The River

Fertile Ground 2026 wrapped up last weekend, and on the whole, it was fantastic. I saw 17 shows, which included readings of plays by well-known local playwrights, new works by rising stars, and some fun genre-bending original performances. Here are my notes about the final set. If you missed my first two review roundups, find them here and here.

Zeb Soanes captures the voice perfectly to give us the life and times of a huge figure in 20th century acting on stage and screen

Ty Simons, an ACTF Region IV award-winning director with an MFA in Theatre for Young Audiences, has been named Director of Education and Community Engagement at New London Barn Playhouse in New Hampshire.

What did our critic think of FREEDOM! at St. James UMC In Little Rock?

A new promo is here for A24's The Death of Robin Hood, starring Hugh Jackman. The Tony winner plays the famed outlaw in the film, though the folklore figure is now depicted as an aging man full of regrets about his past life of crime and murder.

Shakespeare's Globe announced a series of climate-focused events during London Climate Week, including a free Climate Open House with stage readings and an off-grid matinee of A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM.

The BBC Proms returns in summer 2026, presenting eight weeks of world-class music from an array of leading orchestras, conductors and soloists from across the UK and around the world.

“I’m just here to talk about my divorce,” says Yousef Sweid right after a preamble about the reception of political productions. He and Isabella Sedlak write a poignant reflection on how beliefs and birthplaces raise us and shackle us at once. Between The River and The Sea approaches the Palestinian genocide from a personal standpoint, never making it its focus, yet permeating every word with the weight of it. It introduces a Christian-Arab-Palestinian-Israeli father who’s raising two Jewish-Arab-Austrian children in Berlin. Yousef (Sweid) is trying to get custody of his youngest after his second divorce, after his ex-wife told him she wants to move back to their home country. 

Steppenwolf Theatre Company will host GALA 2026 at Rockwell on the River in Chicago, honoring Douglas R. Brown and Rachel E. Kraft while continuing the theater's 50th Anniversary celebration.

Ex Machina and Côté Danse's HAMLET, PRINCE OF DENMARK returns to Montreal's Salle Ludger-Duvernay, Monument-National, with nine performers interpreting Shakespeare through dance, set design, and an original score.

City Theatre Austin’s Men on Boats is a sharp historical comedy where an all women and non-binary ensemble dismantles frontier myth making. Clever staging, precise physical comedy, and bold direction turn conquest into satire.

MusicaNova Orchestra will close its 2025–2026 season with Calming Waters: Sibelius & Frank at Tempe Center for the Arts, featuring works spanning Finland, Ukraine, Peru, and Singapore.

Based on the life story of Alicia Keys, Hell's Kitchen not only brings you all of the hits, I mean all of this hits, but takes you into Alicia's world before it even starts. The tone is set via the cypher-ish DJ set (Alicia's playlist growing up maybe?) reminicent of 106& Park, Rap City, digital underground, and artists on the street corner inviting you in to a melodic flow of New York (many of us grew up on IYKYK). 

The purpose of Jez Butterworth’s 2012 play THE RIVER is as elusive as its subject matter, the Sea Trout. 

When Next We Meet has announced the full line-up for its fifth edition, returning to the Georgian grounds of Raheen House in Clonmel, Co. Tipperary from May 29th–31st, over the June Bank Holiday Weekend.

Singer-songwriter Kenny White performs at Club Passim in Cambridge, MA on May 1, following a national tour with Stephen Stills and Judy Collins. SPOTTISWOODE opens the show.

NOoSPHERE Arts will present We Are Nature: Transformation a multidisciplinary series running May through October at Brooklyn's Kingsland Wildflowers Rooftop and Governors Island's Colonels Row Building.

​The St. Lawrence Shakespeare Festival has revealed 2026 programming and casting. The St. Lawrence Shakespeare Festival will include the world premiere of the new musical R&J and Joni, and more this summer.

RiverEdge will present a lineup featuring The Beach Boys, Cheap Trick, and other artists as part of its summer concert series, along with $3 concerts and a Movie in the Parks series.

Liz Callaway brings warmth, wit, and luminous vocals to Stephen Schwartz’s songbook - a heartfelt, nostalgic evening of storytelling, standout numbers, and a soaring, unforgettable finale.

China Plate and Fuel announced a new touring initiative, 'Touring Together,' featuring INUA ELLAMS' ONCE UPON A TIME IN SOKOTO as the inaugural production in collaboration with various UK venues.

The Adams Theater has revealed new cast members for their upcoming show 'Selected Shorts' on May 23, 2026 at 7:30pm. Tony Shaloub and Brooke Adams join David Strathairn and others for this presentation.

Singer, songwriter and guitarist Duane Betts and his band Palmetto Motel will continue to tour through the fall, with newly confirmed stops at New York’s Gramercy Theatre, West Hollywood’s Troubadour, Raleigh’s Lincoln Theatre, and more.

This production is filled with sparkling wit and fantastic performances!

A quirky rom-com about cats, as the Director Debora Sadler, introduced the play, was indeed quirky throughout. The two-act play follows Samanatha the cat as she tells her life story speckled with drama and self-discovery.