ARA is a multidisciplinary theater and production company founded by Michaela Lind and Drew Valins with a combined 40+ years of experience working as award-winning performers and creators. Their work has toured globally (Edinburgh Fringe, Israel, Prague, and Sweden,) and has been featured in unique venues (Public Theater/Under the Radar, Edinburgh Fringe Festival, Ted Talks, The Swedish and Czech Embassies in DC, The Beijing Children’s Opera, to name a few). They have worked with true artistic luminaries such as Slava Polounin (of Slava’s Snowshow), Bill Irwin, Kendall Cornell, and David Shiner, and they have had the esteemed audiences of the Dalai Lama and Madeline Albright. 

LAKEPLAY

A WORLD PREMIERE PLAY PRODUCED BY THE DRILLING COMPANY IN ASSOCIATION WITH ARA THEATER

OCTOBER 3-20 AT THE WILD PROJECT

A new Lovestory Mystery from Drew Valins: A Brooklyn couple gets a tip for an idyllic month-long stay in a cabin on a lake in upstate NY. It’s 2020, COVID. With a few dreams in tow and hopes of starting a family, they head north. But when they meet the caretaker of the cabin, a terrifying adventure begins that will change them forever.

WHERE IS NOW

An Absurd spin on our impending doom

A love letter to the Ocean and its most Majestic Inhabitants - Inspired by the Russian absurdist writer, Daniil Kharms and our beautiful Whales.

After a packed-house staged reading at the Czech Embassy in Washington DC, in June of 2024, we are in talks with the embassy and our partners theater for new music-theater for development of a full run of the piece.

DER BAU IS A NEW ADAPTATION FOR THE STAGE, WRITTEN BY FRANZ KAFKA, ADAPTED + PERFORMED BY DREW VALINS, AND DIRECTED BY MICHAELA LIND

DER BAU (THE BURROW)

In Der Bau, a nameless burrowing creature obsesses over erecting a perfectly secure system of defense against unseen enemies above and below. In the embrace of his underground fortress, however, the creature’s overactive imagination takes hold and the threat grows to an unbearable pitch.

PIFF PAFF POOF THE MAGIC OF NOTHING

We discovered Daniil Kharms in 2020 via two artists whom we admire, Slava Polunin and Robert Wilson. From our initial inspiration we began exploratory work on the material and presented some of the texts at a couple of variety nights. The work began to take hold of us. The absurdity of the texts and the entire "Kharmsian" world gave us a stimulus for creation and a vehicle to stretch ourselves as clowns and theater performers.