Season 29 Illuminates Themes of Redemption & Hope
with Work by Local and Nationally-Known Contemporary American Playwrights
Cincinnati, OH – The Know Theatre, Cincinnati’s premiere black box professional theatre, is excited to announce its highly anticipated 2026-2027 season under the leadership of Producing Artistic Director Bridget Leak and Managing Director Ri Moodie. Known for its intimate performance space in the heart of the Over-the-Rhine neighborhood and for showcasing local writers and artists, the Know Theatre continues to build belonging through bold theatre.
“It always starts with great storytelling and this season’s playwrights are unraveling form to find deeper truth,” says Producing Artistic Director, Bridget Leak. “We meet all of our characters as adults who are reaching back into the past: siblings finding what they left in the attic, a father who still wants to play at being cowboy, half-brothers fumbling to reach across a chasm, and childhood soulmates who will never get it right. There is an undercurrent of trauma and regret in this season, but even when our past feels dark and shameful, shining through is a glimmer of hope.”
The 2026-2027 season begins with the Regional Premiere of Make Believe by Bess Wohl, running September 10–26, 2026. Set in the attic playroom of their childhood home, four siblings grapple with the ghosts of their childhood in this mystery, directed by Bridget Leak.
octKNOWber Nights returns to Know Theatre for a full month of spooky programming from local artists in October, culminating in the one-night only variety show spectacular, The Kinda-Weird Spooky Cabaret, produced by local theatremaker Erika MacDonald. A call for submissions will open in July 2026.
Die Hard is a Christmas Movie, the Know Theatre’s second best-selling show ever – returns! Penned by local writers A.J. Baldwin and Alexx Rouse and directed by Tatiana Godfrey, this goofy and outrageous MainStage comedy is the perfect holiday offering for the whole family. Running December 3–20, 2026.
SERIALS returns for its 17th season featuring the work of local writers. Over the course of five nights, actors perform five brand new plays on the Know Theatre’s Underground Cabaret Stage. Produced by Alexx Rouse & Zach Robinson of A to Z Productions, SERIALS Season 17 will run January 25, February 8 and 22, and March 8 and 22, 2027. A call for submissions will open in early October and close in early December 2026.
In February, the Know will stage the Regional Premiere of Grangeville by Samuel D. Hunter. When two estranged half-brothers reconnect to discuss their ailing mother’s estate, they’re forced to question whether it’s possible to move on with their lives without finding forgiveness. Running February 11–27, 2027.
In the spring, the Know Theatre MainStage welcomes a World Premiere two-act musical by Cincinnati theatremaker Hannah Gregory. Originally developed as a one-act musical for the 2022 Cincinnati Fringe Festival, Wuthering: A Musical on the Moors follows Emily Brontë’s tragic characters Cathy and Heathcliff in a journey from adolescence to adulthood in a world that’s set against them. Directed by Caitlin McWethy. Running April 2–18, 2027.
Season 29 Auditions will be held at the Know Theatre on May 3 & 4, 2026.
June 4–19, 2027, the Cincinnati Fringe Festival kicks off its 24th year of bringing local, national and international theatre artists to pop-up venues in OTR. With over 40 distinct hour-long shows and 170+ performances, there’s a reason that artists from around the world know the Cincy Fringe as Cincinnati’s Summer Theatre Party. Produced by Katie Hartman, this jury-curated festival opens applications in early October 2026. For more information go to www.cincyfringe.com.
A collaboration with local theatre company InBocca Performance, the Know Theatre Education Program offers youth grades 3-12 the opportunity to create an original production as an ensemble. Led by local theatre-maker Caroline Stine, whose popular summer youth theatre camps have thrilled local audiences for their fierce imagination and creative storytelling, the 2027 Summer Camp will occur weekdays in July and culminate in performances during the first week of August.
The Know Theatre is committed to creating an atmosphere of radical hospitality where all are welcome to come as their favorite selves. Season 29 MainStage productions will have ASL-interpreted performances on the final Friday of each run, $20 tickets for Arts & Service Industry Workers on select Monday night performances, and $15 advanced reservations and pay-what-you-wish tickets available at the door for every Welcome Thursday MainStage performance.
Subscriptions for the 2026-2027 season are now on sale for $275 and may be purchased online at www.knowtheatre.com or by phone at (513) 300–5669.
Know Theatre Season 29
MAKE BELIEVE
by Bess Wohl
Regional Premiere
MainStage
Directed by Bridget Leak
September 10–26, 2026
The four Conlee kids have arrived home from grade school, hungry and tired, but their parents are nowhere to be found and the downstairs phone keeps ringing. Thirty years later, the four siblings return to grapple with the childhood ghosts that still haunt their lives. From the writer of Camp Siegfried comes a mystery about the lingering impact of childhood trauma.
Rated: PG-13
octKNOWber Nights
Various Artists
Cabaret Stage
October 2026
A month of original live performances by local artists that dares you to close your eyes, hold your breath, and venture into the shadows.
DIE HARD IS A CHRISTMAS MOVIE
by A.J. Baldwin & Alexx Rouse
Back by Popular Demand!
MainStage
Directed by Tatiana Godfrey
December 3–20, 2026
Picture this: the movie Die Hard actually happened and the blockbuster action classic is a dramatization of the hero’s memoir. Years after that daring rescue, fame has taken its toll on the family and the parents’ relationship is on the rocks. The teenage kids know what to do: hire actors to kidnap Mom, Dad springs into action, saves her, and boom! marriage saved. When the plan goes off the rails and the family finds itself in real peril, they’ve got to work together to make it to Christmas morning together… or die hard trying.
Rated: PG-13
SERIALS! Season 17
Cabaret Stage
January 25, February 8 & 22, March 8 & 22, 2027
15-minute episodes of five new and different plays by local playwrights, every two weeks, for a total of five installments. At the season finale, the audience votes on which production they wish to see get a three-night run in its entirety. Miss an episode? No problem! Each episode starts with a “previously on…” recap at the top of each show to catch the audience up to speed.
GRANGEVILLE
by Samuel D. Hunter
Regional Premiere
MainStage
February 11–27, 2027
Two estranged half-brothers – one in Amsterdam, one in Grangeville – reconnect while dealing with the business of their ailing mother. From the writer of A Case for the Existence of God comes a defiantly optimistic meditation on masculinity, memory, and forgiveness. Rated: PG-13
WUTHERING: A Musical on the Moors
by Hannah Gregory
World Premiere
MainStage
Directed by Caitlin McWethy
April 2–18, 2027
1787, Yorkshire, England. After her father’s death, the once bright and wild Cathy Earnshaw marries the wealthy Edgar Linton, in order to provide financial security for herself and her true love, Heathcliff. Devastated by her betrayal, Heathcliff disappears for three years, only to return as a wealthy man intent upon seeking his revenge. An original folk musical inspired by Emily Brontë’s classic novel about the socioeconomic anxieties of love, class, and race in Victorian England.
Rated: PG-13
The 24th Annual Cincinnati Fringe Festival
Various Venues
June 4–19, 2027
A 14-day celebration of curated new work and uncensored live performance from local, national, and international indie theatre artists, the Cincinnati Fringe Festival is the region’s largest and longest-running performing arts festival. Featuring more than 40 unique, hour-long productions and hundreds of live performances, KidsFringe programming on weekend afternoons, and free Late Night events starting at 10pm every night at Know Theatre.
Know Theatre Education
Summer Camp 2027
MainStage
July 5–August 1, 2027
The only program in Cincinnati where children learn to write, direct, and perform their own original 90-minute show, culminating in multiple performance opportunities on the MainStage. Grades 3 through 12.
Ticket Prices
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- Mainstage Subscription : $275
- Reserved Seating and Complimentary Concierge Service
- One ticket for each MainStage production (4 shows)
- Entry to all five Serials! performances
- Two complimentary guest tickets to any MainStage Production throughout the season
- Two complimentary tickets to Cabaret Stage Programming (octKNOWber, Serials, etc)
- Discounted drink prices
- Discounted $30 tickets for additional guests
- First Access to Exclusive Know Theatre-produced Performances
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Flex Pass : $190
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Single tickets : $38
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Arts & Service Industry Mondays: $20 tickets for Arts and Service Industry Workers for MainStage productions
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Welcome Thursdays: Each Thursday during a MainStage production we offer $15 advance reservation tickets and Pay-What-You-Wish Walk-Up tickets an hour before the show.
Know Theatre of Cincinnati exists to build belonging through bold theatre.
Know Theatre is supported by the generosity of tens of thousands of contributors to the annual ArtsWave Campaign, the region’s primary source for arts funding.
The Ohio Arts Council helps fund Know Theatre with state tax dollars to encourage economic growth, educational excellence, and cultural enrichment for all Ohioans.
Know Theatre is also supported by the Greater Cincinnati Foundation, which provides a simple, powerful, and highly personal approach to giving.
Know Theatre is a member of Theatre Communications Group.
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