Shakespeare Theatre Company, Studio Theatre, and Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company announce today a year-long International Theatre Festival coming to Washington, DC. The festival, which kicks off in July, will present and celebrate the work of a wide range of theatre artists from around the globe. The festival launch is supported by Events DC, helping to energize the Downtown DC arts and culture district.

“This festival started with a simple idea: what if DC’s Downtown theatres pooled our energy to bring global artists into conversation with our audiences—and with each other?” said Maria Manuela Goyanes, Artistic Director, Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company/LCT3 at Lincoln Center. “DC is one of the most international cities in the world. It makes sense that our stages reflect that. I’m proud that Woolly is part of a collective effort to build deeper relationships across borders and expand what’s possible in American theatre.”

The DC International Theatre Festival is a year-long celebration of the transformative partnerships forged between American and international theatre artists across borders. DC theatres bring the best international talent to DC, and attract visitors from across the region and the country to experience world-class performances.

“DC is a uniquely international city and a city with a particularly robust theatre scene,” says Studio Theatre Artistic Director David Muse. “Studio’s programming specifically has been enriched by artists from Japan, Ireland, South Africa, Norway, Germany, Australia, and the United Kingdom, to name some of the playwrights and companies we’ve hosted in my time at Studio. So, when Maria reached out to Simon and myself about collaborating to bring international work to town, it was an easy yes.”

The festival begins July 1-20 with STC’s presentation of Duel Reality, an acrobatic retelling of Romeo and Juliet, created by The 7 Fingers (also known as Les 7 Doigts de la main), from Montréal, Québec. The company features aerial and circus artists from more than 10 countries, including Argentina, Guatemala, Sweden, France, Spain, Canada, and Mexico. The festival officially launches with a kick-off event at the opening night party of Duel Reality, Wednesday, July 2.

“Now more than ever is the time to come together, both locally, with our fellow institutions, and internationally,” says STC Artistic Director Simon Godwin. “I am excited to partner with our theatre neighbors in bringing the work of international artists, writers, and performers to Washington. We hope other theatres in the District will join us in these endeavors throughout the coming year.”

The festival will continue throughout the 2025/2026 theatrical season, with each of the producer partner theatres presenting an international production or perspective in its season. In addition, a series of panel discussions and public events will explore the role of collaboration and artistic exploration across borders.

Programming for the DC International Theatre Festival is still being added, and updates can be found at the event’s official website: DCInternationalTheatreFestival.com

SPONSORS


The DC International Theatre Festival is supported in part by a grant from Events DC and DMPED.

PRODUCTIONS
In November, Woolly Mammoth Theatre opens ho ho ho ha ha ha ha, a festive take on the award-winning show ha ha ha ha ha ha ha, from Julia Masli–an Estonian-born, London-based clown. The show comes to DC fresh off a global tour with stops in New York City (at The Public), and previously in Edinburgh, London, and Melbourne.



STC will bring the Royal Shakespeare Company to Harman Hall in March with its production of Hamnet. This will be the U.S. premiere of the Royal Shakespeare Company and Neal Street Production’s “sweeping and sentimental” (The Guardian) stage adaptation of Maggie O’Farrell’s best-selling novel, adapted by award-winning playwright Lolita Chakrabarti (Life of Pi) and directed by Erica Whyman.




June 2026 brings Feeling Afraid As If Something Terrible Is Going to Happen to Studio Theatre. From Brazilian-Australian playwright Marcelo dos Santos and British director Matthew Xia comes a darkly comedic one-man show that journeys through self-awareness and self-sabotage with razor-sharp wit. The show, “which took the Edinburgh Fringe Festival by storm in 2022,” comes to DC from UK producer Francesca Moody Productions.

DISCUSSIONS & EVENTS
Sunday, September 21, a Discussion at Studio Theatre: Simon Godwin (Artistic Director, STC), Mina Morita (Bold Resident Director & Creative Producer, Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company), will be moderated by the Japanese Embassy at Studio Theatre. Working across Japan and the United States, Mina and Simon speak to their cross-cultural experiences.

On September 26, Studio Theatre will present, in conjunction with CODAworx Summit, The Value of International Artistic Collaboration. This conversation will feature leaders from all three partner institutions, including Maria Manuela Goyanes (Artistic Director, Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company/LCT3 at Lincoln Center), David Muse (Artistic Director, Studio Theatre), and Drew Lichtenberg (Artistic Producer, STC), in discussion with two luminaries in the public art world, Vincent Roy (Founder, EXMURO) and Jeremy Crandell (Arts Producer, Burning Man).

September 28, Woolly Mammoth will host The Best International Theatre Company You Haven’t Heard Of, which features Drew Lichtenberg (Artistic Producer, STC) and Maria Manuela Goyanes (Artistic Director, Woolly Mammoth Theatre/LCT3 at Lincoln Center) in conversation with Helgard Haug (Rimini Protokoll). Presented by STC along with the Embassy of Germany and the Goethe-Institut, Drew Lichtenberg interviews Helgard Haug of the innovative German theatre group Rimini Protokoll, alongside Maria Goyanes, on how theatre companies today are embracing Internationalism, Innovation, and Independence.

In conjunction with this event and as part of the wider festival, theatre professionals from the DC, Maryland, and Virginia area will be invited to a special industry brunch with Helgard at the Goethe-Institut on September 30. For more information. go to https://www.dcinternationaltheatrefestival.com/

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I knew early on that I wanted to take my place among the stars. One day, my mother saw me reading The Washington Post at a very young age. Who would have known that it would be the building blocks of my journey? Since that day, I dedicated my life to learn all that is learnable. I read everything from encyclopedias, to books, to dictionaries, to magazines. I’m also an avid consumer of television, with my favorite genre being game shows. If you’ve seen me on Who Wants to be a Millionaire or Wheel of Fortune, then you know that this interest has served me well!

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