A profound exploration of humanity

Beneath a lonely tree on a country road, two companions wait for the mysterious Godot. As time moves along, Vladimir and Estragon fill their day circling the largest of questions: Why are we here? What are we here for? Who are we to be? Samuel Beckett's tragicomedy uses wit and poignant dialogue to create an existential world that is humorous yet heartbreaking. Staged at the Guthrie for the first time in over 50 years and featuring Academy Award nominee David Strathairn as Vladimir, this seminal play explores the human impulses to want more, to understand why and to keep showing up — even when nothing changes.

A moving portrait of resilience

In turn-of-the-century New York, Esther, a skilled African American seamstress, stitches beautiful undergarments for women whose glamorous lives she glimpses only in passing. After receiving an eloquent note from a charming stranger, her deep longing to be married is kindled, and she embarks on a long-distance courtship. Yet the man behind the letters is not whom she expects, and Esther is forced into a new reality far from what she imagined. Set against a city shaped by divisions of class, race and religion, this achingly beautiful drama from two-time Pulitzer Prize winner Lynn Nottage reveals the strength of claiming one’s own self-worth.

A world-premiere adaptation

London and Paris. The best of times and the worst of times. As the tinderbox of a bloodthirsty revolution ignites, this epic historical saga explores a world of doubles — two cities, mirrored lives and hidden identities. When French aristocrat Charles Darnay and English defense attorney Sydney Carton both fall for Lucie Manette, they are drawn into a web of love, war and loyalty that leads to a costly decision. This Guthrie-commissioned, world-premiere adaptation by Jeffrey Hatcher preserves Charles Dickens’ narrative voice and upholds the novel’s timeless themes of sacrifice and redemption.

A swashbuckling musical delight

As young Frederic approaches his 21st birthday and the release from his unlikely apprenticeship to a band of tenderhearted pirates, a twist of fate (and a leap-year birthday) pulls him into a whirl of heroics, hilarity and the lovely Mabel, who captures his heart. Can Frederic find a way to live happily ever after without abandoning his post? Gilbert and Sullivan's comic operetta employs swaggering pirates, an indomitable Major-General and a beloved musical theater patter "song" to playfully lampoon respectability and utterly delight audiences. Embark on a high-spirited romp helmed by Tony Award-winning director Darko Tresnjak where nothing escapes unscathed — least of all propriety.