Do You Need to Read the Confidence Man – July 17

Performer, playwright and great, great, great grand daughter of Herman Melville Elizabeth Doss returns to Arrowhead to “talk back” to The Confidence Man, the last published and completed novel by Melville in his lifetime. Set on a steamboat cruising down Mississippi, Doss jumps aboard, probing this text to grapple with her own encounters with “Confidence Men,” not to mention her own flagging confidence, and what the hell Melville is really getting at in his perhaps strangest, most provocative and perplexing text. Still early in its inception Doss asks you, “Do you need to read The Confidence Man?” This one-person performance (hopefully) offers a healthy mixture of insight, ignorance and some stabs at hilarity. Come cheer her on (or boo her off) for at Arrowhead. Directed by Kristin Osborn

Use the BOOK NOW button to purchase tickets, $20 for BCHS members $25 for non-members. Become a member and start receiving discounts on event tickets.

This event is sponsored by Massachusetts Cultural Council and Housatonic Heritage.

About Elizabeth Doss
Elizabeth Doss is a writer, performer, director and playwright based in Austin, Texas. She is a Co-artistic director of the theatre collective Paper Chairs, which has produced world premieres of her original plays Murder Ballad Murder Mystery, Hillcountry Underbelly, Mast, Poor Herman and Catalina de Erauso. Paper Chairs has also produced her translation/ adaptations of Federico Garcia Lorca’s, The Audience and The Divine Narcissus by Sor Juana Inez de la Cruz. Her play Slumber Party, was featured as part of the UTNT new theatre festival in March 2017 and Theatre En Bloc produced her play Severe Weather Warningat the Long Center in May 2019. Doss holds a BA in Spanish and an MFA in Playwriting, both from the University of Texas at Austin. She played herself and Herman Melville in Mark Blumberg’s film, The Act of Reading. And her personal essay, “What Poor Herman Means to Me” was published in Leviathan in 2022. Most recently, Paper Chairs co-produced Poor Herman at Arrowhead 2024 which played to sold-out audiences. As a performer she performs with Austin companies including Salvage Vanguard (Cry Pitch Carols, Americamisfit), Rude Mechs (Dionysus in ‘69, B Beaver Animation, Fixing TImon of Athens) Theatre en Bloc (The Totalitarians.) She’s currently developing a new solo work, Do You Need to Read the Confidence Man?, which will premiere in Austin and the Berkshire summer 2026. 

About Kristen Osborn
Kristen Osborn is an Austin-based director and creative producer who creates immersive stories that nurture human connection and spark wonder, curiosity, and joy. Her work spans film, theater, magic and live performance, blending narrative, interactivity, and community engagement. Currently, Kristen collaborates with Texas film company Sailor Bear on film development and production, most recently contributing to the soon-to-be-released Mother Mary with A24. Her live work includes projects such as In & Of Itself (Daryl Roth Theatre, The Geffen Playhouse, Hulu), Dear Dickies (Mi Casa Es Tu Teatro Festival, Hyde Park Theater), Group Therapy (American Dance Festival, Fusebox Festival), and A Recipe for Action (Rainwater Innovation Grant Recipient, University of Texas at Austin). Her most recent immersive work was showcased at SXSW in collaboration with Whole Foods and Food Tank.  She is an ensemble member of Rivendell Theatre Ensemble in Chicago, holds a BA in Theater from UCLA, an MFA in Directing from UT Austin, and is a graduate of the Texas Immersive Institute.