Wynton Marsalis Returns to Ohio for Wexner Center’s Performing Arts Season

The Wexner Center for the Arts season opens with Wynton Marsalis’ return to the arts venue for first time since 2002, along with five premiere performances and two projects commissioned by the Wexner Center for the Arts. 

“It’s something that has not been presented here in over 20 years,” says Kathleen Felder, senior producer of performing arts for the Wexner Center for the Arts. “Wynton is stepping down as artistic director next year, so this is a once in a blue moon opportunity.”

The season’s live performances explore questions of artificial intelligence, love, aging and creativity — bringing audiences into experiences that can’t quite be replicated on a screen.

Felder says the series presents contemporary work that audiences might otherwise have to travel to New York or Los Angeles to see.

“These artists are unique, at the front of their genres and doing really innovative work,” she adds.

Here’s a look at what’s coming to the Wex October 2026 through April 2027.

Oct. 6: Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis
The Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis returns to the Wex for a night of swing, blues and masterful musicianship. This show is presented with support from Columbus Jazz.

Oct. 20–22: sweat variant | ‘adaku, part 2’
See the world premiere of an immersive multidisciplinary performance featuring movement, song, sound, text and spatial design. 

Nov. 6: SML
The Los Angeles-based quintet SML pushes the boundaries of jazz with an immersive blend of electronics, rhythm and improvisation. 

Nov. 15: Dan Tepfer | ‘Natural Machines’
Experience a performance by pianist Dan Tepfer in which musical improvisation, technology and visual art collide in real time. 

Dec. 3–5: bluemouth inc. | ‘Game of Life’
See the performance collective’s Ohio premiere of an immersive two-part exploration of mortality, the urgency of time and relationships.

Feb. 4–5: Jeffrey Ziegler and Reggie “Regg Roc” Gray | ‘We Were Fridays’
An interdisciplinary archive and story, and Wex-commissioned project, “We Were Fridays” blends cello, dance and electronics to explore histories within the Gullah community. 

Feb 9: Mohamed El Khatib | ‘La vie secrète des vieux’ (The Secret Life of Old People)
Experience the U.S. premiere of this documentary project featuring elderly people that share real stories that explore whether the end of life marks the end of love. 

Feb. 19: Alfredo Rodríguez Band with Special Guest Pedrito Martínez
See the Alfredo Rodríguez Band alongside percussionist Pedrito Martínez for an evening of Afro-Cuban jazz and masterful rhythms. 

March 4-6: Jenn Kidwell and the blackening | The Flea’s production of ‘we come to collect: a flirtation, with capitalism’
Experience an evening of stand-up comedy and carnivalesque performance exploring American consumerism at the Midwest premiere. 

April 1: Cécile McLorin Salvant
After packing the Wex in 2024, vocalist and composer Cécile McLorin Salvant returns with her bold new project “Oh Snap.”

April 15–17: Ogemdi Ude | ‘MAJOR’
At its Ohio premiere the Wex-commissioned dance theater project “MAJOR” explores the physicality, history, sociopolitical nature and interiority of majorette dance.

For more information about the performances, visit wexarts.org.

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