'We'll See': Richard Nelson's Real-Time Election Night Play Opens at New York's Public Theater

Playwright Richard Nelson premiered We'll See at the Public Theater in New York City on November 3, 2026, the United States midterm Election Day — the precise date on which the play's action unfolds in real time. The production is the newest chapter of Nelson's The Rhinebeck Panorama, a 12-play cycle following three interconnected families in Rhinebeck, New York, over many years. In We'll See, the Apple family gather at Barbara's apartment for a dinner as the midterm results begin to come in, telling stories, singing, cooking and talking about their lives while wrestling with the anxiety of the democratic moment. The play stars returning ensemble members Maryann Plunkett, Jay O. Sanders, Sally Murphy and Laila Robins, joined by newcomer Yvonne Woods. Directed by Nelson himself, the production had been in previews since October 25. The Rhinebeck Panorama has become one of the most distinctive long-form theatrical achievements in contemporary American theatre, with each chapter performed on, or very close to, the calendar date it depicts, lending an unusual sense of communal shared experience. The play runs at the Anspacher Theater at the Public through November 29, 2026.