Shakespeare’s Globe has announced new programming for the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse this winter. The 2026-27 season will see new works as well as classics on the indoor, candlelit stage.
Following their vibrant summer season with productions like A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Much Ado About Nothing, Shakespeare’s Globe has announced programming for their indoor venue, the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse. Lit by beeswax candles, the venue reconstructs the indoor candlelit theatres known to Shakespeare and his contemporaries.
Since its opening in 2014, the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse has allowed the Globe to have programming throughout the year, rather than just the summer months.
Shakespeare’s Globe Artistic Director Michelle Terry says: “This new season of plays in our candlelit Sam Wanamaker Playhouse is a season of debuts. The premiere of Timberlake Wertenbaker’s new play, the first time Chekhov’s The Seagull has been performed at the Globe, and the first time the epic history plays Julius Caesar and King John have been performed in the intimate indoor playhouse.”
Winter 2026 highlights include:
- Julius Caesar as directed by Joe Hill-Gibbins, marking the first time the play has been staged in the Globe’s indoor venue.
- Anton Chekhov’s The Seagull runs from 17 January – 12 April 2027, the first time a Chekov play has been performed at the Globe.
- One of Shakespeare’s rarely performed histories, King John will run from 7 February -11 April 2027.
- The premiere of Timberlake Wertenbaker’s new play The Animals Come to the Table
Additional Programming at Shakespeare’s Globe
In addition to the Winter 2026 season, The Globe has announced the return of the critically acclaimed new musical Pinocchio in the open-air Globe Theatre, running from 28 November 2026 – 3 January 2027.
Based on Carlo Collodi’s original stories of adventure about an animated marionette named Pinocchio, the musical is directed by Associate Artistic Director Sean Holmes (Romeo and Juliet), with book and lyrics by Charlie Josephine (Cowbois), and music and lyrics by Jim Fortune (Mr Gum and the Dancing Bear).
Also returning in October is the Shakespeare and Race Festival, set to feature a dynamic programme of talks and performances new and diverse voices shaping Shakespeare today.
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