Boosted by big stars (George Clooney, Denzel Washington, and Sarah Snook, to name a few), standout performances, and a variety of show offerings, Broadway had a record-breaking year in 2024-25. Broadway venues raked in a collective $1.89 billion in revenue this past season, surpassing the previous record of $1.82 billion set in 2018-29. Fixtures like Hamilton, Wicked, and The Lion King have carried over to the 2025-26 season, but many of the top limited run productions, like Glengarry Glen Ross, Sunset Blvd., and Good Night, and Good Luck have closed.
However, more than a dozen new plays and musicals are opening between August and December. Here’s a look at some of the most anticipated openings before the end of 2025.
Take a Banana for the Ride
In a major change of pace, controversial roast comedian Jeff Ross is bringing his one-man show Take a Banana for the Ride to the Nederlander Theatre, opening on August 18 after two weeks of previews. The show will still be comedic and interactive, with Ross promising to crack impromptu jokes at patrons, but will also feature personal stories about Ross’ upbringing and how he became the “Roastmaster General.” Stephen Kessler is directing.
Ross has been performing the solo show in Hard Rock venues throughout the US from June 27-July 27. Take a Banana for the Ride has a Broadway closing date of September 29.
Art
Neil Patrick Harris, Bobby Cannavale, and James Corden are starring in the first-ever Broadway revival of Yasmina Reza’s Tony Award-winning Art, opening September 16 at the Music Box Theatre. An Olivier and Tony winner, Reza is among the most respected contemporary playwrights; Christopher Hampton translated and adapted the first version of Art on Broadway, which ran for 600 performances at the Royale Theatre and won the Tony Award for Best Play.
The play revolves around three longtime friends and their fight over an expensive painting. Alan Alda, Victor Garber, and Alfred Molina starred in the original. Harris and Corden are both Tony winners, while Cannavale is a two-time nominee.
“Ever since I first saw the original production, it has been etched into my mind as a hysterical and moving portrayal of friendship, compromise, and the power of art to change perspectives,” said producer Michael Shulman, in a press statement.
Art has a limited 17-week engagement, closing December 21.
Little Bear Ridge Road
After rave reviews at the Steppenwolf Theatre in Chicago, Samuel D. Hunter’s Little Bear Ridge Road opens in October at the Booth Theatre. Hunter has authored more than a dozen plays, but this marks his Broadway debut. Most notably, he wrote The Whale, a play about a 600-pound man that was adapted into an Oscar-winning film by Darren Aronofsky.
Little Bear Ridge Road, like The Whale, is set in rural Idaho. It tells the story of an estranged aunt and nephew who come together after the death of the family patriarch and stars Laurie Metcalf, Micah Stock, John Drea, and Meighan Gerachis, all of whom are reprising their roles from the Chicago production. Joe Mantello is directing and Scott Rudin is producing.
The Queen of Versailles
Opening at the St. James Theatre on November 10, The Queen of Versailles stars Broadway icon Kristin Chenoweth as socialite Jackie Siegel. The musical is based on the 2012 documentary of the same name that details the lavish and unstable life of Jackie and her husband, David (played by Academy Award winner F. Murray Abraham), 30 years her senior. Chenoweth is appearing in her first ensemble since On the Twentieth Century in 2015. She also hosted the Tony Awards that year. She won the Tony for Best Featured Actress in a Musical in 1999 for You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown, and originated the role of Glinda in Wicked.
The Queen of Versailles debuted last summer at the Emerson Colonial Theatre in Boston. Michael Arden is directing, while Stephen Schwartz wrote the music and lyrics and Lindsey Ferrentino wrote the book.
Oedipus
Olivier winners Lesley Manville and Mark Strong will play the lead roles in a modern reimagining of Sophocles’ epic tragedy, in which the protagonist is prophesied to kill his father and marry his mother. The new play, adapted and directed by Robert Icke, is a political thriller set during a tense election night.
Oedipus played for 13 weeks at the Wyndham Theatre in London last year and ended its run as the venue’s highest-grossing limited run production. Sonia Friedman Productions, John Johnson, Sue Wagner, and Patrick Catullo are producing the show in partnership with the Roundabout Theatre Company. It begins previews at Studio 54 on October 30 before an official opening on November 13.