EAST HADDAM, Conn. (Jan. 27, 2026) – Two-time Tony Award-winning Goodspeed Musicals announces a temporary pause this year in productions at The Terris Theatre in Chester, Conn. While 2025 was a strong season with nearly sold-out performance runs at both The Goodspeed and The Terris, sharply rising production costs and shifting audience habits, expectations and preferences have made The Terris Theatre’s sole focus on the development of brand-new shows more challenging to accomplish.
According to Managing Director Vanessa Logan, “Taking this pause will allow our teams to thoughtfully reimagine how The Terris can best support the organization’s overall financial health. It will give us the time and flexibility to develop an expanded operating model for The Terris, which may include educational programs and programming for young audiences and families like SummerSong, the youth theatre program that we recently announced. Other options may include collaborations with other theatres and artists, community events, and additional initiatives alongside the productions of new musicals. This pause is temporary, and we look forward to updating our audience as plans take shape.”
Artistic Director Donna Lynn Hilton shared, “In the meantime, we will produce a full season of musicals at The Goodspeed, including the World Premiere of The Snow Goose. Commissioned, nurtured and developed solely by Goodspeed, The Snow Goose will stand as evidence that our commitment to new work and the artists who create it is unwavering. It will make its debut at The Goodspeed Aug. 28 – Oct. 8.”
The Terris Theatre is supported by The Norma Terris/Albert D. Firestone Foundation.
ABOUT GOODSPEED MUSICALS
Goodspeed Musicals is a nonprofit arts organization that has achieved international acclaim and is the first theatre in the nation to receive two Tony Awards for outstanding achievement in musical theatre. Under the leadership of Donna Lynn Hilton, Artistic Director, and Vanessa Logan, Managing Director, Goodspeed Musicals is dedicated to the celebration, development and advancement of musical theatre. Goodspeed creates powerful, world-class productions of enlightening new and established works to delight, inspire and challenge audiences on its two stages – The Goodspeed in East Haddam, Conn., and The Terris Theatre in Chester, Conn. From Goodspeed, 21 musicals have gone to Broadway (including Man of La Mancha, Annie, Shenandoah and Holiday Inn) and 91 world premieres have been launched. Goodspeed’s Festival of New Musicals, GoodWorks commissioning program and the Johnny Mercer Foundation Writers Grove at Goodspeed are distinguished cornerstones of the organization that highlight its commitment to nurture creators and the creative process. Goodspeed also maintains The Scherer Library of Musical Theatre and The Max Showalter Center for Education in Musical Theatre. The organization is supported in part by the Burry Fredrik Foundation; the Connecticut Office of the Arts, which also receives funding from the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency; Masonicare at Chester Village; The Richard P. Garmany Fund at the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving; The Shubert Foundation; Smith Farm Gardens; and WSHU Public Radio. Additional support is provided by United Airlines, the official airline of Goodspeed Musicals. For more information, visit www.goodspeed.org.
Goodspeed Musicals Announces a Temporary Pause in Productions at The Terris Theatre
