New Beginnings is hosting the British comedian Jonny Donahoe, performing his international smash hit, award-winning one-man show, Every Brilliant Thing. Every Brilliant Thing is a humorous and heart-warming performance about a boy growing up in the wake of his mother’s mental illness. The show has played more than 600 times on four continents, including five months off-Broadway at the Barrow Street Theater in New York. Every Brilliant Thing has been replicated by dozens of comedians throughout the world, and HBO has even produced a documentary special about the performance. We are very fortunate to bring the co-creator and original performer of Every Brilliant Thing to Santa Barbara and are excited to share this opportunity with our community so that we can help people have a deeper understanding of the impact of mental illness on us all.

In Every Brilliant Thing, a young boy attempts to ease his mother’s depression by creating a list of all the best things in the world. Everything worth living for. Through adulthood, as the list grows, he learns the deep significance it has on his own life.