Kimberly Belflower's 'John Proctor Is the Villain' Tops American Theatre's 2026-27 Most-Produced Plays List
The American Theatre has released its annual lists of the most produced plays and playwrights for the 2026-27 season, showcasing a total of 1,634 productions. This figure comprises 1,283 performances at 298 TCG member theatres and 351 at non-member and commercial venues, an increase from last season's 1,446 but still lower than the pre-pandemic total of 2,229. Leading the list is Kimberly Belflower's John Proctor Is the Villain, with 20 productions. This play, developed through the Farm Theater's College Collaboration Project, was workshopped in 2018-2019 and debuted in 2022. Notable first-time entries include Branden Jacobs-Jenkins's Purpose (14), Bess Wohl's Liberation (11), and Dracula: A Comedy of Terrors by Gordon Greenberg and Steve Rosen (7). August Wilson ranks first among playwrights with 23 productions, followed by Belflower (21) and Jacobs-Jenkins (19).
Key facts
- American Theatre's 2026-27 lists were compiled from 1,634 productions: 1,283 at 298 TCG member theatres and 351 at non-member and commercial venues
- Kimberly Belflower's John Proctor Is the Villain leads the plays list with 20 productions
- August Wilson tops the playwrights list with 23 productions, followed by Belflower with 21 and Branden Jacobs-Jenkins with 19
- The play began as a Farm Theater College Collaboration Project commission, with workshops in 2018 and 2019 at Centre College, Furman University, and Rollins College, plus the Ojai Playwrights Conference's New Works Festival in 2019
- Its professional premiere was in 2022 at Studio Theatre in Washington, D.C., followed by Boston's Huntington Theatre in 2024 and Broadway last year
- Purpose, Liberation, and Dracula: A Comedy of Terrors are first-time entries on the Top 10 plays list
- The production pool rose from 1,446 last season to 1,634 this year, still below the pre-pandemic 2,229
- A Christmas Carol (30 adaptations) and William Shakespeare (39 productions) were excluded; Stephen Sondheim would have 17 productions if counted as a playwright
Entities
Artists
- Kimberly Belflower
- Arthur Miller
- Branden Jacobs-Jenkins
- Bess Wohl
- Gordon Greenberg
- Steve Rosen
- August Wilson
- Lynn Nottage
- Heidi Schreck
- Jonathan Spector
- Irene Sankoff
- David Hein
- Claude-Michel Schönberg
- Herbert Kretzmer
- Alain Bouilil
- Jean-Marc Natel
- Steven Levenson
- Benj Pasek
- Justin Paul
- Eboni Booth
- Patrick Barlow
- John Buchan
- Alfred Hitchcock
- Henry Lewis
- Jonathan Sayer
- Henry Shields
- Hugh Wheeler
- Stephen Sondheim
- Suzan-Lori Parks
- Lauren Gunderson
- Jeffrey Hatcher
- Thomas Meehan
- David Lindsay-Abaire
- Tennessee Williams
- Steven Dietz
- Jen Silverman
- Karen Zacarías
- William Shakespeare
- Rob Askins
Institutions
- American Theatre
- TCG (Theatre Communications Group)
- Farm Theater
- College Collaboration Project
- Centre College
- Furman University
- Rollins College
- Ojai Playwrights Conference
- New Works Festival
- Studio Theatre
- Huntington Theatre
Locations
- Danville
- Kentucky
- United States
- Greenville
- South Carolina
- Winter Park
- Florida
- Ojai
- California
- Washington, D.C.
- Boston
- Massachusetts
- Broadway
- New York