After a smooth kick-off in August with its annual Logan Festival of Solo Performance, 1st Stage’s new season has hit a bump.
The Tysons theater informed patrons last Thursday (Oct. 8) that the entire run of its production of Harold Pinter’s “Betrayal” has been canceled due to “unforeseen circumstances.”
As of press time, 1st Stage hadn’t shared any additional details about what had happened, but spokesperson Audra Jacobs described the decision to cancel as “extremely difficult.”
“I sincerely, deeply apologize for the disappointment and inconvenience this has caused,” Jacobs said in the message to ticketholders. “I understand for many of you, this decision is last-minute. We did not make this decision lightly, and understand the position this puts you all in.”
Before the nonprofit company called off the whole production, Theatre Washington, which had offered discounted tickets as part of its regional Theatre Week, notified ticketholders on Wednesday (Oct. 7) that performances of “Betrayal” scheduled for the coming weekend (Oct 9-11) had been canceled, citing “an unforeseen emergency.”
First produced by National Theatre in London in 1978, Pinter’s “Betrayal” follows the dissolution of a marriage backwards in time as the wife engages in an affair, inspired by the playwright’s real-life extramarital activities. Set to be directed by its artistic and executive director, Alex Levy, 1st Stage’s production was scheduled to run from Oct. 8-25.
According to the cancellation announcement, 1st Stage is offering full refunds or credits to future productions to all “Betrayal” ticketholders. Patrons who purchased a Theatre Week ticket are advised to contact the vendor, TodayTix, if they haven’t already been refunded, though the Theatre Washington email provided a voucher that could be applied to any other show on the platform within the next year.
The Tysons theater is planning to announce a replacement production that will be added onto the end of its 2026-2027 season “soon,” Jacobs wrote.
Subscribers, who reserve a seat for a full season, among other perks, are being given the option to transfer their tickets to the future show, request a partial refund, or use them as additional guest tickets for another production.
With the cancellation of “Betrayal,” 1st Stage’s season is slated to resume Dec. 3-20 with “The Tall Girls,” a 1930s-set play centered on a high school girls’ basketball team in the Midwest. Next year will bring “The Travelers” (Feb. 11-28), “Jack Absolute Flies Again” (April 8-25) as a co-production with Arlington’s Prologue Theatre, and “Bulrusher” (June 3-20), plus the not-yet-announced addition.
Launched in 2008, 1st Stage has become a mainstay in the D.C. region’s theater scene, earning dozens of Helen Hayes Awards over the years, most recently for supporting actor Jacob Yeh for his performance in “Birthday Candles” and for Justin Schmitz’s sound design for “hang.”
At the start of the 2025-2026 season, the theater unveiled renovations to its longtime, 110-seat home at 1524 Spring Hill Road in the Spring Hill Business Center. The upgrades were supported by an ongoing $4 million fundraising campaign also intended to support staff pay raises and expand programming.
The full message from 1st Stage to patrons is below.
Hello all,
Thank you for your patience, time and care over the last few days as we figure out our situation. And thank you in advance for your patience with this long email.
I am so sorry to say that, after careful consideration of unforeseen circumstances, we have made the extremely difficult decision to cancel the full run of our production of Betrayal.
I sincerely, deeply apologize for the disappointment and inconvenience this has caused. I understand for many of you, this decision is last-minute. We did not make this decision lightly, and understand the position this puts you all in.
With this in mind, please review the following options below:
– Subscribers: We will soon be announcing a replacement production that will run at the end of our current season. Your subscription will be eligible to transfer tickets over to this future production. I am going to return all Betrayal tickets to your subscriptions in the next day or so. If you would prefer a partial refund, or to use these tickets as additional guest tickets for future productions, please reach out to me at audrajacobs@1ststage.org and I will take care of it for you.
– Ticket Holders: Please reach out to me at audrajacobs@1ststage.org to let me know what you would prefer from the options below:
- A full refund to the original method of payment
- A credit to your account, to be used for any future 1st Stage production
- To switch these tickets over to another production in our 26/27 season
– Ticket Holders Through TodayTix (TheatreWeek): You should already be fully refunded through the TodayTix team. Reach out to TodayTix directly if you do not see funds in your account in the next 2-3 business days.
I apologize again for this unexpected update. Thank you for the time, the patience, and the care that you put into this theatre. It is deeply felt.
Much warmth,
-Audra J.
