2025-2026 SEason

A SEASON OF ENTROPY

The universal law of entropy is that the world will dissolve into uncertainty, disorder, and chaos. Order is often imposed upon us, either through Executive Action or Social Paradigm. Entropy liberates us. Our inaugural season endeavors to establish queer and trans identity in a world that seeks to erase us.

antigonē: A Play Against Birth

July 2025

Following a calamitous civil war between Oidipous’s two sons, Polyneikes and Eteokles, the city of Thebes struggles to resurrect itself into order. With most of the royal family dead, Kreon, brother of the previous queen Iocasta, becomes the king of Thebes and attempts to restore order, prohibiting the burial of the traitorous Polyneikes. However, his overreaching decree comes in direct conflict with both Polyneikes’s surviving sister, Antigone, and the community’s religious beliefs regarding proper burial for all humans. As such, Antigone attempts to convince her sister, Ismene, to aid her in confronting this injustice by burying Polyneikes. Following Ismene’s refusal, Antigone justly buries her brother, forcing her in direct violation of the city’s laws. Consequently, Kreon calls for Antigone’s execution, much to the dismay of the civilian population and Kreon’s son and Antigone’s fiance, Haimon. Although Haimon, the blind prophet Teiresias, and Chorus of Theban Elders attempt to convince Kreon to yield in his domineering beliefs, Kreon’s implacable stubbornness incites the most mournful tragedy in his own familial unit. A play interrogating themes of injustice, individual and state power, and abuses of power, this production of Antigone sutures this ancient narrative into a modern lens: how does our state today inflict injustice and authority over citizens' bodies? And who, in our society, is forced into the role of rebelling against such abuses?


Godbearer

written by Lane St. Sebastian

Winter 2026

GODBEARER follows its transgender protagonist, Peter, in the week leading up to both his 21st birthday and the anniversary of his mother’s death. In the midst of his grief, an entity, GODBEARER, begins haunting Peter, smearing him and the stage with oil, tar, blood, and possession. As GODBEARER plagues Peter further, he finds himself collapsing, incapable of communicating the dreams, memories, and nightmarish horrors that torture him. A meditation into haunting, grief, and religious burden, Godbearer asks its audience: What tragedy is catalyzed from fear?


New Play Development Residency

Summer 2026

Theatre of the Bacchant is excited to announce our Play Development Residency for the Summer of 2026, a program designed to support and nurture the voices of playwrights of color who are inspired by the ancient and classical canon. Through this residency, we aim to cultivate new works that resonate with the timeless themes of writers like Sophocles, Euripides, and others, while bringing fresh perspectives and voices to the stage.

We invite all playwrights of color with a passion for classical works to submit their applications. We, particularly, are interested in submissions which break the boundaries of theatre and classics, creating exciting possibilities in how we consider ancient stories in our modern context. Together, we will explore the intersection of myth, history, and modern narrative to create something exciting, bold, and impactful.

Support this season by funding artist stipends

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