Live Actions

Our Mission

New Neighborhood exists to amplify the experiences of its fellow American citizens through the creation of Live Actions, socially interactive theatrical installations that change and grow as audience members contribute their own unique voices and perspectives to the conversation.

Why Would I Dare?: The Trial of Crystal Mason

Streaming – RSVP here
Beginning October 13 at 7PM and continuing through November 2, 2020

The Commissary, Rattlestick Playwrights Theater, and New Neighborhood are proud to present Why Would I Dare?: The Trial of Crystal Mason, a virtual reading of the court transcript from the 2018 trial of Crystal Mason.

Striving to rebuild her life after prison, Crystal Mason attempted to vote in the 2016 election but was arrested and accused of casting a fraudulent vote. Why Would I Dare?: The Trial of Crystal Mason follows her harrowing fight against another five years in prison as neighbors testify against her newfound freedom and integrity as a Black American mother.   

Audiences will witness Mason’s legal ordeal brought to life as she fights for her freedom, her family, and her  right to vote. This free, online event is produced with the support of Crystal Mason, an advocate for voter rights.

Directed by Tyler Thomas and conceived by Thomas, Marin Ireland, Reggie White, and Peter Mark Kendall, Why Would I Dare?: The Trial of Crystal Mason features Crystal Dickinson (Bruce Norris’s Clybourne Park, Showtime’s The Chi), Peter Gerety (Amazon Prime’s Sneaky Pete), Peter Mark Kendall (FX’s The Americans, CBS’s Strange Angel), Shane McRae (Lucy Thurber’s The Hilltop Plays, Amazon Prime’s Sneaky Pete), and Marin Ireland (Martin Scorcese’s The Irishman, Clifford Odets’ The Big Knife, Martyna Majok’s Ironbound).

The creative team includes production design by You-Shin Chen, sound design by Megumi Katayama, Associate Director Rebecca Kenigsberg, and Production Stage Manager Clarissa Marie Ligon. Special thanks to Talene Monahon and Dan Aibel.

Leading regional theaters across the country are partnering with The Commissary, Rattlestick, and New Neighborhood on this event, and include Celebration Theatre, Dorset Theatre Festival, Fonseca Theatre, Geffen Playhouse, Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival, Luna Stage, Marin Theatre Company, Mirrorbox Theatre, Delaware’s Resident Ensemble Players, Round House Theatre, Studio Theatre (DC), and Warehouse Theatre.

Filibustered and Unfiltered: America Reads the Mueller Report

Long Island City, Queens, New York
June 1–2, 2019

New Neighborhood, in association with DMNDR and Slightly Altered States, presented Filibustered and Unfiltered: America Reads the Mueller Report, June 1-2, 2019 in Long Island City, Queens, New York. The event, which was the first 24-hour reading of the entire [redacted] Mueller Report, featured more than 100 participants including notable theater, film, and television artists, and inspired more than a dozen similar events in communities across the country.

Featured everywhere  from the Los Angeles Times (“a live-theater summer sensation!”) to Breitbart News (“the single most boring and pointless way to waste your time!”), the tidal wave of readings reached its apex when it was name-checked during Robert Mueller’s nationally televised public testimony.

Site design by Enrico Spada Creative | Logo by Paul Evan Jeffrey