Tony Shalhoub’s Name Debuts on USM Black Box as He Also Takes on Creon in New Antigone
The University of Southern Maine’s theatre program will open a newly renovated 40-seat black box bearing Tony Shalhoub’s name with a production of David Ives’ All in the Timing this February, funded by a donation from the Emmy- and Tony-winning actor and alum. At the same time, Shalhoub is onstage in New York as Creon in a bold new adaptation of Antigone, which begins performances Thursday, February 26, 2026 (ET).
Renovation and naming: a gift for an intimate performance space
The small performance area in Russell Hall on the Gorham campus has been transformed into the Tony Shalhoub Black Box Theater through a generous contribution from Shalhoub, who graduated in 1977. The overhaul includes upgraded lighting and sound systems, new risers and seating, and general technical improvements designed to support student work and experimental productions. The space is intended to host smaller-scale plays and student-directed pieces, offering a tight, 40-seat setting tailored to intimate storytelling.
All in the Timing chosen as inaugural production
USM Theatre selected David Ives’ All in the Timing, a collection of six short, sharp one-act comedies, as the first show to take the stage in the refurbished black box. Directed by local artist Jared Mongeau and performed by students, the production leans on fast-paced comic timing and heightened theatricality to examine human relationships and existential questions with a light touch. The choice reflects the venue’s intimacy, giving each brief piece room to land in full three-dimensional detail.
Directorial approach and student challenges
Mongeau frames the material as a puzzle to be decoded and physically realized, noting that the collection’s stylized world provides both an opportunity and a rehearsal-room challenge for emerging actors. One piece in the set, Universal Language, is largely performed in a made-up tongue, demanding inventive physical storytelling from the cast. The director hopes audiences will leave with renewed curiosity about how they view the world and with greater empathy toward themselves and others.
Tony Shalhoub onstage this season: Creon in Antigone
While his name now graces the new black box in Maine, Tony Shalhoub is simultaneously part of a high-profile New York production, cast as Creon in a contemporary reimagining of Antigone. The production began performances on Thursday, February 26, 2026 (ET), which included a free Joseph Papp performance, and has an official opening set for Wednesday, March 11, 2026 (ET). The run continues through Sunday, March 22, 2026 (ET). Rehearsal imagery circulating from the company highlights Shalhoub alongside a cast that includes both established and emerging stage performers.
What audiences should know
All in the Timing promises brisk, intellectually playful material that touches on themes of mortality and meaning; organizers note a brief mention of suicide and broader themes of death and dying in the run-up to the Maine performances. The Tony Shalhoub Black Box is positioned as a laboratory for student work, and audience members can expect an intimate theatrical experience that foregrounds inventive staging and performance risk. The Antigone production, by contrast, reimagines the classic through a modern lens and features a mix of lyricism and contemporary commentary on autonomy and power.
Together, these developments mark a busy season for Tony Shalhoub: a philanthropic investment in nurturing the next generation of actors and technicians at his alma mater, and an active presence onstage in a production that engages with pressing political and personal themes. Both projects underline an unusual duality — support for intimate, educational theatre work while remaining a visible participant in major theatrical conversation in the city.
