AN ARK

Mixed reality pioneer Todd Eckert, Tony Award–winning writer Simon Stephens, and critically acclaimed director Sarah Frankcom executed a genre-defying collaboration with An Ark, a mixed reality play exploring the human condition. The play represents their attempt to radically reimagine how stories work at their most human.

You, the viewer, sit in the middle of a conversation among 4 different people as they share secrets, break confidences, and recall long-forgotten memories. They look directly at you or speak to you—except, of course, it is a hologram looking at you—guiding you into an understanding of the human condition, encompassing the joy of first love and the inevitability of death. They draw you as an audience into a deeply personal exploration of what it means to live, to grieve, and to connect.

This revolutionary play features the renowned actors Ian McKellen, Golda Rosheuvel, Arinzé Kene, and Rosie Sheehy. An Ark premiered at The Shed in New York from January to March 2026.

Credits
* Direction: Sarah Frankcom
* Production: Todd Eckert, Tim Drum Productions, Show Team
* Writing: Simon Stephens
* Device Installation: Pariah Interactive

Pariah Interactive Team
* Device Installation & Management: Prashast Thapan, Faith Zeng, James Baichuan Na, Lillyan Ling

Exhibitions and Events
* The Shed, New York (2026)

Selected Press
* The New York Times: “Follow Ian McKellen Into the Mixed Reality Future in ‘An Ark’”
* Mission: “Todd Eckert Believes That Technology Doesn’t Have To Be About Digital Isolation, But A Tool For Shared Human Empathy”
* NPR: “With Virtual Characters in Real Life, ‘An Ark’ Experiments With Mixed-Reality Performance”
* American Theatre: “A Play Without Live Actors: Is ‘An Ark’ Theatre’s Afterlife?”
* New York Theatre Guide: “Ian McKellen and More to Star Virtually in ‘An Ark’ Off Broadway”
* New York Theatre: “An Ark Review: MR Ian McKellen and “you””