History Theatre in St. Paul is bringing Judy Garland's story back to its stage this holiday season, with Beyond the Rainbow set to run November 21 through December 20, 2026. The musical tribute traces Garland's path from her Minnesota childhood to international stardom, built around a framework that has drawn audiences for years.
William Randall Beard's script follows Garland from her childhood in Grand Rapids, Minnesota, to Hollywood stardom, according to twincities.com. The 2026 staging is directed by History Theatre artistic director Laura Leffler, who takes over a production the company has mounted many times before, most recently in 2019. The History Theatre classic has also traveled well beyond St. Paul, having played in more than 25 regional theaters nationwide, per the same report.
As described by Bring Me The News, the production is billed as a reimagined holiday show featuring classics from the Great American Songbook, including San Francisco, The Trolley Song, Zing! Went the Strings of My Heart, and Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas. The show takes audiences through the arc of Garland's career, weaving her music into the story of her life and legacy.
Anchored in a Legendary Carnegie Hall Night
The production's narrative device centers on Garland's celebrated 1961 Carnegie Hall performance, with the show depicting her taking the stage that year, according to History Theatre. The venue's own production notes describe following Garland's story from her early years in Minnesota through to that pivotal concert moment. It's a structure with roots in earlier History Theatre stagings of the same material.
A 2019 production at the same St. Paul theater used that same 1961 concert stand as its narrative framework, as reported by the Star Tribune. That earlier staging, directed by Ron Peluso, split the role of Garland across four actors — Jody Briskey, Nicola Wahl, Lillian Carlson and Elena Glass — each representing a different chapter of her life. Briskey had actually played Garland in the same show once before, winning an Ivey Award for her performance back in 2011.
Ticket Details and Accessibility Notes
History Theatre is offering a discount for younger theatergoers this run: patrons under 30 can get up to 30% off regular adult tickets, though that deal is only available by phone or in person rather than online, per the venue's listing. The theater has also flagged an accessibility detail for balcony seating, noting there are 15 steps to reach it and no elevator available.
With its new November-to-December run, Beyond the Rainbow gives St. Paul audiences another chance to revisit a show that has become something of a recurring holiday fixture at History Theatre.
