Works & Process: Mother Russia by Lauren Yee and Animal Wisdom by Heather Christian

Go behind the scenes with Signature Theatre resident artists Lauren Yee and Heather Christian and their upcoming productions: Mother Russia and Animal Wisdom.

In Mother Russia, by Signature Theatre resident artist Lauren Yee (Cambodian Rock Band, The Great Leap), the setting is 1992 St. Petersburg: the Soviet Union has collapsed, McDonald’s has risen, and Evgeny, a young man at a loss, stumbles into a job working surveillance with his old friend Dmitri. Their target, Katya, is a former pop singer with questionable allegiances and a mysterious past. As their lives riotously intertwine, Evgeny finds himself falling in love and losing his bearings––all while grappling with the taste of freedom (and fast food) along the way. This savvy, off-kilter tale of identity, espionage, and the cost of capitalism makes its New York premiere, in this razor-sharp dark comedy directed by Teddy Bergman.

In Animal Wisdom, by Signature Theatre resident artist Heather Christian (Oratorio for Living Things, A Wrinkle in Time), step into a musical séance like no other— where the veil is thin, the music is wild, and the spirits of memory come roaring to life. Called “dazzlingly original” by Vogue, this work blends storytelling, requiem, and family mythology in a musical ritual made for sinners and saints alike. A journey into the haunted spaces of memory and loss—diving deep into the relationship between the soul, the seen, and the unseen—this transporting experience comes to Signature in a thrilling new production helmed by director Keenan Tyler Oliphant. With her raucous, singular music fusing blues, gospel, and folk, Obie Award–winner Christian invites you to pay tribute to the forces that shape your lives.

Yee and Christian join a moderated discussion led by Signature Theatre artistic director Emily Shooltz, and performers present excerpts from both works.

Leadership support for this Works & Process program is provided by Nina Matis.

Lauren Yee. Photo: Beowulf Sheehan; Heather Christian. Photo: Maria Baranova