Austin Playhouse

07/29/2026

Meet the Playwrights of the 2026 Festival of New Texas Plays! 💫

We can't wait to share Kleo James Ryan's LULU GOES TO THE JIM HENSON MEMORIAL SERVICE, a wonderfully theatrical blend of heart, humor, grief, and puppetry. Yes, puppetry!

Kleo James Ryan is a writer/performer based in Austin, TX. Her short works include I'LL MAKE AN END (FronteraFest 2024), THE WOMAN IN THE ATTIC (FronteraFest 2025), LAST DANCE(Out of Ink 2025: InStep), FAMOUS LAST WORDS (Manifest Minifest 6), and WOLLSTONECRAFT/SHELLEY (Out of Ink 2026: Astronomical). Her full-length play, THE HOODED CROW, was a recipient of ScriptWorks’s Revision Resource Fund, and received a public developmental reading at Ground Floor Theatre in 2025. Kleo’s plays were awarded “Best of Week” at FronteraFest two years in
a row. Her short play, LAST DANCE, was nominated for five B. Iden Payne Awards, including Outstanding Original Short Script and Outstanding Production of a Short Play. Kleo is currently developing a stage adaptation of Emily Brontë’s WUTHERING HEIGHTS.

Join us for LULU GOES TO THE JIM HENSON MEMORIAL SERVICE on Saturday, August 15! Come early to enjoy an opening mixer and celebrate new works! Learn more and get tickets at austinplayhouse.com/newplaydevelopment

07/28/2026

Support Austin Playhouse! 💙

We are looking forward to an incredible 27th season and setting a goal of raising $27,000 in donations by September 10 to support the artists, educational programs, and new play development of Austin Playhouse!

Your support produces bold theatre, supports local artists, and creates meaningful experiences for our community.

Join us in raising $27,000 for our 27th Season and thank you for keeping the magic of theatre alive!

Make a 27th Season donation now at givebutter.com/austinplayhouse_27thSeason

07/27/2026

Meet the Playwrights of the 2026 Festival of New Texas Plays! 💫

We're thrilled to kick off the Festival with Emilie Budjaja's ACES, a funny and magical play about language, identity, and belonging.

Emilie Budjaja is an Asian American screenwriter and playwright interested in writing stories that explore identity as a malleable form. A native from Austin, Texas, she recently earned her B.S. in Radio-Television-Film from UT Austin. During her time as a student, she acted as showrunner for the Texas Student Television’s half-hour comedy, The Austen Exchange, and has also served as a writer on the station’s first Mandarin speaking serialized drama. She is constantly working towards being in a room with other Asian American creatives, collaborating to make rich, embodied stories.

Join us for ACES on Saturday, August 15, followed by an opening mixer! Learn more and get tickets at austinplayhouse.com/newplaydevelopment

07/25/2026

Season Spotlight Saturday!🌟

We're kicking off 2027 with THE REVOLUTIONISTS by Lauren Gunderson ! 🇫🇷

About the play: Four beautiful, badass women lose their heads in this irreverent comedy! Join playwright Olympe de Gouges, assassin Charlotte Corday, Haitian rebel Marianne Angelle, and former queen Marie Antoinette as they hang out, murder Marat and try to beat back the extremist insanity in 1793 Paris. This grand and dream-tweaked comedy is about violence and legacy, art and activism, feminism and terrorism, compatriots and chosen sisters and how we actually go about changing the world.

​💛 Why we love it: Lauren Gunderson (SILENT SKY, CHRISTMAS AT PEMBERLEY) is one of our favorite playwrights, and the most-produced playwright in America. THE REVOLUTIONISTS has her signature blend of fresh, thought-provoking ideas brought to life by wonderfully witty and bold characters.

Learn more about THE REVOLUTIONISTS and explore our full 27th Season at austinplayhouse.com/26-27-season

07/24/2026

CASTING CALL!
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Austin Playhouse is seeking Mandarin-speaking Chinese/Chinese American actors for the Festival of New Texas Plays staged reading of ACES by Emilie Budjaja.
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3-4 rehearsals will be scheduled based on actor availability between August 9 and 14. The reading will take place on Saturday, August 15 at 4pm at Austin Playhouse West Campus. This reading is directed by Ben Wolfe.
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ROLES TO BE CAST:
AMBER - Female, 18+ to play 9, Chinese American; must be familiar with Mandarin
SOPHIE - Female, 18+ to play 8, Chinese American; must be fluent in Mandarin
MINA / WEIRAN - Female, 18, Chinese; must be fluent in Mandarin
ARCHER / YIMING - Male, 18 then 38; Chinese, must be fluent in Mandarin
SIMON - Male, 21, Chinese American; must be fluent in Mandarin
MS. POLLY - Female, 40s, Chinese; must be fluent in Mandarin

There is a $150 stipend available for each role.
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About the play: ACES turns questions of language, identity, and belonging into an experience that is funny, moving and magical. The play interweaves two storylines twenty years apart, revealing how the same hopes, pressures, and sacrifices echo across generations. Partially performed in Mandarin with no subtitles, it asks the audience to experience, rather than just observe, the struggle to understand one another.
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Please submit your headshot and resume for consideration using this Google Form: https://forms.gle/EWTbiPBhosjsqzVJ6

07/23/2026

Austin Playhouse is thrilled to announce the cast of our 27th Season opener PRIMARY TRUST by Eboni Booth! 🍹

Kenneth has everything he needs: a job he loves, his best friend Bert, and daily mai tais at Wally’s. It’s a comforting, secure routine — until he finds himself unemployed. With Bert’s encouragement, Kenneth applies to be a teller at Primary Trust Bank. Thriving at work, he slowly begins to open his heart to new people and possibilities. But when newfound rhythms threaten his friendship with Bert, Kenneth must face his past before he can fully embrace his future.

Directed by Associate Artistic Director Ben Wolfe, the cast features Austin Playhouse Artistic Company members Marc A. Pouhé as Bert and Huck Huckaby as Clay & Others, joined by Robert Joseph as Kenneth and Vivian Noble (FAT HAM, THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST) as Corrina & Others!

The production team also includes Mark Novick as lighting designer, Robert S. Fisher as sound designer, Mike Toner as scenic designer, Glenda Wolfe as costume designer, with stage management by Barry Miller and assistant stage management by Kollin Clarke.

Running September 11 - October 4! Get tickets now at austinplayhouse.com/primarytrust 💛

07/22/2026

2026 Festival of New Texas Plays featured in CultureMap Austin! Join us August 15-16 and support new works by these incredible local playwrights!

More info at austinplayhouse.com/newplaydevelopment

Theater-goers looking for something new and local will find it at Austin Playhouse this August. The company will stage readings of three new works in the 2026 Festival of New Texas Plays on August 15 and 16. Tickets are donation-based, with a limited number available completely for free.

07/21/2026

Austin Playhouse is thrilled to announce the Finalists for the 2026 Festival of New Texas Plays! 💫

As part of our ongoing commitment to championing new works through world premieres, commissioned works, and new play festivals, we're proud to present staged readings of three outstanding plays by Texas playwrights:

ACES by Emilie Budjaja
📅 Saturday, August 15 at 4pm

LULU GOES TO THE JIM HENSON MEMORIAL SERVICE by Kleo James Ryan
📅 Saturday, August 15 at 🕢 7:30pm

MOM AND POP by Carl Gonzales
📅 Sunday, August 16 at 2pm

Each reading will be followed by a talkback with the playwright. Join us on Saturday for an opening mixer with light refreshments between performances, and stay for Sunday's closing reception as we celebrate these incredible artists and their work.

👏 Congratulations also to our 2026 Runners-Up and Semi-Finalists:

Runners-Up:
I'M GONNA BE THE GOVERNOR by Ainsley Powers
EVERYONE, GIVE YOURSELVES A PAT ON THE BACK! by Erin Malone Turner

Semi-Finalists:
FIRST by Joey Banks and Vee Council
THE LILY PROBLEM by Max Langert
T-MINUS-15 by Diamante Martinez
TWO MILLION YEARS OF RAIN by Sheree L. Ross
PEANUT IS A VIBE by Nate Southard

Join us August 15–16 as we celebrate the bold voices shaping the future of Texas theatre. We can't wait to see you there! Learn more and get tickets now at austinplayhouse.com/newplaydevelopment

07/18/2026

Season Spotlight Saturday!🌟

The holiday season brings back one of our favorite sleuths in a A SHERLOCK CAROL by Mark Shanahan! 🔍🎩

About the play: Scrooge is dead, to begin with, and Sherlock Holmes is seeing ghosts. After the defeat of Moriarty, Holmes is a haunted man, convinced his detecting days are done. But when he’s drawn into the investigation of the death of Ebenezer Scrooge, the Great Detective must use his gifts to solve one Dickens of a mystery!

​💛 Why we love it: This unexpected mash-up triumphs as a witty, suspenseful, and heartwarming adventure filled with twists and turns, lots of laughter, and holiday cheer. It’s perfect for mystery lovers and a treat for all ages. Fans of Austin Playhouse’s productions of PERIL IN THE ALPS and BASKERVILLE will particularly enjoy this new adventure with the beloved detective.

Learn more about A SHERLOCK CAROL and explore our full 27th Season at austinplayhouse.com/26-27-season

07/11/2026

Season Spotlight Saturday!🌟

We're thrilled to welcome audiences back in September with the opening production of our 27th Season: PRIMARY TRUST by Eboni Booth! 🍹

About the play: Kenneth has everything he needs: a job he loves, his best friend Bert, and daily mai tais at Wally’s. It’s a comforting, secure routine — until he finds himself unemployed. With Bert’s encouragement, Kenneth applies to be a teller at Primary Trust Bank. Thriving at work, he slowly begins to open his heart to new people and possibilities. But when newfound rhythms threaten his friendship with Bert, Kenneth must face his past before he can fully embrace his future.

​💛 Why we love it: This 2024 Pulitzer Prize-winning play is one of the most produced plays in the country right now for good reason. It’s an intimate and heartwarming story of friendship, resilience, and the search for human connection that shines a spotlight on the small moments that make life worthwhile.

Learn more about PRIMARY TRUST and explore our full 27th Season at austinplayhouse.com/26-27-season