20 New Musicals to See Beyond Broadway This Fall

Joshua Henry in a new musical he cowrote, the buzzy London transfer of Benjamin Button, John Legend’s adaptation of Imitation of Life and more

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There are only three new musicals opening on Broadway this fall. Thankfully, there are more than six times (!!) as many bowing beyond Broadway! Highlights include a transfer of the London hit The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, John Legend and Lynn Nottage’s adaptation of Imitation of Life, the controversial satire Slam Frank, Todrick Hall’s ambitious MIDNIGHT and newly minted Tony winner Joshua Henry in a new two-person tuner he cowrote.

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The York Theatre: Truly, Howard Hughes – begins September 9

The York Theatre Company at Theatre at St. Jean’s, 150 East 76th Street near Lexington Avenue on the Upper East Side

Previews begin September 9. Opens September 17. Closes October 4. If you’re a TDF Member, log in to purchase discount tickets.

Eccentric filmmaker, aviator, magnate and lady’s man, Howard Hughes, has inspired multiple films and books. Now his dramatic life is being explored in the long-gestating bio-musical Truly, Howard Hughes at the York Theatre. Composer James Scully’s original collaborator, book writer and lyricist Frank Evans, passed in 2017, so he’s finished the show with an assist from Chad Gorn and director-choreographer Jennifer Paulson-Lee. With a sweeping, traditional musical theatre score, the show has a lot to pack in, but it prioritizes his personal relationships—with his mother, his first wife, Katharine Hepburn and his right-hand man—over his professional accomplishments and eventual mental decline. Broadway vet Sean MacLaughlin is giving a committed performance in the title role.

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After All These Years – begins September 9

AMT Theater, 354 West 45th Street between Eighth and Ninth Avenues in Midtown West

Previews begin September 9. Opens September 10. Closes October 10. If you’re a TDF Member, log in to purchase discount tickets.

Al Tapper has written a number of Off-Broadway musicals, including Sessions about psychotherapy and the Adam and Eve riff Imperfect Chemistry. For his latest show, he turned to a subject he knows very well: himself. His musical comedy memoir After All These Years is full of showbiz tales, amusing tunes and outrageous jokes. He even makes a prerecorded cameo.

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Going Bacharach: The Songs of an Icon – begins September 9

Marjorie S. Deane Little Theater, 10 West 64th Street between Columbus Avenue and Central Park West on the Upper West Side

Previews begin September 9. Opens September 16. Closes November 29. If you’re a TDF Member, log in to your account to purchase discount tickets.

Adrian Galante is a big Burt Bacharach fan. The exuberant pianist-clarinetist serves as the co-creator, arranger, orchestrator and music director of this revue, which returns for an encore engagement after a well-received run last season. The cast, including longtime Bacharach collaborator John Pagano, performs his classics, including “Do You Know the Way to San Jose?,” “What’s New Pussycat?,” “That’s What Friends Are For,” “A House Is Not a Home” and “Walk on By,” along with undersung numbers in this tuneful tribute to the pop music icon. Need even more nostalgia? The show is running in rep with a revival of the 1999 jukebox musical Our Sinatra: A Musical Celebration, so you can enjoy the hits of Ol’ Blue Eyes and Bacharach at the same space.

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Beyond the Stardust – begins September 10

The Flea, 20 Thomas Street between Broadway and Church Street in Tribeca

Previews begin September 10. Opens September 18. Closes October 18.

Conceived by The Illustrious Blacks, aka the married and multitalented Monstah and Black!, along with The Flea’s artistic director Niegel Smith, Beyond the Stardust is an immersive nightclub experience serving up techno songs, awe-inspiring aerialists and an uplifting dose of nonconformist Black queer joy. The fierce couple plays a pair of aliens here to liberate us from living life in a capitalist, consumerist box. That admittedly slim premise allows them to throw quite the interactive party as an enthusiastic cast, clad in Kate McGee’s out-of-this-world costumes, leads group dances and spreads love. Come prepared to participate (though limited seating is available for those who need it).

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MIDNIGHT – begins September 12

Daryl Roth Theatre, 101 East 15th Street between Union Square East and Irving Place in Union Square

Previews begin September 12. Opens September 27. Closes November 8. If you’re a TDF Member, log in to your account to purchase discount tickets.

A wildly ambitious passion project, MIDNIGHT is the first original musical from multihyphenate Todrick Hall, who found fame on YouTube and American Idol before starring on Broadway and the West End. A sung-through story set in the American South during the 19th century, it follows the interconnected journeys of 12 characters: six Black, six white. Hall wrote the book and songs, directs and appears in this show, which impressed audiences at its London tryout earlier this year. An exciting milestone in Hall’s multifaceted career.

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Spandex the Musical – begins September 17

Asylum NYC, 123 East 24th Street between Park Avenue South and Lexington Avenues in Gramercy

Begins September 17. Opens September 19. Closes September 27.

This musical satire has been kicking around for more than a decade, so calling it new is a bit of a stretch. But it does have a new star, erstwhile pop princess Tiffany, making her Off-Broadway debut as a housewife in 1980s Orlando who enters a national aerobics championship alongside some fierce competition.

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Slam Frank – begins September 17

Orpheum Theatre, 126 Second Avenue at 8th Street in the East Village

Previews begin September 17. Opens October 4. Closes November 30.

Before Slam Frank even had a workshop, there was a Change.org petition circulating to stop this musical about a fictional theatre company reimagining Anne Frank as a pansexual Latinx named Anita Franco. But all that controversy worked in the creators’ favor: the show got a run at Asylum NYC last year that quickly sold out and now it’s transferred Off Broadway. Songwriter Andrew Fox was inspired to create this satire after reading a real-life Twitter thread about whether Anne Frank owned her white privilege. Yet Slam Frank is much smarter than a straightforward send-up of wokeness gone wild. He and book writer Joel Sinensky are incredibly skilled, and the cast is hilarious. In addition to brilliantly parodying a super-popular hip-hop musical, the show poses intriguing questions about who can claim to be marginalized in today’s political climate.

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Memoirs of Amorous Gentlemen – begins September 25

The Culture Club, 530 West 27th Street between Tenth and Eleventh Avenues in Chelsea

Previews September 25. Opens October 15. Closes January 3, 2027.

The unexpected death of Tony-winning songwriter Duncan Sheik is sure to color the productions of two of his shows this fall: a high-profile revival of Spring Awakening and this musicalization of the mature Japanese manga Memoirs of Amorous Gentlemen about a young sex worker in an early 20th-century Parisian brothel who finds empowerment when asked to write her own story. The book was adapted by award-winning playwright Leah Nanako Winkler and Broadway director-choreographer Rob Ashford oversees the lusty and lavish production, which is staged in the round in the former Sleep No More space. Sophia Anne Caruso (Beetlejuice) stars.

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Copperfield! The New Musical – begins September 29

The Duke on 42nd Street, 229 West 42nd Street between Seventh and Eighth Avenues in Midtown West

Previews begin September 29. Opens October 19. Closes December 6.

Playwright-songwriter Jeffrey Scharf (Reunions) is behind this musical adaptation of Charles Dickens’ semi-autobiographical novel David Copperfield, a rags-to-riches saga about a poor abused young man who rises above his lot to become a literary icon. Broadway favorite Bobby Conte (The Who’s Tommy, A Bronx Tale The Musical) plays the title character.

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Soon – begins September 30

The Loft at St. Luke’s Theatre, 308 West 46th Street between Eighth and Ninth Avenues in Midtown West

Begins September 30. Closes November 8.

Although songwriter Nick Blaemire’s sole Broadway show infamously closed on opening night, he’s gone on to have a busy career as a stage actor (Godspell, Dogfight) and offbeat musical maker (Space Dogs, Edge of the World). His latest chamber work Soon centers on a very depressed twentysomething who’s hiding out at home, trying to avoid the end of the world as we slide into an environmental apocalypse. But eventually, she’s forced to face her fears and the future. Will Blum directs this intimate, indie-pop piece, which had a brief workshop run last fall downtown.

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The Public Theater: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button – begins October 8

The Public Theater, 425 Lafayette Street at Astor Place in the East Village

Previews begin October 8. Opens October 21. Closes November 22.

F. Scott Fitzgerald’s poignant tale of a man aging backward is reset in a Cornish fishing village in Jethro Compton and Darren Clark’s folk-rock musical adaptation, which was a smash across the pond. A cast of actor-musicians, led by Dead Outlaw Tony nominee Andrew Durand as the title character, conjures this fantastical, touching tale of love and loss. Note: If you’re feeling lucky, try entering the digital lottery to win free tickets to the first preview on Thursday, October 8. Details are on The Public’s site.

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Roundabout Theatre Company: The Heart – begins October 8

Laura Pels Theatre, 111 West 46th Street between Sixth and Seventh Avenues in Midtown West

Previews begin October 8. Opens October 29. Closes December 6.

After a well-received world premiere at California’s La Jolla Playhouse last year, The Heart comes to NYC courtesy of Roundabout Theatre Company. An adaptation of a French novel chronicling the harrowing 24 hours when an organ donation changes two families forever, the musical has an impressive cast, including Tony winner Joaquina Kalukango alongside Broadway favorites Drew Gehling, Heidi Blickenstaff and Jason Tam; songs by spouses Anne and Ian Eisendrath with additional lyrics by book writer Kait Kerrigan (The Great Gatsby); and staging by Roundabout’s incoming artistic director Christopher Ashley.

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La MaMa: Unconditional, A Musical Memoir – begins October 15

La MaMa’s The Club, 74A East 4th Street between Bowery and Second Avenue in the East Village

Begins October 15. Closes October 25.

While she may not be a household name, Margot Rose has led quite an amazing life as a character actor and songwriter. In her latest musical, she shares her journey as a lesbian and late-in-life mother as she experiences unconditional love and profound loss. She’s been touring this two-person tuner for a few years, earning lovely reviews. Bring tissues!

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Parcel from America – begins October 28

Theatre Row, 410 West 42nd Street between Ninth and Dyer Avenues in Midtown West

Previews begin October 28. Opens November 4. Closes November 22.

Subtitled “The Irish Musical,” this heartwarming tale is set just before Christmas in 1950s West Limerick, as residents wait for gifts from their kin who immigrated to the US. When one young boy promises a lonely widow that her estranged son will send an extra-special parcel, everyone prays for a holiday miracle. Adapted from a story by Tomáseen Foley, this show comes to NYC after a popular Dublin run.

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The King’s Critique – begins November 3

The Pershing Square Signature Center, 480 West 42nd Street between Dyer and Tenth Avenues in Midtown West

Previews begin November 3. Opens November 12. Closes December 20.

An outrageous musical comedy from Nat Zegree and Eric Holmes, The King’s Critique is set back in Shakespeare’s day as a king rules that women cannot perform onstage… but the divas and their gay BFFs aren’t having it. The ensemble is led by some very talented folks, including Crazy Ex-Girlfriend cutup Donna Lynne Champlin, The Outsiders Tony nominee Sky Lakota-Lynch and Broadway vet Taylor Iman Jones

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The Conversation – begins November 17

Astor Place Theatre, 434 Lafayette Street at Astor Place in the East Village

Previews begin November 17. Opens December 7. Closes January 24, 2027. 

Hot on the heels of winning a long overdue Tony Award for his performance in Ragtime, Joshua Henry returns to the stage in The Conversation, a two-person musical he cowrote with costar Julia Harriman. The one-act tuner traces the arc of a long-term romance, with all its amazing and messy ups and downs. The duo started writing songs together while appearing in the national tour of Hamilton and this is the culmination of that collaboration. Tony winner Kenny Leon directs.

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The Shed: Imitation of Life – begins November 21

The Shed, 545 West 30th Street between Tenth and Eleventh Avenues in Hudson Yards

Previews begin November 21. Opens December 3. Closes January 3, 2027.

There are sure to be high expectations for the musical adaptation of Fannie Hurst’s 1933 novel Imitation of Life, which has already been turned into two wildly different movies. The songs are by legendary Grammy and Oscar winner John Legend, the book is by two-time Pulitzer Prize winner Lynn Nottage and the show is directed by two-time Tony nominee Whitney White (who replaced Liesl Tommy during the project’s development). It’s fitting that an all-Black creative team is tackling this complex tale about race, class and identity as two single mothers—one Black, the other white—team up in the 1920s and ’30s in search of professional and personal success. Tina Tony winner Adrienne Warren stars.

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The York Theatre: Kilgallen – begins November 28

The York Theatre Company at Theatre at St. Jean’s, 150 East 76th Street near Lexington Avenue on the Upper East Side

Previews begin November 28. Opens TBD. Closes December 27. If you’re a TDF Member, log in to your account to purchase discount tickets.

Although she may be best remembered for her panel appearances on TV game shows, Dorothy Kilgallen was an influential journalist in the mid-20th century, when few women worked in the profession beyond the gossip columns. She hobnobbed with the biggest stars and politicians of her day. When JFK was assassinated, she was sure there was a cover-up. But her relentless digging put her in danger, and she died mysteriously in 1965. This true crime musical explores her incredible life and enigmatic demise.

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Classic Stage Company: Penelope – begins December 10

Classic Stage Company, 136 East 13th Street between Third and Fourth Avenues in the East Village

Previews begin December 10. Opens December 12. Closes December 20.

Broadway vet Grace McLean stars in this solo reinvention of The Odyssey, with the epic tale retold from the perspective of Penelope as she waits for her husband to return from his 20-year journey while she spurns potential suitors. Penelope is the brainchild of songwriter and book cowriter Alex Bechtel, who won the prestigious 2026 Richard Rodgers Award.

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Atlantic for Kids: Finn – begins December 12

Atlantic Theater Company’s Linda Gross Theater, 336 West 20th Street between Eighth and Ninth Avenues in Chelsea

Begins December 12. Closes January 31, 2027.

While we usually don’t highlight children’s productions, Finn has quite the history. Commissioned by the Kennedy Center, the show was canceled at that venue allegedly due to financial woes, though the creators believe it was because of the show’s message. The tale of a shark who longs to swim with gentler fishes, it’s a heartwarming musical about embracing your authentic self. Atlantic Theater Company’s young adult program gives the show its NYC debut.

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