Your guide to the buzziest shows headed to Broadway this fall

01 of 18

Another Opening, Another Show

EW Fall Stage Preview Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Christian Borle, and Audra McDonald — Drew Gurian/Invision/AP/Shutterstock; Walter McBride/Getty Images; Invision/AP/Shutterstock

Each autumn the leaves fall and a new crop of shows open on Broadway. Last year, the season of shows was tentative, the gentle creep of the Great White Way's return after over a year of pandemic shutdown. Now, Broadway is back in the most full-throated and full-hearted way possible with a dazzling array of revivals, plays, and musicals making their way to the stage this season. From stars (Audra McDonald! Samuel L. Jackson! Common! Christian Borle!) to a bevy of Pulitzer Prize winning titles to reimagined revivals, there's something here for everyone. Take a look at the buzziest shows coming to New York this season.

02 of 18

Leopoldstadt

One of the greatest playwrights of the last two centuries, Tom Stoppard, gets unprecedentedly personal with this saga of a Jewish family in Vienna. It traces them from the last days of 1899 well into the 20th century, chronicling the impact of love affairs, the Holocaust, and more. Boasting an enormous cast of 38 people and directed by Patrick Marber, it's a stunning entry from a playwright in the twilight days of his career. (Longacre Theater, Opens Oct. 2)

03 of 18

Cost of Living

Winner of the 2018 Pulitzer Prize for drama, Cost of Living now makes its Broadway debut. From playwright Martyna Majok, the play chronicles the relationships of two disabled/abled pairs: a graduate student with cerebral palsy and his female caregiver, and a quadriplegic woman and her ex-husband. Including two of its original cast members, who have the disabilities of their characters, the Manhattan Theatre Club production interrogates care and caregiving, and the intricate ways in which we need each other. (Samuel J. Friedman Theater, Opens Oct. 3)

04 of 18

1776

Originally slated for a pre-pandemic run, this revival of 1776 turns the musical on its head, using a new framework and casting to lean into its themes of independence, freedom, and inclusion/exclusion. In partnership with Roundabout Theatre Company, directors Diane Paulus and Jeffrey L. Page present a version of the story of the country's founding and the signing of the Declaration of Independence from the bodies of people excluded from its precepts — women, people of color, transgender, and non-binary performers. (American Airlines Theatre, Opens Oct. 6)

05 of 18

Death of a Salesman

Arthur Miller's master work gets a new revival, this time from the perspective of a Black family. Wendell Pierce (The Wire, Treme) and Sharon D. Clarke (Doctor Who) star as beleaguered salesman Willie Loman and his long-suffering wife Linda. Fresh off his Tony-winning run in Hadestown, André De Shields also features as Ben Loman, Willie's dead brother who appears to him in hallucinations. Following a critically lauded production in London, this revival now makes it debut in New York. (Hudson Theatre, Opens Oct. 9)

06 of 18

The Piano Lesson

Danielle Brooks, Samuel L. Jackson James Earl Jones Theatre Dedication, Manhattan, New York, USA - 12 Sep 2022 — Devin Allen/Soul B Photos/Shutterstock

This August Wilson play — the fourth in his Pittsburgh cycle — gets its first ever Broadway revival with a star-studded cast to boot. Samuel L. Jackson stars as Doaker Charles, the head of the household that houses the titular piano, and a chronicler of film history. His wife, LaTanya Richardson Jackson, directs. Danielle Brooks and John David Washington also star as sister and brother Berniece and Boy Willie, whose argument over whether or not to sell a family heirloom piano makes up the crux of the play. It's a meditation on legacy, who and how we define it, and the ghosts of our collective past. (Ethel Barrymore Theatre, Opens Oct. 13)

07 of 18

Topdog/Underdog

Suzan-Lori Parks 2002 Pulitzer Prize winning play lands its first Broadway revival, anchored by stars Corey Hawkins (In the Heights) and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II (Watchmen). Probing brotherly love and family identity, Topdog/Underdog follows two brothers, Lincoln (Hawkins) and Booth (Abdul-Mateen II), who must come to terms with their past. Through their obsession with the street con, three-card monte, they grapple with their family history and the traumas of their upbringing. Directed by Kenny Leon (Fences, American Son), it's a searing and long overdue revival of a fundamental American text. (John Golden Theatre, Opens Oct. 20)

08 of 18

Take Me Out

The revival of Richard Greenberg's play already won Best Revival and Best Featured Actor for Jesse Tyler Ferguson last season, but it's back for more. With original cast members Ferguson and Jesse Williams returning, this tale of baseball, race, and sexuality gets to shine once more in a limited 14-week engagement. (Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre, Opens Oct. 27)

09 of 18

Almost Famous

Cameron Crowe's 2000 ode to 1970s rock is the latest film to get the Broadway musical treatment in this long-gestating production that had an out-of-town tryout way back in 2019. With music from Tom Kitt (Next to Normal) and a book and lyrics from Crowe, the musical follows 15-year-old William Miller (Casey Likes) as he's hired by Rolling Stone to go on the road with an up-and-coming band and their number one groupie, Penny Lane (Solea Pfeiffer). As he travels the country on their tour bus, William learns lessons about life, family, community, and the healing power of rock'n'roll. (Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre, Opens Nov. 3)

10 of 18

Kimberly Akimbo

Jeanine Tesori (Fun Home) and David Lindsay-Abaire (Rabbit Hole) bring a wholly original new musical to the Great White Way. Based on Lindsay-Abaire's 2001 comedy of the same name, Kimberly Akimbo follows lonely teenager, Kim (Victoria Clark), who suffers from a condition that ages her rapidly, giving her the appearance of an elderly woman. Kim must traverse family secrets and her own limitations to find happiness on her own terms. The production began its life Off-Broadway with the Atlantic Theater Company before making the jump to a Broadway stage. (Booth Theatre, Opens Nov. 10)

11 of 18

& Juliet

Already a hit across the pond, & Juliet brings its pop bops to Broadway. Imagining what would happen if Shakespeare's Juliet lived at the end of Romeo and Juliet, it grants the tragic heroine agency, all set to a score of Max Martin pop hits, including "I Want It That Way," "Teenage Dream," and "Since U Been Gone." Get caught up in a glittery pop haze as Juliet abandons her famous ending for a fresh start and second chance at love — proving that there is life after Romeo. (Stephen Sondheim Theater, Opens Nov. 17)

12 of 18

KPOP

KPOP has captivated the world, and this new musical from Jason Kim, Helen Park, and Max Vernon takes us behind the phenomenon. Starring real KPOP artists, including Luna, Kevin Woo, Min-Young Lee, and Bohyung Kim, the musical follows global superstars as they gather for a special one-night only concert and face challenges that threaten to dismantle a powerful label. A multimedia experience, KPOP gives fans a story that offers insight into the creative drive and dedication behind a genre of music proving to be an international sensation. (Circle in the Square, Opens Nov. 20)

13 of 18

Ain't No Mo

Following a critically acclaimed world premiere at the Public Theater in 2019, Ain't No Mo makes the jump to Broadway, courtesy of producer Lee Daniels (Precious, The Butler). A blend of sketch comedy, satire, and avant garde theater, the Jordan E. Cooper (Pose) play asks the incendiary question — what would happen if the U.S. government offered Black Americans one-way tickets to Africa? (Belasco Theatre, Opens Dec. 1)

14 of 18

A Beautiful Noise

The latest jukebox musical to hit Broadway takes legendary singer-songwriter Neil Diamond as its subject. Featuring a score bursting with Diamond hits, it tells the story of his life as framed through a series of therapy sessions where a psychiatrist reads his lyrics. Will Swenson (Hair) stars as the young Diamond. Its production team boasts a flurry of artists with chops in the musical biopic world, including book writer Anthony McCarten (Bohemian Rhapsody) and producer Bob Gaudio (Jersey Boys, original member of the The Four Seasons). (Broadhurst Theater, Dec. 4)

15 of 18

Ohio State Murders

Six-time Tony winner Audra McDonald returns to Broadway as famous writer, Suzanne Alexander, who returns to her alma mater as a guest speaker addressing the violence in her work, only to unravel the truth of what happened when she was a student there. Legendary 91-year-old playwright Adrienne Kennedy at last makes her Broadway debut with this title, in a historic moment that will open the newly renamed James Earl Jones Theatre under the direction of Broadway pro Kenny Leon. (James Earl Jones Theatre, Opens Dec. 8)

16 of 18

Some Like It Hot

The iconic 1959 Billy Wilder film gets its second musical adaptation (the first was Peter Stone's Sugar in 1972), courtesy of Hairspray duo Marc Shaiman and Scott Whitman and book writers Amber Ruffin (The Amber Ruffin Show) and Matthew López (The Inheritance). Fresh off her run in Six, Adrianna Hicks takes on the Marilyn Monroe role of Sugar, flanked by Tony-winner Christian Borle as Joe (the Tony Curtis role) and J. Harrison Ghee as Daphne (the Jack Lemmon role). With a diverse cast and creative team, Some Like It Hot gets a fresh update that returns it to its Jazz Age routes with an extra dose of laughs and glamour. (Shubert Theatre, Opens Dec. 11)

17 of 18

Between Riverside and Crazy

This 2015 Pulitzer Prize winning play from Stephen Adly Guirgis finally makes its way to Broadway — and offers Common (Selma) his Broadway debut as well. With original director Austin Pendleton and much of the off-Broadway cast intact, it returns provocative playwright Stephen Adly Guirgis to the Broadway platform he deserves. The play follows Walter "Pops" Washington (Stephen McKinley Henderson), a retired New York City police officer, as he and his son Junior (Common), freshly out of jail, forge a life and struggle to hold onto their rent-controlled apartment on Riverside Drive in New York City. (Helen Hayes Theatre, Opens Dec. 19)

18 of 18

The Collaboration

Transferring from London's Young Vic, The Collaboration brings its electric energy across the bond with its original stars Jeremy Pope and Paul Bettany intact. Written by Anthony McCarten (The Theory of Everything), the play follows renegade artists Jean-Michel Basquiat (Pope) and Andy Warhol (Bettany) as the two attempt to collaborate on one of the most anticipated exhibitions in modern art. But their idiosyncratic approaches to life and art clash, leaving us wondering if they can possibly co-exist. (Samuel J. Friedman Theatre, Opens Dec. 20)