Youngstown State University’s University Theatre program is excited to announce a versatile lineup of plays and musicals for its 2025-2026 production season.

Kicking off the fall semester will be Arsenic & Old Lace, a dark comedy written by Joseph Kesselring. This play follows Mortimer Brewster, a drama critic, who discovers that his elderly aunts have been poisoning lonely men as acts of kindness. Hilarity ensues as Mortimer tries to free his family from the insanity that has claimed their minds.

Arsenic & Old Lace will be held October 3 – 5 and 10 – 12 in the YSU Ford Theater, located in Bliss Hall.

Concluding the fall semester is Be More Chill, a musical based on Ned Vizzini’s novel of the same name. Jeremy, a social outcast at his high school, takes a pill containing a supercomputer known as SQUIP to become more popular, leading to the exploration of identity, technology, and the pressures of fitting in.

Be More Chill will open November 14 – 16 and 21 – 23 in Spotlight Theater, located in Bliss Hall.

University Theatre will present its production of Episode 26 to open the spring semester. Remember those glorious days of Saturday morning sci-fi serials at the local bijou: Buck Rogers and Flash Gordon. Here is an affectionate and extremely ingenious send-up of the genre.

Episode 26 takes place February 13 – 15 and 20 – 22, 2026, in Spotlight Theater.

Concluding University Theatre’s 2025-26 season will be Kiss Me, Kate, a musical by Cole Porter and Bella and Samuel Spewack. Centered around a production of William Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew, this show follows the on- and off-stage conflict between its characters, particularly exes Fred and Lilli and their turbulent relationship as they both start seeing other people.

Kiss Me, Kate will be held for one weekend only in the YSU Ford Theater beginning Thursday, April 16, through Sunday, April 19.

Season Subscriptions and Single Tickets will be available for sale 10 a.m., Monday, August 4 by visiting ysu.tix.com. For more information, visit ysu.edu/ccca/university-theatre or contact Katie Merrill at 330.941.2307 or kamerrill@ysu.edu.

University Theatre looks forward to welcoming you for another successful, entertaining season of laughter, drama and talent!

For more information, contact Katie Merrill, Cliffe College Coordinator of Community Engagement and Events, at 330.941.2307 or kamerrill@ysu.edu.