\ud83c\udfad NEW! Pennsylvania Theatre Newsletter<\/p>\n
Philadelphia-based, Tony Award-winning theater company Wilma Theater<\/a> has revealed four productions for its 2026-27 season. The 2026-27 season will feature the world premiere of an original coming-of-self story, an inventive spin on a children\u2019s literary classic, a project exploring the Wilma\u2019s first ever production in 1979, and a subversive cabaret blurring the line between parody and poignancy. Early Bird Subscriptions for the Wilma\u2019s 2026-27 season start at $120 for all four productions and are available until June 1.<\/p>\n \ud83c\udfad NEW! Pennsylvania Theatre Newsletter<\/p>\n The upcoming season marks 30 years since the Wilma first opened its theater on the Avenue of the Arts. The theater has remained dedicated to creating adventurous art, engaging artists and audiences in imaginative reflections on the complexities of contemporary life. From allegory and fable to cabaret and documentary theater, these productions use inventive forms to invite Wilma audiences to consider how care, resistance, and imagination shape our personal lives and broader communities.<\/p>\n That spirit of experimentation, risk, and collaboration is embodied by the Wilma\u2019s acclaimed, award-winning resident acting company, the HotHouse, whose members are central to the theater\u2019s creative process. The ensemble meets weekly to train, read plays, and develop new work. HotHouse members appear throughout the 2026-27 season, with members Justin Jain<\/a> and Suli Holum<\/a> leading productions.\u00a0<\/p>\n This commitment to artistic development and ensemble-driven work is reflected in the season\u2019s opening world premiere production, Horsegirl & Cowdaddy by playwright and screenwriter DJ Hills, presented as a co-production with Soho Rep. The Wilma previously introduced the piece through a 2026 staged reading. Directed by Adil Mansoor, the play takes place in a present-day rural Pennsylvania town, where Horsegirl, a trans woman in her 30s, shares a steady, insular life with her father, Cowdaddy. When a newly arrived teacher captures her heart, Horsegirl begins to undergo a startling transformation, one that forces her to confront who she is, what she wants, and how she defines happiness on her own terms. Horsegirl & Cowdaddy runs from September 22 to October 4.\u00a0<\/p>\n The season continues with the Wilma\u2019s all-ages production of Rick Cummins<\/a> and John Scoullar<\/a>\u2019s adaptation of the classic children\u2019s story The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exup\u00e9ry. After directing The Snow Queen in 2025, the theater\u2019s first all-ages production, the Wilma\u2019s visionary Co-Artistic Director, Yury Urnov (A Summer Day, My Mama and The Full-Scale Invasion), brings this whimsical adventure to life with a stellar cast and imaginative staging. When a stranded aviator meets a mysterious little prince from a faraway planet, they forge an unlikely friendship. The play\u2019s run includes select performances for student groups, and can be purchased by contacting groupsales@wilmatheater.org<\/a>. The Little Prince runs from November 17 to November 29, 2026.<\/p>\n In 1979, The Wilma\u2019s Founding Artistic Directors Blanka and Jiri Zizka<\/a> put the theater on the map by staging an experimental adaptation of George Orwell<\/a>\u2019s Animal Farm. Following years of exploration in HotHouse, including an upcoming reading on April 18, The Animal Farm Project reexamines power, corruption, resistance, and hope through a contemporary lens. Lead artist and Wilma HotHouse Acting Company member Justin Jain<\/a> and director Eva Steinmetz draw on George Orwell<\/a>\u2019s political allegory, weaving in multimedia design, documentary theater techniques, and migrant stories gathered through community workshops and interviews. Supported by the Pew Center for Arts & Heritage, The Animal Farm Project runs from March 30 to April 11, 2027, and includes select daytime performances for student groups.<\/p>\n To close the 2026-27 season, the Wilma welcomes the Bearded Ladies Cabaret to the stage with Mx. Rogers\u2019 Neighborhood: You Can Never Go Down the Drain, a musical written and performed by the Beards\u2019 founding Artistic Director, Rose Jarboe. Directed by HotHouse Company Member Suli Holum<\/a>, the show was originally hosted at the Wilma during the 2018 Fringe Festival and reimagines the gentle world of Mr. Rogers<\/a>. The Wilma and The Bearded Ladies invite you to \u201chop aboard Trolley and take a gay romp into Mx. Rogers\u2019 Neighborhood!\u201d Jarboe takes off her heels to put on\u2026 other heels\u2026 and asks earnest questions about irony, including: What if I don’t want to feel my feelings? And would it kill you to be my neighbor? Mx. Rogers\u2019 Neighborhood: You Can Never Go Down the Drain runs during Pride Month from June 2 to 13, 2027.\u00a0<\/p>\n From March 26 to June 1, patrons can purchase an Early Bird subscription for the Wilma\u2019s 2026-27 season. A four-show weekday subscription is $120; a four-show weekend subscription is $140. The four-ticket whenever subscription \u2013 which includes tickets to be used in any combination throughout the season \u2013 is $180. The Wilma is also offering a limited quantity of Opening Night subscriptions for $250, providing patrons with tickets for each production\u2019s festive opening performance and post-show reception. Additionally, subscribers will receive exclusive first access to special events and presentations throughout the season. The Wilma\u2019s subscriptions offer theatergoers savings of up to 60% compared to single ticket purchases.<\/p>\n The Wilma Theater<\/a>\u2019s 2026-27 Season Productions<\/p>\n *World Premiere* Horsegirl & Cowdaddy<\/p>\n By DJ Hills The Little Prince<\/p>\n By Rick Cummins<\/a> and John Scoullar<\/a>\u00a0 The Animal Farm Project<\/p>\n
\nA Co-production with Soho Rep
\nDirected by Adil Mansoor
\nSeptember 22 to October 4, 2026\u00a0
\nA story of love and self-determination about a 30-something Trans woman named Horsegirl.<\/p>\n
\nAdapted from the book by Antoine de Saint-Exup\u00e9ry
\nDirected by Yury Urnov
\nNovember 17 to 29, 2026
\nWhimsical adventures of love and friendship are recounted by a little prince from a faraway planet. Bring your kids, cousins, grandmas, and grown-ups.<\/p>\n