Dungeons & Dragons show 'The Twenty-Sided Tavern' to premiere off Broadway

The interactive play is the first offical stage production based on the hit tabletop role-playing game, which celebrates its 50th anniversary in 2024.

Get ready to play! Dungeons & Dragons will come to the stage this year in the new interactive play The Twenty-Sided Tavern. Performances begin off Broadway at Stage 42 on April 19 ahead of a May 5 opening.

Created in 1974 by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson, Dungeons & Dragons is the world's most popular tabletop role-playing game. Players create characters who gain skills and knowledge as they participate in adventures and battles.

In The Twenty-Sided Tavern, five actors lead a Dungeons & Dragons-inspired fantasy quest on stage, but audience members can participate, too. Using the digital software Gamiotics, they will get to play as one of over 30 characters, vote on what will happen next in the story, and face riddles and duels. Some audience members will also be chosen to play games, charades, and other activities on stage.

"What started as a D&D-style RPG onstage with folding tables and a box of props has grown beyond our wildest imagination,” said producer David Carpenter in a statement. “From day one we forged a deep connection with gamers and non-gamers alike by bringing them a whole new type of experience by fans for fans."

The show's producers also include Wizards of the Coast and Hasbro, the distributors of Dungeons & Dragons. The Twenty-Sided Tavern is the first official stage show based on the game.

Before coming to New York, The Twenty-Sided Tavern played critically acclaimed engagements in Chicago, Pittsburgh, and Edinburgh.

Photo credit: The Twenty-Sided Tavern in Chicago. (Photo by Amy Boyle)