Geffen Playhouse today announced eight productions that will make up its 2019/2020 season, with one additional production to be announced. This marks the second lineup curated by Artistic Director Matt Shakman.

This season, the Geffen Playhouse will welcome Tony winner Idina Menzel(Rent, Wicked), Emmy nominee Nikolaj Coster-Waldau (Game of Thrones) and Academy Award nominee Andy Garcia (Ocean’s Eleven) to its stage.

SEASON SUBSCRIPTIONS NOW AVAILABLE

2019/2020 GEFFEN PLAYHOUSE SEASON

Witch
AUG 20— SEP 29, 2019

WEST COAST PREMIERE
Written by Jen Silverman
Inspired by The Witch of Edmonton by Rowley, Dekker & Ford
Directed by Marti Lyons
Audrey Skirball Kenis Theater

In this fiendishly funny new play by Jen Silverman (The Roommate, Collective Rage: A Play in Five Betties), a charming devil arrives in the quiet village of Edmonton to bargain for the souls of its residents in exchange for their darkest wishes. Elizabeth should be his easiest target, having been labeled a “witch” and cast out by the town, but her soul is not so readily bought. An inventive retelling of a Jacobean drama, this sharp, subversive fable debates how much our souls are worth when hope is hard to come by.

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Skintight
SEP 3 — OCT 6, 2019

WEST COAST PREMIERE
Written by Joshua Harmon
Directed by Daniel Aukin
Featuring Idina Menzel, Eli Gelb & Will Brittain
Gil Cates Theater

Hanging on by a thread after her ex-husband gets engaged to a much younger woman, Jodi (Tony Award winner Idina Menzel, Rent, Wicked) retreats to her dad’s swanky Manhattan townhouse. But rather than the comforts of home, she instead finds her aging father’s new live-in boyfriend, Trey — who is 20. In his new comedy, Joshua Harmon (Bad Jews, Significant Other) brings neurotic family drama to the forefront as father and daughter contend with the age-old questions of how to age gracefully in a world obsessed with youth and where love fits into it all.

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The Thanksgiving Play
OCT 22— DEC 1, 2019

Written by Larissa FastHorse
Directed by Michael John Garcés
Audrey Skirball Kenis Theater

How does one celebrate Thanksgiving and Native American Heritage Month at the same time? In Larissa FastHorse’s biting satire, this is the question facing three “woke” white thespians tasked with devising an elementary school pageant about the first Thanksgiving while avoiding any culturally appropriative missteps. A roast of the politics of entertainment and well-meaning political correctness alike, The Thanksgiving Play puts the American origin story itself in the comedy-crosshairs.

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Macbeth
NOV 5 — DEC 8, 2019

Written by William Shakespeare
Directed by Matt Shakman
Featuring Nikolaj Coster-Waldau
Gil Cates Theater

“Something wicked this way comes.” Three witches, a prophecy and the ambitious general Macbeth (Emmy Award nominee Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Game of Thrones) set the stage for Shakespeare’s timely and timeless tragedy about the dangerous allure of power. As Macbeth violently sets forth to fulfill his fate, he and his wife find themselves mired in murder and cover-up in a bloody attempt to hold onto the throne. Following a triumphant collaboration on Game of Thrones, director Matt Shakman and Nikolaj Coster-Waldau reunite for Shakespeare’s most cinematic play.

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Key Largo
FEB 4— MAR 8, 2020

WORLD PREMIERE ADAPTATION & GEFFEN PLAYHOUSE COMMISSION
Adapted by Jeffrey Hatcher & Andy Garcia
Based on the play by Maxwell Anderson and the screenplay by Richard Brooks & John Huston
Produced in association with Frank Mancuso & Andy Garcia
Featuring Andy Garcia
Gil Cates Theater

Welcome to the eye of the storm! Key Largo is a bold reimagining of Maxwell Anderson’s Broadway hit that became the iconic noir film starring Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall. Returning from World War II, disillusioned Frank McCloud travels to a hotel in Key Largo to pay his respects to the widow of a fallen friend. What McCloud doesn’t count on is an entirely different battle with mobsters who have overtaken the hotel, led by the ruthless Johnny Rocco (Academy Award nominee Andy Garcia). As a hurricane barrels toward the Keys, McCloud must face his demons in order to take down a monster.

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Bernhardt/Hamlet
APR 7— MAY 10, 2020

WEST COAST PREMIERE
Written by Theresa Rebeck
Directed by Sarna Lapine
Gil Cates Theater

It’s 1899, and the legendary Sarah Bernhardt shocks the world by taking on the lead role in Hamlet. While her performance is destined to become one for the ages, Sarah first has to convince a sea of naysayers that her right to play the part should be based on ability, not gender — a feat as difficult as mastering Shakespeare’s most verbose tragic hero. Fresh off its Broadway triumph, Theresa Rebeck’s shrewd comedy puts the spotlight on a woman who used her singular talent to challenge whether a woman’s place was “to be or not to be” in the greatest role ever written.

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The Enigmatist
MAY 5— JUN 14, 2020

WEST COAST PREMIERE
Written and performed by David Kwong
Audrey Skirball Kenis Theater

Can you solve the enigma? Prepare for an immersive experience of puzzles, cryptology and illusions by renowned magician and New York Timescrossword constructor David Kwong in the intimate Audrey Skirball Kenis Theater. Clues are everywhere, so keep your eyes open and be ready for surprises behind every flip of the card.

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Revenge Song: A Vampire Cowboys Creation
JUN 16 —JUL 19, 2020

WORLD PREMIERE & GEFFEN PLAYHOUSE COMMISSION
Written by Qui Nguyen
Directed by Robert Ross Parker
Featuring the Vampire Cowboys Theatre Company
Gil Cates Theater

A rousing, romping, music-filled look at the real life of Julie d’Aubigny, a queer 17th century French swordswoman and opera singer, Revenge Song is a heroine’s journey toward self-discovery and acceptance. In this world premiere Geffen Playhouse commission, conversations about gender and sexuality blend together with the outrageous fun and superhero style of the Vampire Cowboys Theatre Company to create a genre unto itself — a hilarious, historical comedy with hip hop, rock and epic fight scenes.

Major support for this world premiere production provided by the Edgerton Foundation New Play Production Fund.

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One additional production in the Audrey Skirball Kenis Theater to be announced.

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The Geffen Playhouse 2019/2020 season is currently available by subscription only. For more information and to purchase a subscription, please call 310.882.6533 or visit www.geffenplayhouse.org/subscribe.

Single tickets for all 2019/2020 season productions will be available this summer at www.geffenplayhouse.org.