See the latest performing arts productions and theater happenings opening across Houston from Monday, September 28 to Sunday, October 4, 2026.
I first saw Disgraced years ago, and its themes of identity, culture and what we give up for our ambition has stayed with me ever since. Jennifer Decker directs it for Shunya Theatre at MATCH and I am really looking forward to seeing it again.
A beloved musical marches into the Hobby Center this week, bringing with it songs that have enchanted generations. Chicano culture is in the spotlight in Hermann Park. Take in a little opera on your lunch break. Celebrate a Czech icon’s birthday. Apollo Chamber players opens its new season with interwoven commissions. And a brand-new theater company launches with the story of an icon.
Go see performing arts, Houston!
Top Live Theater & Performing Arts in Houston This Week: September 28 to October 4, 2026
Showtime! New Openings & This Week Only Shows
The Sound of Music at The Hobby Center | Tuesday to Sunday – The beloved Rodegers and Hammerstein musical returns to the Downtown stage, telling the story of a nun sent to be a governess to a family of seven children, run by a stern former naval captain. Generations of audiences have loved this show, with songs like “Do-Re-Mi,” “The Sound of Music” and “My Favorite Things.” $55+. Times vary. Get tickets.
Live at the Founders Club: An Evening with Ana Gasteyer at The Hobby Center | Thursday & Friday – The SNL alum and Broadway performer brings together jazz sophistication, Broadway theatricality, and comedic sharp wit that has made her one of entertainment’s most beloved performers. $45+. 7:30pm. Get tickets.
47th Annual Chicano Festival at Miller Outdoor Theatre | Thursday to Saturday | FREE – The beloved, 3-night concert series returns to the Hermann Park stage with different performers each evening, headlined by Marcos Orozco on Friday, Little Joe y La Familia on Saturday, and David Lee Garza on Sunday. 7pm nightly. Learn more.
Cypress Stages: Gloria: A Life at Cypress Woods High School Black Box Theatre | Opens Thursday | Ongoing – The new theater company’s inaugural production is based on the life of noted journalist, feminist and advocate for change, Gloria Steinem. $35+; $10 on opening night. Times vary. Get tickets.
Lunchtime Opera Recital at Alice Pratt Brown Hall | Friday | FREE – Spend your lunch break on the Rice campus taking in a recital of art songs, arias and selections from musical theater. Noon. Learn more.
The Ponce Project: Latinoamérica Viva! 2026 at MATCH | Friday – Mezzo soprano Paulina Villarreal sings a selection of some of the most beautiful song cycles by Manuel M. Ponce with Ilonka Rus accompanying on piano. $35. 7:30pm. Get tickets.
Houston Symphony: Rachmaninoff Festival: Rachmaninoff’s Second Symphony at Jones Hall | Friday to Sunday – Soar on wings of gorgeous melodies—each seemingly more beautiful than the last—as Music Director Juraj Valčuha leads Rachmaninoff’s lush and sensuous Symphony No. 2 and other selections. $67+. Times vary. Get tickets.
Shunya Theatre: Disgraced at MATCH | Opens Friday | Ongoing – A Pakistani-American corporate lawyer who suppressed his Muslim identity in post-9/11 America sees his world fall apart at a dinner party. $35. Times vary. Get tickets.
Jazz Night: Vaclav Havel Celebration at Czech Center Museum | Saturday – Celebrate the 90th birthday of Václav Havel with an unforgettable evening of jazz that captures the spirit of creativity, freedom, and cultural vibrancy he championed. $90. 6:30pm. Get tickets.
Apollo Chamber Players: Tranquility at Hobby Center | Saturday – Apollo’s 2026-27 season opens with two interwoven commissions—Resting States by Anthony Brandt and Illusion to Resolution by Chitravina Ravikiran—exploring the challenges of contemporary life and the modern mind’s search for calm amid overstimulation and distraction. $10+. 7pm. Get tickets.
They’ve Got Legs: Ongoing Shows
Romeo & Juliet at Alley Theatre | Tuesday to Sunday | Closes Sunday, October 11 – Shakespeare’s tragedy of star-crossed lovers from rival families, who risk everything to be together, has endured for centuries. See why it’s had a hold on generations of lovers and dreamers. $32+. Times vary. Get tickets.
Drunk Dracula at The Emerald Theatre | Tuesday to Sunday | Closes Sunday, November 8 – The ongoing drunk take on classic tale—where 1 out of 5 actors downs 5 shots of whiskey before taking on the lead role—shifts its focus to the famous vampire tale for the spooky season. $53+. Times vary. Get tickets.
Purpose at The Ensemble Theatre | Wednesday to Sunday | Closes Sunday, October 11 – The arts organization opens its 50th anniversary season with the Tony- and Pulitzer-winning play by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins. It follows the members of an influential Chicago family, who must reassess their values and long-held assumptions after a son returns home with an unexpected guest. $35+. Times vary. Get tickets.
Stages: Come From Away at The Gordy | Wednesday to Sunday | Closes Sunday, October 18 – When 38 planes of stranded passengers wind up in tiny Gander, Newfoundland, Canada on September 11, 2001, the townspeople find themselves overwhelmed. What happens next is an extraordinary story of grace and hope. Based on actual events, this musical was nominated for seven Tony Awards, including Best Musical, and has a following that will undoubtedly make this one of Houston’s hottest tickets. $49+. Times vary. Get tickets.
Catastrophic Theatre: Rhinoceros at MATCH | Thursday to Sunday | Closes Saturday, October 10 – Houston’s premier theater company for the odd, offbeat, and often just plain weird opens its season with the classic of absurdist theater by Eugene Ionesco. Written in reaction to the fascism, conformity, and senseless violence that surrounded Ionesco during WWII, this subversive comedy has biting wit and sees George Parker and Kyle Sturdivant revisit their roles from 2017’s smash-hit production. Pay-What-You-Can. Times vary. Get tickets.
Amadeus at The Rec Room | Thursday to Saturday | Closes Saturday, October 10 – The Downtown theater—a neighbor to the Astros’ Daikin Park—opens its tenth anniversary season with the Tony-winning play by Peter Shaffer. A story of genius and jealousy, it follows composer Antonio Salieri and his obsession with rival Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. $20+; $5 on Wednesday, September 23. 7:30pm. Get tickets.
Cold War Choir Practice at Main Street Theater | Thursday to Sunday | Closes Sunday, October 11 – The regional premiere of the 2026 Susan Smith Blackburn Prize winner occurs against the backdrop of the 1980s, exploring what happens when the threat of nuclear war and long-simmering family tensions collide, while sweeping a young girl into the intrigue. $45+. Times vary. Get tickets.
The Marvelous Wonderettes at Unity Theatre | Thursday to Sunday | Closes Sunday, October 11 – This Off-Broadway musical hit follows Betty Jean, Cindy Lou, Missy, and Suzy, who chase dreams as big as their crinoline skirts. Infused with hits from the 1950s and ’60s, the Brenham production offers effervescence and big-heartedness in equal measures. $35. Times vary. Get tickets.
Jekyll & Hyde at Stageworks Theatre | Friday to Sunday | Closes Sunday, October 11 – Determined to separate the good and evil within humankind, Dr. Henry Jekyll becomes trapped in a deadly struggle with his sinister alter ego, Edward Hyde, in a gothic musical with a pulsing, powerful score. $29+. Times vary. Get tickets.
About Noah at Theatre Suburbia | Friday to Sunday | Closes Saturday, October 17 – The fast-paced new comedy chronicles the life of Noah Bailey, spanning decades from the swinging ’60s straight through to the present day—all told through the eyes of those who knew him best. $20+. Times vary. Get tickets.
Curtain Call! Closing This Week
On Monday, Paul Hope Cabarets’ The Best is Yet to Come comes to an end at Ovations.
Saturday sees An Old Fashioned Family Murder find a resolution at Theatre Southwest.
And on Sunday, Mighty Acorn’s Babette’s Feast serves its final course at MATCH, Houston Ballet’s Manon faces its final consequence at Wortham Center, and Player Theatre Company’s Silent Sky at the Owen Theatre in Conroe.
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