May 1st – June 1st 2024

2024

Small Acts of Daring Invention

"Riveting, Ominous, Dreamlike."

—Theatre Life

Small Acts of Daring Invention, inspired by the life and work of Dare Wright, author of the children’s book series The Lonely Doll, is an image-rich, musically driven exploration of the space between this life and the next. The play teases the realness of the unreal and investigates the endless resources of the imaginative realm. With one actress and five puppeteers, Small Acts lives in an expansive world where the child and adult consciousness coexist. The play asks: How do we bury and resurrect the past? Where does our soul find its home? How do we confront reality and dare to invent our own? On a journey delicate, dangerous, playful, and dark, transcendence is the final destination.

Trailer

“Riveting, Ominous, Dreamlike…Playwright Tracy Weller has created an alternate reality rife with questions. Her performance is graceful, credible, transfixing.”
—Alix Cohen, Theatre Life

“Eerie and Haunting. A Triumph!”
—Jonathan Mandell, New York Theater

“Beautifully realized.”
Theater Scene

“A gorgeous presentation, rich in detail and stage magic.”
Exeunt, NYC

Producer: Mason Holdings Theatre
Artistic Director: Tracy Weller
Producing Director/General Manager: Reed Ridgley
Playwright: Tracy Weller
Director: Kristjan Thor
Puppetry: Simple Mischief Studios
Scenic Design: Christopher and Justin Swader
Costumes: Natalie Loveland
Lighting: Daisy Long
Projections: Yana Biryukova
Music Composition and Sound: Philip Carluzzo
Props: Patricia Marjorie

Photography: Maria Baranova

General Manager – Reed Ridgley
Production Manager – Mitchell Strong
Production Stage Manager – Eszter Zador
Assistant Stage Manager – Mary Kate Baughman
Associate Projections Designer – Tatiana Stolpovskaya
Associate Prop Designer – Federica Borlenghi
Master Electrician – Megan Mahoney
Audio Supervisor – Eric Shimelonis
Wardrobe Supervisor – Bonnie Puk
Deck Supervisor – Colleen Welday
Board Operator Technician – Isabel Cava
Puppet Maintenance – Andrew Murdock
House Manager – Charles Shipman

Photo Credits

Jarring: Joshua Paul Johnson
Holiday House: Arion Doerr
Consumption: Matthew Dunivan
Found: Eraj Asadi
Hart; Maria Baranova
Small Acts of Daring Invention: Maria Baranova