Leeds Playhouse has revealed the full programme for Artistic Director Tom Wright’s inaugural season, running from autumn 2026 through to summer 2027 across the Quarry theatre and Courtyard theatre.
The season brings together landmark plays, large-scale family musicals, contemporary new writing and bold reimaginings of classic stories, with productions presented in collaboration with theatres across the UK.
Opening the season in the Courtyard theatre is August Wilson’s Fences, directed by Daniel Bailey in a co-production with Headlong, Lyric Hammersmith Theatre and HOME Manchester, running from 11 to 26 September 2026.
Later in the autumn, Leeds playwright Suhaiymah Manzoor-Khan’s Peanut Butter & Blueberries, directed by Sameena Hussain, returns following its London premiere and plays from 22 October to 7 November 2026.
The festive period sees a brand-new UK production of Dr. Seuss’s How the Grinch Stole Christmas! The Musical, directed by Tom Wright, filling the Quarry theatre from 19 November 2026 to 16 January 2027.
In 2027, the Quarry theatre will host a fresh production of Shakespeare’s Romeo & Juliet, followed by a new adaptation of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, adapted and directed by Leeds-born theatre-maker Jeff James.
Tom Wright also debuts his new play Sirens, written and directed by Wright and produced in association with the Belgrade Theatre, which runs in the Courtyard from 15 March to 3 April 2027.
A new adaptation of The Secret Garden, written by Linda Marshall Griffiths and directed by Amy Leach, reimagines Frances Hodgson Burnett’s novel in contemporary Leeds and plays from 23 April to 15 May 2027.
The season concludes with Little Shop of Horrors, directed by Leeds Playhouse Associate Artistic Director Jamie Sophia Fletcher, presented in association with Oxford Playhouse and running from 23 June to 17 July 2027.
Tom Wright said: “My first season begins with a simple idea – that theatre should entertain and challenge in equal measure, and speak directly to the world we’re living in.”
He added: “Ultimately, our ambition is for Leeds Playhouse to be a theatre where everyone feels welcome, and where some of the most exciting conversations in British theatre are happening right here in Leeds.”
Chief Executive Shawab Iqbal described the programme as reflecting Leeds Playhouse’s role as a major national producing theatre, rooted in its city while reaching audiences far beyond Yorkshire.
Alongside the season announcement, Leeds Playhouse also unveiled an expanded Furnace artist development programme and a refreshed Playhouse Connect engagement initiative, supporting artists and communities across Leeds and the region.
Listings and ticket information can be found here.
