Northlight Theatre Reveals Inaugural Season in the Company’s New Home in Downtown Evanston
The five-play 2026-2027 season, including three world premieres, opens with Jeffrey Hatcher’s The Front Page.
Northlight Theatre, under the direction of Artistic Director BJ Jones and Executive Director Timothy J. Evans, has revealed its inaugural season in the company’s new home at 1012 Church Street in Downtown Evanston. With its own venue built from the ground up, Northlight will open its doors with a celebratory gala planned for August 15, 2026, and the first public performance on September 9, 2026. Northlight will welcome subscribers, supporters and the public in advance with opportunities to explore and celebrate the new venue.
The five-play 2026-2027 season, including three world premieres, opens with Jeffrey Hatcher’s The Front Page, a world premiere adaptation of the rapid-fire classic comedy that also inspired the 1940 film His Girl Friday. The season continues with the world premiere of Lauren M. Gunderson’s new love story All the World, followed by The American Five by Chess Jakobs, about the planning of the March on Washington and the speech that inspired Americans to act toward their shared vision of equality and justice for all. Northlight will then present the 2024 Pulitzer Prize Finalist Here There Are Blueberries by Moisés Kaufman and Amanda Gronich. The season concludes with the world premiere of Art Manke’s Pearl’s in the House about the life and music of trail-blazer Pearl Bailey.
The new state-of-the-art facility is a major component in the arts and cultural scene in Chicagoland and the North Shore and features approximately 285 comfortable seats with excellent sight lines, state-of-the-art sound and lighting systems, a dedicated box office and contemporary bar/café in the lobby, a second floor rehearsal and event space, and lounge and gathering areas on the first and second floors. Located in the heart of downtown, with easy, nearby access to parking and public transportation via CTA and Metra, Northlight will contribute to a vibrant local economy and will serve as an economic driver for downtown Evanston.
The Front Page
Adapted by Jeffrey Hatcher
From the original by Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur
Directed by BJ Jones
Featuring Kate Fry and Timothy Edward Kane
September 9 - October 18, 2026
Press Opening: Friday, September 18, 2026
A world premiere adaptation of the rapid-fire classic comedy that also inspired the 1940 film His Girl Friday.
In a 1930s Chicago press room, wise-cracking reporters are abuzz with the latest news: ace reporter Hildy Johnson is quitting her job and getting married. Editor Walter Burns has no intention of letting her go – out of the newsroom, or into the arms of another man. When a death row convict manages a daring escape, Walter wrangles Hildy into covering one last irresistible story, a tangle of rival reporters, crooked politicians, and a scoop too big to ignore.
All the World
By Lauren M. Gunderson
Directed by Jessica Thebus
November 11 - December 20, 2026
Press Opening: Friday, November 20
‘Tis the season for a love story! Gunderson’s signature blend of romance, wit, and bittersweet beauty shines in this world premiere.
Two actors find themselves in an ever-shifting relationship during the most emotionally charged time of the year: the holidays. Set amidst the backstages and quick changes of the world's most beloved seasonal classics, they try to keep the mess of their private lives offstage, whether they’re falling in love or falling apart. Surprising, heartbreaking, and hopeful, All the World reminds us why—year after year—we keep stepping into the light, telling the story, and leaving it all on the stage.
The American Five
By Chess Jakobs
Directed by Mikael Burke
February 3 - March 3, 2027
Press Opening: Friday, February 12, 2027
“In rousing resistance to injustice and inspiring cohesion and connection, this play is a triumph of doing what it’s about!” – DC Theater Arts
“I have a dream…” The words that galvanized a nation weren’t written alone. Through late nights and shared meals, differing approaches but collective dreams, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Coretta Scott King, Bayard Rustin, Stanley Levison, and Clarence B. Jones plan the March on Washington and craft a speech to inspire Americans to act toward their shared vision of equality and justice for all. On their way to shaping a defining moment in the civil rights movement, five individuals became a family. Together, they became history.
Here There Are Blueberries
By Moisés Kaufman and Amanda Gronich
Directed by Charles Newell
April 7 - May 17, 2027
Press Opening: Friday, April 16, 2027
2024 Pulitzer Prize Finalist | 2025 Lucille Lortel Award Winner for Outstanding Play | Two-time Helen Hayes Award Winner | Named one of the “10 Best Plays of 2024” by The Wall Street Journal
In 2007, a mysterious album featuring Nazi-era photographs arrived at the desk of a U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum archivist. As curators unravel the shocking truth behind the images, the album soon makes headlines and ignites a debate that reverberates far beyond the museum walls. Based on real events, Here There Are Blueberries tells the story of these historical photographs—what they reveal about the perpetrators of the Holocaust, and our own humanity.
Pearl’s in the House
By Art Manke
Directed by Kenneth L. Roberson
Featuring E. Faye Butler
June 7 - July 18, 2027
Press Opening: Friday, June 18, 2027
The life and music of trail-blazer Pearl Bailey take center stage in this compelling world premiere.
Legendary performer Pearl Bailey navigated the waters of being a Black woman in America the only way she knew how – through her music. On the eve of a scheduled performance in the Reagan White House she agrees to an interview, not expecting the ambitious journalist who calls into question some of her more controversial choices. The personal and political come into sharp conflict as the savvy entertainer reveals her multi-faceted life through flashbacks and some of her most memorable songs.
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