Anne Washburn’s new play Anon
opened at MCC Theater, bringing a super-online Texas mother radicalized by QAnon theories to the New York stage. Directed by Anne Kauffman, the world premiere runs through November 1, 2026, as the first production of the theater’s 40th anniversary season.
The staging at the Newman Mills Theater inside The Robert W. Wilson MCC Theater Space places Crystal Finn in the role of Jeanie, a suburban mother glued to TikTok and consumed by far-right conspiracy theories. Jeanie spends her time posting warnings about a gathering storm
and demanding of her sparse digital audience, why is Fauci still free?
Her fixed belief that John F. Kennedy Jr. didn’t die in 1999 and remains in hiding acts as the cornerstone of her worldview, steering her family toward fracture while she believes she is performing vital civic work.
Suburban Radicalization and Digital Obsession at MCC Theater
The production pairs minimalist stage elements from the dots collective with heavy video projections designed by Jared Mezzocchi, splashing imagery across a sparse dining room to mirror the constant screen-fixated reality of modern political life. Lighting designer Cha See and sound designer Tei Blow layer the production with spooky audio cues and projected banners that anchor the narrative in September 2024 amid Biden’s America.
Jeanie’s online fixation causes tangible harm in her immediate surroundings. Her teenage daughter, Delia, played by Izabel Mar, absorbs her mother’s hardline rhetoric, while her husband, Michael, played by Andrew Garman, looks for a way out. When a gay couple moves into Jeanie’s placid Texan suburb, Jeanie broadcasts her outrage over the pride flag on their porch, unaware that her digital footprint has captured their rapt attention.
The Neighbors Who Can Not Look Away From Jeanie’s Screen
Adam, played by Jeff Biehl, and Will, played by Jeremy Shamos, become Jeanie’s most dedicated viewers. While Adam procrastinates by scrolling through her erratic videos, Will slides past mere confusion into an all-consuming obsession with her posts. Washburn uses these contrasting neighbor reactions to examine how online extremism draws in even those who oppose its message, turning gleeful fascination into a reciprocal loop.
The progressive Adam casually tosses out Jeffrey Epstein conspiracy theories with the quip, Who thinks that was a suicide?
Meanwhile, Jeanie prides herself on introducing her daughter to refined tastes like blue cheese and classic literature.
The Struggle Between Satire and Real-World Extremism on Stage
Reviewers note that the production struggles to contain the sheer momentum of real-world conspiracy culture. Critics observed that describing actual QAnon beliefs out-paces traditional absurdist theater, unbalancing Washburn’s usual precision in portraying societal collapse. Unlike her prior works such as Mr. Burns, a Post-Electric Play,
or her 2010 miniature The Small,
the sheer volume of digital mania swamps the play’s satirical ratio.
Efforts to link the narrative to classical tragedy through Delia’s school assignment on King Lear
— complete with classroom debates where the teenager declares that in a soliloquy, words take the place of swords
— highlight the script’s literary ambitions. Yet reviewers find that the structural leap from internet comedy to genuine horror leaves a gap in the character’s transition from keyboard warrior to active extremist.
Closing Out the Newman Mills Theater Run This November
The production relies heavily on the comedic timing of its cast, featuring actors known for their ability to find levity within absurd premises. Yet reviewers like Zachary Stewart of Theatremania noted that the narrative concludes in an inconclusive blackout rather than providing a tidy resolution, reflecting an era where political division rolls forward without a clean dramatic script.
Anon
completes its limited engagement at MCC Theater in Manhattan on Sunday, November 1, 2026.