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Hutton Brickyards has seen a century and a half of transformation. What began as one of the Hudson Valley’s most productive 19th-century industrial sites, its clay fired into the bricks that raised much of New York City, now stretches across 100 acres of rolling riverfront, rough-hewn beauty, and open sky. On August 14, it becomes something altogether different: the stage for The Festival, a first-of-its-kind three-day outdoor Broadway celebration bringing Audra McDonald, Kelli O’Hara, Renée Elise Goldsberry, Christopher Jackson, and dozens of Tony Award-winning performers to Kingston’s waterfront.
For theater fans planning a summer weekend, few events this year come close. The organizers conceived The Festival from the start as a destination, a full three days in the Hudson Valley rather than a single night out, with world-class performances anchoring each day and everything Kingston does well filling the hours around them. If you’re thinking about making the trip, here is what you need to know.
Hutton Brickyards is not a conventional festival venue, and that is exactly the point. The 100-acre property sits on the western bank of the Hudson River, bearing more than a century of industrial history in every weathered wall and open field. The thick-walled brick structures, rolling grounds, and uninterrupted river views create a setting that no purpose-made amphitheater could manufacture. It is raw, atmospheric, and unlike anything Broadway fans have seen to date.
The event runs Friday through Sunday, August 14 to 16, 2026, directed by Tony Award-winning choreographer Jerry Mitchell and D.B. Bonds, with music supervision by Dan Lipton and music direction by Will Van Dyke. Daily hours are:
Three-day passes are the only ticket format available, starting at $425 for general admission, $650 for reserved seating, $875 for premium reserved seating, and $1,450 for VIP seating. Single-day tickets do not exist. For the full lineup and current availability, visit the official site.
The performer list reads like a Broadway casting director’s wish list. Rather than a single undifferentiated marathon, each day has a different character and a distinct headline moment.
Friday opens with Christopher Jackson, Adrienne Warren, Alex Newell, Eva Noblezada, Reeve Carney, and Betty Who across themed shows, a comedy improv set, and a campfire singalong to close the night.
Saturday runs from noon to 11 p.m. and carries the weekend’s most anticipated moment: the Rent 30th Anniversary Concert, reuniting nearly the entire original Broadway cast including Adam Pascal, Anthony Rapp, Jesse L. Martin, Taye Diggs, and Wilson Jermaine Heredia. Kelli O’Hara, Renée Elise Goldsberry, Norbert Leo Butz, and Jason Robert Brown fill the rest of the day, which closes with Club Cumming on the Hudson.
Sunday wraps at 6:30 p.m. with The Big Show: Sunday in the Park, headlined by Audra McDonald, Brian Stokes Mitchell, and Denée Benton. Earlier in the afternoon, Adam Pascal and Anthony Rapp take the stage together, followed by Tom Kitt and Friends.
No full musicals run across any of the three days. The format centers on themed shows, solo sets, tribute performances, and large ensemble finales.
The Festival fills three full days, but Kingston rewards the hours in between. The Rondout, the waterfront district closest to Hutton Brickyards, runs along Rondout Creek toward the Hudson with restaurants including Savona’s Trattoria, Mariner’s Harbor, and Ship to Shore. For dinner before an evening on the grounds, book ahead as tables fill fast on summer weekends. Uptown, also called the Stockade District, is worth an afternoon for its Federal-era facades, independent boutiques, and galleries along Wall and North Front Streets. The Ulster Performing Arts Center also marks its own centennial this year, with a full summer season running alongside The Festival.
The organizers say it plainly: do not count on rideshare. Kingston has limited availability on an ordinary weekend, and August 14 to 16 will bring thousands of attendees to the same waterfront stretch. Sort out your transportation before anything else. The official options from broadwayfest.com are:
Some events are worth a single evening. This one is worth the whole weekend. A Broadway festival of this scale, with a lineup this deep and a setting on the Hudson River, does not come around often. Book your tickets early, lock in a place to stay, and figure out how you are getting there. The music will take care of the rest. And if a summer of live music is your thing, Harlem’s late-summer lineup gives New York-bound theater fans another weekend worth planning around.
