Welcome Traveler.

I am your composer, and this is, as they say, a “composer’s note” about what you will see tonight.

Animal Wisdom, for as long as I have been making/writing/trying to mount it has stubbornly resisted being pinned down in terms of categorization. Lots of things have been said about it— it’s a musical (it’s not), it’s a play with music (not really that either) it's a seance with songs, it’s a mass — none of it and maybe all of that is true. 

What I know is this:

It’s my life story, as clearly as I can tell it (which is not very clearly at all).

It’s a requiem within a requiem.

It’s an active ritual, letting go of supernatural/psychological/spiritual/actual

trauma in front of an audience.

It’s a lecture demonstration of channeling through music.

The lion’s share of the “drama” in this piece is the grand spectacle of watching one woman try and finish the thing she started and ultimately fail in doing that thing but succeed in doing something else. That remains true for any performer who takes up the role of “H” as the cantor at the center. The act of a performer taking up this role / task I originally set for myself is an olympian feat of radical empathy, a high wire act of self-excavation and chutzpah that goes far beyond the page—as, regardless of our varying personal histories and griefs, the largely unvoiced internal struggle of this person remains very high stakes for all of us:

If "H" can do it, maybe she can save herself from the violent looming darkness that is threatening her life. It’s an absurd hypothesis that singing it through might do something, but such is life—we try with the tools that we were given.

It is not a traditional piece of musical theater by any real stretch; the songs do not function as a vehicle for narrative but rather as active channels to communicate with the spirits we are conjuring. The language / lyric shifts with each ghost we approach— so the poetic vehicle for the information is changing continually, and much of what exists in music will not be crystal clear. This may make you a little nuts—I want to hold that. The truth is, spiritual music has remained lyrically opaque for thousands of years regardless of the shifting appetites for poetic language in our culture, and this piece is written in that tongue and tradition.

Animal Wisdom is a ritual; it is my love letter to the parts of us we cannot diagnose—to remedies we cannot explain, to the pains we can’t escape, much less articulate enough to craft a treatment. It is to the parts of me that suffer still, despite my lifetime’s worth of fighting with blood in my teeth, determined to live. I hold these parts in me every day—it is unending and extremely hard, but I know for goddamn certain that I’m not alone.

—Heather Christian, May 2026

05.06.26 - 06.14.26

RUNNING TIME:
110 minutes
with no intermission

CONTENT ADVISORY: This performance contains haze, loud noises, and rapid lighting shifts including strobe-like effects and periods of darkness.

Signature Theatre is built on the unceded lands of Lenapehoking, homeland of the Lenape, which was colonized by European settlers starting in the 17th Century.  We are a home for storytellers, and this acknowledgement is only a starting point in our commitment to building an inclusive community.  As part of that commitment, we lift up playwrights and storytellers of all cultures, and welcome all audiences in our spaces.

Student Night 
May 8, 6:00 PM

The semester is almost done! Celebrate with fellow Student Members at this performance of ANIMAL WISDOM. Enjoy pre-show pizza and an exclusive post-show conversation with artists from the production.

Liebestraum Night with Bushwick Starr 
May 10, 6:00 PM

Join Bushwick Starr to celebrate the amazing journey of ANIMAL WISDOM from their Bushwick home to Signature Theatre in this new reimagined production. Join us for this “Love Dream Night,” featuring a meet-and-greet with composer Heather Christian. To learn more about the evening, follow Bushwick Starr’s social media account or sign-up for their newsletter.

Access and Sig30 Night: Pre-Show Dramaturgy Tour

May 14, 6:15 PM

Why not make new theatre buddies and meet fellow Access and Sig30 Members? Grab a drink and learn more about the play with Sig Artistic team member Emily Chackerian. She will guide members through the historical context of the play, discuss themes of the play, and Heather Christian’s musical style.

Community Night with Black Theatre Tribe

May 15

7:30 PM Pre-Show Gathering

8:00 to 8:30 PM Pre-Show Conversation

Join Black Theatre Tribe in celebration of ANIMAL WISDOM with a pre-show gathering and conversation. BTT’s founder, Trevor Latez Hayes, will lead a discussion with director Keenan Tyler Oliphant from the creative team exploring the themes of the show and the artist’s journey. The first fifty audience members who arrive starting at 7:30 PM may receive a shot of one of our specialty drinks. To learn more about the evening, follow Black Theatre Tribe’s social media account.

Collab-Connections with RISE Theatre Directory

May 21

6:00 PM

Meet other members of RISE Theatre Directory before attending ANIMAL WISDOM. Grab a drink and rub elbows with new theatre friends, colleagues, and collaborators. To learn more about the evening, follow RISE Theatre Directory’s social media account.

Season Sponsor

Lead Sponsor