11 New Musicals to See Beyond Broadway This Fall

Plus three exciting revivals

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this fall. There are some intriguing tuners opening on smaller stages over the next few months, including a musical adaptation of Thornton Wilder’s The Skin of Our Teeth starring two Tony winners; Romy & Michele: The Musical based on the cult comedy; a pair of hip-hop history musicals, one serious, the other satirical; and Heather Christian’s masterwork Oratorio for Living Things. Plus, rare revivals of Bat Boy and The Baker’s Wife!

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Audible Theater: Mexodus – begins September 9

Minetta Lane Theatre, 18 Minetta Lane between Sixth Avenue and MacDougal Street in the West Village

Previews begin September 9. Opens September 18. Closes November 1.

Lin-Manuel Miranda isn’t the only one writing hip-hop history musicals. Mexodus, created and performed by the multitalented Brian Quijada and Nygel D. Robinson, shines a spotlight on a forgotten chapter from America’s past, when enslaved Black folks sought freedom by fleeing to Mexico. Featuring live looping and instrumentation, beatboxing, rapping and singing, this two-person musical follows one man on that harrowing journey south of the border, where he’s helped by a former Mexican Army soldier. David Mendizábal directs this exhilarating and illuminating show, which earned rave reviews in Washington, DC and San Francisco.

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The York Theatre: This is Not a Drill – begins September 9

The York Theatre Company at Theatre at St. Jean’s, 150 East 76th Street near Lexington Avenue on the Upper East Side

Previews begin September 9. Opens September 18. Closes October 11. If you’re a TDF member, log in to your account to purchase discount tickets.

Holly Doubet spent decades writing songs for Barney the dinosaur and various pop artists before experiencing the false alarm that inspired her first musical, This is not a Drill. While on vacation in Hawaii in January 2018, she received an emergency alert about an impending nuclear attack. Although it turned out to be a mistake, for 38 minutes she and thousands of others thought they had just moments to live. The York Theatre presents the New York premiere of this dark musical comedy exploring the impact of that incident on eight disparate characters.

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Slam Frank – begins September 17

Asylum NYC, 123 East 24th Street between Park Avenue South and Lexington Avenues in Gramercy

Begins September 17. Closes October 26.

Before Slam Frank even had a workshop, there was a Change.org petition circulating to stop this hip-hop musical about a fictional theatre company reimagining Anne Frank as a pansexual Latina named Anita Franco. Writer Joel Sinensky was inspired to create this controversial satire after reading a real-life Twitter thread about whether Anne Frank owned her white privilege. While he and his songwriter Andrew Fox are clearly having a blast trolling folks (just check out the impassioned comments on the show’s Instagram), their skills are no joke. In addition to parodying a super-popular hip-hop musical, the show poses intriguing questions about who can claim to be marginalized in today’s society.

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Signature Theatre: Oratorio for Living Things – begins September 30

The Pershing Square Signature Center, 480 West 42nd Street between Dyer and Tenth Avenues in Midtown West

Previews begin September 30. Opens TBD. Closes November 16.

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Beau the Musical – begins October 13

St. Luke’s Theatre, 308 West 46th Street between Eighth and Ninth Avenues in Midtown West

Previews begin October 13. Opens October 27. Closes December 7.

After a well-received run downtown earlier this year, Beau the Musical moves to Midtown and adds a Tony nominee. Performer-playwright Douglas Lyons (writer of the comedies Chicken & Biscuits and Table 17) and co-composer Ethan D. Pakchar are behind this heartwarming show about a queer singer-songwriter looking back on his life-changing relationship with his guitar-playing grampa, who was otherwise estranged from the family. Matt Rodin is absolutely charming as Ace, who narrates his own tale. New to this production is raspy-voiced Dead Outlaw Tony nominee Jeb Brown as his grandfather Beau, a role he actually originated in workshops and in a filmed version of the show. Josh Rhodes (Spamalot) directs a winning ensemble of actor-singer-musicians in this moving bluegrass musical.

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44 the Musical – begins October 14

Daryl Roth Theatre, 101 East 15th Street between Union Square East and Irving Place in Union Square

Previews begin October 14. Opens November 6. Closes December 7.

The brainchild of Eli Bauman, who wrote the songs and book and directs, 44 the Musical is a loving satire about the halcyon days of the Obama administration as seen through the eyes of his discombobulated veep, Joe Biden. A Fringe-y favorite in LA that had multiple successful runs, the show transfers to NYC with its original cast intact: T.J. Wilkins as Barack, Shanice as Michelle and Chad Doreck as Joe. TV writer Bauman certainly knows from which he spoofs: he worked on Obama’s campaign!

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Romy & Michele: The Musical – begins October 14

Stage 42, 422 West 42nd Street at Dyer Avenue in Midtown West

Previews begin October 14. Opens October 28. Open run. If you’re a TDF member, log in to your account to purchase discount tickets.

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HERE: Dimension Zero – begins October 21

HERE, 145 Sixth Avenue at Dominick Street in Soho

Previews begin October 21. Opens October 22. Closes October 25.

A sci-fi puppet rock musical about the end of our planet set in NYC? This is one of those better-seen-than-described shows that HERE specializes in. Think Little Shop and Rocky Horror but with DIY design and endless invention as a live band invites the audience on an epic adventure about feminist space explorers fighting massive monsters and the evils of capitalism.

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The Public Theater: The Seat of Our Pants – begins October 24

The Public Theater, 425 Lafayette Street at Astor Place in the East Village

Previews begin October 24. Opens November 13. Closes November 30.

After collaborating on last year’s We Are Your Robots, Obie-winning playwright-songwriter Ethan Lipton (No Place to Go, Tumacho) and Tony-nominated director Leigh Silverman (Suffs) reteam for another ambitious project: a musical adaptation of Thornton Wilder’s fantastical Pulitzer Prize-winning epic The Skin of Our Teeth, which follows the Antrobus family as they navigate 5,000 years of history and crises. Tony winners Shuler Hensley and Ruthie Ann Miles are the parents, and Tony nominee Micaela Diamond is their cheeky maid Sabina in this surreal saga of survival.

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Soon – begins October 29

East Village Basement, 321 East 9th Street between First and Second Avenues in the East Village

Begins October 29. Closes November 9.

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– begins November 25

The York Theatre Company at Theatre at St. Jean’s, 150 East 76th Street near Lexington Avenue on the Upper East Side

Previews begin November 25. Opens TBD. Closes December 28.

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Bonus Musical Revivals

Classic Stage Company: The Baker’s Wife – begins October 23

Classic Stage Company, 136 East 13th Street between Third and Fourth Avenues in the East Village

Previews begin October 23. Opens November 11. Closes December 21.

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New York City Center: Bat Boy: The Musical – begins October 29

New York City Center, 131 West 55th Street between Sixth and Seventh Avenues in Midtown West

Begins October 29. Closes November 9.

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The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee – begins November 7

New World Stages, 340 West 50th Street between Eighth and Ninth Avenues in Midtown West

Previews begin November 7. Opens November 17. Closes February 15, 2026.

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