Know Theatre Hosts OCTKNOWBER NIGHTS: A Seven-Show Local Theatre Festival

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The festival features Jon Bennett's AMERICAN'T, ADVENTURES IN AFTERLIFE, and works by local playwrights at Cincinnati's 90-seat Black Box Theatre.

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Know Theatre of Cincinnati will host octKNOWber Nights from October 21–30, 2026. Get into the Halloween spirit with local artists highlighted in comedy shows, staged readings, secret lineups, and more. Tickets are on sale now.

Starting October 21, Know Theatre fans will be excited to see Jon Bennett return with his Pick of the Fringe Award-winning solo show American't to kick off octKNOWber Nights. Previously part of the 2025 Cincinnati Fringe Primary lineup, this comedic show takes audiences through Bennett's journey from being stuck at home in rural Australia during the pandemic to escaping to America after restrictions are lifted and the chaos that ensues.

Voted Audience's Favorite of the Know Theatre's Serials 16 lineup, Adventures in Afterlife by Sydney Vollmer and Chance Kilgour is back with three performances from October 22–24. This show follows the comedic hijinks that ensue when two young teens accidentally resurrect their uncle and team up to rescue their mom from the afterlife.

You can catch two performances on October 25. Join us for the matinee for Trick or Treat, Sally Salem! by Zoë Peterson, and follow a local witch who needs her family and friends to find a cure for her magical illness so she can enjoy her favorite holiday: Halloween! In the evening, witness a staged reading of local playwright and co-creator of Die Hard is a Christmas Movie, A.J. Baldwin's new play, Thief, a dystopian thriller set in a crumbling society.

Erika MacDonald presents Show Us Your Weird: SPOOKY EDITION on October 28, after tremendous success in last year's octKNOWber Nights lineup. With a program of experimental works, expect the unexpected in this variety show where each act and performer is a secret until the performance begins.

Rounding out octKNOWber Nights' stellar schedule, comics Janette Pérez and Homer Shadowheart will take the stage in I'm Not Your Costume on October 29, and returning octKNOWber Nights producers The Anti-Pestilence League and Kat Reynolds will perform two classic radio plays in Wicked & Whimsy on October 30.

Founded in 1997, the Know Theatre is Cincinnati's only Black Box Theatre: an intimate, 90-seat performance space where there's never a bad seat in the house. With a four-show MainStage Season, Cabaret performances in our Underground Bar & Lobby, and the annual Cincinnati Fringe Festival, the Know Theatre is a place where audiences can access provocative, live performances from living playwrights and local artists. octKNOWber Nights showcases the Know Theatre of Cincinnati's mission by highlighting a lineup of new works and a variety of performance genres from a plethora of local artists.

octKNOWber Nights consists of 7 separate shows with 9 performances, all performed at the Know Theatre of Cincinnati (1120 Jackson St, Cincinnati, OH 45202).

by Jon Bennett

Wednesday, October 21 at 7:30 PM

Rated: PG-13

by Sydney Vollmer & Chance Kilgour

Thursday, October 22 at 7:30 PM

Friday, October 23 at 7:30 PM

Saturday, October 24 at 7:30 PM

Rated: PG for loss, grief, and themes of terminal illness

by Zoë Peterson

Sunday, October 25 at 2:00 PM

Rated: For All Ages

by A.J. Baldwin

Sunday, October 25 at 7:30 PM

Content Advisory: Strong Language, Abuse/Violence, Flashing Lights, Loud Noises

Produced by Erika MacDonald

Wednesday, October 28 at 7:30 PM

Rated: 18+ for Warnings We Don't Know Either!

Featuring Janette Pérez and Homer Shadowheart

Thursday, October 29 at 7:30 PM

Rated: NC-17 Adults Only

Presented by The Anti-Pestilence League

Friday, October 30 at 7:30 PM

Rated: PG

Tickets are available through the Know Theatre of Cincinnati website or by calling the box office at (513) 300-5669.

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_Originally reported by [BroadwayWorld](https://www.broadwayworld.com/cincinnati/article/OCTKNOWBER-NIGHTS-to-Bring-7-Shows-of-Local-Theatre-to-Know-Theatre-20261006)._