Bridge Street Theatre to Debut HERKIMER! at 2026 SoloFest in Catskill
The solo performance is written and performed by Ned Averill-Snell and directed by Bridge Street Theatre Associate Artistic Director Timothy Dunn.
Bridge Street Theatre will continue its 2026 SoloFest series with the world premiere of "Herkimer! How My Ignorant Immigrant Ancestors Saved America and You Can Too," a funny, captivating, and unexpectedly timely solo performance written and performed by Ned Averill-Snell and directed by Bridge Street Theatre Associate Artistic Director Timothy Dunn.
The production runs March 13-15, 2026 at Bridge Street Theatre, located at 44 West Bridge Street in downtown Catskill.
Blending family history, Revolutionary War storytelling, and contemporary reflection, Herkimer! explores the pivotal 1777 Battle of Oriskany in Upstate New York and the immigrant farmers, Iroquois warriors, Hessian soldiers, and inept generals who found themselves caught in the chaos of that brutal one-day conflict. Through humor, historical insight, and personal storytelling, Averill-Snell reveals how this little-known battle may have helped set in motion events that ultimately secured the American victory in the Revolution. The story carries particular resonance in the Hudson Valley and Capital Region, where Revolutionary War history remains deeply woven into the identity of the region.
In the engaging solo storytelling style that made his previous one-person performances audience favorites, Averill-Snell uses the story of his own immigrant ancestors to explore the complicated promises of the American Dream.
"I was hearing all this blood-and-soil patriotism coming from Vice President JD Vance and other nationalists," Averill-Snell says of the play's inspiration. "They think the longer your family has been here, the stronger your claim to America. I figured the counterargument should come from someone whose roots in this country go even deeper than JD's."
Along the way, the play also takes a few playful jabs at the Broadway phenomenon Hamilton. (They can handle it!)
A veteran of the Florida theatre scene for more than twenty-five years, Averill-Snell has appeared in a wide range of productions, particularly Shakespeare and classic American drama, earning numerous awards from newspapers and theatre organizations. Herkimer! marks his Bridge Street Theatre debut.
Bridge Street's SoloFest 2026 series features three dynamic solo performances by acclaimed theatre artists. The series concludes later this spring with "Archie Parish's Parting Words," written, directed, and performed by Ernest Thompson, Academy Award winner for adapting his Broadway play On Golden Pond into the classic 1981 film.
ABOUT THE ARTIST:
Ned Averill-Snell recently relocated from Florida to Pittsfield, Massachusetts and most recently appeared as the Ghost of Christmas Present in A Christmas Carol at Berkshire Theatre Group. Favorite stage roles include Hickey in The Iceman Cometh, Eddie Carbone in A View from the Bridge, Joe Keller in All My Sons, King Claudius in Hamlet, Sir Toby Belch in Twelfth Night, and Juror 8 in Twelve Angry Men.
He has performed numerous solo shows including Chesapeake, Every Brilliant Thing, The Apocrypha of Theodore Roosevelt, and his self-written Little Tunes, which he performed at the United Solo Festival in Manhattan. Averill-Snell is also the author of the theatre-set mystery novel Small Professional Murder and proprietor of Ned's Event Photography. He lives in Pittsfield with his wife, lighting designer Jo Averill-Snell, who designed South: A Nautical Musical and On Golden Pond last season at Bridge Street Theatre.
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