(SUMMIT, NJ) -- Vivid Stage, in residence at Oakes Center at 120 Morris Avenue in Summit, is offering a number of special discounts and events during the world premiere production of Soft Animals by Erin Mallon from September 29 through October 9.

Be the first to see the show on Thursday, September 29; at this preview performance, all tickets are $25. There will be a Post-Show Opening Night Reception on Friday, September 30 for season passholders and donors. On Senior Sunday, October 2, seniors age 65+ pay $25. New this season, Vivid is offering a reception for Young Professionals before the October 6 performance, featuring craft beer from Summit’s Bull n Bear Brewery, snacks and networking. Talkbacks follow the October 2, 6 and 9 performances. 

Soft Animals is a comedy with heart that asks, what would your life be like if you couldn’t feel physical pain? If your body had a mind of its own? What if you never fell asleep? How about if you remembered every single thing you’ve ever felt, thought or experienced? Four medical misfits sign up for a three-day workshop to tackle their issues. Can a former male nurse and self-professed “woo-woo” guide them toward healing? Or… perhaps they aren’t the ones most in need of a cure.

Directed by Laura Ekstrand (Livingston), the cast includes Vivid Stage ensemble members Daria M. Sullivan (Montclair), Jason Szamreta (Rahway) and Emaline Williams (Hackettstown) and guests Darin F. Earl II (Union), Stephanie Windland (NYC) and Christopher John Young (Hackettstown).

Soft Animals will appear at Vivid Stage at 120 Morris Avenue in Summit from September 29 through October 9. Performances are Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights at 8:00pm, and Sundays at 2:00pm. All audience members will be asked to mask while at the theatre.

Tickets range from $25 to $39, with special rates for subscribers and groups. For touchless advance ticket purchases, go to www.vividstage.org. For more information, call 908-514-9654. The theatre at Oakes Center is wheelchair accessible. The parking lot is accessible from Ashwood Avenue, behind the theatre.  

Vivid Stage was founded in 1994 as Dreamcatcher Rep, and is a non-profit professional ensemble of actors who build community with the audience by sharing contemporary, life-affirming stories that challenge, energize and entertain. Our work has at its heart a belief in the essential goodness of people and the power of live performance to connect people through our shared humanity. We expose theatregoers to ideas and lives like and unlike their own with the intention of awakening their imaginations and creating empathy for others. We deepen the experience of all our patrons with personal contact through receptions, talkbacks, and interactive programs.

The company’s activities include mainstage productions, improvisational comedy and cabarets, new play readings and a variety of educational and senior outreach programs.

Vivid Stage’s programs are funded by the New Jersey State Council on the Arts/Department of State, a Partner Agency of the National Endowment for the Arts, the Union County Department of Cultural and Heritage Affairs, and many other corporations, foundations and individuals.  Vivid Stage is an Equity Producing member of the New Jersey Theatre Alliance.

Graphic: Yolanda Fundora