The 2025 Lighthouse Series Finalists include amazing works by NYC’s talented up-and-comers. A competition, the first of its kind, specifically designed to showcase the best new talent and writers across the New York City area. Each night is built as an eclectic and diverse experience with themes and performances ranging from drama to comedy, and everything in between. From this group an overall winner is picked to receive a full production at SoHo Playhouse in 2026. Come see tomorrow’s stars today!
Brody Went Missing
Written by Matt Stephens
Brody Went Missing is a road trip comedy play about Brody’s best friends, Angie and Doug. Brody is the coolest guy in Langstown. And he’s about to take over the most successful party store in town from his mother. He has it all. So Angie and Doug are understandably confused when he leaves a note telling them he’s leaving town forever. They hit the road to find answers, blasting tunes and meeting an eclectic cast of characters along the way.
How to Build a Gate
Written by Electra Artemis and directed by Sydney Dennison
Liza, a sharp-tongued, sexually adventurous, computer scientist is at the top of her game—until the AI assistant she’s building starts showing unsettling signs of self-awareness. As Liza juggles flirty texts from her hot neighbor and mounting pressure from her boss, she’s forced to confront a question bigger than any algorithm: What do you do when you make the thing that could replace you? How to Build a Gate is a fast-paced, irreverent exploration of power, responsibility and the limits of human control—blending dark humor and biting social commentary in a world where intelligence, artificial or not, is never truly neutral.
Golem Owned a Tropical Smoothie
Written by Ethan Crystal and Garrett Poladian
Golem Owned A Tropical Smoothie tells the story of Golem, a non-copyright-infringing creature who owns a non-copyright-infringing smoothie shop called Tropical Smoothie in Panama City Beach, Florida. His newest young employee, Ian, struggles to find the meaning in all this—until Smeegle, the Machiavellian CEO of Smoothie Kingdom, reveals his evil plan to drive Golem out of business forever. Determined to rewrite his destiny, Ian hatches a plan with his best friend Kyle and his older sister Gabby to save Tropical Smoothie. Can he do it? I don’t know. Maybe. But the point is, Golem owned a Tropical Smoothie.
The Ghost of Bob Dylan Shows One of Us Greatness
In The Ghost of Bob Dylan Shows One of Us Greatness, Bob Dylan might still be alive, but that won’t stop his ghost from barging in on three music-obsessed friends and declaring that one of them will be chosen to ascend to rock-and-roll greatness. But what does it really mean to be “greatness material”? And what’s so great about greatness, anyway?
Hungry Women
Written by Melissa Maney and directed by Iris Dukatt
If men went extinct, what would our world become? In 19th century Massachusetts, four women face the mysterious deaths of their town’s men. As repressed feelings about motherhood, gender, sexuality and hunger for agency rise to the surface, finally, it’s their turn to decide: what comes next?
Hot Pussy Time Machine
Written by Alexander J Daniels and directed by Engels Perez
Hot Pussy Time Machine is an absurd, raunchy comedy about three friends—Genevieve, Frankie and Mary—who accidentally discover that female pleasure can unlock the secrets of time travel. What starts as an attempt to reclaim control over their lives spirals into a chaotic journey through history. The play explores self-discovery and the ridiculous ways society misunderstands and suppresses female pleasure. It’s packed with over-the-top characters, satire and chaotic humor that emphasizes and confronts male arrogance and societal taboos.
