Sanni Small

Sanni Small is a Bushwick-based scholar, performer, musician/composer, and teacher. Hailing from the Pacific Northwest, Sanni holds a BM in classical voice from Stetson University and an MM in musical theatre from NYU Steinhardt. As a stage performer, Sanni has had the privilege of performing in stage plays, musicals, and operas both regionally and Off-Broadway; favorite productions include Sweeney Todd, She Loves Me, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, and Tale of Two Cities, among others. As a scholar, Sanni pursues the intersection between neurodivergence, the feminist agenda, and the theatrical zeitgeist. Samples of conference presentations include "Phelan, Philosophy, and the Practice of Ontology in Sunday in the Park with George" and "Discovering Parksong in New York City". Outside of the world of performance/scholarship, Sanni works as a youth dance instructor in South Brooklyn, and resides with her partner Ryan and beloved kitty Leo. 

Project Title: Women, and Other Monsters: On Theatre, Eugenics, and the writing of "Cunabulum"

Project Description: What role(s) are females inherently assigned? What does statehood expect of its females? At what age do we instill the expectations of gender to our young? Are the traumas of womanhood inherently generational? These questions, and more, led Sanni Small to concieve "Cunabulum", a stage-drama that explores the ideas of alternative repreproduction and the pipeline of instilled misogyny. The story is a light spin on the Frankenstein model, where a scientist decides to “play god” and build a human. But unlike Victor Frankenstein, who sought to make a man for the sake of hubris, "Cunabulum"’s scientist is a woman- a molecular biologist named Julia-  motivated by her physical inability to birth a child. This leads her to decide to make a hodge-podge clone of herself using lab-grown portions of her own tissue. Instead of the gangly monstrosity of the Shelly book, Julia’s progeny is “May”, an adolescent clone of her maker. What ensues is a struggle between and against expectation: Julia’s desire to have the perfect daughter, and May’s gradual development towards figuring out what kind of life she wants for herself. 

Project Inspiration: Frankenstein, and similar literature on the theme of eugenics; the politics of the reproductive unit; studied bias in the literature of American theatre