2025-26 Theatre Season
The School of Theatre Arts at Illinois Wesleyan proudly presents a professional-grade public production series each year. Performances take place on our campus in two venues: the Jerome Mirza Theatre at McPherson Hall and the E. Melba Johnson Kirkpatrick Laboratory Theatre in the theatre wing of Presser Hall.
Each of our productions are created, designed, and performed by School of Theatre Arts students with support from faculty, staff, and prestigious guest artists.
Tickets for fall productions will be available beginning Labor Day weekend. Contact the Box Office at (309) 556-3232 for more information or to be added to our mailing list.
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William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet
October 8 - 12, 2025 | Jerome Mirza Theatre
By William Shakespeare
Directed by Tom Quinn
William Shakespeare's enduring tragedy about two star-crossed lovers from feuding families opens our 2025-2026 season in a bold, new interpretation. Inverting the legacy of Elizabethan performance, this production departs from traditional casting expectations to ask compelling questions about identity and the masks we wear in society.
Execution of Justice
October 30 - November 2, 2025 | EMJK Laboratory Theatre
By Emily Mann
Directed by RJ Hodde
This docudrama on the assassinations of San Francisco Mayor George Moscone and Supervisor Harvey Milk, the first openly gay elected public official in the country, is based on court transcripts and public record dramatizing the trial of this controversial case. Focus is on the accused killer Dan White, a disgruntled former city supervisory, and on the jury, which chose to convict him not of cold-blooded murder but of manslaughter, in what became known as the notorious "Twinkie defense."
EXECUTION OF JUSTICE is presented by arrangement with www.concordtheatricals.com
Irving Berlin's Holiday Inn
November 19 - 23, 2025 | Jerome Mirza Theatre
Music and Lyrics by Irving Berlin
Book by Gordon Greenber and Chad Hodge
Directed by Justin Brill
Music Direction by Charlie Berggren
Irving Berlin's Holiday Inn tells the story of Jim, who leaves the bright lights of show business behind to settle down on his farmhouse in Connecticut... but life just isn't the same without a bit of song and dance. Jim's luck takes a spectacular turn when he meets Linda, a spirited schoolteacher with talent to spare. Together they turn the farmhouse into a fabulous inn with dazzling performances to celebrate each holiday, from Thanksgiving to the Fourth of July. But when Jim's best friend Ted tries to lure Linda to Hollywood to be his new dance partner, will Jim be able to salvage his latest chance at love?
Based on the classic film, this joyous musical features thrilling dance numbers, laugh-out-loud comedy and a parade of hit Irving Berlin songs, including "Blue Skies", "Easter Parade", "Steppin' Out with My Baby", "Heat Wave", "White Christmas", "Be Careful, It's My Heart", "Cheek to Cheek", "Shaking the Blues Away" and many more!
This year-round romance is sure to delight audiences!
IRVING BERLIN'S HOLIDAY INN is presented by arrangement with Concord Theatricals. www.concordtheatricals.com
35MM: A Musical Exhibition
February 11 - 15, 2026 | Jerome Mirza Theatre
Music and Lyrics by Ryan Scott Oliver
Based on photographs by Matthew Murphy
Directed by Keely Vasquez
A picture is worth 1,000 words - what about a song? Can a picture inspire a song or fifteen? In 35MM, each photo creates a unique song, moments frozen in time; a glimmer of a life unfolding, a glimpse of something happening. A stunning new multimedia musical which explores a groundbreaking new concept in musical theatre... This intricately woven collection of stories told through song reimagines what the modern American musical can be.
35MM: A MUSICAL EXHIBITION is presented by arrangement with Concord Theatricals. www.concordtheatricals.com
A Year with Frog and Toad (TYA)
March 10 - 13, 2026 | Jerome Mirza Theatre
Music by Robert Reale
Book and Lyrics by Willie Reale
Based on the books by Arnold Lobel
Directed by RJ Hodde
A hit on Broadway, A Year with Frog and Toad was nominated for three Tony Awards - including Best Musical. Based on Arnold's Lobel's well-loved books, and featuring a hummable score by Robert and Willie Reale, this whimsical show follows two great friends - the cheerful, popular Frog and the rather grumpy Toad - through four fun-filled seasons.
Waking from hibernation in the Spring, Frog and Toad plant gardens, swim, rake leaves, go sledding and learn life lessons along the way. The two best friends celebrate and rejoice in the differences that make them unique and special. Part vaudeville, part make believe... all farm, A Year with Frog and Toad tells the story of a friendship that endures throughout the seasons.
The jazzy, upbeat score of A Year with Frog and Toad bubbles with melody and wit, making it an inventive, exuberant and enchanting musical, perfect for introducing theatre to youngsters while keeping adults entertained, as well. This Theatre for Young Audiences (TYA) version features a shortened running time.
A YEAR WITH FROG AND TOAD is presented by special arrangement with Music Theatre International Inc.
Pride and Prejudice
April 8 - 12, 2026 | Jerome Mirza Theatre
By Jane Austen
Adaptation By Kaela Mei-Shing Garvin
Directed by Aubrey Elson
It is a truth universally acknowledged that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife. The Bennet family has five eligible daughters, none of them yet married. When new eligible bachelors come to town, Jane Bennet falls for the quiet Mr. Bingley while Lizzy Bennet hates moneyed Mr. Darcy... or does she? A new adaptation of the Jane Austen classic.
PRIDE AND PREJUDICE is presented by special arrangement with New Play Exchange.
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Jean Kerr - Associate Professor, Director of the School of Theatre Arts
Department - School Of Theatre Arts