Upcoming Chess dates
Dates and live ticket listings appear here as soon as they are on sale. The guide below covers what to know before you buy.
Status: the Broadway revival has closed
The Broadway revival of Chess closed on June 21, 2026, at the Imperial Theatre on West 45th Street, after 34 previews and 241 regular performances (one tracker counts 240). It had opened on November 16, 2025, following previews from October 15. The production announced in late May 2026 that it would close early: it had been booked through September 13, with the singer JoJo Levesque scheduled to take over the role of Florence from Lea Michele on June 23, and that run was canceled. As of October 2026, no new New York production has been announced.
This page is the record of that revival and of the show itself. Any listings that appear on this page would be for other productions of Chess, such as regional or international stagings, not the closed Broadway run.
What Chess is about
Chess is set during the Cold War and built around a world chess championship. The brash American grandmaster Freddie Trumper faces the Soviet champion Anatoly Sergievsky, and Freddie's second (his match assistant), Florence Vassy, falls in love with Anatoly, who defects. Politics, espionage and a second championship match follow, with Anatoly's wife Svetlana drawn back into his life.
The score is the reason the show keeps returning. Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus of ABBA wrote the music, with lyrics by Tim Rice and Ulvaeus. Three songs became hits on their own: One Night in Bangkok reached No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100, I Know Him So Well spent four weeks at No. 1 in the UK, and Anthem is the show's best-known ballad.
A concept album, a London hit and a Broadway flop
Chess began as a double concept album, released in 1984 to raise money for a stage production. The musical opened in London's West End at the Prince Edward Theatre on May 14, 1986, directed by Trevor Nunn, and ran nearly three years, closing in April 1989.
Broadway was another story. A rewritten version opened there on April 28, 1988, and closed on June 25 after 17 previews and 68 performances. Ever since, the show has been reworked again and again in concert stagings and regional productions, each trying to fix a book that critics have long called its weak point.
The 2025 revival: cast, creators and reception
Michael Mayer directed the revival, using a new book by Danny Strong that gives Florence and Svetlana more weight and folds in Cold War history. The cast was led by Aaron Tveit as Freddie, Lea Michele as Florence and Nicholas Christopher as Anatoly, with Hannah Cruz as Svetlana, Bradley Dean as Molokov, Sean Allan Krill as Walter and Bryce Pinkham as the Arbiter. Lorin Latarro choreographed.
The staging was concert-like: the orchestra played on stage, with minimal scenery by David Rockwell, video design by Peter Nigrini and heavy use of lighting by Kevin Adams. Reviews were mixed. Critics praised the three leads' singing and the score, and most still found the story uneven. The revival earned several 2026 Tony nominations, including for Christopher, Cruz, Pinkham, Adams's lighting and Brian Usifer's orchestrations, but was not nominated for Best Revival of a Musical and won no awards. A cast album was released on April 10, 2026.
How the show played at the Imperial Theatre
The Imperial Theatre, opened in 1923 and operated by the Shubert Organization, is one of Broadway's larger musical houses, with 1,457 seats on two levels, and was home to Les Misérables from 1990 to 2003. The revival ran about 2 hours and 40 minutes with one intermission.
Because the band was on stage and the design relied on video and light rather than built scenery, the center mezzanine gave the most complete view of the stage picture, while the center orchestra suited fans who came for the voices and wanted to be close to the leads. That pattern is worth remembering for any future concert-style staging of Chess: raised center seats show the design, close center seats show the performers.
Will Chess come back?
The show's history suggests it will be staged again. Chess has returned in concert versions, regional productions and international stagings for decades, and the score's popularity keeps it in circulation. No specific return to Broadway or a tour of the 2025 production has been announced as of October 2026. If you want to hear this version, the 2026 cast album is the most direct way.
For musicals currently running in New York City, see the Broadway section of the site.
Frequently asked questions
Is Chess still playing on Broadway?
No. The revival closed at the Imperial Theatre on June 21, 2026, after 34 previews and 241 regular performances.
Who starred in the 2025 Broadway revival of Chess?
Aaron Tveit as Freddie, Lea Michele as Florence and Nicholas Christopher as Anatoly, with Hannah Cruz, Bradley Dean, Sean Allan Krill and Bryce Pinkham.
Who wrote Chess?
Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus of ABBA wrote the music, with lyrics by Tim Rice and Ulvaeus. The 2025 revival used a new book by Danny Strong.
How long did the original Broadway Chess run?
The 1988 Broadway production ran about two months, closing on June 25, 1988, after 68 performances. The 1986 London production ran nearly three years.
Is there a cast recording of the revival?
Yes. The revival cast album was released on April 10, 2026.