Industry Reading of LIFE IS SMALL Will Be Directed By Austin Pendleton For Savage Wonder Arts Center

Savage Wonder Art Center will present an exclusive one-day industry reading of Life Is Small, a new play by Douglas Gearhart, directed by Austin Pendleton (Orphans; The Little Foxes; OBIE-winning director and longtime HB Studio faculty). The reading will take place on Friday, November 21 at 3:00 p.m. at Savage Wonder’s Pop-Up Gallery in Tribeca. Seating is limited, and industry RSVPs are required and may be sent to Sean Christian Taylor at seanct@savagewonder.org.

The reading will star Thomas Sadoski (Reasons to Be Pretty—Tony nomination; HBO’s The Newsroom; CBS’s Life in Pieces), David Mogentale (Blue Bloods; Law & Order: SVU; LAByrinth Theater Company alum), Bubba Weiler (Harry Potter and the Cursed Child Broadway; Hulu’s Dopesick; The Good Wife), and Gabby Beans (The Skin of Our Teeth—Tony nomination; Succession; Mary Jane).

Set in a small Florida town at Christmastime, Life Is Small follows Dominic “Sonny” Duluth, a man trying to hold together a life that’s been quietly falling apart—his marriage gone, his dog dead, his purpose eroding. When his estranged son, Jedi, shows up bloodied and accused of a grotesque act in a public park, the day spirals through police interrogations, half-truths, and desperate confessions. Balancing absurd comedy and brutal honesty, Life Is Small explores the fragility of decency in ordinary people. With sharp dialogue and moral unease, Gearhart’s play peels back the layers of masculinity and shame with biting humor and uneasy grace. It’s a darkly funny, painfully human portrait of people grasping for meaning while everything around them quietly unravels.

Directed by Austin Pendleton, the reading continues Savage Wonder’s commitment to developing bold, intimate, and surprising work by veteran and veteran-adjacent playwrights.

Creative/Production Team:

Playwright: Douglas Gearhart

Director: Austin Pendleton

Produced by: Savage Wonder Art Center

When/Where: Friday, November 21, 2025 at 3:00 p.m. — Savage Wonder Pop-Up Gallery (Tribeca), 89 Franklin Street, New York, NY

RSVP: seanct@savagewonder.org

Savage Wonder Art Center (Beacon, NY) is a 12,000-square-foot arts venue presenting theater, music, visual art, and culinary programs created by veterans, first responders, and their immediate family members. Our work is intimate, surprising, whimsical and absurd. We’re not here to help veterans—we’re veterans here to help the arts. 

Venues include The Parlor (30-seat performance space), Savage Wonderground (immersive gallery), and The Grape Rebellion (wine & dessert bar), as well as a pop-up gallery in Tribeca at 89 Franklin Street. Learn more at savagewonder.org.