Best Broadway shows in New York in September 2026

Check out our picks for must-see theatre on and off Broadway in September 2026, when the fall Broadway and Off-Broadway seasons ramp up after the summer.

Gillian Russo
Written byGillian Russo

September is when three things begin in earnest: fall, school, and theatre. New shows opened during the summer, but September is when the Broadway season gets into full swing, with lots of new Broadway shows playing their first performances. The stars are out on Broadway this month, too, with multiple shows featuring celebrity cast members.

Many Off-Broadway theatre companies begin their seasons in September, too, so take a chance on a new play, musical, or comedy show this month, and see it in an intimate space. Learn more about all the major new theatre shows opening in September, and get your tickets right here on New York Theatre Guide.

Get Broadway tickets and more on New York Theatre Guide.

1.

Paranormal Activity

2.

School Girls; Or, The African Mean Girls Play

3.

Other Desert Cities

4.

Pre-Existing Condition

5.

Memoirs of Amorous Gentlemen

6.

September L. Davis: The Apology Tour

7.

Garry Starr: Classic Penguins

8.

A Ghost in Your Ear

9.

Kramer/Fauci

10.

How Shakespeare Saved My Life

11.

Degenerates

12.

Slam Frank

13.

Good Time Charlie

14.

The Holes

15.

creation stories and all the important importants

16.

In Honor of Jean-Michel Basquiat

17.

Human Things

1.

Paranormal Activity

Broadway
Play
Horror
Screen to stage

Paranormal Activity opened to scary good reviews in late August, and what better time to see it now that the Halloween season is coming up? Set in the world of the horror franchise, the hair-raising stage play centers on a troubled couple whose demons follow them from Chicago to London.

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Paranormal Activity

2.

School Girls; Or, The African Mean Girls Play

Broadway
Play
Comedy
Stars on stage
Award winner

Denée Benton, Patina Miller, Jasmine Amy Rogers, and more Broadway queen bees lead Jocelyn Bioh's award-winning play about Ghanaian private school girls competing for beauty pageant glory. Bioh and director Whitney White, the Tony-nominated team behind Jaja's African Hair Braiding, reunite for the Broadway premiere of the acclaimed comedy.

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School Girls; Or, The African Mean Girls Play

Photo credit: Jasmine Amy Rogers, Denée Benton, and Patina Miller. (Rogers photo by Nicole Wilson; Benton photo by Monica Schipper; Miller photo by Victoria Stevens)

3.

Other Desert Cities

Broadway
Play
Drama
Stars on stage
Award winner

Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Ed Harris, Allison Janney, Joe Keery, and Lily Rabe: Need we say more? This A-list cast plays a powerful family on the verge of public ruin in Jon Robin Baitz's Pulitzer-nominated drama.

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Other Desert Cities

Photo credit: Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Ed Harris, Allison Janney, Joe Keery, and Lily Rabe (Photos courtesy of production; Louis-Dreyfus photo by Christopher Anderson; Harris photo by O'Shane Howard; Janney photo by Robert Ascroft)

4.

Pre-Existing Condition

Off-Broadway
Play
Drama
Stars on stage

Lupita Nyong’o, Edie Falco, and more rotate in the leading role of Marin Ireland's acclaimed drama, returning off Broadway with the story of a woman piecing her life back together after an abusive relationship.

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Pre-Existing Condition

Photo credit: Lupita Nyong'o and Edie Falco. (Photos courtesy of production; Nyong'o photo by Christian Cody)

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09:00

Breakfast at Liberty Bagels

Regularly named one of the city’s best bagel shops, the unassuming Liberty Bagels is the perfect spot to get a classic NYC breakfast sandwich.

10:00

Macy’s Herald Square

One of the world’s largest stores, Macy’s is a sight to behold, especially when it’s decked out for the holidays.

5.

Memoirs of Amorous Gentlemen

Off-Broadway
Musical
Manga
Drama

For the first time, a Japanese manga is coming off the page and onto the Off-Broadway stage. Memoirs of Amorous Gentlemen follows a young woman who finds her power in writing, particularly about the unusual clients where she works — but who also struggles with her own dark obsession.

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Memoirs of Amorous Gentlemen

6.

September L. Davis: The Apology Tour

Off-Broadway
Comedy
Stars on stage

Saturday Night Live alum and Schmigadoon! Tony nominee Ana Gasteyer transforms into her comedic alter ego, September L. Davis, in which the titular diva invites celebrity guests to help her right past wrongs. This strictly limited engagement runs for three weeks on Sunday and Monday nights only.

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September L. Davis: The Apology Tour

Photo credit: Ana Gasteyer as September L. Davis. (Photo courtesy of production)

7.

Garry Starr: Classic Penguins

Off-Broadway
Comedy
Solo show

This Edinburgh Festival Fringe hit is like storytime for adults: In an attempt to save literacy, Garry Starr — the clownish alter ego of Damien Warren-Smith — hilariously performs every Penguin Classic novel ever released. All this happens in about an hour, and in the nude.

Garry Starr: Classic Penguins

8.

A Ghost in Your Ear

Off-Broadway
Play
Horror
Immersive

From Tony Award nominee Jamie Armitage (Six) comes an immersive play about a man who gets haunted while recording a horror audiobook. Audiences wear headphones to hear every chilling whisper, sound, and creak.

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A Ghost in Your Ear

Photo credit: Jamie Armitage and Ben and Max Ringham. (Photos courtesy of production)

9.

Kramer/Fauci

Off-Broadway
Play
Drama
True story
Historical

Real life can make for the best drama. So it goes in Daniel Fish's (Oklahoma!) acclaimed theatrical recreation of a fiery TV debate between AIDS researcher Dr. Anthony Fauci and playwright/activist Larry Kramer. Tony Award winner Will Brill and Thomas Jay Ryan star.

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Kramer/Fauci

Photo credit: Kramer/Fauci. (Photo by Maria Baranova)

10.

How Shakespeare Saved My Life

Off-Broadway
Play
Solo show
True story
Drama

Actor Jacob Ming-Trent shares his personal history as defined by poets, preachers, rappers, and, of course, the Bard in this autobiographical show about self-discovery and the power of words.

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11.

Degenerates

Off-Broadway
Play
Drama

"The boys are fucked." The punchy tagline of Degenerates points to an isolated community of men whose online hatred leads to real-world consequences. Degenerates is the latest show from writer Else Went and director Emma Rosa Went, the team behind last season's coming-of-age epic Initiative.

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Degenerates

Photo credit: Juan Arturo, Olivia Rose Barresi, Tyler Nowell Felix, and Christopher Dylan White. (Photos courtesy of production)

12.

Slam Frank

Off-Broadway
Musical
Comedy
Historical

A fictional theatre company wildly reimagines The Diary of Anne Frank in this no-holds-barred satire of history, politics, and identity, inspired by a viral thread on the social media site X. After a buzzy premiere last season, the musical returns off Broadway for an encore engagement.

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Slam Frank

13.

Good Time Charlie

Off-Broadway
Play
Comedy

Ryan J. Haddad, known for his deeply personal solo shows, employs a full cast of characters for his latest comedic play about multiple generations of gay men and the ways they connect through art, love, and getting older.

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Good Time Charlie

Photo credit: Ryan J. Haddad, Jonathan Raviv, Beth Malone, Timothy Bagley, Artemis Pebdani, Nael Nacer, and Michael Cristofer. (Photos courtesy of production; Bagley photo by Manfred Baumann)

14.

The Holes

Off-Broadway
Play
Comedy
Drama

Writer Max Wolf Friedlich and director Michael Herwitz, the acclaimed team behind the thriller play Job, reunite with this new dark comedy about the danger and desire that erupt in a dive bar with a padlocked back room. Robert Pattinson produces the show with his company Icki Eneo Arlo.

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The Holes

Photo credit: Bubba Weiler, Grantham Coleman, and Tina Benko. (Photos courtesy of production)

15.

creation stories and all the important importants

Off-Broadway
Play
Drama

Described as a time-hopping, mythic folktale, creation stories follows a woman trying to keep up with all the demands life asks of her as child, artist, possible mother, and more. Nigerian writer Mfoniso Udofia, who's also written for TV shows like 13 Reasons Why, A League of Their Own, and Lessons in Chemistry, brings this new work to Lincoln Center Theater.

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16.

In Honor of Jean-Michel Basquiat

Off-Broadway
Play
Solo show
Drama

Obie Award winner Roger Guenveur Smith pays tribute to his friend and collaborator Jean-Michel Basquiat in this deeply personal solo show celebrating the life of the visionary artist.

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17.

Human Things

Off-Broadway
Play
Drama
Stars on stage

One couple is on the rocks — literally, on a research trip in the South Pacific. Another couple turns up and brings a life-changing storm with them. Joshua Owen's Human Things stars Tony Award winner Victoria Clark (Kimberly Akimbo), Ben Rosenfield (Boardwalk Empire), and more.

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Human Things

Photo credit: Victoria Clark, Ben Rosenfield, Michael Mulheren, and Rebeca Robles. (Photos courtesy of production; Clark photo by Sophie Elgort)