Studio Theatre Launches New Pages, New Stages: a Three-Day Festival of New Work

Studio Theatre is teaming up with four fellow DC companies to present a three-day celebration of fresh writing for the stage from January 23-25, 2026. The New Pages, New Stages festival will offer public readings of works-in-progress drawn from Studio's own Studio R&D pipeline alongside brand-new projects from partner theatres across the city, giving audiences a front-row look at tomorrow's plays today.

At the heart of the weekend are two in-process titles nurtured by Studio R&D, the company's new-work engine that has supported commissions and development since 2012. Over the last decade, Studio R&D has worked with a roster of notable playwrights-including Rachel Bonds, Aaron Posner, Kimberly Belflower, and Pulitzer Prize winner James Ijames-and has seen its projects travel from DC to Broadway, Off-Broadway, and stages nationwide and abroad. The festival extends that spirit of discovery by welcoming Arena Stage, Theater Alliance, Theater J, and Solas Nua to share their own new plays in reading form.

The participating playwrights and play titles will be announced in December, with tickets released to the general public two weeks before the readings. That timing keeps the focus on the work at hand-brand-new pages hitting brand-new stages-while inviting DC theatregoers to sample a wide spectrum of voices in a single weekend.

"Washington, DC is one of the country's powerhouse theatre cities," noted Studio Artistic Director David Muse. "Part of my impulse in developing New Pages, New Stages was to showcase the range and depth of new writing on DC-area stages. By producing readings from four other theatres, large and small, I also hope to capture something of the excitement of the Kennedy Center's former Page to Stage Festival, which didn't return after the pandemic shutdown. Theatre in DC is vibrant and varied, and New Pages, New Stages will give audiences a chance to get a sense of its range over three days."

Keep an eye out for the December lineup announcement, and mark your calendar for January 23-25. Whether you're scouting the next big premiere or just love being in the room where new stories take shape, New Pages, New Stages aims to be a can't-miss snapshot of DC theatre's creative pulse.