Join us! The plays in Live Arts 25/26 Season of Passion explore that word in all its infinite variety. Join us this year at Live Arts for compelling theater - wherever your passions live!
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20 June - 20 June, 2026
Featuring Performances by... DOUG SCHNEIDER and KRISTIN BALTES BENT THEATRE COMEDY THE TIP TOP TWINS and our cast of BE MORE CHILL!
10 July - 26 July, 2026
Director: Daniel Kunkel
This July, Live Arts brings a story of high school, belonging, and artificial intelligence to the stage! BE MORE CHILL has music and lyrics by Joe Iconic, book by Joe Tracz, based on the book by Ned Vizzini Playing in the Gibson Theater!
3 October - 19 October, 2025
Director: Jude Hansen
AIRLINE HIGHWAY by Lisa D'Amour Directed by Jude Hansen In the GIBSON THEATER: Oct. 3-19 "A beautiful and mesmerizing kaleidoscope of a play" - New York Magazine
3 October - 31 May, 2026
Live Arts is implementing a new initiative! $4.34 tickets for anyone 25 and under, or new to Live Arts (never seen a show before), to any performance. We believe in the future of live Theater!
5 December - 3 January, 2026
Director: Xavier Taylor
Choreography by Liberty DeLeon, Music Direction by Erica Umback. West End Version!
23 January - 15 February, 2026
Director: Robert Chapel
FOUNDERS THEATER JANUARY 23 - FEBRUARY 15 STAGE KISS' 1/24 Performance has been POSTPONED due to weather Live Arts is pleased to present the charming and profound comedy, Stage Kiss, by Pulitzer Prize finalist and MacArthur "Genius" Grant recipient Sarah Ruhl. This witty play-within-a-play explores the hilarious and often messy lines between professional performance and personal passion, asking: when is a kiss ever just a kiss?
6 March - 22 March, 2026
Directors: Kara McLane Burke, Sian Richards
GIBSON THEATER MARCH 6-22 Jane Austen's most mischievous matchmaker bursts onto the Live Arts stage in Kate Hamill's effervescent adaptation of this beloved classic novel. Kate Hamill’s Emma is a fast-paced, inventive adaptation of Jane Austen’s beloved novel that blends sharp wit, theatrical flair, and modern sensibility. Staying true to Austen’s sparkling language while infusing the story with physical comedy and playful staging, the play follows the well-meaning but misguided Emma Woodhouse as she navigates love, matchmaking, and self-discovery in her close-knit community. Hamill’s adaptation highlights the novel’s feminist undercurrents and emotional depth, offering a fresh, accessible take on a classic that resonates with contemporary audiences while celebrating Austen’s enduring insight into human relationships. Emma is presented through special arrangement with and all authorized performance materials are supplied by TRW PLAYS 1180 Avenue of the Americas, Suite 640, New York, NY 10036. www.trwplays.com
10 April - 26 April, 2026
Director: Leslie M. Scott Jones
"Southern trees bear strange fruit Blood on the leaves and blood at the root ..." Excerpt of lyrics from the song “Strange Fruit” by Abel Meeropol FOUNDERS THEATER APRIL 10-26 Sponsored by John & Kate Byrne and The City of Charlottesville
21 May - 6 June, 2026
Directors: Mandy Shuker, Laura May Brunk
For more than twenty-five years, Live Arts volunteers have packed their bags and crossed the Atlantic to work behind the scenes at the world-renowned Edinburgh Festival Fringe, a global playground for fearless storytelling. They return brimming with audacious scripts, experimental staging tricks, and an appetite for boundary-breaking performance. This season, we're channeling that electric energy right here in Charlottesville. Our final shows of the season will be two of our team’s Fringe Favorites. We are excited to produce fully-staged, intimate, boundary-pushing productions chosen from the most exciting new voices we've encountered in Scotland, and adapted for our audience.
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