Part of the wardrobe crew, Arler Ohlmiller ’28, majoring in communication studies and women, gender, and sexuality studies, alters a costume for “Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead," scheduled for the Brunner Main Stage Theatre Nov. 12-15.
Augustana brings the drama in 2026-27 theatre season
Who’s ready for a little drama? Augustana’s 2026-27 theatre season has plenty of it, along with soccer, Shakespeare, Victorian-era intrigue and a musical mystery that lets the audience decide the ending.
For students across campus — not just theatre majors — the upcoming season is a chance to stretch into new roles and experience the magic of a production coming together live onstage.
“In selecting our shows, we always think about what new experiences our students — actors, designers and technicians — need to round out their time at Augie, and we are lucky enough to think of experiences that also challenge us as faculty-artists,” said Dr. Jennifer Popple, associate professor and co-chair of theatre. “We look at who our students are, what students we want to draw in and who is ready for certain experiences.”
The season opens October 29 with A.R. Gurney’s “The Dining Room,” directed by Christian Haywood ’27. In November, Jeff Coussens ’80, professor and co-chair of theatre, will direct renowned playwright Tom Stoppard’s Tony Award-winning “Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead.”
“‘Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead’ is a great imagined offshoot of Hamlet with two characters from the original Hamlet, who do, indeed, die over the course of the play,” Dr. Popple said. “Stoppard's use of language is sophisticated, hilarious and challenging.”
Spring productions include “The Wolves,” co-directed by Dr. Popple and Lydia Benesh ’27; “The Wager,” directed by DJ Roberts ’27; and the Tony Award-winning “The Mystery of Edwin Drood,” directed by new musical theatre professor Jeremiah Downes.
“The Wolves” will be an especially distinctive challenge, Dr. Popple noted. The play centers on a girls’ high school soccer team, with much of the action taking place in ensemble scenes.
“I love directing intimate one-on-one or small conversations because of the detail we can get into, so scenes with nine actors, playing high school soccer players warming up before their games, is a great challenge for me and Lydia, my co-director, and for the actors we will cast,” she said.
In addition to directing shows, students will take on leadership roles in lighting, props, sound, costumes, makeup, hair, stage management and construction during the year.
Haley Marshall '27, an environmental geology major, has worked in the Costume Shop for four years.
DJ Roberts '27, majoring in history and theatre, and Johana Neumann '29, a music education major, build set pieces in the Scene Shop.
A new voice in musical theatre
One of the biggest changes to the theatre program this year is the addition of Jeremiah Downes, visiting assistant professor of theatre and film. He will direct “The Mystery of Edwin Drood,” a Victorian-era musical based on Charles Dickens’ unfinished novel in which the audience gets to vote on the identity of the murderer.
"I'm looking forward to working with our smart, talented and inquisitive students on this crunchy and complex musical,” Downes said. “‘Drood’ presents so many exciting challenges that I know our students will conquer successfully, all the while putting their own unique stamp on this beloved work. It's going to be a blast for all!"
The order of shows on the Brunner Main Stage Theatre also will change this year, with the musical closing out the season in May.
“The Wolves,” another spring performance, needs a relatively simple set — a soccer field — as well as soccer uniforms, which will both be designed by a student. Staging the musical after "The Wolves" will allow Mike Turczynski, Scene Shop manager and technical director; Becki Arnold, Costume Shop manager/designer; and work-study students to devote more time to the production’s more complicated Victorian-era set and costumes.
A live art form to appreciate
For Benesh, a theatre and business administration-management double major, the value of theatre reaches far beyond the stage and classroom.
“Theatre is inherently experiential,” she said. “The artform itself is the experience of live performance, which you just can't replicate in a textbook. Theatre is also communal. Seeing all the pieces work together during a rehearsal process has been integral to my educational development and appreciation of theatre.”
Benesh encourages students to also discover that experience from the audience. Augustana productions provide students with an accessible way to see significant works of theatre for free and close to home, she says, while also creating an opportunity to gather with others and experience a story together.
Dr. Popple hopes that sense of connection continues after the lights fade to black and that each show encourages audiences to develop a lasting appreciation for live theatre.
“We always hope that they take away a respect for this beautiful live art form and plan to support it in some way throughout their lives,” she said.