Hampton Theatre Company Season Returns with 'The Thanksgiving Play'

Fresh from a celebrated 40th season, Quogue’s Hampton Theatre Company (HTC) is kicking off its 41st season, and if the upcoming slate is any indication, it could be one of its most ambitious, hilarious and heartfelt yet.

Founded in 1984, the Hampton Theatre Company has grown into a cornerstone of East End arts. Today, it stands as a fully professional company, producing polished work with actors and creatives drawn from both local talent and beyond.

Last year, HTC’s production of Edward Albee’s Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? delivered a three-hour masterclass in live theater, setting a high bar. Season 41 will continue that momentum with four stage productions in Quogue Community Hall.

Opening the season on Oct. 16 is Larissa FastHorse’s The Thanksgiving Play, a comedy about liberal educators struggling to devise a politically correct Thanksgiving pageant. FastHorse, who made history as the first Native American woman playwright to be produced on Broadway, crafts satire that is as incisive as it is timely. The HTC production will be directed by Mary Powers and marks the beginning of a new women in theatre initiative, dedicated to presenting plays written and directed by women.

Come December, HTC’s beloved holiday tradition returns with Joe Landry’s A Christmas Carol: A Live Radio Play from Dec. 12 to 14. Set in a 1940s radio studio, this adaptation brings Dickens’ classic tale to life through live period music and vintage-style commercials. A handful of actors take on dozens of roles while performing vintage radio spots. Directed by Andrew Botsford, the one-hour show is festive, fast-moving and kid-friendly, with cookies and free admission for children.

From Mar. 12 to 29, HTC presents the award‑winning two-character musical I Do! I Do!, by Tom Jones and Harvey Schmidt. The show spans 50 years in the life of newlyweds Michael and Agnes, all within the intimate confines of their one-bedroom home. Audiences will follow the couple from their 1895 wedding through middle age, sharing in the ups and downs of a long marriage. HTC’s production, directed by veteran Rosemary Cline, recalls the gentle humor and bittersweet charm of its Broadway origins, when stars Mary Martin and Robert Preston first introduced audiences to the story of this loving and occasionally fractious marriage.

The season closes with The 39 Steps from May 21 to June 7 in which four actors recreate Alfred Hitchcock’s 1935 thriller, each playing numerous roles, sometimes simultaneously. Packed with train chases, murder plots and romance, the show promises nonstop energy and breathless laughs.

There are larger theaters on Long Island. There are flashier venues. But few match the HTC in consistency, ambition or audience loyalty. This season, with its bold choices and unique direction, makes a compelling case for why the company has thrived for over four decades.

If you haven’t made time for a night at the theater lately, this season gives you four good reasons to change that.

125 Jessup Avenue, Quogue, 631-653-8955, hamptontheatre.org

MORE EAST END CURTAIN CALLS THIS FALL

Bram Stroker’s Dracula: A Radio Play
October 17-26.

Fridays and Saturdays 7 p.m., Sundays 2 p.m. Bram Stoker’s brooding tale of seduction, power, eternal life, hungers and thirsts remains faithful to the source material. In all its gothic glory, this masterpiece is presented in radio format. Just in time for Halloween, Dracula, oddly enough, is seldom staged. Tickets $20-$25. Southampton Arts Center, 25 Jobs Lane, Southampton, southamptonartscenter.org

Love Letters: Cage to Cunningham
Saturday, November 8, 7 p.m.

This dance/media-performance work by Site-Specific Dances is based on selected letters from Love, Icebox. The piece unfolds as a series of vignettes that follow the emotional arc of the letters, combining media and live music with a new ensemble dance suite. Tickets: $22.50-$25.

Guild Hall, 158 Main Street, East Hampton, guildhall.org

Fahrenheit 451
November 13-30.

Ray Bradbury’s dystopian novel comes to vivid life. Timely, and thought-provoking, this theatrical adaptation penned by the novelist himself will be a visual and verbal treat for both students and the general public. Tickets: $49.99-$119.98.

Bay Street Theater, 1 Long Wharf, Sag Harbor, baystreet.org