pool swimmer became an English Channel swimmer in nine short months, and how that zig-zag journey across grey murky seas has paralleled her life with bipolar disorder. Act I is her Channel saga, which includes an illustrated telling of her 17 hour and 55 minute swim from England to France. Act II is a cautionary tale of suicidal depressions and dangerous manias that spanned a lifetime – until a near-fatal manic episode landed her on an unforgiving NYC psychiatric ward. Ridge’s one-woman show culminates in her journey back to sanity and a meaningful life.
New York City Children’s Theater
My First Nutcracker
December 6-21, 2025
Adapted for young audiences by Barbara Zinn Krieger and directed and choreographed by Kristen Brooke Sandler, My First Nutcracker features the music of Tchaikovsky and invites children to take part in a festive journey to the Land of Sweets. Through interactive moments, lively dance, and imaginative storytelling, this version centers imagination, family, tradition, and female empowerment, offering an inclusive and joyful theatrical experience for all ages.
ABOUT BUILDING FOR THE ARTS AND THEATRE ROW
Building for the Arts (BFA) is a multifaceted nonprofit organization dedicated to expanding access to the performing arts. Founded in Hell’s Kitchen in 1976 to create a vibrant performing arts hub for the neighborhood, BFA has since grown toward an interconnected and national approach to cultural access, offering multiple pipelines to deepen artistic engagement. Through its three signature programs, the organization vitalizes artistic communities and their audiences.
Theater Row offers invaluable support to the theatrical ecosystem by allowing a multiplicity of companies access to affordable space in the heart of New York’s Theater District. Led by Director of Theatre Programs and Partnerships Cierra Cass, Theatre Row serves upwards of 300 companies, 3,000 artists, and 70,000 patrons a year. It removes barriers to entry Off-Broadway for theater artists and organizations without their own permanent creative homes, incentivizing new collaborations and projects in an otherwise competitive and cost-prohibitive field and neighborhood. By easing financial burdens for producing with five theaters offered at significantly below-market rates, Theatre Row addresses BFA’s fundamental focus on access, as it relates to the coveted commodity of space in New York.
Music and the Brain, a school-day general music method using music literacy as a cognitive and character-building tool for young people, has evolved from a local to national program. And The American Playwriting Foundation devotes its resources to identifying and nurturing the next generation of theatermakers poised to reveal and reflect to us the truths of our world, primarily through the renowned Relentless Awards made in honor of Philip Seymour Hoffman and Adam Schlesinger. Under the leadership of Building for the Arts President David J. Roberts, the organization continues to grow its distinct yet interconnected visions for making the city and country nurturing places for the growth of the arts and artists.
BFA’s Theatre Row is supported by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature; and by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council; as well as a grant from the Michael Tuch Foundation, and other generous donors.
PRESS CONTACT
Blake Zidell and Adriana Leshko at Blake Zidell & Associates: blake@blakezidell.com, 917.572.2493; adriana@blakezidell.com, 917.294.0544.