Top theatre to see in New York in January

Here are our top picks of theatre to check out in January 2023.

Beat the January blues by seeing a New York show this month. There's no better place to escape the winter chill than in a warm, cozy theatre, big or small. Plus, with the holiday rush over, January performances have great availability on seats.

Between Broadway blockbusters and intimate Off-Broadway shows, there's plenty to choose from. Few new Broadway shows start up in January, but this month is your last chance to catch some limited-run hits before they close. You can also venture off Broadway and be the first to see some new offerings there.

Get tickets to a Broadway show on New York Theatre Guide.

Pictures From Home

Tony Award winners Nathan Lane and Danny Burstein and Tony nominee Zoë Wanamaker are anything but camera-shy. All three are veterans of stage and screen, and now you can catch them on stage in Sharr White's new play Pictures From Home. The show brings to life photographer Larry Sultan's (Burstein) acclaimed 1992 memoir, in which he took a deep dive into his parents' lives and revealed family secrets behind their picture-perfect appearances. Broadway performances begin on January 10.

Get Pictures From Home tickets now.

The Music Man

The Wells Fargo Wagon is pulling out of River City on January 15. It's your last chance to see Tony winners Hugh Jackman and Sutton Foster in this celebrated musical classic, playing a con man and a librarian who fall in love against the odds. Hear the 76 trombones play one last time at this show offering "high voltage and expert execution," per New York Theatre Guide's four-star review.

Get The Music Man tickets now.

Death of a Salesman

Don't miss this Death of a Salesman revival before its January 15 closing. Brought over from an award-winning London run, this production adds a new layer to Arthur Miller's critique of the American dream, casting its leads as Black to show how unattainable that dream still is for some. See Tony winner Wendell Piece "command the stage with bluster and bombast" as the salesman Willy Loman, alongside Tony nominee Sharon D Clarke, who makes Willy's wife Linda "a hidden crux of the show to whom attention must truly be paid," according to New York Theatre Guide's five-star review.

Get Death of a Salesman tickets now.

A Strange Loop

Once this Pulitzer Prize-winning musical closes on January 15, who knows when it'll loop back around to Broadway? See A Strange Loop, the semiautobiographical show based on its creator, Michael R. Jackson. The main character, Usher, is a Black, queer writer working on a musical about a Black, queer writer, and he battles an ensemble of six raucous, ruthless, straight-talking Thoughts as he tries to succeed on his own terms.

Get A Strange Loop tickets now.

Mike Birbiglia: The Old Man and the Pool

Run, walk, or swim over to Lincoln Center to see the comedy show making a splash on Broadway. You only have until January 15 to see The Old Man and the Pool, Mike Birbiglia's latest Broadway special about getting older and going swimming. He humorously shares his experiences finding out he has heart problems, which means (reluctantly) developing healthier habits, including conquering a longstanding fear of the YMCA pool. Get ready for waves of laughter!

Get Mike Birbiglia: The Old Man and the Pool tickets now.

The Piano Lesson

Samuel L. Jackson, Danielle Brooks, and John David Washington are hitting all the right notes in The Piano Lesson — but only through January 29. They lead the first Broadway revival of August Wilson's Pulitzer-winning classic, and the beauty of their performances is only matched by the ornate piano of the title. It's a family heirloom, and siblings Berneice (Brooks) and Willie (Washington) fight over its fate while their uncle (Jackson) remains caught in the middle.

Get The Piano Lesson tickets now.

Topdog/Underdog

"In this starry and stirring revival, the play unfurls in all its glory," our critic writes of Suzan-Lori Parks's Topdog/Underdog. The Pulitzer-winning play is back on Broadway for its 20th anniversary through January 15. Corey Hawkins and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II are aces in this show about the power struggle between two hustler brothers trying to survive. With so little — and therefore everything to lose — can they both make it?

Get Topdog/Underdog tickets now.

Colin Quinn: Small Talk

"Quintessential New York comedian" Colin Quinn returns off Broadway with his latest comedy special. He's best known for humor about politics and growing up in Brooklyn, but he tackles a fresh subject in Small Talk: charisma. Throughout the show, Quinn uses his expertise in chatting — built up over a lifetime of doing so with friends, family, and customer service employees — to teach audiences how to improve their own small talk skills.

Get Colin Quinn: Small Talk tickets now.

Anthony Rapp's Without You

Rent star is reliving la vie boheme at Without You, his solo musical making its New York premiere. Hear Rapp, an original cast member of Jonathan Larson's groundbreaking show, sing Rent tunes and share his memories about how the show changed his life. The show is based on Rapp's memoir, but there's nothing like hearing his stories come alive. There's no day but today to secure your tickets.

Get Without You tickets now.

Sugar Daddy

Brooklyn comedian Sam Morrison makes his Off-Broadway debut with Sugar Daddy, which he premiered to acclaim at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in 2022. The show is set up like traditional stand-up, but Morrison inventively blends comedy and tragedy to tell the story of his relationship with his partner, which ended when he died of Covid-19. Sugar Daddy is about using humor to cope and finding the light in dark times.

Check back for information on Sugar Daddy tickets on New York Theatre Guide.