2023-2024 Season

The Importance of Being Earnest
by OSCAR WILDE
directed by DAVID IVERS
September 9 – October 15, 2023
Wurtele Thrust Stage 

A perfectly crafted comedy

Meet Jack Worthing and Algernon Moncrieff — two dapper Edwardian gents who shamelessly invent people to shirk responsibility and follow their whims. For country-dwelling Jack, his fictitious brother Ernest creates a perfect excuse to visit London and swoon over Gwendolen, Algernon’s cousin and daughter of the formidable Lady Bracknell. For city-dwelling Algernon, his imaginary (and sickly) friend Bunbury frequently calls him away to the country, where he meets and falls for Jack’s ward Cecily. Like a brilliantly paced piece of music, this masterful comedy woos theatergoers into a state of sheer delight with its mild treacheries, hilarious confusions and endearingly flawed characters.

For the People
by TY DEFOE and LARISSA FASTHORSE
directed by MICHAEL JOHN GARCÉS
October 7 – November 12, 2023
McGuire Proscenium Stage

A world premiere by Native Voices

After returning to her Minneapolis roots, April Dakota is excited to open a wellness center on Franklin Avenue to serve the Indigenous community in the heart of her hometown. She’s counting on a grant from the Franklin Avenue Task Force, but the competition is fierce and her proposal is rejected. Desperate to keep her dream alive, she partners with Esme, a non-Indigenous woman who uses April’s revolutionary ideas for her own gain. But the Task Force pulls together to defend their treasured Franklin Avenue and fight for the future of their community. Drawing on Minneapolis’ rich Dakota and Ojibwe heritage, this Guthrie-commissioned comedy examines the myriad facets of contemporary Native life.

A Christmas Carol
by CHARLES DICKENS
adapted by LAVINA JADHWANI
directed by ADDIE GORLIN-HAN
based on the original direction by JOSEPH HAJ
November 11 – December 28, 2023
Wurtele Thrust Stage

A timeless holiday tradition

A miserly and miserable man, Ebenezer Scrooge greets each Christmas with “Bah! Humbug!” until he is visited one Christmas Eve by the Ghosts of Christmas Past, Christmas Present and Christmas Future. In Charles Dickens’ beloved classic, the three spirits show Scrooge happy memories from his past, difficult realities from the present and a grim future should he continue his closed-hearted ways. Throughout his journey, Scrooge is forced to reckon with the man he has become and contemplate the man he could be — but only if his restless night leads to a change of heart by morning. The Guthrie’s cherished tradition returns to delight audiences of all ages this holiday season.

'Art'
by YAZMINA REZA
translated by CHRISTOPHER HAMPTON
directed by LISA PORTES
December 16, 2023 – January 28, 2024
McGuire Proscenium Stage

A satire on art and friendship

Serge begins his foray into contemporary art collecting with a big purchase: an unframed white canvas with barely-there white diagonal lines. When his close friend Marc regards the painting with ridicule, Serge is deeply insulted. The two men separately vent to their mutual confidant Yvan, who sees both sides of their seemingly trivial disagreement but wants to keep the peace. When the three friends meet for a night out, the dispute escalates into an all-out interrogation of why they’re even friends in the first place. Brimming with intense and funny dialogue, this Tony Award-winning satire circles existential questions and regularly breaks the fourth wall to include the audience in the onstage musings.

Dial M for Murder
by FREDERICK KNOTT
adapted by JEFFREY HATCHER
directed by TRACY BRIGDEN
January 20 – February 25, 2024
Wurtele Thrust Stage

A plot-twisting thriller

While in London promoting her new murder mystery, Maxine drops in on her former lover Margot who shares some distressing news: She’s being blackmailed for a love letter from Maxine that went missing after their affair ended. Margot thinks her husband Tony is none the wiser, but he knows everything — and then some. In fact, his yearlong plan to have Margot murdered will commence the next night, thanks to an airtight alibi. But when Margot kills her assailant in self-defense, Tony’s plot takes an unexpected turn. This clever, fast-paced adaptation adds extra layers to the iconic tale, making the “Will he get away with it?” question even more thrilling.

The Guthrie Theater presents an Irish Repertory Theatre production
produced by Octopus Theatricals
On Beckett
based on the writings of SAMUEL BECKETT
conceived, performed and directed by BILL IRWIN
February 17 – March 24, 2024
McGuire Proscenium Stage

A one-man tribute to a literary legend

Tony Award-winning actor and master clown Bill Irwin has spent a lifetime captivated by Samuel Beckett. The depth of his devotion for the famed Irish writer plays out onstage in a nonstop display of jovial verbal and physical comedy that has become Irwin’s signature. With little more than a microphone and a podium, Irwin lets the audience in on the creative process of engaging with Beckett’s sometimes opaque but undeniably rich language, providing a primer in clowning along the way. In addition to exploring texts by one of the most influential theater voices of the past century, audiences will fall in love with Irwin’s unique and endearing approach to Beckett’s work.

A Brittle Glory
Richard II, Henry IV, Henry V
by WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE
directed by JOSEPH HAJ
March 23 – May 25, 2024
Wurtele Thrust Stage

A three-part theatrical event

Heavy is the head that wears the crown. So the history goes in Shakespeare’s three dramas encompassing the life and times of key players in the tumultuous English monarchy from 1398 to 1420: Richard II, Henry IV and Henry V. Known as the Henriad or History Cycle, this dramatic feat marks a return to a historic moment for the Guthrie, as it was performed in rotating repertory on our stage more than 30 years ago. Performed by a single company of 25 actors, this three-play event will immerse audiences in Shakespeare’s examination of power, those who seek it and those who are destroyed by the power they crave.

Skeleton Crew
by DOMINIQUE MORISSEAU
directed by AUSTENE VAN
May 4 – June 9, 2024
McGuire Proscenium Stage

An acclaimed American drama

As the Great Recession of 2008 begins to decimate industries across America, the once-gleaming “Motor City” has lost its luster. At one of its still-standing auto factories, four colleagues-turned-friends hear rumors that their plant is facing foreclosure. Faye, Dez, Shanita and Reggie all have different stakes in the company should it go under, which they grapple with in the break room as the fear of losing their jobs looms. In the final chapter of her acclaimed Detroit trilogy, Dominique Morisseau wrestles with questions of grief, loyalty and self-preservation while exploring the monumental impact of the Recession-era economy on middle-class life.

Little Shop of Horrors
book and lyrics by HOWARD ASHMAN
music by ALAN MENKEN
based on the film by ROGER CORMAN, screenplay by CHARLES GRIFFITH
directed by TBA
June 22 – August 18, 2024
Wurtele Thrust Stage

A frightfully funny musical

On Skid Row, Mr. Mushnik plans to shutter his failing florist shop when his timid staffer Seymour presents an exotic-but-wilted flytrap named Audrey II. Convinced it will boost business, Seymour encourages Mr. Mushnik to display the peculiar plant, which Seymour successfully revives. As Audrey II draws much-needed crowds to the shop, Seymour makes a disturbing discovery: It needs fresh blood (and lots of it) to grow — a secret that forces Seymour into a Faustian bargain to keep his fame and fortune intact. A hilarious mashup of science fiction, horror and musical theater, this cult-classic boasts Motown-inspired hits like “Feed Me (Git It),” “Suddenly, Seymour” and “Little Shop of Horrors.”

English
by SANAZ TOOSSI
directed by TBA
July 13 – August 18, 2024
McGuire Proscenium Stage

A new play with humor and heart

In Karaj, Iran, educator Marjan, who perfected her English during a nine-year stint in Britain, strictly maintains an English-only method to ensure her four students pass the TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language) with flying colors. Everyone has varying motivations, accents and enthusiasm as they pursue fluency together — Marjan included, who feels her own proficiency slipping. After six weeks of trial, error and effort, what they discover about themselves may be the greatest learning curve of all. Iranian American playwright Sanaz Toossi tenderly explores the realities of the language-learning process and the parts of our identities that are lost and found along the way.