The TUTS shuffle

Theatre Under the Stars shuffles new season due to COVID-19 pandemic

Come from Awat TUTS Theatre Under the Stars tour

Fans can look for the upbeat Come from Away.

Photo by Matthew Murphy

With the COVID-19 pandemic showing no signs of slowing, arts organizations have been forced to pivot and adjust programming. The latest local group to do so is Theatre Under The Stars (TUTS), which had planned to launch its 2020/2021 season at the Hobby Center with the highly anticipated, Broadway-bound revival of 1776 in September, followed by Rock of Ages in October.

But due to the pandemic, TUTS has just announced that both productions have been moved to later in the 2020/2021 Season. The season will now begin with the Disney classic, The Little Mermaid, on December 6 and end with the two postponed productions.

The ’80s-themed musical comedy, Rock of Ages, will run August 10 through 22, 2021. The Broadway revival of 1776 will cap off the season September 28 through October 10, 2021, immediately following its run in New York City. The Houston engagement of 1776 will feature the complete Broadway cast and is directed by Tony Award-winning director, Diane Paulus.

“Rock of Ages is going to be the perfect party show for some summer fun, and we’re thrilled to snag the full Broadway production of 1776 for Houston audiences,” said TUTS Artistic Director Dan Knechtges. “We’re so thankful that we can retain both musicals for the upcoming season.”

The TUTS season also includes Disney’s The Little Mermaid, December 6 through 24; South Pacific, February 9 through 21; Sister Act, April 6 through 18; and the North American tour of Come From Away, May 18 through 30.

All productions will be in the Hobby Center’s Sarofim Hall.

Tickets for Theatre Under The Stars 2020/21 Season are currently only available by subscription; individual tickets will go on sale to the public later this year.

TUTS is also converting all in-person summer camps for children and young adults to online classes. Those interested in camps from the Humphreys School of Musical Theatre and The River, can get more information online.

theater

And the Winner Is

Houston's Alley Theatre only Texas winner of prestigious new play award

Photo courtesy of Alley Theatre

Bring a friend to the theater for free.

The Tony Award-winning Alley Theatre has once again earned national recognition, becoming the only Texas theater selected for a 2025 Edgerton Foundation New Play Award, a prestigious honor known for helping launch some of the most influential plays and musicals of the past two decades.

The award will support the Alley’s May 2026 world premiere of Dear Alien by Liz Duffy Adams, giving the production additional rehearsal time that has proven essential for shaping new work.

The Edgerton Awards have a powerful legacy behind them. Past recipients include phenomenon-level titles such as Hamilton, Dear Evan Hansen, The Prom, Next to Normal, and Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike — shows that went on to win Tony Awards, earn Pulitzer Prizes, and define contemporary American theater.

“I’m so grateful to the Edgerton Foundation for their support of Liz Duffy Adams’ play Dear Alien," says Alley artistic director Rob Melrose in a release. "Getting an additional week of rehearsal on a new play makes a tremendous difference. In Dear Alien, the titular role (played by resident acting company member Dylan Godwin) is onstage the entire show, and it is going to be quite a challenge. Supporting new plays is incredibly important for the health of the American theater. Four years ago, Alley Theatre premiered Liz’s play Born with Teeth, and it is currently having a run on the West End after gracing the stages of major theaters in the U.S. such as the Guthrie, Asolo Rep, and Oregon Shakespeare Festival."

Alley Theatre has a significant history with developing new work. In 1996, the Alley won the Regional Theatre Tony Award after debuting the world premiere of the musical Jekyll & Hyde, which went on to tour 40 cities and play for two years on Broadway (it lives on thanks to a DVD and VHS recording starring David Hasselhoff in the title roles).

In 1998, the Alley staged the American premiere of a rediscovered Tennessee Williams play, Not About Nightingales, which later enjoyed a successful Broadway run.

The Edgerton Foundation New Plays Program, directed by Brad and Louise Edgerton, was piloted in 2006 with Center Theatre Group in Los Angeles by offering two musicals in development an extended rehearsal period for the entire creative team, including the playwrights. The Edgertons launched the program nationally in 2007 and have supported 569 plays to date at over 50 different theaters across the country. Over the last 19 years, the Edgerton Foundation has awarded $19,670,534 to 569 productions.

Among the 2025 winners are pop-country star Jennifer Nettles' new musical Giulia: The Poison Queen of Palermo at Perelman Performing Arts Center in New York City; Claudia Shear's The Recipe, about the early life of Julia Child, at La Jolla Playhouse in California; and prolific playwright David Lindsay-Abaire's latest title, The Balusters, at Manhattan Theatre Club. See the complete list here.

awards alley theatre dear alien liz duffy adams edgerton foundation edgerton foundation new play award theater