VERONA, WI — The lights are coming back on. After more than five years dormant, Theatre LILA is thrilled to announce its long-awaited return—this time with a brand-new artistic home: ART House 360.
Known for its inventive, thought-provoking, and choreographic theatre style, Theatre LILA is stepping into a new era with a 2025–26 season designed to surprise, delight, and reconnect Dane County audiences with the power of inventive new theatre experiences that they typically can only get in Chicago or NYC
“Our mission has always been to craft original works with a sense of play and invention that challenge perceptions and inspire profound human connection,” says Artistic Director Jessica Lanius. “With ART House 360, we’ve created a sanctuary for experimentation, collaboration, and community—a permanent home to take this style of innovative theatre to the next level for our performers, designers and audiences.”
Theatre LILA is also tearing down the fourth wall this season, as they take over the AH360 Community Lounge inside their new venue that’s already an incubator for art and artists. LILA’s new space is built for connection, seating just 50 to 60 people and allowing for a raw, visceral intimacy with the audience. Expect a fluid, cafe-style environment at times, putting you right in the center of the action. To kick off the good vibes, LILA is introducing themed happy Hours before every show, turning the pre-show into a new tradition of community and charged energy.
Tickets for the season go on sale October 7th.
The Season at a Glance
November 2025 – Planets as Stars
The season opens with Planets as Stars, a new immersive autobiographical work by acclaimed poet and performance artist Gina Cornejo. Part cosmic romp, part intimate confessional, Cornejo as storytelling guide takes us through white-knuckle wedding rants, divorce dance breaks, and the fumbling delight of late-bloomer queerness. The result is a “cringeworthy yet charming” evening that reminds us how the complexity of love is nothing if not comical, cataclysmic, and cosmic.
February 2026 – A Love Letter: Breaking the Boundaries of Love
This February, Lanius teams up with AJ Juarez of Barrio Dance to deliver A Love Letter, an immersive, experimental work. This devised dance-theatre collaboration is a potent mix of visceral movement, spoken-word poetry, and live music, weaving a non-linear narrative about the beautiful unpredictability and complexity of love. This new work invites the audience into the heart of the experiment, promising a playful, tender, funny, one-of-a-kind theatre experience.
Spring 2026 – Shredded Rugs
The season closes with Lachrisa Grandberry’s celebration of her debut poetry collection Shredded Rugs. Performances at ART House 360 will be paired with Q&A sessions and special programming for high school students, fulfilling LILA’s mission to nurture the next generation of artists.
Meet the Season’s Creators
- Jessica Lanius (Artistic Director, Director/Choreographer)
- AJ Juarez (Barrio Dance, Co-Director/Choreographer – A Love Letter)
- Gina Cornejo (Poet & Guest Artist – Planets as Stars)
- Lachrisa Grandberry (Poet – Shredded Rugs)
About Theatre LILA
Theatre LILA creates original, movement-based theatre that challenges perceptions and inspires profound human connection. Dedicated to amplifying diverse voices and offering bold new works, the company blends acting, dance, and live music into productions that are visually stunning, emotionally resonant, and always inventive. For more information, visit https://www.theatrelila.com.
MEDIA CONTACT:
Jen Farley
Michael J. Media
608-698-9786
jennifer@michaeljmedia.com
*Media Interviews Available
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Published on October 21, 2025
