Come From Away
A small town on the eastern Candian shore suddenly became an international refuge when 38 planes carrying 7,000 passengers were diverted on September 11, 2001....
Des Moines Playhouse
831 42nd StDes Moines
Upcoming Shows
Junie B Jones in Boo… and I Mean It
Junie B. Jones is terrified of Halloween due to scary secrets told by a classmate. To combat her fear, she plans to create the scariest...
Annie
With equal measures of pluck and positivity, little orphan Annie charms everyone's hearts despite a next-to-nothing start in 1930s New York City. She is determined...
Morris Micklewhite and the Tangerine Dress
Morris likes lots of things: doing puzzles, painting pictures, pretending to be an astronaut, and wearing a tangerine dress from his school’s dress-up box because...
The Lifespan of a Fact
Jim Fingal is a fresh-out-of-Harvard fact checker for a prominent but sinking New York magazine. John D’Agata is a talented writer with a transcendent essay...
Anne of Green Gables: A New Musical
Anne Shirley is mistakenly sent to live with a plainspoken farmer and his spinster sister, who thought they were adopting a boy! She wins over...
Les Misérables
In nineteenth century France, Jean Valjean is released from 19 years of unjust imprisonment, but finds nothing in store for him but mistrust and mistreatment....
The Legend of Rock Paper Scissors
You’ve played the game. Now see and hear the legend of the three great warriors who started it all… Long ago there lived three fierce...
Amadeus
In the court of the Austrian Emperor Joseph II, Antonio Salieri is the established composer. Enter the greatest musical genius of all time: Wolfgang Amadeus...
Mean Girls
Cady Heron may have grown up on an African savanna, but nothing prepared her for the wild and vicious ways of her strange new home:...
Review: KING ROGER at Des Moines Metro Opera
This season, Des Moines Metro Opera is taking my favorite type of risk and doing an Opera that audiences might not be familiar with in their final, and most ambitious opera of the season, Karol Szymanowski's 'King Roger.'…
Review: OF MICE AND MEN at Des Moines Metro Opera
As America celebrates is 250th birthday, 'Of Mice and Men' celebrates it and the 100th birthday of Carlise Floyd by revisiting this timeless story through a new lense.…
Review: TOSCA at Des Moines Metro Opera
Summer has officially started with Des Moine Metro Opera's phenomenal production of 'Tosca.' Find out about the show and why you shouldn't miss it.…
Review: CINDERELLA at Ballet Des Moines
What did our There is a magic that only happens when seeing a show live. Sometimes it comes from a special effect, and other times from the beauty of telling a story. When that magic happens, it becomes a memory that will last not till midnight, but for a lifetime.…
Review: SUFFS at Des Moines Performing Arts
In a time on Broadway where so many shows are based on familiar IP, it's refreshing to have a new story come to the stage. In 2022, Suffs opened on Broadway at the Public Theatre, and then kept marching to Broadway, and now it is marching across the US.…
Review: MEREDITH WILSON'S 'THE MUSIC MAN' at Des Moines Performing Arts
This weekend, the newest national tour of Meredith Wilson's 'The Music Man' is stopping at Des Moines Performing Arts. Judging from the audience reaction, this production works its magic in a way no anvil salesman will be able to stop.…
Preview: SEASON PREVIEW About Time Theatre
This last season, a new theatre company emerged and made audiences 'squeamish' wih their first production. About Time Theatre Company is back for another season and has recently announced the three productions that will be part of its 2026 season. If the thought and time that went into their first p…
Review: NOTHING HOLDS STILL at Ballet Des Moines
Des Moines has a thriving arts community. One of the amazing organizations that is making this community thrive is Ballet Des Moines. I had the opportunity to attend their performance of “Nothing Holds Still” this last weekend. The show featured world-premiere dances and collaborations with ot…
Review: THE OUTSIDERS at Des Moines Performing Arts
Watching Tony's every year, I always look forward to the performances and seeing what each show decides to showcase. In 2024, I was captivated by the performance of 'The Outsiders' and looked forward to seeing it live. What was that moment? I'll share more on that later, but after seeing the show in…
Review: THE NAKED MAGICIANS at Des Moines Performing Arts
What did our critOne thing you know for sure going into a Temple Comedy Series show at Des Moines Performing Arts is that you are going to have a good time. It could be a one-person show, a small musical, or even a comedic magic show. So when they announced they were bringing back 'The Naked Magicia…
Past Shows
Legally Blonde
The Des Moines Playhouse presents Legally Blonde July 10-26. Staying true to yourself is always in style. UCLA sorority president Elle Woods has her life...
Noises Off
The Des Moines Playhouse presents Noises Off June 5-21. The comedy where everyone gets caught in the act! A struggling theatre troupe is producing the...
Polkadots: The Cool Kids Musical
The Des Moines Playhouse presents Polkadots: The Cool Kids Musical May 8-24. As the first Polkadot in an all Square school, Lily faces an almost...
Crazy for You
The Des Moines Playhouse presents Crazy for You April 17-May 3. City-slicker Bobby Child travels to Nevada to foreclose on a rundown theatre. When he...
The Lightning Thief
The Des Moines Playhouse presents The Lightning Thief: The Percy Jackson Musical March 6-22. Some heroes are made, and some are born of the gods....
The Mousetrap
The Des Moines Playhouse presents Agatha Christie’s The Mousetrap Feb. 6-Mar. 1. A snowstorm strands seven strangers at Monkswell Manor. It soon becomes clear there is...
Final Act Ensemble: Valentine's Show
The Final Act Ensemble presents a lighthearted look at love and all its comedic chaos! The show features two old-time radio favorites, “Blondie and Dagwood”...
Red Riding Hood
The Des Moines Playhouse presents Red Riding Hood January 9-25. Wolfgang, the greatest actor in the world, is interrupted in his tale-telling when a delivery...
Disney's Frozen: The Broadway Musical at The Des Moines Playhouse
The Des Moines Playhouse presents Disney’s Frozen December 5-27. Princess Anna is overjoyed when the castle doors are opened to the people of Arendelle for the...
The Best Christmas Pageant Ever
The Des Moines Playhouse presents The Best Christmas Pageant Ever November 7-29. The Herdman children appear to be the worst kids ever. They lie, they steal,...
Final Act Ensemble: Fright Night
Start the evening with a thrilling, full-moon fright with “The Curious Coed.” A young lady out for an evening stroll with her boyfriend falls witness...
Bright Star
The Des Moines Playhouse presents Bright Star September 19-October 5. Inspired by a true story, Billy Cane, who recently returned to the North Carolina from the...
Penguin Project HONK JR
Established in 2004, The Penguin Project has evolved into a national program that partners with local community theatres. It creates opportunities for young artists with special needs...
Waitress
A waitress at Joe’s Diner, Jenna learns about a pie-baking contest that could change her life and offer the chance she needs to escape her...
Alice in Wonderland
There’s only one way out of Wonderland. Alice, a curious girl who plunges down a rabbit hole, travels through an unpredictable world where animals dress...
Knuffle Bunny: A Cautionary Musical
Based on the popular book by Mo Willems, Knuffle Bunny: A Cautionary Musical, is a silly story about young Trixie, who loses her Knuffle Bunny on...
Jesus Christ Superstar
Jesus Christ Superstar tells the story of Jesus in the final days leading up to his crucifixion. Loosely based on the Gospels, Superstar focuses on the conflicts between...
Men on Boats
The year: 1869. The crew: a maniacally talkative youth, an old Civil War vet who doesn’t like people, an overexcited Brit, and a hunter who...
Diary of a Wimpy Kid
Middle school, ugh. It’s the worst. But Greg is determined not to be at the bottom of the popularity chart. Jeff Kinney’s much loved character...
Disney's Beauty and the Beast
Belle longs for adventure and an escape from her provincial town. A cruel and arrogant prince is trapped in a beastly form in his castle....
Final Act Ensemble Holiday Show
Join the Final Act Ensemble (FAE) for old-time fun this holiday season.In “Easy Aces,” Ace tries to get his mother-in-law married off and out of...
Last Stop on Market Street
Last Stop on Market Street is a collaboration with Pyramid Theatre Company and City Voices.Guided by his veritable force-of-nature Nana, CJ travels a little closer to his roots and...
School of Rock
Wannabe rock star Dewey Finn has been kicked out of his own band and makes a desperate attempt to be a substitute teacher at a...
The Play That Goes Wrong
After benefitting from a large and sudden inheritance, the inept and accident-prone Cornley Polytechnic Drama Society embarks on producing an ambitious 1920s murder mystery. Hilarious...
Final Act Ensemble Spring Show
Join the Final Act Ensemble (FAE) for old-time fun.The Final Act Ensemble is a troupe of performers ages 55 and older that present classic and...
Beautiful: The Carole King Musical
Before she was hit-maker Carole King, she was Carole Klein, a spunky, young songwriter from Brooklyn with a unique voice. From the chart-topping hits she...
Dragons Love Tacos
You know what dragons really love? Tacos of course! A kid and their dog are watching a TV show about dragons when they unexpectedly get...
Our Town
Grover’s Corners is a nice town, much like yours or mine. The milk and the paper are delivered on time and childhood friends like George...
A Charlie Brown Christmas
The classic animated television special A Charlie Brown Christmas comes to life in this faithful stage adaptation in which Charlie Brown, Snoopy, and the rest of the...
All Is Calm
All is Calm recalls the remarkable World War I truce between Allied Forces and German soldiers in No Man's Land on Christmas, 1914. A lull...
Final Act Ensemble Holiday Show
Join the Final Act Ensemble (FAE) for old-time fun this holiday season.The Final Act Ensemble is a troupe of performers ages 55 and older that...
Seussical TYA
The Cat in the Hat tells the story of Horton, an earnest elephant who discovers a speck of dust containing Whos that he now must...
Penguin Project: Disney’s High School Musical, Jr
East High basketball star Troy and brainy Gabriella cause an uproar in the school when they audition for the spring musical. The thespians resent the...
Once
On the streets of Dublin, an Irish musician and a Czech immigrant are drawn together by their shared love of music. Over one fateful week,...
Little Shop of Horrors
Meek floral shop assistant Seymour pines for the love of his co-worker, Audrey. Musical sci-fi hilarity ensues when a foul-mouthed, R&B-singing, carnivorous plant from outer...
School of Rock
Wannabe rock star Dewey Finn has been kicked out of his own band and makes a desperate attempt to be a substitute teacher at a...
Native Gardens
Pablo and Tania, an expecting couple, purchase a house next door to longtime community residents, Virginia and Frank. A disagreement over a long-standing fenceline soon...
Final Act Ensemble Spring Show
Join the Final Act Ensemble (FAE) for old-time fun this holiday season.The Final Act Ensemble is a troupe of performers ages 55 and older that...
How I Became a Pirate
Braid Beard and his mates enlist young Jeremy Jacob as they look for the perfect spot to bury their treasure. The whole family will love...
Kinky Boots
Flashy, inspiring, and downright fun, Kinky Boots is the heartwarming Broadway musical. Charlie Price reluctantly agrees to take over the familys failing shoe factory. Inspiration...
The Hundred Dresses
Maddie Reeves has a dilemma. New classmate Wanda Petronski is a Polish immigrant with one dress. Peggy is a popular rich girl with dozens. When...
August Wilson's The Piano Lesson
In August Wilsons stunning story, brother and sister struggle with family history. Willie wants to sell the family piano so he can buy some land...
Go, Dog. Go!
Big dogs and little dogs. Dogs on bikes and dogs wearing hats. Where are they going fast in those cars? PD Eastmans classic childrens book...
Rodgers + Hammerstein's Cinderella
The magic has been updated in this version created for Broadway, but all the beloved songs, including "In My Own Little Corner," "Impossible/It's Possible," and...
Final Act Ensemble: Holiday Broadcast to the Troops 1943
Mystery! Comedy! Nostalgia! Travel back in time to the Golden Age of Radio for a special 1943 holiday broadcast to the troops. Match wits with...
Harriet the Spy
Harriet M. Welsch is a spy who writes down everything about her neighbors and classmates. After her friends read her secret notebook, they want nothing...
Penguin Project: Annie Jr.
A spunky orphan finds her home with wealthy Daddy Warbucks in this family favorite. Annie Jr. is The Playhouses first Penguin Project production, featuring a...
Guys and Dolls
A classic romantic comedy where opposites attract and the real gamble is love, this musical fable of Broadway has colorful gamblers, showgirls, and missionaries plus...
Matilda: The Musical
Magical. Mischievous. Miraculous. From the nonsensical mind of Roald Dahl comes this timeless tale of young Matilda Wormwood. Intellectually gifted, Matilda is unappreciated by her...
Calendar Girls
When Annies husband, John, dies of leukemia, she and her best friend, Chris, resolve to raise money for the local hospital. They manage to persuade...
Pippi Longstocking
On the outskirts of town stands a ramshackle house. It may not seem like much until you peek through the railings. Then theres a horse...
Singin' in the Rain
Silent movies are out. Talkies are in! Unfortunately for famed movie star Don Lockwood, his leading ladys comically harsh and squeaky voice is ill-suited for...
Charlotte's Web
Based on E.B. Whites endearing childrens novel, Charlottes Web is a beautiful and knowing story of friendship. Wilbur the pig, the runt of the litter,...
Murder on the Orient Express
From the Queen of Mystery comes the classic story in which everyone is a suspect. Just after midnight, a snowdrift stops the Orient Express in...
Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus
Whatever you do, dont let the Pigeon star in his own musical production! With a script written by Mo Willems, the creator of the #1...
The Sound of Music
The hills are alive with the sound of music! Free-spirited postulant Maria has trouble fitting into Nonnberg Abbey. Sent to be a governess for the...
Junie B. in Jingle Bells, Batman Smells!
Its holiday time and Room 1 is doing a lot of things to celebrate, like making elf costumes and singing carols. Tattletale May keeps ruining...
Escaping the Labyrinth
The WORLD PREMIERE of a romantic comedy worthy of the gods the Greek gods, that is. American classics grad student Bud Schliemann is touring Greece...
Cabaret
In a Berlin nightclub, as the 1920s draw to a close, a garish Master of Ceremonies welcomes the audience and assures them they will forget...
Godspell
Prepare ye for Godspell, a modern-day retelling of the New Testament parables. With a Tony-nominated score of songs ranging in style from pop to vaudeville,...
Polkadots: The Cool Kids Musical
Lily Polkadot has just moved to Rockaway, a Squares only town. As the first Polkadot in an all-Square school, Lily struggles to gain acceptance from...
Plaza Suite
A suburban couple takes a suite while their house is being painted and it turns out to be the one in which they honeymooned 23...
FAE Rides Again
The Final Act Ensemble radio troupe is back with a comedy show featuring Burns and Allen in George Meets a Hit-Man and Fibber McGee and...
Some Enchanted Evening
A cast of five singers pays tribute to the iconic Broadway musical team of Rodgers & Hammerstein with a celebration of their songs from Carousel,...
The Velveteen Rabbit Video On Demand
A child and a sawdust-filled rabbit embark on adventures and discover love is the greatest force in the universe. The Playhouse will offer video-on-demand of...
Some Enchanted Evening Video On Demand
A cast of five singers pays tribute to the iconic Broadway musical team of Rodgers & Hammerstein with a celebration of their songs from Carousel,...
The Velveteen Rabbit
A child and a sawdust-filled rabbit embark on adventures and discover love is the greatest force in the universe. The Velveteen Rabbit and Some Enchanted...
The Velveteen Rabbit Opening Night Livestream
A child and a sawdust-filled rabbit embark on adventures and discover love is the greatest force in the universe. The Playhouse will provide a Livestream...
Some Enchanted Evening Opening Night Livestream
A cast of five singers pays tribute to the iconic Broadway musical team of Rodgers & Hammerstein with a celebration of their songs from Carousel,...
Leaving Iowa
An outlandish take on the classic family road trip, Leaving Iowa is the story of writer Don who returns home to find a final resting...
Stuart Little Video On Demand
Stuart Little is a mouse born into a family of humans. Shy and thoughtful, Stuart is also a lover of adventure. When his friend, the...
Leaving Iowa -Video On Demand
Leaving Iowa is a postcard to anyone who has ever taken a family road trip. The Playhouse will provide the opening night recording as video-on-demand,...
Stuart Little
Stuart Little is a mouse born into a family of humans. Shy and thoughtful, Stuart is also a lover of adventure. When his friend, the...
Stuart Little Opening Night Livestream
Stuart Little is a mouse born into a family of humans. Shy and thoughtful, Stuart is also a lover of adventure. When his friend, the...
Leaving Iowa Opening Night Stream
Leaving Iowa is a postcard to anyone who has ever taken a family road trip. The livestream is opening night, Feb. 19th, at 7:30 PM....
Playhouse on the Air Presents: Miracle on 34th Street
This December, audiences will enter a 1940s radio studio where a radio host, sound effects artists, and a star-studded acting company perform the holiday classic,...
I and You
Anthony (Clifton Antoine) arrives unexpectedly at classmate Caroline's (Natalie Grote) door bearing a beat-up copy of Walt Whitman's Leaves of Grass with an urgent assignment...
Weekend Comedy
Weekend Comedy finds a middle-aged couple (Sean Kanuso, Gina Gedler) and a young couple (Tiffany Liechty, Jobe Fee) accidentally renting the same cottage for a...
Singin' in the Rain
What a Glorious Feeling!Silent movies are out. Talkies are in! Unfortunately for famed movie star Don Lockwood, his leading ladys comically harsh and squeaky voice...
Tinker Bell
Do you believe in fairies? Because they believe in you! A multicolored tale of Tinker Bell meeting Peter Pan and their triumph at the Battle...
The Diary of Anne Frank
"Where there's hope, there's life." Anne FrankIn a powerful new adaptation by Wendy Kesselman, Anne Frank emerges from history a living, lyrical, intensely gifted young...
James and the Giant Peach
Adventures this big dont grow on trees!Recently orphaned James Trotter finds himself free of his cruel and repulsive aunts. He escapes in a giant peach...
A Christmas Story, The Musical
We triple dog dare you to see this show!Follow Ralphie Parker on his journey to procure the greatest Christmas gift of all time: an Official...
100th Birthday Bash
Join the Des Moines Community Playhouse as it celebrates the 100s of shows and 1000s of volunteers, audience members, donors, and staff who have been...
Disney's Freaky Friday
How freaky would it be if you turned into your mother?! Freaky Friday, a new musical based on the celebrated novel by Mary Rodgers and...
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Anne of Green Gables: A New Musical Des Moines Playhouse (3/05-3/14) |
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The Legend of Rock Paper Scissors Des Moines Playhouse (5/07-5/23) |
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Zac Brown Band Casey's Center (11/20-11/20) |
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Broadway At The Adler 2026-27 Season Adler Theatre (1/28-1/28) |
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Annie Des Moines Playhouse (12/04-12/27) |
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Mean Girls North Scott Performing Arts Auditorium (7/24-8/02) |
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The Lifespan of a Fact Des Moines Playhouse (2/05-2/28) |
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Les Misérables Des Moines Playhouse (4/09-5/02) |
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Broadway 2026-27 5-show Adler Theatre (6/24-6/24) |
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Wicked Civic Center Of Greater Des Moines (9/02-9/20) |