Sonia Friedman and Hugh Jackman have announced the launch of TOGETHER, a new company dedicated to creating live theatre.
With a remit to create theatre that is intimate and accessible, the new partnership aims to be driven by a commitment to offering audiences a chance to experience theater in a fresh and engaging way.
The partnership will work alongside respected British director and former Royal Court artistic director Ian Rickson (The Weir, Royal Court; Hamlet, The Young Vic; Translations, National Theatre).
Sonia Friedman, Hugh Jackman and Ian Rickson are reuniting following their work together on Jez Butterworth’s play The River in 2014, produced by Friedman, starring Jackman and directed by Rickson.
TOGETHER plans to stage short runs of fully rehearsed, full-length plays, along with readings, panel discussions and other events in the US, UK, and beyond. The focus will be on collaboration, ensemble, equal pay for actors, and shared creative credit. By stripping the fully rehearsed productions down to their essentials, with minimal décor, TOGETHER aims to celebrate the raw power of storytelling — getting back to what often makes theater so compelling in the first place.
Performances will take place in small venues, where established actors will perform just feet from the audience, creating an intimate, elemental experience and heightened sense of community. Above all, TOGETHER is committed to keeping its productions genuinely affordable for a large proportion of the house and open to as many people as possible.
Sonia Friedman and Hugh Jackman said in a joint statement: “With director Ian Rickson we wanted to create a company where actors, writers, and directors could experiment, explore, and take risks, away from the pressures that are often associated with the commercial theater world. TOGETHER is about going back to basics, rediscovering the simple, thrilling essence of live performance. At the same time, this isn’t about our stepping away from Broadway or the West End—it’s about supporting and coexisting alongside them. We have always been drawn to theater because of its raw energy—the excitement of a first reading, the joy of stepping into an unexpected role, that sense of a shared experience. With Ian, this company is our way of sharing those moments with audiences, making them part of our process. We also want to embrace flexibility—whether that’s through varied performance schedules during the week or staging plays in repertoire, allowing productions and ideas to evolve in a spontaneous and organic way. By removing some of the usual constraints, we hope to create a space where the productions can feel fresh, alive, and ever-changing.”
More information about forthcoming productions will be announced soon.
Sonia Friedman is one of the West End and Broadway’s most active producers. Her current West End productions include Mean Girls, The Book of Mormon, The Years, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, and Stranger Things: The First Shadow which is also opening on Broadway. Her forthcoming productions include Royal Court new play Manhunt; Broadway-to-West End transfer Stereophonic, coming to the Duke of York’s Theatre in May; and Imelda Staunton in Mrs Warren’s Profession at the Garrick Theatre.
On Broadway, Sonia Friedman is transferring her London production of Oedipus, and producing new musical The Queen of Versailles starring Kristin Chenoweth, alongside productions of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, and Stranger Things: The First Shadow.
It was announced today that her current West End production of Mean Girls is closing in the West End this June, ahead of a UK tour.
Sonia Friedman Productions is a partner company of ATG. Read more about Sonia Friedman and Sonia Friedman Productions.
Hugh Jackman is an Australian stage and screen star. Hugh is returning to the stage this summer, opening the summer season at The Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles on 7 July 2025. He was scheduled to play BST Hyde Park this summer, but the concert was cancelled.
Hugh recently starred in The Music Man on Broadway alongside Sutton Foster. His previous stage work includes Oklahoma! at the National Theatre, and The Boy From Oz, The River and A Steady Rain on Broadway.
Hugh Jackman’s previous screen roles include playing Wolverine in the X-Men movies, the movie version of Les Miserables, and in The Greatest Showman.
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