A new era brings bold vision to Capital Repertory Theatre’s 2025-26 season

Under new Producing Artistic Director, the upcoming lineup blends fierce humor and dazzling theatricality

ALBANY—Capital Repertory Theatre audience members can expect continued excellence alongside fresh artists and ideas this year as Miriam Weisfeld takes over as Producing Artistic Director. The lineup for this season includes playful, innovative, and nostalgic stories from “Becky Nurse of Salem,” “Murder for Two: Holiday Edition,” and “Archduke” to “Dodi & Diana” and “Mystic Pizza.”

The 2025-26 season, sponsored by Overit, marks Weisfeld’s visionary and collaborative leadership. A veteran dramaturg, Weisfeld shaped “The Outsiders” (2024 Tony winner) and world-premiere musicals like “An American Tail.” She also serves as Producing Artistic Director of Adirondack Theatre Festival.

“In a lot of ways, this season is both a celebration of the artists, titles, and traditions that are beloved at theREP. And a beginning of opening the door a little bit wider in terms of how far we can push the theatricality of our productions and how far we can push the outrageous humor of the plays,” Weisfeld said.

“And also, how far we can invite the world into theREP in new ways. That may be about reflecting the world outside our doors in terms of life cycle events like holidays, and things that are happening outside in our reality, in our families, in our homes. It might be about reflecting on what’s happening at the Capitol and around the country,” she added.

“Becky Nurse of Salem,” taking place Sept. 26-Oct. 19, imagines the story of Becky Nurse, a descendant of Rebecca Nurse, notoriously executed in the Salem Witch Trials. Becky works as a your guide at the Salem Witch Museum and gets fired for speaking her mind a bit to frankly to a school group.

Sorcery, history, drugs, and her granddaughter’s high school production of “The Crucible” converge in this scathing dark comedy that shreds the myth of the Salem witches as villains and victims, celebrating the defiant survivor in us all.

“One astonishing thing to me about this play, is that it’s a world where both all of the dark things about our history can sort of coexist with a vision of what is magical and good in our world, which means love and family and theatre. 

I also love that it’s a feminist play for everyone. It ends with a vision of liberation that includes a lot of different kinds of people, and it reminds us that we can’t escape misogyny without really good dudes,” Weisfeld said.

Reflecting the season outside, the comic romp “Murder for Two: Holiday Edition” comes to the MainStage at theREP Nov. 28- Dec. 28. This returning favorite dressed up in holiday cheer brings back virtuosic performer Joe Kinosian, who composed the show’s score and originated the role of “the suspects” in 2015.

“Archduke,” March 6-29, reflects the world more subtly – tackling our current political moment through the lens of the assassination of Archduke Ferdinand and the start of the first World War. This audaciously theatrical production comes to Capital Repertory Theatre directly from Philadelphia’s Wilma Theater, winner of the 2024 Regional Theatre Tony Award. Inventive, hilarious and heartbreaking, “Archduke” reminds us that a world torn apart by political extremism inevitably eats its young.

“Hope is a little outrageous right now. It feels a little bit daring, a little bit absurd, a little wild to be hopeful. But that’s exactly what we need from each other right now. That’s exactly why we need to step into a dark room together and look towards the light and discover. And that’s what these shows this season invite us to do – look into a pretty dark abyss and see light.”

Weisfeld is dedicated to maintaining theREP’s mission of bringing new work to the Capital Region. This season brings playwright Kareem Fahmy’s “Dodi & Diana” to the MainStage April 24-May 17. He has been featured multiple years at the Next Act New Play Summit.

“Dodi & Diana,” follows Jason and Samira after their marriage has hit a crisis — rising Egyptian-American actress Samira lands a controversial TV role, and Jason fears their relationship will be burned by the glare of the spotlight. On the advice of an astrologer, they check into the Hôtel Ritz Paris on the anniversary of Princess Diana and Dodi Fayed’s death. As tensions flare and desire ignites, the couple faces a fateful reckoning beneath the weight of history, identity, and stardom.

According to Weisfeld, “Kareem writes about these really big, complex cultural issues but he’s also got an uncanny ear for intimacy, for human relationships. And the way that he writes about a marriage unfurling is just breathtaking. This is an incredibly brave, incredibly precise portrait of a marriage on the precipice that I think is going to feel familiar to anybody who’s ever had their heart broken.”

“It’s called “Dodi & Diana” because the car crash that killed Princess Diana and Dodi Fayed functions as a metaphor for the destruction of this marriage. It sounds really heavy but it’s tackled with such a human and compassionate, and humorous, handle on what it means to be in an intimate relationship,” Weisfeld added.

The 2025-26 season closes with a bang next summer. Collaboration across regional theatres shows off as “Mystic Pizza” takes the MainStage July 10- Aug. 9, 2026. Weisfeld, hosted a development retreat for “Mystic Pizza” and produced a concert presentation of the musical in 2022 as the Producing Artistic Director of ATF.

“This new musical is a great example of how theREP can seize an even more significant role in the development of new work nationally and connect some of the work that you see at Proctors, and in New York, and around the country with the work that we develop here in the Capital Region,” Weisfeld said.

Based on the beloved 1988 movie starring Julia Roberts, this new musical features a treasure trove of pop hits by Melissa Etheridge, Cyndi Lauper, Debbie Gibson, Van Morrison, and more. In the small fishing town of Mystic, Connecticut, three girlfriends sling pizza, fall in and out of love, grow up but never grow out of their loyalty to each other.

“It’s this incredible cultural touchstone, especially for Gen Xers. It’s got this amazing jukebox score of mega hits from the ‘80s and early ‘90s,” she added.

Weisfeld is honored to take on this new role and share this captivating and memorable season with the audiences. Bringing expertise as a dramaturg and her Broadway connections, she is excited for the future of theREP.

“Capital Repertory Theatre sets the bar for professional work in the Capital Region. It is an astonishing legacy that Maggie [Mancinelli-Cahill] has built. I see so much opportunity to build on that foundation, to seize an even larger role in the cultural conversation that happens in Albany that influences New York and the entire country. This is a chance for us to leverage that tradition of excellence and the community of incredibly smart audience members that Maggie has created and open our doors even wider to reflect the reality that we’re living in,” she said.

Subscriptions are still available for this incredible season. Tickets to individual shows are on sale now. Visit attherep.org or the Box Office at Proctors in-person or via phone at (518) 346-6204 Tuesday-Saturday 12-6 p.m.