Leeds Playhouse reveals new season of shows for 2026 and 2027

A new season of theatre has been unveiled by Leeds Playhouse.

The announcement marks the start of Tom Wright’s tenure as artistic director of the city centre venue, and includes the already announced Christmas show.

Opening the season will be a new revival of August Wilson’s Fences. Daniel Bailey will direct the co-production between Leeds Playhouse, Headlong, Lyric Hammersmith Theatre and HOME Manchester, which plays in the Courtyard theatre from 11 to 26 September 2026 ahead of its UK tour.

Following its world premiere at the Kiln Theatre in 2024, Leeds Playhouse writer-in-residence Suhaiymah Manzoor-Khan’s Peanut Butter and Blueberries will be revisited for a new run. Exploring love while carrying the weight of the world, it will be directed by Sameena Hussain and play from 22 October to 7 November 2026.

As already revealed, the festive show will be How The Grinch Stole Christmas! The Musical, directed by Wright. It will play from 19 November 2026 to 16 January 2027.

Into the new year, Leeds Playhouse will present a fresh production of William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet in the Quarry theatre. The revival will run from 3 to 20 March 2027, with further details to be revealed.

Wright’s new piece of work Sirens will then play. Described as “a warm, tense and deeply human story in which ordinary people are bound together by unexpected danger,” the piece is presented in association with Belgrade Theatre (in Wright’s hometown of Coventry) and will debut in the Courtyard theatre from 15 March to 3 April 2027.

Following that will be a new adaptation of Frances Hodgson Burnett’s classic The Secret Garden, reimagined by Linda Marshall Griffiths. Amy Leach will co-direct the piece after the success of her Olivier Award-nominated Animal Farm. This co-production with Theatr Clwyd will play in the Courtyard from 23 April to 15 May 2027.

A new version of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein will interrogate AI, creation and the role of humanity in shaping technology. Adapted and directed by Leeds-raised Jeff James, the co-production with Rose Theatre Kingston will play in the Quarry from 12 to 29 May 2027.

Little Shop of Horrors will also be revived, running in a co-production with Oxford Playhouse, playing from 23 June to 17 July and directed by Jamie Sophia Fletcher. We’ve given more details about that production here.

Alongside its new season of productions, Leeds Playhouse is launching a refreshed programme of creative engagement through Playhouse Connect, through three strands – People’s Playhouse, Playhouse Ensembles and Furnace.

Leeds Playhouse is also expanding its Furnace artist development programme, strengthening pathways for artists at every stage of their careers.