Presenting our
2026-2027 Season
AUGUST 28 - SEPTEMBER 30, 2026
Intimate Apparel
In 1905 New York City, Esther, a Black seamstress, is in great demand for the intimate apparel she creates for clients who range from wealthy white patrons to prostitutes. Though leading a life that provides joy to so many, she remains lonely and longing for a husband and a future. Through a mutual acquaintance, she begins a correspondence with a lonesome Caribbean man named George and soon he persuades her that they should marry, sight unseen. However, Esther’s heart is drawn to the Hasidic shopkeeper from whom she buys cloth, and his heart with her. When George arrives in the city, Esther is hit with the reality of the situation and she is forced to face a future that she is truly unprepared for.
OCTOBER 30 - NOVEMBER 15, 2026
THE BLACK RIDER
The Black Rider: The Casting of the Magic Bullets is a self-billed "musical fable" in the avant-garde tradition created through the collaboration of theatre director Robert Wilson, musician Tom Waits and writer William S. Burroughs.
Wilhelm, a file clerk, falls in love with a huntsman's daughter. In order to marry, Wilhelm must prove his worth as a hunter and gain her father's approval, but, as "a man of pen and ink," his shot is lousy and his hopes of marriage worsen. He is offered magic bullets by the devil, Pegleg,who assures him that his bullets will always have a sure shot. However, Pegleg stipulates that, while most of the bullets will hit anything Wilhelm pleases, one of the bullets is under Pegleg's control. Foolish, naive, and overrun with desperate hope, Wilhelm accepts the Faustian pact. On the day of Wilhelm's wedding, the final bullet strikes his beloved dead. He then goes mad, and joins the previous victims of Satan's cunning in the Devil's carnival.
Although based on folklore, the story contains strong autobiographical elements from Burroughs’ own life: he shot and killed his own wife in a drunken attempt at recreating the William Tell legend, and the story as a whole may be construed as a warning tale about the destructive powers of addiction.
JANUARY 15 - 31, 2027
12 Angry Jurors
12 Angry Jurors, based on the 1954 teleplay 12 Angry Men by Reginald Rose and adapted for film in 1957, tells the story of 12 jurors charged with the unenviable task of deciding a young man’s fate. Accused of brutally murdering his father, the young man’s life hangs in the balance as a jury of his peers battle reasonable doubt, prejudice, and their own morality in a cramped, overheated deliberation room. Tempers flare as the reality of a death sentence weighs on the minds of these 12 strangers, the life or death of the accused foisted upon them.
Guilty or not guilty. Life or death. Freedom or damnation. Each juror must vote.
FEBRUARY 26 - MARCH 14, 2027
Arsenic and Old Lace
Arsenic and Old Lace is a dark comedic farce set in Brooklyn, New York in 1941. The eternity of the play takes in 3 acts in the home of the wealthy Brewster family. Spinster sisters Abby and Martha Brewster are known for their kindness and charitable deeds, however, they are also murderers, using a special recipe of arsenic in their elderberry wine to "put their guests to sleep" When their nephew, theatre critic Mortimer Brewster, visits, he's shocked to discover their dark secret and must protect his aunts from the police while also dealing with the arrival of his eccentric and murderous brother, Jonathan.
APRIL 9 - 25, 2027
Twilight: Los Angeles, 1992
Twilight: Los Angeles, 1992 is a verbatim theater piece. It explores the 1992 Los Angeles riots through interviews with over 350 residents, politicians, police, and victims, analyzing racial tension, injustice, and the breakdown of community, staged with five actors.
MAY 28 - JUNE 13, 2027
The Magic Flute
Mozart’s The Magic Flute is a two-act Singspiel fairytale following Prince Tamino’s quest to rescue Princess Pamina from the “evil'“ Sarastro, aided by birdcatcher Papageno. Armed with a magic flute, Tamino discovers Sarastro is actually wise and the Queen of the Night is evil, subsequently passing trials of virtue to join Sarastro’s Temple of Light with Pamina.
JULY 9 - 25, 2027
As you Like It
In one of Shakespeare’s most joyous comedies, As You Like It tells the story of the heroine Rosalind and her cousin Celia who are forced to flee for their lives from the court into the mysterious Forest of Arden while in disguise. Inside the forest Rosalind encounters her true love Orlando, her deposed father, and numerous other colorful characters.
Up Next
Mercury Theater
3333 Petaluma Boulevard N
Petaluma, CA 94952
Mercury Theater carries forward the vision of Marvin Klebe, who founded a theater at 3333 Petaluma Boulevard North over 50 years ago. His legacy of bold, accessible “Blue Jeans Opera” and of grassroots theater lives on through our commitment to providing a platform for diverse artistic voices in Sonoma County.
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We are a project of the nonprofit Performing Artists Coalition for Theater (PACT), which previously supported the award-winning Main Stage West in Sebastopol. With a passionate advisory team of movers and shakers in the Sonoma County Performing Arts communities, Mercury Theater aims to keep the space alive and resonating with new and innovative productions.
Located in the iconic red Cinnabar Theater venue in Northwest Petaluma, California, Mercury Theater is a vibrant collective of local artists and performers dedicated to revitalizing this historic space.
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As we transition and reimagine the theater's future, our focus will be on collaborating with local performers and groups seeking a venue to present their work. We invite the artistic community to join us in creating a diverse and dynamic array of performances.
We strongly encourage local artists, educators, and theater goers to reach out about opportunities for renting the theater and/or the studio workshop space for classes, performances, parties, at competitive, dare we even say quite reasonable rates.
