Ars Novas And Then the Rodeo Burned Down, NYC Centers HUAC Docudrama, and BAMs Im Almost There Light Up the New York Theater Scene

New York’s theater season is offering a wide range of experiences this summer, from a physical‑comedy clowning duo’s riotous show to a historical docudrama about the House Un-American Activities Committee, and a surreal love story that turns everyday life into a mythic journey.

At Ars Nova, the Off‑Broadway house is presenting And Then the Rodeo Burned Down, the latest work from the writing‑performing‑clowning duo Xhloe Rice and Natasha Roland. The play premiered at the Edinburgh Fringe in 2022 and is now running in New York until July 2. Directed by Tom Costello, the production features a set designed by Emmie Finckel that includes colored lights, handkerchief garlands, and a raised central ring that mimics a circus tent. The 70‑minute show follows two rodeo clowns, Dale (Rice) and his shadow, Dilly Dally (Roland), as they navigate ambition, heartbreak, and the cost of pursuing art in the city.

Across town, New York City Center is staging Are You Now or Have You Ever Been, a docudrama written by Eric Bentley, a noted scholar of Bertolt Brecht. The play, subtitled The Investigations of Show‑Business by the Un‑American Activities Committee 1947–1958, is built from transcripts of the HUAC hearings. Anna D. Shapiro’s production features a rotating cast of actors and runs through September 11. The show examines the mechanisms of the committee’s investigations and the impact on the American entertainment industry.

BAM Fisher is offering I’m Almost There, a music‑fueled play by Todd Almond that first ran at Audible’s Minetta Lane Theatre in 2024. Directed by David Cromer, the piece follows a nameless New Yorker who attempts to reach a man named Guy but encounters a series of bizarre obstacles—vampires, wellness cults, a talking cat, and a mouse stuck to a glue trap. The play, which runs until June 28, uses surreal imagery to explore the everyday struggle of pursuing love and personal growth.

The Wild Project’s Summerworks festival, running through June 30, continues to showcase off‑beat theater. The lineup includes Derangements, directed by Annie Tippe and starring Hannah Cabell and Crystal Finn, set in a 1980s restaurant and featuring strange characters such as a backwoods witch and a Duolingo Owl. The festival also hosts The Family Dog by Bailey Williams, which opened on June 18.

With these productions running through the end of June and beyond, New York audiences have a rich selection of contemporary theater that ranges from physical comedy and historical drama to surreal love stories and off‑beat festival pieces.