Trinity Rep Opens Its New Season Tonight With a World Premiere
Providence, RI · September 3, 2026
Watching theater crews haul set pieces across Washington Street early this morning is the surest sign autumn arts season has arrived. Keep an umbrella near the door before stepping out, as passing afternoon showers will accompany the humid breeze.
The Lead
Downtown’s marquee playhouse opens its sixty-third season tonight under circumstances both urgent and bittersweet. Trinity Repertory Company raises the curtain this evening on the world premiere of The Getaway Driver, a gripping true-crime drama co-written by resident playwright Deborah Salem Smith and company member Charlie Thurston. The production unspools the real-life aftermath of a fatal 1970 bank heist, examining the decades-long collision course between fugitive driver Katherine Ann Power and the daughter of the slain officer. Beyond the gripping source material, tonight’s performance marks the final directorial effort of Curt Columbus as artistic director, capping a defining twenty-year tenure before he hands the reins to incoming leader Meredith McDonough. With main-stage renovations continuing inside the upper auditorium, audiences gather downstairs in the Dowling Theater through October 4, beginning with tonight’s 7:30 PM opening curtain.
Local Pulse
Bus Contract Talks Continue Under Strike Threat Negotiators for Teamsters Local 251 and First Student face looming walkouts that could disrupt morning student bus routes.
City Unveils Full Lineup for Autumn Festival Organizers announced stage schedules and headliners for the upcoming celebration returning to downtown streets later this month.
First Opioid Settlement Report Details Fund Distribution Municipal leaders directed over one million dollars toward community-driven overdose prevention initiatives and street-level healthcare outreach programs.
Today's Outlook
- High 81°F · Low 62°F — Rain (48% chance of precipitation)
- Keep an umbrella handy today for intermittent rain during an otherwise mild commute.
What's On Around Town
Coventry: Car Seat Safety Check Coventry Public Library (1672 Flat River Rd), 9:00 AM–12:00 PM Certified technicians inspect installations and verify harness fits for growing families.
PVD World Music: The Lost Tribe 195 District Park, 6:00–8:00 PM Afro-funk fusion grooves and lively drumming along the river lawn.
East Providence: Foundation Paper Piecing Fuller Creative Learning Center (260 Dover Ave), 6:00–7:30 PM Learn precision quilting techniques in a hands-on evening textile workshop.
ProvSlam 2026 Team Homecoming AS220 (115 Empire St), 7:00 PM Regional finalist poets celebrate a new chapbook with live spoken word.
Matt York and Guests The Parlour (1119 N Main St), 7:00 PM Warm acoustic songwriting and local camaraderie on the North End stage.
Spotlight & Story
- Transit Street
- When Rhode Island astronomer Benjamin West and merchant Joseph Brown built an observation platform on College Hill to track the rare 1769 transit of Venus across the sun, town leaders immortalized their calculations by laying a road along the sightline.
Providence Daily Digest — compiled from local sources as of 6 AM. For breaking updates, follow your local newsrooms.
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