George Street Playhouse
Corporate brand
UnclaimedGeorge Street Playhouse is a professional nonprofit theater company in New Brunswick, New Jersey, known for producing contemporary and established plays, developing new work, and launching productions that have subsequently reached Off-Broadway and Broadway.
Last updated August 24, 2026
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Overview
George Street Playhouse is a professional theater company based in New Brunswick, New Jersey. Founded in 1974 by Eric Krebs, it began in an abandoned supermarket on George Street before moving to a theater facility on Livingston Avenue. The company became one of New Jersey's most prominent regional theaters, combining productions of established dramatic works with commissions, world premieres, musical theater, educational activity, and development opportunities for emerging and established artists. The playhouse's identity has been shaped by its relationship with the American regional-theater system. Its productions have provided a platform for nationally recognized actors, directors, writers, and composers, while several projects developed or premiered at the theater later moved to Off-Broadway, Broadway, touring venues, or other regional stages. Examples include Swinging on a Star, The Spitfire Grill, Down the Garden Paths, Syncopation, Gettin' the Band Back Together, American Son, and the development of David Auburn's Proof through the theater's Next Stage Series. The company has also presented work that connects dramatic storytelling with music and social history, including Little Girl Blue: The Nina Simone Musical and And Then They Came for Me: Remembering the World of Anne Frank. George Street Playhouse operated for many years at its Livingston Avenue home. In 2017, it temporarily relocated to the former Agricultural Museum on Rutgers University's Cook Campus while a new mixed-use performing-arts facility was developed. In autumn 2019, the company returned to the Livingston Avenue area as a resident of the New Brunswick Performing Arts Center. That facility placed the playhouse within New Brunswick's Civic Square and theater district and gave it a modern venue shared with other arts organizations. The company presents a main-stage season and offers a professional environment for artists at different stages of their careers. Its repertoire has ranged from comedies and contemporary dramas to musicals, one-person or music-centered pieces, historical works, and adaptations. Productions have frequently addressed family relationships, identity, race, memory, addiction, politics, and artistic legacy. The playhouse is a member of the New Jersey Theatre Alliance, reflecting its place within the state's professional theater network. David Saint served as artistic director from 1997 until 2025 and oversaw a long period of new-play development and productions featuring prominent performers. Following that tenure, the organization was led by Managing Director Edgar Herrera together with an Artistic Triumvirate comprising Christopher Bailey, Scott Goldman, and Laiona Michelle. The 2023–2024 season marked the company's 50th season. George Street Playhouse remains an active producing theater whose principal offering is live professional performance rather than a conventional consumer product.
History
George Street Playhouse was established in 1974 by Eric Krebs in New Brunswick, New Jersey. Its earliest home was an abandoned supermarket on George Street, an unconventional venue that reflected the adaptive culture of American regional theater in the period. The company later moved to a theater on Livingston Avenue, where it developed a sustained professional presence and became associated with New Brunswick's Civic Square government and theater district. From its early years, the playhouse combined productions of established works with a commitment to new writing and artist development. Its programming included plays, musicals, adaptations, revues, and works addressing historical and contemporary social issues. The organization became particularly notable for nurturing projects that later traveled beyond New Jersey. Swinging on a Star, a revue built from the work of lyricist Johnny Burke, premiered at the theater in 1994 before moving to Broadway. In 1996, the company commissioned And Then They Came for Me: Remembering the World of Anne Frank for its Touring Theatre Company; the production was subsequently presented internationally. The Next Stage Series helped develop David Auburn's Proof, which later won the Tony Award and Pulitzer Prize for Drama. The late 1990s and 2000s brought a succession of premieres, transfers, and high-profile engagements. David Saint became artistic director in 1997 and remained in that role through 2025. During his tenure, the theater presented work by writers including Anne Meara, Arthur Laurents, A. R. Gurney, Kirsten Childs, Elaine May, and Charles Evered, while actors such as Eli Wallach, Anne Jackson, Tim Daly, Paul Rudd, Fred Savage, Chita Rivera, Amy Irving, Jack Klugman, Rosemary Harris, Dan Lauria, Peter Scolari, Richard Schiff, and Idina Menzel appeared in productions or special performances. The company's projects ranged from new musicals and comedies to dramas and socially focused works. Several productions set local performance or box-office records. Lady Day at Emerson's Bar and Grill, starring Suzzanne Douglas as Billie Holiday, broke the playhouse's box-office records in 2001. Inspecting Carol became the theater's highest-grossing play in 2005, while Richard Schiff's appearance in Underneath the Lintel established a new per-performance attendance record. Other notable developments included the premiere of The Spitfire Grill, the American Theatre Critics Association recognition received by Syncopation, and the later Broadway path of Gettin' the Band Back Together, which first premiered at George Street Playhouse in 2013. The company also used its stage to develop work dealing with memory, race, addiction, music history, family, and public life. Wasted by Kirsten Childs, for example, addressed substance abuse and received support from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. In 2017, the world premiere of American Son expanded the playhouse's profile for commissioning and introducing new contemporary drama. In 2018, Laiona Michelle's Little Girl Blue: The Nina Simone Musical combined biography and musical performance in a work centered on Simone's artistic legacy. A major institutional transition began in 2017, when the playhouse left its Livingston Avenue venue temporarily and moved to the former Agricultural Museum on Rutgers University's Cook Campus. The relocation took place while a new mixed-use theater building was developed in New Brunswick. In fall 2019, George Street Playhouse returned to the Livingston Avenue area as a resident of the New Brunswick Performing Arts Center. The new facility reinforced the company's role in the city's performing-arts district and provided a contemporary base for its main-stage programming. The company marked its 50th season in 2023–2024. Its current leadership structure includes Managing Director Edgar Herrera and an Artistic Triumvirate of Christopher Bailey, Scott Goldman, and Laiona Michelle. George Street Playhouse is a member of the New Jersey Theatre Alliance and continues to operate as a professional producing theater presenting new and established work.
- 2025
David Saint's tenure ends
[1]David Saint concluded his service as artistic director after leading the organization from 1997.
- 2023
50th season begins
[1]The 2023–2024 season marked the company's 50th season.
- 2019
Return to the New Brunswick Performing Arts Center
[1]George Street Playhouse moved back to the Livingston Avenue area into the new New Brunswick Performing Arts Center.
- 2018
Little Girl Blue premieres
[1]Laiona Michelle's Little Girl Blue: The Nina Simone Musical received its world premiere at the playhouse.
- 2017
Temporary relocation and American Son premiere
[1]The company moved temporarily to Rutgers University's Cook Campus and presented the world premiere of American Son.
- 2013
Gettin' the Band Back Together premieres
[1]The musical premiered at George Street Playhouse under director John Rando before later transferring to Broadway.
- 2001
Lady Day at Emerson's Bar and Grill breaks box-office records
[1]The production starring Suzzanne Douglas as Billie Holiday set a box-office record for the playhouse.
- 1999
Proof development and Syncopation premiere
[1]Proof was developed through the Next Stage Series, while Alan Knee's Syncopation premiered at the theater.
- 1997
David Saint becomes artistic director
[1]David Saint began a long tenure as artistic director.
- 1996
And Then They Came for Me is commissioned
[1]The theater commissioned the Anne Frank-related work for its Touring Theatre Company; it was later produced internationally.
Products and positioning
A leading New Jersey regional theater focused on professionally produced new and established plays, with a particular emphasis on artist development, world premieres, socially engaged storytelling, and projects capable of wider national or commercial life.
Professional theater season · 1974
Main Stage season
The company's principal public offering is a season of professionally staged plays and musicals. Programming has included contemporary dramas, comedies, revivals, adaptations, historical works, and music-centered theater. The season combines recognizable titles and performers with new writing, allowing George Street Playhouse to function both as a presenting institution and as a development platform for work that may later reach wider audiences.
New-play development · 1999
Next Stage Series
The Next Stage Series supports the development of new dramatic work through readings, workshops, and related artistic processes. David Auburn's Proof is among the best-known projects associated with the series; its development at George Street Playhouse preceded the play's major awards and broader professional life.
Contemporary drama · 2017
American Son
Christopher Demos-Brown's American Son received its world premiere at George Street Playhouse in 2017, directed by David Saint. The contemporary drama examines family, race, policing, and conflicting perceptions of public institutions, and its premiere demonstrated the theater's role in introducing new serious drama before wider production.
Musical theater · 2018
Little Girl Blue: The Nina Simone Musical
Written and performed by Laiona Michelle, Little Girl Blue is a musical theater work centered on the life, music, and artistic legacy of Nina Simone. Its world premiere at George Street Playhouse in 2018 reflected the company's interest in biographical and music-driven storytelling as well as opportunities for artist-led new work.
Original musical · 2013
Gettin' the Band Back Together
Gettin' the Band Back Together premiered at George Street Playhouse in 2013 under the direction of John Rando. The musical subsequently transferred to Broadway, making it one of the company's clearest examples of a regional premiere developing into a commercial New York production.
New musical
The Spitfire Grill
The Spitfire Grill, with music and lyrics by James Valcq and Fred Alley and direction by David Saint, premiered at George Street Playhouse before moving Off-Broadway. Its path illustrates the theater's historic role in giving new musicals a professional first production outside the commercial New York market.
Brand decisions
2019
Move into the New Brunswick Performing Arts CenterStrategyBackground
New Brunswick developed a new mixed-use theater building in its Civic Square and theater district.
Action taken
George Street Playhouse established itself as a resident company in the New Brunswick Performing Arts Center.
Aftermath
The move provided the organization with a modern permanent base for its main-stage and development work.
2017
Temporary relocation during venue redevelopmentStrategyBackground
The company's Livingston Avenue home was affected by development of a new mixed-use performing-arts facility in New Brunswick.
Action taken
George Street Playhouse moved temporarily to the former Agricultural Museum on Rutgers University's Cook Campus.
Aftermath
The company returned to the Livingston Avenue area in fall 2019 as a resident of the New Brunswick Performing Arts Center.
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