Riverside Studios announces major season of new plays

Affluenza

Image provided by production

This biting and darkly funny new play is written and directed by Andy Sandberg. Inspired by true events surrounding a shocking legal defence, Affluenza explores the ripple effects of power and privilege. When a teenager drunk driving causes a devastating accident, the ensuing legal fallout raises questions about cost and generational impact of privilege and opulence. Set against the ultra-wealthy social haven of the Hamptons, it explores moral accountability, family legacy, and the American justice system.

• 26 September to 21 November 2026

Affluenza Tickets

Sacrilegious

Image provided by production

A smart, funny, and provocative comedy about what money can or can't buy, Sacrilegious is directed by Andy Sandberg and written by Tom Schulman, the Academy Award-winning author of Dead Poets Society, What About Bob?, and Honey, I Shrunk the Kids. Sacrilegious is the first original play from this Oscar-winning writer, who previously adapted his Dead Poets Society screenplay for the stage. On the holiest day of the year, an idealistic young rabbi  dares to challenge the billionaire president of his congregation, questions a multi-million-dollar donation, and ignites a battle for the hearts and minds of the entire community. What follows is a razor-sharp contest between principle and power. As reputations unravel and loyalties are tested, the community congregation must decide whether morality can survive when there's $30 million on the table.

• 5 December 2026 to 23 January 2027

Sacrilegious Tickets

Expecting

Image provided by production

Directed by Andy Sandberg, Expecting is a new play by Scott Elmegreen & Drew Fornarola that explores why couples are waiting longer to have kids, or debating whether to have them at all. In this witty, thoughtful comedy Zoey and Ethan are deciding whether or not to have a baby, while Zoey's younger sister Trish juggles two kids with parenting her new boyfriend Matt. Amidst falling birthrates and the chaos of adulthood, two couples find themselves asking what they truly want out of life, daunted by career ambitions and brunch plans, not to mention the realities of legacy and parenthood.

30 January to 27 March 2027

Expecting Tickets

Mainstage Season 26/27 will run from September 2026 to July 2027. The final two plays in the season, along with casting and creatives, are due to be announced.