Ed Schmidt's Solo Show EDWARD Adds Final Performance at The Strand in NYC
Edward is currently playing at independent bookstores across Manhattan, Brooklyn, and Queens.
By: Chloe Rabinowitz Feb. 06, 2026
After selling out its entire 21-performance New York run, Edward - the solo show written and performed by Ed Schmidt - has added a final performance to meet audience demand. The newly added show will take place at The Strand on Friday, March 6 at 7pm.
The production follows earlier sold-out engagements in both New York and Los Angeles in 2025. Edward is currently playing through March 6 at independent bookstores across Manhattan, Brooklyn, and Queens.
Over the course of each performance, a box of twenty-seven ordinary objects becomes a poignant reconstruction of one man's life. No two performances are alike - the audience selects which objects are explored, shaping the story anew each night.
The title character, Edward O'Connell - a former high school English teacher who believed in "the vital role that literature plays in the development of a well-rounded life" - makes bookstores an especially fitting backdrop for this intimate theatrical experience.
Schmidt's work has earned critical acclaim. His previous solo play The Last Supper was praised by The New York Times, which wrote, "You should be prepared to have your every expectation of theater subverted." The New Yorker raved, "I'd like to recommend it to every single person I've ever met," and New York Magazine called it "one-of-a-kind theater you don't want to miss."
About EDWARD
Edward O'Connell died twelve years ago, at the age of seventy-three, and left behind a box containing twenty-seven objects: among them, a 1940 Chevrolet owner's manual, a one-eared Mr. Potato Head, a Nader/LaDuke campaign button, and a heavily annotated copy of The Catcher in the Rye. Each object tells a story. Audience members sit around a table, on which the objects lie, and choose the order in which the stories are told by Schmidt. Each night, Edward's life is reconstructed anew.
Tickets are $40 and are available at www.edschmidttheater.com/tickets. Please note seating is limited for most performances. Running time: 95 minutes
Remaining Manhattan, Brooklyn & Queens Performance Schedule
Friday, February 6 - Saturday, February 7 at 7PM - sold out
The Mysterious Bookshop - Tribeca
58 Warren Street, Manhattan, New York (Subway: 1/2/3/A/C to Chambers, R/W to City Hall)
Tuesday, February 10 at 7PM - sold out
McNally Jackson - South Street Seaport
4 Fulton Street, Manhattan, New York (Subway: 2/3 to Fulton)
Wednesday, February 11 - Thursday, February 12 at 7PM - sold out
Kew & Willow - Kew Gardens
81-63 Lefferts Blvd. Kew Gardens, New York (Subway: E/F to Kew Gardens/Union Tpke)
Friday, February 20 at 7PM - sold out
Strand Books - East Village
828 Broadway (Corner of 12th Street), Manhattan, New York (Subway: 4/5/6/L/N/Q/R/W to Union Square)
Tuesday, February 24 at 7PM - sold out
Book Club Bar - East Village
197 East 3rd Street, Manhattan, New York (Subway: F to 2nd Avenue)
Sunday, March 1 at 7PM - sold out
Private residence - Sunset Park, Brooklyn
Friday, March 6 at 7PM - Tickets available
Strand Books - East Village
828 Broadway (Corner of 12th Street), Manhattan, New York (Subway: 4/5/6/L/N/Q/R/W to Union Square)
Videos