Key West, FL — The Waterfront Playhouse continues its 2025–2026 season with the beautiful and deeply moving musical “Once,” with a preview performance on March 4, opening March 5, and running through March 21. The production is directed by Artistic Director Patrick New.

Featuring Jillian Todd and Brendan Daugherty, alongside a remarkable ensemble of actor-musicians from Key West and Chicago, “Once” is an intimate and uplifting theatrical experience in which music and storytelling are inseparable. Performed with instruments played live onstage by the cast, the production unfolds with an immediacy and authenticity that places audiences inside the world of the characters.

With a book by Enda Walsh and music and lyrics by Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglová, “Once” is based on the beloved film and tells the story of a chance meeting between two artists that sparks a collaboration — and a connection — that transforms their lives. Set to a richly textured score filled with soaring melodies and heartfelt lyrics, the musical celebrates creativity, resilience, and the power of music to bridge distance, language, and circumstance.

True to the spirit of the piece and Key West, this production emphasizes the communal nature of music-making, with performers seamlessly shifting between roles as actors and musicians. The result is a theatrical event that feels at once spontaneous and finely crafted, inviting audiences to share in a story about connection, possibility, and the courage to create.

Performances take place at the Waterfront Playhouse, 407 Wall Street. Tickets and additional information are available at waterfrontplayhouse.org.

About the Waterfront Playhouse

The Waterfront Playhouse is Key West’s longest-running professional theatre, dedicated to producing work that is inclusive, artistically ambitious, and rooted in the power of live performance to bring people together.

Contact:

Patrick New
, Artistic Director
[email protected]
305-294-5015