Party Season announced as new Made in Northampton production for 2026
Royal & Derngate have announced their latest Made in Northampton production. Party Season, a new play created by The Wardrobe Ensemble, opens at the Northampton venue from Friday 3 to Saturday 11 April, before touring to Oxford, Salford and Bristol.
Co-directed by Royal & Derngate’s Artistic Director Jesse Jones and The Wardrobe Ensemble’s Helena Middleton, Party Season is a Royal & Derngate, Northampton, Wardrobe Ensemble and Lowry co-production. Cast and further creative team will be announced in the new year.
Three parties. One weekend. The invitations have been sent and there's no going back… it’s Party Season!
Xander is back in town, and this weekend he’s on parenting duty. The kids are in the ball pit; the Entertainer is blowing bubbles; the adults gobble Perelló olives and pretend to like each other. As ancient grudges rear their heads, the tension rises like a helium balloon. Caught between who he was and who he’s supposed to be, Xander must decide whether he’s going to grow up or just pass the parcel.
From the multi-award-winning creators of Education, Education, Education and The Last of the Pelican Daughters comes a sugar-fuelled, bobbin-winding fever dream where class identities collide, social niceties unravel, and underslept parents do their best to hold it all together.
Party Season is a razor-sharp new comedy about privilege, party rings and the pressures of being a parent. RSVP!
The run in Northampton will include a relaxed performance, offering a welcoming environment for parents and carers with babes-in-arms and anyone who would benefit from a more informal theatre setting.
Tickets for the Northampton performances will go on sale from Tuesday 18 November for members and from Friday 21 November for general sale.
Other forthcoming productions in the Royal & Derngate’s Made in Northampton season include this year’s festive show, Mog’s Christmas, and a groundbreaking new play Top Gs Like Me, by Samson Hawkins, playing in the Derngate auditorium in the new year, from 21 February to 7 March. For more information, visit www.royalandderngate.co.uk.
The Made in Northampton season is sponsored locally by Michael Jones Jeweller.