2021-22 Season

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The Lights Up Festival is a celebration of theatrical arts and an opportunity to learn how to re-enter the theater space safely in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Kicking off the festival on October 7, students read "The Thanksgiving Play" by Larissa FastHorse, directed by Tara Moses. FREE and open to University community; tickets required.

The Lights Up Festival is a celebration of theatrical arts and an opportunity to learn how to re-enter the theater space safely in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. This reading of "Your Healing is Killing Me," a solo play by Virginia Grise, is performed by Associate Professor of Theater Brian Herrera. FREE and open to University community; tickets required.

The Lights Up Festival is a celebration of theatrical arts and an opportunity to learn how to re-enter the theater space safely in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Closing out the festival on October 9, Princeton students present cabaret performances. FREE and open to University community; tickets required.

Two musicals, "Early Decision" and "Late Bloomer," give voice to the experiences of first-generation Princeton students from immigrant families. Open to the public; tickets required.

In the backyard of her father’s house, 25-year-old Catherine has been caring for her father who was a brilliant and mentally ill mathematician. Now that he has passed, his former student, Hal, and her sister, Claire, have come to collect Catherine and the remains of her father’s legacy. Has he left anything brilliant? Has his illness/genius passed down to her? Theater senior Juliana Pulsinelli '22 leads the ensemble as Catherine in this Pulitzer Prize-winning play exploring family, grief, emotional and mental health and fragility, and genius. Directed by faculty member Vivia Font. FREE; tickets required. Open to University students, faculty and staff.

Princeton, NJ - March 13th, 2020: A campus-wide notice tells everyone they must leave immediately. Despite Tessa thriving in her senior year and Riley on the verge of a sophomore existential crisis, they suddenly find themselves in the same boat: tasked with making the most of their last night of college as they know it. FACE TIME is a filmed half-hour comedy pilot detailing their quest and the hiccups along the way. Created by senior Riley Bona '22 in collaboration with Tessa Albertson '20. FREE; tickets required. Open to Princeton students, faculty + staff.

SomeBody is an original devised semi-autobiographical theatrical exploration by senior Jamie Goodwin '22 using poem, story and movement to capture the tension and reality of living in a marginalized body. Open to Princeton students, faculty and staff. FREE; tickets required through University Ticketing.

Tea is a play centering the story of Japanese war brides, women who had married American soldiers and relocated to the United States after World War II. Following the death of one of their own, four women come together to clean the house of the fifth as they reflect upon how her tragic suicide has upset the balance of life in…

Exploring sustainability, joy, and physicality, this contemporary circus show is a creative collaboration between Princeton students and guest artists from Trenton, led by Princeton senior Ruth Schultz ‘22 with sets/lights by Ricky Feig '22. Open to Princeton students, faculty and staff. Free tickets required through University Ticketing.

The Bittersweet Ballad of Blessed & Messiah. Girl meets boy. Or boy meets girl. Boy falls in and out of. And girl falls through. Blessed fell for somebody who spoke in her own language—metaphors and rhymes. However, she realizes words are just words sometimes. Nothing more. Nothing less. A new interdisciplinary work created by Silma Berrada '22. Open to University community; free tickets required. Art installation also on view in CoLab from 12-6 PM on 2/19.

Lia, an original play based loosely on Shakespeare's "Hamlet," tells Ophelia's untold story, drawing on and ultimately subverting many elements of the original play. Written by senior Meigan Clark '22 and directed by senior Ines Aitsahalia '22. FREE and open to University community; tickets required.

Set in Rome during the Second Punic War, this new play by senior Lydia Gompper follows Opimia, a young, vow-breaking Vestal Virgin, who becomes convinced that her illegally-conceived child will someday save Rome. FREE and open to University community; tickets required.

In the town of Fuenteovejuna, the people rise up, led by the village women, when their rights are infringed upon by their malicious lord, the Comendador. Fuenteovejuna tells the story of how a united people successfully challenged and defeated their oppressor. This Spanish-language production is infused with an original live rock score and celebrates Hispanic and Latinx cultures and the aesthetic beauty of the Middle Ages. Open to public; tickets required.

From New York to Paris, from ragtime to jazz, "The Hello Girls" chronicles the story of America’s first women soldiers. These intrepid heroines served as bi-lingual telephone operators on the front lines, helping turn the tide of World War I. They then returned home to fight a decades-long battle for equality and recognition, paving the way for future generations. Music + Lyrics by Peter Mills, book by Peter Mills and Cara Reichel, both Princeton alumni. Directed by Princeton senior Kate Semmens and featuring seniors Molly Bremer and Violet Gautreau, alongside a company of twelve student actor-musicians. Open to the public; tickets required through McCarter Box Office.

This original musical written and directed by Program in Theater/Music Theater certificate senior Cindy Han '22 features the four main characters of the famous Chinese epic Journey to the West but tells the never before explored story of their journey back home after they’ve successfully obtained Buddhist scriptures at the end of their journey westward. FREE and open to public; tickets required.

This new musical by Princeton theater and music senior Leila Abou-Jaoude '22 considers Clara Schumann's place in music history. Detailing her career, correspondences, and compositions, the musical traces her development as an artist and woman. FREE and open to University community; no tickets required.

"Shalom Bayit" takes place across several months in the same kitchen, with all but one scene occurring on a Friday afternoon as a Modern Orthodox Jewish family prepares for the Jewish Sabbath. In the play, three siblings grapple with faith; identity; sexuality; mental illness; and trying to support their friends, their family, and themselves. FREE and open to University community; tickets required.

"The Great Cloud: Stories and Songs" is an original song cycle devised by Princeton senior Alexandra Buzzini '22 from conversations with Christian students from American and international backgrounds about their life stories and spiritual testimonies. Open to University community; free tickets required.

A new musical-in-progress about being transgender and searching for the kind of person you want to be... and horses. Conceived by Princeton Arts Fellow Will Davis, created by Will Davis and Truth Future Bachman. Featuring new music by Truth Future Bachman. Open to the public; FREE tickets required.

In this new translation and adaptation of Friedrich Schiller’s "Mary Stuart" by Princeton senior BT Hayes, duty collides with the will of the masses, and two powerful rulers meet face to face in a story of death, betrayal, and hope. Open to Princeton students, faculty + staff; free tickets required.

A musical theater cabaret conceived by senior Chloe Horner that focuses on reclaiming the elements of the college experience that students missed out on during the COVID-19 pandemic. Together, student performers and audiences will explore the themes of friendship, love and relationships, and mental health. Open to University community; free tickets required.