JEFFREY AUGER
Laiona Michelle with Christopher J. Bailey, center, and Scott Goldman at The New Brunswick Performing Arts Center’s Arthur Laurents Theater.
On April 16, 1937, the great African-American singer Marian Anderson gave a concert at the McCarter Theatre in Princeton, and was denied a hotel room at the town’s Nassau Inn. Albert Einstein, then teaching at Princeton’s Institute for Advance Study, attended the concert, and offered Anderson the guest room in his home. Anderson accepted.
“My Lord, What a Night,” Deborah Brevoort’s play about that night — originally commissioned by Premiere Stages’ Liberty Live program, and produced in a limited run at The Liberty Hall Museum at Kean University in 2016 (click HERE to read my review) — will be produced by The George Street Playhouse as part of its 2025-26 season at The New Brunswick Performing Arts Center.
George Street Playhouse has announced its other 2025-26 shows, too, as well as a restructuring of its leadership under executive director Edgar Herrera. Christopher J. Bailey, Scott Goldman and Laiona Michelle will serve as artistic co-producers. Bailey, now George Street’s production manager, will oversee production and operations. Goldman, the current general manager, will be in charge of general management and marketing. Michelle, who has directed and performed in a number of George Street productions and served in the rose of artistic associate, will oversee artistic and creative management.
Meanwhile, a new artistic director is still being sought to take over from David Saint, who has held that role since 1997 but previously announced that the current season will be his last.
In a press release, Bailey, Goldman and Michelle offered a joint statement that said, in part, that the upcoming season “reflects the depth, heart, and artistry as built through David Saint’s tenure over 27 years.”
Here is the season’s schedule. Subscriptions are currently on sale, with the on-sale date for single tickets to be announced later. Visit georgestreetplayhouse.org.
Oct. 14-Nov. 2: “An Old Fashioned Family Murder.” Written by Joe DiPietro; directed by Larry Raben.
Dec. 2-21: “Ebeneezer Scrooge’s Big Jersey Christmas Show!” Co-written by Gordon Greenberg and Steve Rosen, based on “A Christmas Carol” by Charles Dickens; directed by Gordon Greenberg.
March 17-April 5: “What Became of Us.” Written by Shayan Lofti; directed by Laiona Michelle.
April 28-May 17, 2026: “My Lord, What a Night.” Written by Deborah Brevoort; directed by Sheldon Epps.
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