CORRECTION: November 11, 2025
A previous version of this press release, distributed on October 30, 2025, incorrectly attributed the authorship of The Complete Works of Jane Austen, Abridged to a single individual. The play is in fact a collaborative work by Jessica Bedford, Kathryn MacMillan, Charlotte Northeast, and Meghan Winch. The text below has been updated to reflect this correction.
The 2026 Summer Theatre Series Features Nine Productions United by the Theme “Legends and Legacy”
Center Valley, PA—October 30, 2025— Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival (PSF) proudly announces its 2026 Summer Theatre Series, running May 27 through August 2. Artistic Director Jason King Jones and Managing Director Casey William Gallagher have curated a season themed “Legends and Legacy,” celebrating a historic convergence of milestones: PSF’s 35th anniversary, its 30th year as the official Shakespeare Festival of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the 25th anniversary of its educational WillPower Tour, and the nation’s Semiquincentennial.
“Our upcoming season celebrates legends of American culture—from rock ‘n’ roll icons to Shakespeare, Austen, and Wilson—and through these legends we examine both the legacy that brought us here and the legacy we establish for the future,” says Artistic Director Jason King Jones.
The season lineup includes August Wilson’s The Piano Lesson, directed by Pulitzer Prize-winner James Ijames (Fat Ham), and the musical Million Dollar Quartet under the direction of Orlando Shakespeare Theater Artistic Director Jim Helsinger. Jones will direct Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, presented in repertory with Ken Ludwig’s new Sherlock Holmes comedy Moriarty, directed by PSF veteran Matt Pfeiffer. Also featured are The Complete Works of Jane Austen, Abridged by Jessica Bedford, Kathryn MacMillan, Charlotte Northeast and Meghan Winch; and an “Extreme Shakespeare” production of Coriolanus, which advances PSF’s progress toward completing the Shakespearean canon.
Rounding out the season, the family series includes the “Play On!” Community Tour bringing Shakespeare’s As You Like It free to regional audiences, a new play by Jones, Sheila the Magical, which continues the story from last summer’s hit The Princess and the Frog Prince, and the beloved Shakespeare for Kids presents Romeo and Juliet on the Festival Main Stage and through its community library tour.
“Whether it’s Shakespeare, Sherlock Holmes, Jane Austen, August Wilson, or classics for the family, we invite everyone to experience these stories this summer,” says Jones.
Subscriptions for the 2026 Summer Theatre Series go on sale November 17 and can be purchased online at pashakespeare.org, by calling the box office at 610.282.WILL [9455], or in person at the Labuda Center for the Performing Arts on the campus of DeSales University in Center Valley, PA. Single tickets will be available for purchase in February 2026.
Sponsors for the 2026 Summer Theatre Series are Kathleen Kund Nolan and Timothy E. Nolan.
2026 Summer Theatre Series:
The Piano Lesson
By August Wilson
Schubert Theatre · May 27 to June 14
August Wilson’s Pulitzer and Tony-winning masterwork unfolds in 1936 Pittsburgh, where the Charles family struggles over an heirloom piano carved with the faces of their enslaved ancestors. Boy Willie arrives from Mississippi, determined to sell it to claim his future, while his sister Berniece guards the instrument as a sacred altar to their history. As their clash intensifies, the ghosts of the past begin to stir, forcing a reckoning with a legacy they can neither sell nor escape.
Million Dollar Quartet
By Colin Escott and Floyd Mutrux
Original Concept and Direction by Floyd Mutrux
Inspired by Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, and Carl Perkins
Main Stage · June 10 to June 28
On December 4, 1956, Johnny Cash, Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, and Carl Perkins descend on Sun Studio in Memphis. What follows is one of the greatest impromptu jam sessions in music history. Guided by visionary producer Sam Phillips—the “Father of Rock ‘n’ Roll”—the night crackles with soaring music while careers hang in the balance. Featuring over 20 chart-topping hits including “Blue Suede Shoes,” “Great Balls of Fire,” and “I Walk the Line,” this is a toe-tapping celebration of friendship, rivalry, and a night that ignites a revolution.
The Complete Works of Jane Austen, Abridged
By Jessica Bedford, Kathryn MacMillan, Charlotte Northeast, and Meghan Winch
Schubert Theatre · June 24 to July 12
Experience Austen’s world like never before in a whirlwind tour through her beloved novels—Pride and Prejudice, Sense and Sensibility, Emma, and more—condensed into 80 laugh-out-loud minutes. Three quick-witted actors tackle Austen’s heroines, heroes, cads, and clowns with lightning-fast costume changes, sharp humor, and a dash of modern mischief. Whether you’re a devoted Janeite or discovering Austen for the first time, prepare for a charming, high-energy romp celebrating one of literature’s most legendary voices.
Moriarty
A New Sherlock Holmes Adventure
By Ken Ludwig
Main Stage · July 16 to August 1
Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson return! What begins as a simple case of the Bohemian king’s stolen letters quickly spirals into an international web of spies, blackmail, and deception. To take down criminal mastermind Professor Moriarty and his ruthless network, Holmes and Watson join forces with American actress Irene Adler, whose razor-sharp wit and magnetic charm add a delicious twist to the chaos. Five actors bring over 30 characters to life in this madcap mystery where danger—and laughter—await at every twist and turn!
Romeo and Juliet
By William Shakespeare
Main Stage · July 8 to August 2
An ancient feud divides the Montagues and Capulets—until Romeo and Juliet meet and fall irrevocably in love. Their secret marriage defies generations of bloodshed, but in a world poisoned by hatred, even the most transcendent love cannot escape fate. From the euphoric heights of a moonlit balcony to the stifling darkness of a tomb, Shakespeare’s most iconic tragedy races toward its devastating conclusion. This is a story that challenges whether love can ever truly conquer hate.
Coriolanus
By William Shakespeare
Schubert Theatre · July 22 to August 2
Coriolanus—A relentless warrior, a celebrated hero… until his pride becomes his downfall. Once the people’s champion, he becomes their greatest threat when his contempt for the masses collides with the politics of power. Coriolanus asks: What happens when a hero believes he’s above those he serves? Experience it “Extreme Shakespeare” style—actors arrive with lines learned, rehearse independently, and open within days. No director. No designers. No safety net. Just the raw power of Shakespeare’s explosive tragedy.
PA Shakespeare Festival— Family Theatre Series:
“Play On!” Community Tour presents—As You Like It
Touring the Lehigh Valley region and beyond · May 29 through June 14
Sheila the Magical —The Princess & The Frog Prince Part 2
Schubert Theatre · July 3 to August 1
Shakespeare for Kids presents—Romeo and Juliet
Onstage and touring community libraries · July 22 to August 1
About Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival
Founded in 1992 and the Official Shakespeare Festival of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, PSF’s mission is to enrich, engage, entertain, and inspire the widest possible audience through professional theatrical productions of classic, contemporary, and Shakespearean works and through educational engagement and mentorship programs.
Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival is the Lehigh Valley’s Professional Equity Theatre hosted on the campus of DeSales University and features acclaimed actors from Broadway, television, and film, and is the summer home to over 200 artists from around the country, including winners and nominees of the Tony, Obie, Emmy, Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle, Jefferson, and Barrymore Awards. A leading Shakespeare theatre with a national reputation for excellence, PSF has received coverage in The Washington Post, NPR, American Theatre Magazine, Playbill.com, The Philadelphia Inquirer, and recently The New York Times identified PSF as one of the leading summer theatre festivals in the country.
Artistic Leadership:
JASON KING JONES (Artistic Director) is excited to embark on his fourth year with PSF. In his first three seasons, Jason expanded the organization’s footprint to include the “Play On!” Community Tour, the launch of Shakespeare for Kids to libraries, and Community Day. Prior to moving to the Lehigh Valley with his family, Jason spent ten years at Maryland’s Olney Theatre Center, where he served as Senior Associate Artistic Director and Artistic Director of National Players. In the past three decades, Jason has directed over seventy-five productions, mentored hundreds of early-career theatre makers, and established various in-school and summer educational programs. He is an Acting Company alumnus, a proud member of the PSF Board, the Lehigh Valley Chamber of Commerce’s Nonprofit & Business Partners Council, and the Shakespeare Theatre Association’s Executive Committee. Jason holds a BFA in Theatre Performance from Missouri State and an MFA in Directing from Boston University.
CASEY WILLIAM GALLAGHER (Managing Director) has worked at PSF for 28 seasons. Over the years he was a box office intern, a stage management intern, the assistant house manager, box office manager, company manager, assistant producer, director of development and worked directly with PSF Founder Jerry Schubert in the early years of the organization. Since 2004, in his role as general manager and later managing director, he served as the administrative leader of the Festival, working very closely with former Producing Artistic Director Patrick Mulcahy and the box office, business, development, marketing and production departments. Since 2023, Casey has been a co-leader of the Festival with Artistic Director Jason King Jones. Beyond PSF, Casey was treasurer for the Shakespeare Theatre Association, director of audience services for The People’s Light & Theatre Company, a board member for Civic Theatre of Allentown, a peer panelist for the New Jersey Council on the Arts and a judge for the Greater Philadelphia Barrymore Awards for excellence in theatre.
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