‘Suffs,’ ‘Kimberly Akimbo,’ ‘The Outsiders,’ and more Broadway hits to land in Philadelphia this year
The season, packed with Tony winners and Philly premieres, is finished off with the wondrous 'Cirque Dreams Holidaze.'
Good news for Broadway lovers: The lineup of hit musicals and shows coming to Philadelphia for the 2025-26 season is here. Ensemble Arts Philly has announced its slate of 13 Broadway productions running at the Academy of Music, Miller Theater, and Forrest Theatre in the coming year.
The Broadway series will feature Tony Award-winners over the past two years with Philadelphia premieres. Suffs, the historical musical following the story of South Jersey suffragist Alice Paul’s fight for women’s right to vote, won last year’s Tony for best original score and best book of a musical, both written by Shaina Taub (who also starred as Paul).
It runs at the Academy of Music from Jan. 6 to 18.
The Outsiders, whose Broadway run was produced by Angelina Jolie, will also play at the Academy of Music in 2026, scheduled for May 26 to June 7.
Based on S.E Hinton’s 1967 novel and its film adaptation by Francis Ford Coppola, the musical won four Tony Awards last year including best musical, best direction of a musical, best lighting design, and best sound design.
The corn field comedy Shucked will also open in Philadelphia next spring, running April 21 to May 3 at the Forrest Theatre. The musical — which starred Temple alum Ashley D. Kelley on Broadway — was nominated for multiple Tony Awards in 2023, winning best featured actor for Alex Newell, who made history as the first nonbinary actor to win in that category.
Arriving in Philadelphia sooner is Kimberly Akimbo, the North Jersey-set musical following a teen girl whose body ages more rapidly than her brain. The comedy won five Tony Awards in 2023, including best musical, best book, and best original score.
It lands at the Academy of Music this fall, running Oct. 21 to Nov. 2.
Other Philadelphia premieres include Clue (Jan. 20 to 25 at the Forrest Theatre), based on the whodunit board game and film; Back to the Future: The Musical (Nov. 18 to 30 at the Academy of Music) adapted from the beloved movie series starring Michael J. Fox; and The Notebook (July 21 to Aug. 2, 2026, at the Academy of Music), the musical adaptation of Nicholas Sparks’ tearjerker romance.
Popular classics will return to the region as well, from The Sound of Music (March 31 to April 5, 2026, at the Academy of Music) to Disney’s Beauty and the Beast (Feb. 11 to 22, 2026, at the Academy of Music) to Chicago (May 12 to 17, 2026, at the Forrest Theatre).
The sassy hit musical Six, a rock concert in which the wives of Henry VIII tell their side of the story, appeared on the Philly stage in 2023. It will be back this fall, from Sept. 30 to Oct. 5, at the Academy of Music.
This summer also sees the return of Beetlejuice, the musical based on Tim Burton’s 1988 film; the movie sequel Beetlejuice Beetlejuice came out last year. The elaborate production features more than 100 special effects, puppets, and illusions.
For the 2025 finale, Cirque Dreams Holidaze will make its way back to Philadelphia delivering a dazzling holiday show for the whole family. Acrobats, penguins, jugglers, and reindeer collide for this cross between a circus show and a Broadway production with holiday hits like “Winter Wonderland” and “Deck the Halls.”
The cost of subscriber packages, available to purchase now, starts at $29 per show, marking an $8 decrease from last year. The subscription bundle includes seven shows: Kimberly Akimbo, Back to the Future: The Musical, Suffs, Disney’s Beauty and the Beast, Shucked, The Outsiders, and The Notebook.
The price of the package ranges from $200 to $924, based on seating selection and show dates. Individual tickets per production will be available later this year.