New York Theatre Workshop completes 2026-27 Off-Broadway season

A musical adaptation of the Jessie Buckley film Wild Rose, a Jean-Michel Basquiat tribute's return engagement, and a play co-developed by Cynthia Erivo and Lena Waithe are in the lineup.

Summary

• New York Theatre Workshop's 2026-27 season includes the solo tribute show In Honor of Jean-Michel Basquiat; a musical adaptation of the movie Wild Rose; the drama The Grief Eater Near North Bender; and the Nigerian folklore-inspired Blood Be Sweet

New York Theatre Workshop has completed its 2026-27 season, with a fourth and final production added to the previously announced lineup of shows opening between fall 2026 and spring 2027.

First is In Honor of Jean-Michel Basquiat, which returns to NYTW after a sold-out limited run earlier this year. The show is created and performed by Obie Award-winning actor, playwright, and director Roger Guenveur Smith, a friend and collaborator of the late Basquiat.

The show uses personal and historical anecdotes and improv performance to explore how the two artists inspired each other: After meeting in Los Angeles, Smith’s politically charged soliloquies influenced Basquiat's paintings, and Smith eventually created “Smiley,” the Basquiat-inspired artist/arsonist for Spike Lee’s movie Do the Right Thing.

In Honor of Jean-Michel Basquiat features live sound design by Marc Anthony Thompson.

Next is Wild Rose, a musical adaptation of the same-named 2018 film starring 2026 Oscar winner Jessie Buckley. The show follows Rose-Lynn, a free-spirited woman just released from jail. She finds herself torn between her life and family in Glasgow and her dreams of moving to Nashville to become a country music star.

Nicole Taylor, the BAFTA-winning writer of the original film, adapted her script for the Wild Rose musical. The score will consist of country songs from artists like Dolly Parton, Wynonna Judd, Chris Stapleton, Caitlyn Smith, The Chicks, and Patty Griffin, alongside the film’s award-winning original song “Glasgow (No Place Like Home).”

The creative team also includes director John Tiffany, choreographers Steven Hoggett and Vicki Manderson, and music supervisor Sarah Travis.

The musical previously had its world premiere at the Royal Lyceum Theatre Edinburgh, Scotland in 2025.

In winter 2027 is The Grief Eater Near North Bender, produced in association with Roundabout Theatre Company and performed at Roundabout's Laura Pels Theatre. The play is a comic fable about local pub patrons fighting a monster that's killing and erasing memories of their loved ones. The play is written by Dylan Guerra and directed by Dustin Wills.

Newly announced to complete the season is Blood Be Sweet, a new play inspired by mythic Nigerian lore. The plot centers around a girl protected by spirits until death prematurely comes for her, forcing a reckoning between her, her family, and the spirits.

Blood Be Sweet is written by Abigail C. Onwunali, directed by Obie Award winner Awoye Timpo, and developed in partnership with Jamila Ponton Bragg; Tony, Emmy, and Grammy Award winner Cynthia Erivo; and Emmy Award winner Lena Waithe. The creative team also includes composer Michael R. Dudley, Jr., choreographer Adesola Osakalumi, and dramaturg Arminda Thomas.

Additional cast and creative team members for the above shows have yet to be announced.

Photo credit: Nicole Taylor and John Tiffany. (Taylor photo by Lorraine Milligan; Tiffany photo by Manuel Harlan)