Set for this season are “Dead Man’s Cell Phone,” “A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder,” “Don’t Ask,” “Murder on the Orient Express,” and “Dear Evan Hansen” with Red Mountain Theatre.New performances from Theatre UAB have been announced for the upcoming 2025-2026 season kicking off this fall.
Theatre UAB is the performance company of the College of Arts and Sciences’ Department of Theatre at the University of Alabama at Birmingham.
This season includes “Dead Man’s Cell Phone,” “A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder,” “Don’t Ask,” and “Murder on the Orient Express.” For the third year, Theatre UAB will collaborate with Red Mountain Theatre to co-present “Dear Evan Hansen,” directed and choreographed by Associate Professor Roy Lightner.
Visit the UAB Department of Theatre online at uab.edu/cas/theatre, or call the department at 205-934-3236. Main stage performances are held in UAB’s Alys Stephens Performing Arts Center, 1200 10th Ave. South. Purchase tickets at AlysStephens.org or call 205-975-2787.
The season explores the many ways we connect and disconnect as human beings, says incoming chair of the UAB Department of Theatre Megan Lewis, Ph.D. “Dead Man’s Cell Phone” reflects on how we memorialize the dead — and how that remembering changes us. “Don’t Ask” explores the risks we take to show up as our authentic selves.
“Two shows in our season take us on intricate murder mysteries that mine the lighter and darker sides of the human animal,” Lewis said. “And anxious Evan Hansen weaves himself into a detective story of his own imagining to mask his social pain.”
Special free showcase performances will kick off the season to emphasize the department’s commitment to accessibility, Lewis says. To teach students about the process of developing new work, the department added a staged reading of “Don’t Ask,” with UAB students reading alongside professional actors.
Theatre UAB’s 2025-2026 season:
Sept. 13, UAB Theatre Touring Showcase
Two free performances: Tour Showcase I, featuring “The Rainbow Fish” and “Star-Cross’d (‘Romeo & Juliet,’ abridged),” at 2 p.m., and Tour Showcase 2, featuring “Dynamic Duos” and “Leading Ladies of Broadway,” at 6 p.m. UAB’s Alys Stephens Center.
Sept. 27, Theatre UAB presents a staged reading of “Don’t Ask”
This new work written by alumna Hayley Procacci will be workshopped as part of The Human Rights New Works Festival at Red Mountain Theatre ahead of its Theatre UAB world premiere next spring. A former ROTC graduate and commissioned second lieutenant fights a deeply personal battle. Based on true events. Directed by Karla Koskinen. 7:30 p.m. at Red Mountain Theatre. Tickets are $15. Buy tickets at RedMountainTheatre.org.
Oct. 4, UAB Theatre Freshman Showcase
Free performance at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, in UAB’s Alys Stephens Center, Sirote Theatre. Directed by Carolyn Violi.
Oct. 15-19, Theatre UAB presents “Dead Man’s Cell Phone”
Answering a stranger’s incessantly ringing cellphone leads a troubled woman to confront her own assumptions about morality, mortality, redemption and the need to connect in a technologically obsessed world. Written by Sarah Ruhl. Directed by Assistant Professor Santiago Sosa.
Performances at 7:30 p.m. Oct. 15-18, and 2 p.m. Oct. 19, UAB’s Alys Stephens Center.
Tickets are $15; $10 for UAB students. Buy tickets at AlysStephens.org or call 205-975-2787.
Nov. 12-16, Theatre UAB presents “A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder”
A distant heir to a family fortune sets out to speed up the line of succession by using a great deal of charm ... and a dash of murder. Music, lyrics and book from Steven Lutvak and Robert L. Freedman. Based on a novel by Roy Horniman. Directed by Professor Valerie Accetta with music direction by Assistant Professor Jonathan Parks.
Performances at 7:30 p.m. Nov. 12-15 and 2 p.m. Nov. 16, UAB’s Alys Stephens Center.
Tickets: $25, $20; $15 for UAB employees and senior citizens; and $10 for UAB students. Buy tickets at AlysStephens.org or call 205-975-2787.
Dec. 9, Theatre UAB Performance Showcase
Free performance at 6 p.m. in Hulsey Recital Hall, UAB Hulsey Center for the Arts, 901 13th Street South.
Feb. 25-March 1, 2026, Theatre UAB presents “Don’t Ask”
A world premiere written and devised by UAB Theatre alumna Hayley Procacci. An ROTC graduate and former commissioned second lieutenant fights a deeply personal battle. Based on true events. Co-directed by Procacci and Karla Koskinen.
Performances at 7:30 p.m. Feb. 25-28 and 2 p.m. March 1, UAB’s Alys Stephens Center.
Tickets: $15; $10 for UAB students. Buy tickets at AlysStephens.org or call 205-975-2787.
March 25-29, 2026, Theatre UAB presents “Murder on the Orient Express”
In this mystery from Agatha Christie, an American tycoon lies dead in their Orient Express compartment, and the passengers rely on detective Hercule Poirot to identify the killer — in case they decide to strike again. Adapted for the stage by Ken Ludwig. Directed by incoming Assistant Professor Kelley Schoger.
Performances at 7:30 p.m. March 25-28 and at 2 p.m. March 29, in UAB’s Alys Stephens Center.
Tickets: $20; $15 for UAB employees and senior citizens; and $10 for UAB students. Buy tickets at AlysStephens.org or call 205-975-2787.
April 3-19, 2026, Theatre UAB, Red Mountain Theatre present “Dear Evan Hansen”
The third annual co-production between two Birmingham theater education powerhouses, UAB Theatre and Red Mountain Theatre. A high school senior with social anxiety invents an important role for himself in a tragedy that he did not earn. As he works through his adolescent confusion, grief and the pressures of the online world, it becomes the story of the universal need to find acceptance. Music and lyrics by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul. Book by Steven Levenson. Directed and choreographed by Associate Professor Roy Lightner with musical direction by Anthony Smith and Jonathan Parks.
Recommended for ages 13 and older. Tickets start at $40 with discounts for children 2-12. For showtimes and to purchase tickets, visit RedMountainTheatre.org.