Henry Miller’s luminous parable The Smile at the Foot of the Ladder will receive its first fully staged, professional U.S. premiere in a bold new adaptation: SMILE: A Clown’s Ascension. 

The premiere week begins October 15 at the Grace Dodge Chapel at Asilomar Conference Center, continues October 16–18 at the Carl Cherry Center for the Arts in Carmel, and concludes October 19 at the Henry Miller Memorial Library in Big Sur.

The Grace Dodge Chapel, designed by Julia Morgan—California’s first licensed female architect and one of the nation’s great visionaries—stands as a cultural landmark. That Morgan’s architecture will now host Miller’s most allegorical story represents a rare convergence of legacies, each devoted to giving form to the human spirit.

SMILE: A Clown’s Ascension is more than a play. It is the beginning of a collaboration that may resonate for years to come: a meeting of artistic giants, a cultural landmark, and a celebration of Miller’s enduring relevance.

Seating is limited. History will only be mad