We’ve had enough time to settle into the new year. It’s time to start marking up the calendar or typing in entries on your phone, because there are a lot of good theatrical events coming down the pike. We’ll offer an overview in the next issue of our magazine, but since our deadline, a lot more has come in.
Stage Right!
Terms of Endearment, based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel and Oscar-winning movie, will run Jan. 30-Feb. 15 at Empire Stage. That will be followed by The Sum of Us (which was also made into a film) from ArtBuzz Theatrics, running Feb. 20-March 8. The witty musical, [title of show], runs Feb. 13 - March 1 at The Willow Theatre in Sugar Sand Park in Boca Raton. City Theatre brings the world premiere of How to Break in a Glove, running Feb. 5-22 to Arsht’s Carnival Studio Theater. Brévo Theatre has announced its 2026 season: with Freshly Rooted, running Feb. 5-15 at The Hive Black Box Theater in Pompano. Then it will mount The Color Purple, June 20–28 at the Pompano Beach Cultural Center. That is followed by School Girls; or, the African Mean Girls Play, Sept. 4–21 at The Hive in Pompano.
Cinema Verité
The Sun & Stars International Film Festival returns for its fourth season. Many of the films have a special interest to our community. Among those are: A Man With Sole: The Impact of Kenneth Cole, at Glazer Hall on Feb. 6. Jimpa stars Oscar-winner Olivia Colman and Golden Globe-winner John Lithgow as a flamboyant gay grandfather, at Delray Marketplace on Feb. 1. La Petite Dernière (The Little Sister), at Delray Marketplace, Feb. 3, centers on emerging self-acceptance for a daughter who realizes that neither her family nor her faith will recognize her for who she is. Speak is a journey through the lives of five high school students as they prepare for the world’s largest oratory competition, at the Kravis Center Jan. 29. Sultana’s Dream presents the colors and cultures of India in an animated film focusing on Ladyland, a safe place for women where gender roles are reversed, men are segregated, and women are equal and free to order the world in peace and harmony.
Music Matters
Speaking Up in Every Key: A Musical Celebration featuring Broadway stars Seth Rudetsky, Lillias White, and Arielle Jacobs on Feb. 22 at the Miramar Cultural Center, will blend musical theater performances from all three stars with stories to explore how the arts spark empathy, connection, and true allyship. Through their distinct experiences, whether engaging with Jewish identity, advocating for racial equity, or empowering young women, they each demonstrate how the arts can inspire connection, healing, and action. The event will include a special performance with the Gay Men’s Chorus of South Florida. Acclaimed soprano, Lisette Oropesa, will headline Palm Beach Opera’s 2026 Gala on March 2 at The Breakers Palm Beach.
The Big Apple
This is the time to plan your trip to New York to see Broadway shows. According to Time Out New York, the musicals to see include: Cats: The Jellicle Ball, which takes the musical and sets it in ballroom/runway world. The Rocky Horror Show, with openly gay British heartthrob Luke Evans as the show's lingerie-clad Frank-N-Furter. Titanique, the long-running film spoof, sails in from Off-Broadway. Two films based on much-loved movies from the ‘80s, Beaches and The Lost Boys. Schmigadoon!, based on the Apple TV series. The dramas creating the most buzz are: Every Brilliant Thing with Daniel Redcliff, Death of a Salesman with Nathan Lane and Laurie Metcalf, Dog Day Afternoon with The Bear co-stars Jon Bernthal and Ebon Moss-Bachrach in an adaptation of Sidney Lumet film, and Giant with John Lithgow as Roald Dahl.
Corrections
In my 10 Reasons Why I’m Grateful to Live in South Florida article from last week, I neglected to mention Savor Cinema and the Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival in the film festival information. I also mixed up a couple of plays at Island City. Last season’s opener was The Fantasticks, not Fat Ham, and Ruthless began its 14th season.
