Video: Tom Hanks Previews New Play THIS WORLD OF TOMORROW at The Shed
Performances begin October 30, 2025, in The Shed’s Griffin Theater.
By: Josh Sharpe Oct. 06, 2025
Tom Hanks will soon return to the stage in the new play, This World of Tomorrow, which opens at The Shed later this month. During a visit to Jimmy Kimmel Live, Hanks spoke about the genesis of the play, which is a time-travel story he wrote based on two short stories he penned for a collection called Uncommon Type.
The idea for the story came from a dinner game Hanks likes to play, where participants pick a time from the past in which they would choose to visit for just one day. "For years, I've said I would go back to 1939 to the World's Fair out in Flushing Meadows," said the Oscar-winner.
Watch the interview to watch him speak about the production, including a passionate invitation for audiences to visit The Shed to go see his show. Also in the interview, Hanks talks about the FAO Schwarz scene in Big, moving to New York when he was 22 years old, the subway system, and more.
This World of Tomorrow is a new play by Tom Hanks and James Glossman, based on short stories written by Hanks, and directed by Tony Award winner Kenny Leon. This World of Tomorrow features Hanks in the lead role of Bert Allenberry alongside Kelli O’Hara. Also joining the cast are: Kerry Bishé, Kayli Carter, Paul Murphy, Jamie Ann Romero, Lee Aaron Rosen, Jay O. Sanders, Ruben Santiago-Hudson, Donald Webber Jr., and Michelle Wilson.
Previews for This World of Tomorrow begin October 30 in The Shed’s Griffin Theater with an opening night on November 18 as The Shed’s 2025 Gala. The production closes on December 21.
This World of Tomorrow tells the story of Bert Allenberry, a forlorn scientist from the future who embarks on a time-traveling quest for true love, returning again, and again, and again to one special day at the 1939 World’s Fair in Queens, New York.
