Lighting Up 2026: The Top 6 Shows We Can’t Wait to Design

We may have just wrapped up another incredible year of theatrical magic, but I already find myself doing what I always do: looking forward.

While our calendar is filling up with amazing collaborations, there are a few shows that, as a designer, I am particularly itching to get my hands on. Here is my personal countdown of the top six video design projects I’m most looking forward to tackling in 2026.

6. A Midsummer Night's Dream

Shakespeare is always a treat because the imagery in the text is so rich, but Midsummer is a playground for a video designer.

The core design challenge here is the stark contrast between the rigid, structured world of Athens and the chaotic, magical realm of the forest. I’m excited to explore how digital media can blur those lines. We don’t want just static trees; we want a forest that feels alive, bioluminescent, and mischievous. We want textures that shift from reality into a dreamscape the moment Puck enters the scene. It’s about creating an environment where the audience genuinely believes fairies could exist.

5. The Nutcracker

I have a hot take on The Nutcracker. The beloved ballet isn't about Christmas. It's about being a child and having a child's wondrous imagination. Embrace that element of the ballet--an element that is often overlooked--and you can create a Nutcracker that is fresh, new, unique, and mesmerizing.

For me, this show is entirely about scale and transformation. The practical Christmas tree growing is always a great stage moment, but projections can amp up that magic sequence even more. I want to design a transition into the Land of Sweets that feels like a kinetic, vibrant explosion of confectionery architecture, moving beyond painted drops into immersive, animated spaces in which anything is possible.

4. Jekyll & Hyde

Let’s take a dark turn. Jekyll & Hyde is a gothic masterpiece that thrives on atmosphere. This musical is fundamentally about duality—the civilized facade versus the beast within.

Visually, this is a dream for playing with shadow and light. I’m looking forward to creating a grimy, foggy Victorian London that feels oppressive and claustrophobic. But more importantly, I want to use projections to visualize London the way Jekyll--or Hyde--would see it. When Dr. Jekyll is in control, the video design reflects his worldview: structured, scientific, and rigid. But the moment the formula takes hold and Hyde emerges, the entire visual world should desaturate and warp into jagged, expressionistic angles. The projections won’t just set the scene; they will visualize the adrenaline and the violence of the transformation, turning the city from a place of residence into a twisted hunting ground.

3. The Shape of Things

We may be shifting away from big musicals and worlds of fantasy with this one, but Neil LaBute’s sharp, modern, cynical play still provides us with plenty of compelling locations and themes to explore. The piece is fundamentally about the manipulation of surfaces and the subjective nature of art. That led to a bold concept: we're ditching realism entirely.

In a play where a character is being "sculpted" by another, it feels wrong to use standard photo-realistic backdrops of coffee shops or living rooms. Instead, we plan to represent each location through a distinct piece of fine art that in some way corresponds to or correlates with the space.

I am particularly excited about the transitions. To underscore the narrative of Adam’s physical transformation, we will utilize a curated progression of artworks exploring masculinity and male beauty. We’ll cycle through imagery ranging from classical Greco-Roman statuary to modern studies of the male form. By projecting these images between scenes, we visually reinforce the idea that the protagonist is being turned into an object—just another exhibit in a long history of aesthetic obsession.

2. The Wizard of Oz

If there is one show that defines the concept of "transporting an audience," it’s this one. The cultural visual language of Oz is so strong, thanks to the film, that you have to respect it while still bringing something theatrical to the table.

But we can easily justify our excitement for this one with two simple words: The Tornado.

This is the ultimate technical design challenge. With video design, we can create a kinetic, terrifying, swirling vortex that bridges the gap between sepia-toned Kansas and the Technicolor explosion of Munchkinland. I can't wait to design that transition. Making the Emerald City actually feel like a glowing, impossible metropolis is a very close second.

1. Into the Woods

Here it is. My number one for 2026. Sondheim’s masterpiece--and one of my absolute favorite shows of all time--is brilliantly complex, weaving familiar fairy tales into a dark, cohesive tapestry.

For a projection designer, the woods isn't just a setting; it’s an expression of the emotional state of the characters. In the first act, it's mysterious but full of hope and possibility; in the second act, it is a disorienting, threatening space overwhelmed by destruction.

The design opportunity here is to create an environment that starts out looking like a storybook illustration—inviting and textured—and slowly evolves over Act Two into something gnarled, menacing, and broken. And matching the visual rhythm of the projections to the intricate rhythm of Sondheim’s score is a challenge I absolutely live for.

These six titles are just a glimpse of what we're excited about in the new year. Whether you are producing one of these blockbusters or a new work that needs a unique visual identity, we are ready to collaborate.

2026 is going to be a visually spectacular year. Let's make some magic.

-Jeff Davis