THE GLASS MENAGERIE to Launch Center REP's 2026/27 Season

Center Repertory Company (Center REP) kicks off its 2026/27 season with Tennessee Williams' THE GLASS MENAGERIE, performing at Walnut Creek's Lesher Center for the Arts (1601 Civic Dr., Walnut Creek).

 Blossoming as a living memory on stage, this ethereal masterpiece redefined American theatre when it premiered over 80 years ago. Gripped by guilt after deserting his mother and sister in a 1930s St. Louis slum, Tom is compelled to investigate what led to the abandonment of his family, and perhaps his soul. Directed by Center REP Artistic Director Matt M. Morrow, this all-new Legacy Revival production examines the cost of personal freedom, the depth of sibling bonds, and the consequences of seeking the truth.
 
“The Glass Menagerie was one of the first plays I read as an adolescent. Its heart wrenching and poetic story made me fall in desperate love with the power of theatre,” said Morrow. “Four decades later, this exquisite masterpiece still haunts me, and I'm thrilled to launch my third season with Center REP by directing it for the first time. The DNA of any masterpiece resides in its layers and endurance. The Glass Menagerie may be fragile but it certainly endures, and like its namesake you can glean new depths, prisms of light that fracture and conjoin depending on which side you view it from.”
 
Adds Morrow: “While the focus of this classic is traditionally trained on the matriarch of the Wingfield family, I look forward to excavating this visual poem of a play by drilling into Williams' deeply personal impulse to honor his first and closest friend in his life: his ailing sister Rose Williams. Our production will center a sibling relationship that is a love story for the ages. The tragedy of Tom and Laura Wingfield–– in reality, of Thomas and Rose Williams–– sheds an enduring light on the layers of familial love that can cut and caress simultaneously.”
 
The cast of THE GLASS MENAGERIE includes (in alphabetical order) Nancy Carlin, Alanna Darby, Rob Fagin, and Cody Sloan.
 
The creative team for THE GLASS MENAGERIE includes Matt M. Morrow (Director), Miller Liberatore (Associate Director), Meg Neville (Costume Designer), Spense Matubang (Lighting Designer), Yi-Chien Lee (Scenic Designer), James Ard (Sound Designer), Emily Summers (Props Designer), Yuki Izumihara (Projection Designer), Elisa Guthertz (Stage Manager), and Joe Coe (Assistant Stage Manager).
 
Center REP productions include REP CONNECT events, which invite patrons to learn more about the production, meet the artists and each other. Events are free, unless otherwise noted, and open to all ticket holders regardless of the date of their tickets.

REP CONNECT events for THE GLASS MENAGERIE include the Director Chat (September 11, 2026, 6:30 p.m.) Cast Chat (September 23, 2026, following the performance), and our Pride Mixer (September 23, 2026, 6:30 p.m.).

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