We created Surround Project on a simple yet radical belief: theatre can be more than watching a story alone in the dark. It can be something we experience—artist and audience—together.
That idea shapes everything we do, and it’s the heartbeat of our newest offering:
Surround Project Play Dates. Here are the titles we’ve announced so far!
February 7: Gidion’s Knot by Johnna Adams
March 21: Swing State by Rebecca Gilman
April 11: Native Gardens by Karen Zacarías
May 2: Eureka Day by Jonathan Spector
Play Dates are a new tier of Surround experiences—staged readings surrounded by conversation, connection, and carefully curated extras. Each Play Date features the San Antonio premiere of a daring contemporary American play, chosen for its relevance, urgency, and willingness to ask big, uncomfortable, necessary questions about the world we’re living in right now.
And yes, there’s lighting, music, sound, and scenic elements—but the reading is only the beginning.
Before and after the play, audiences are invited to grab bevs and snacks, mingle, and jump into meaningful conversation with the artists and with each other. These aren’t traditional talkbacks. They’re facilitated, thoughtful exchanges designed to spark curiosity, deepen understanding, and make room for honest reflection. Together, we unpack the play, sit with its tensions, and explore what it’s asking of us.
Our work at Surround Project is guided by four core values: compassion, relationships, resilience, and risk. Play Dates are built around those values, with them front and center. We curate plays that ask for courage—from the artists bringing them to life and from the audiences leaning in. They challenge assumptions, grapple with complexity, and invite conversation rather than tidy answers.
Play Dates are intentionally intimate and social. They blur the line between performance and gathering, creating an atmosphere that feels welcoming, thoughtful, and alive. Through partnerships with artists, community members, and subject-matter experts, each evening becomes more than a reading—it becomes a shared experience that sticks with you.
This is theatre as relationship, not just presentation.
A place for curiosity, risk, and connection.
A night out that gives you something to carry home.
✨ Follow. Attend. Bring a Friend. ✨