Oratorio for Living Things
Oratorio for Living Things is a oratorio musical with music, lyrics, book, and orchestrations by Heather Christian which premiered Off-Broadway at Ars Nova in 2022, and again in 2025 at the Signature Theatre Company.
Synopsis
Oratorio for Living Things; is an immersive music-theater piece that brings audiences into a shared space where a group of singers and musicians explore big questions about existence, memory, and connection. Blending classical oratorio with blues, gospel, jazz, and soul music, the performers guide the audience through a reflective journey that considers the origins of the universe and what it means to be human.
A large portion of the show is performed in Latin.
Productions
The piece premiered at Ars Nova Off-Broadway on March 17, 2022, directed by Lee Sunday Evans and featuring Kirstyn Cae Ballard, Jonathan Christopher, Carla Duren, Ashley Pérez Flanagan, Brian Flores, Jonny-James Kajoba, Barrie Lobo McLain, Ángel Lozada, Divya Maus, Ben Moss, Onyie Nwachukwu and Dito van Reigersberg.The show was staged in-the-round to evoke the feeling of a planetarium, according to Christian. The production closed on May 22, 2022.
The production received critical acclaim, with Jesse Green of the New York Times calling it "profoundly strange and overwhelmingly beautiful," naming it a Critic's Pick. The show was nominated for six Lucille Lortel Award nominations, winning three , along with Christian receiving a special Drama Desk Award.
The show was revived Off-Broadway at Signature Theatre Company, in 2025 again directed by Evans, with all the original cast returning, along with new cast members Major Curda, Elisa Galindez, Laura Darrell and Jacob Ryan Smith. The production ran from September 30, 2025 through November 23, 2025, and again received critical acclaim. Allison Considine of New York Theatre Guide praised the show, claiming it "completely reshapes what a theatre performance can be."
Awards and nominations
2022 Off-Broadway premiere
Year |
Award |
Category |
Nominee |
Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
2022 |
Lucille Lortel Award |
Outstanding Musical |
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Outstanding Director |
Lee Sunday Evans |
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Outstanding Ensemble |
Johnny Butler, Kirstyn Cae Ballard, Jane Cardona, Sean Donovan, Carla Duren, Clérida Eltimé, Ashley Pérez Flanagan, Brian Flores, Odetta Hartman, Quentin Oliver Lee, Angel Lozada, Divya Maus, Barrie Lobo McLain, Ben Moss, John Murchison, Onyie Nwachukwu, Dito van Reigersberg, and Peter Wise |
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Outstanding Costume Design |
Márion Talán de la Rosa |
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Outstanding Lighting Design |
Jeanette Oi-Suk Yew |
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Outstanding Sound Design |
Nick Kourtides, |
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Drama Desk Award |
Special Award |
Heather Christian |
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2025 Off-Broadway revival
Year |
Award |
Category |
Work |
Result |
Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2026 |
Drama League Awards |
Outstanding Revival of a Musical |
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Outstanding Direction of a Musical |
Lee Sunday Evans |
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Outer Critics Circle Award |
Outstanding New Off-Broadway Musical |
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Outstanding New Score |
Heather Christian |
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Outstanding Director of a Musical |
Lee Sunday Evans |
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Outstanding Orchestrations |
Fraser Campbell, Jane Cardona, Ben Moss, Odetta Hartman, John Murchison, Peter Wise |
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Outstanding Sound Design |
Nick Kourtides |
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Dorian Award |
Outstanding Off-Broadway Revival |
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