Playwrights’ Theatre of East Hampton presents its fall 2026 season of shows at LTV Studios in Wainscott.
“Now is the season of thought, of introspection. It’s the season to be moved by a heady mix of new plays, developing plays, elegant staged readings, and classics revisited,” said Josh Gladstone, LTV’s Executive & Creative Director. “It’s a chance to immerse yourself in a most wonderful art form: Stage acting.”
The fall season at LTV includes Q&A-style talkbacks after selected performances; ticket options for students as well as VIP and general admission; and ticket discounts and meet-and-greet sessions for LTV Backstage Pass members.
Leading off the lineup is “Break,” a brand-new play written by Lindsay Carpenter and directed by SB Tennent, with four shows from September 18 to 20 in partnership with two acclaimed New York City production companies, New York Theatre Company & Most Much Productions. In this darkly funny story, two men are trapped in a room, forced to stack an ever-taller tower of dishes on one man’s back. A voice threatens to kill them if a wall-mounted ticker hits 50. Above them, in a glass-walled booth, a by-the-book Deputy and her wildly under-qualified new assistant run the increasingly bizarre punishment. But as the dishes pile higher and the ticker climbs, the rules begin to unravel — and so does the question of what these men have done to deserve being there. Suspenseful and unnervingly intimate, “Break” is a twist-filled psychological thriller about parenthood, punishment, forgiveness, and broken dishes.
Kassar Productions teams up with LTV Studios for the fourth year in a row, presenting Conor McPherson’s modern adaptation of “The Dance of Death,” a pair of plays originally written in 1900 by August Strindberg. Directed by Grace Kiley and starring Dena Tyler, Matthew Conlon, and Edward W. Kassar, the play follows military captain Edgar and his wife, Alice, as they live a bitter life with a marriage soured by hatred on an isolated island. When the possibility of redemption and escape arrives for Alice in the shape of their former comrade Kurt, it seems that Edgar is prepared to use his very last breath to make their lives a living hell. “The Dance of Death” — which Gladstone says has never been performed on the East End — begins with a preview night on Thursday, September 24, and runs through Oct. 9 with both evening shows and matinees.
Celebrated local writer John McCaffrey returns on October 10 with another dramatic production: “The Old Marlin & The Sea.” This staged reading combines acting, video projection, and live musical accompaniment to tell the story of silent-film star William Farnum, a 105-year-old taxidermied marlin, and the origins of the Village of North Sea’s historic Actors’ Colony Road.
“The Elephant Man,” running for 10 performances between October 22 and November 1, arrives at LTV as a co-production with Long Island’s new, up-and-coming Mirror & Mask Theatre Company, which will transform Studio 3 into an immersive, turn-of-the-century circus. For audiences that enjoy a dark twist, this 1977 play by Bernard Pomerance will provide exactly the right mood — making Halloween an especially exciting night to attend. Note: This production includes moments of nudity.
On November 6, a lively “Actors’ Showcase,” produced by and starring local favorites Lydia Franco-Hodges and Randall Hemming, with an evening of workshop-style plays performed by local actors.
On November 8, Playwrights’ Theatre of East Hampton will produce a staged reading of “Whistlejacket,” a new play by composer and playwright Charles Bornstein that explores the life and death of Kathleen “Kick” Kennedy, the rebellious younger sister of President John F. Kennedy who died at the age of 28.
“LTV is the place to be this fall to experience live theater at its boldest and most engaging,” Gladstone said.
Visit ltveh.org for more info.