By Odin Rasco

December is the time for lists — wish lists (to be strategically sent to every friend, relative and North Pole dweller just in time for the holidays), grocery lists in preparation of big family gatherings, best-of-the-year lists and lists of resolutions for New Year’s Day (to be forgotten or ignored in short order). 

In the spirit of the list-making season, I’ve compiled one of my own in the hopes that it may prove a useful resource for you, dear reader; consider it an early gift for the holidays. Compiled here (in convenient chronological order) is a short lineup of five shows set to hit the stage in the Sacramento area in 2026 that I cannot wait to see.

For those of you who know me — and to those of you who don’t, hello, nice to meet you, I’m  Odin, I review theater in the area — you might notice the list includes a few more musicals than I’d normally include. Though I love music and theater, it’s a lot harder to sell me on a show when it’s a combination of both (sacrilege, to some of you in the theatre world, I know). That being said, it’s hard to say no to “Little Shop of Horrors” or an opportunity to see a staging of Brecht.

Please note that this list is far from comprehensive: Some theatre troupes have yet to publicize or announce their upcoming seasons, so do make sure to keep your eyes peeled for the dozens of shows sure to be on their way next year.

1. Misery

Jan. 21 through Feb. 15

B Street Theatre is poised to start the new year with horror by bringing Stephen King’s “Misery” to The Sofia. After novelist Paul Sheldon is pulled from the wreckage of a terrible car crash by his “number one fan” Annie Wilkes, he soon finds the wreckage may have been the better place to rest. Wilkes reads an unpublished draft of Sheldon’s upcoming novel, but when she doesn’t like what she sees, she demands a rewrite. A story already packed with dark humor, suspense and tension, the stage adaptation is sure to have audiences nailed to the edge of their seats as the story hurtles toward its conclusion.

2. Romeo and Juliet

Feb. 6 through March 8

The second production by California Volunteer Theater will bring a classically styled performance of “Romeo and Juliet” to California Stage. Though many theater troupes look to add something fresh to Shakespeare through reinterpretation or modernizing, this show is taking a different approach. Rather than add something new, California Volunteer Theater is reintroducing something very old, claiming it will be “the first production of ‘Romeo and Juliet’ staged with the original music from Shakespeare’s production in at least 300 years.” This show sounds like a must-see, if only to see a musical rendition of one of the Bard’s most-loved plays not done by Baz Luhrmann.

3. Little Shop of Horrors

March 6-29

When the meekest man imaginable — floral assistant Seymour Krelborn — crosses paths with a peckish plant with big plans and a bigger mouth, something more than Miracle-Gro is going to be spilled. 

A classic musical (and, full disclosure, one of my all-time favorites) featuring rock ‘n’ roll, doo-wop and R&B stylings, “Little Shop of Horrors” is the kind of show that will leave songs stuck in your head for a month after seeing it. I’ve more than once gone into an internet deep dive just to see the myriad of ways productions have portrayed the gargantuan man-eating plant Audrey II, and cannot wait to see how Davis Musical Theatre Company goes about it when this show comes around in March.

4. Threepenny Opera

March (dates unannounced)

A dark and gritty musical that pushed the entire genre into strange new places when it was first performed after World War I, “Threepenny Opera” is a satire that bites at both the criminal underworld and high society (while illustrating how blurry the line between the two can be). Light Opera Theatre of Sacramento will be staging a new English translation/adaptation of the show in a cabaret style this March, and I am eager to see it; at present, this is my most-anticipated show for the first half of 2026. A smattering of the show’s songs have found lives of their own in popular culture, with crooner-lovers sure to recognize “Mack the Knife,” while fans of the Doors might be surprised to hear “Alabama Song.” 

5. Fat Ham

March 18 through April 19

In mid-March Capital Stage will present the Sacramento premiere of the 2022 Pulitzer Prize-winning “Fat Ham.” Juicy, a queer Southern college kid, finds a new level of difficulty in his life when his father’s ghost appears in his backyard and demands he avenge his murder. If you think this sounds a bit familiar, don’t worry — Juicy does, too. But Juicy isn’t Hamlet — he’s more interested in breaking cycles of trauma and violence than his Shakespearean counterpart. A story in conversation with its literary legacy while confronting new questions, it seems like a sure bet that “Fat Ham” will move audiences with its mix of love, loss, pain and joy.

6. Don’t Touch My Hair

June 12-28

Celebration Arts will play host to the West Coast premiere of Douglas Lyons’ bold new comedy, “Don’t Touch My Hair,” once the summer rolls around. When Eemani turns to her best friend Jade after an upsetting job interview, the two decide to de-stress with some hits of a “uniquely potent blunt,” according to the Los Angeles Times. The pair find the blunt so potent that they soon are launched back in time to an active plantation. Part of a trilogy of stories by Lyons that centers on Black womanhood and self-discovery, the show promises to be funny and eye-opening in equal measure. 

This story was funded by the City of Sacramento’s Arts and Creative Economy Journalism Grant to Solving Sacramento. Following our journalism code of ethics and protocols, the city had no editorial influence over this story and no city official reviewed this story before it was published. Our partners include California Groundbreakers, CapRadio, Hmong Daily News, Russian America Media, Sacramento Business Journal, Sacramento News & Review and Sacramento Observer. Sign up for our “Sac Art Pulse” newsletter here.