CLEAN SLATE by Rajiv Joseph

CLEAN SLATE by Rajiv Joseph (Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo, Guards at the Taj) is Part Two of a thriller that begins with last week’s episode, Doug Wright’s FAKE NEWS. Listen to Part One here.

Special Agents Angie Mallinson and Vince Lazar just want to assure you that nothing horrible has happened at the KLWP News Hour. You may have heard rumors about a band of Kabuki-masked killers. You may have heard whispers about a mysterious vigilante group.  Ignore them — no matter what you think you saw. 

Oscar nominee Amy Ryan ("The Office," PoA’s Fifth Planet) and Eden Marryshow (Broadway's Ink, PoA’s Night Vision) join Jeremy Shamos, Eisa Davis, and director Mark Brokaw from last week’s FAKE NEWS. After the show, host Claudia Catania joins the artists to talk about what gives them hope and how they think this story really ends.

CLEAN SLATE by Pulitzer finalist and Obie winner Rajiv Joseph is a world premiere through Playing on Air and Axe-Houghton Foundation’s annual Wordsmith Duo Project, which invites two extraordinary playwrights to explore a shared theme or story through original, partnered plays. 

Download on iTunes, search ‘Playing on Air’ in your favorite podcasting app – or stream below! [24 Minutes 41 Seconds]

FAKE NEWS by Doug Wright

Content Warning: Violence

Anchors Bob Tunley and Fran Mercer are the iconic voices behind radio’s KLWP News Hour — but today, they’ve become the story. As bizarre and menacing soundbites interrupt their live broadcast, the studio crew begins to fear that they’re under attack.

Mark Brokaw (Broadway’s How I Learned to Drive, Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Cinderella) directs Obie winner Eisa Davis (Passing Strange, PoA’s Gun Show), Tony nominees Jeremy Shamos (Clybourne Park, PoA’s Hedgehog Years) and Steven Boyer (Hand to God, PoA’s Human Resources), and Tony winner Katie Finneran (Noises Off, PoA’s La Traviata) in FAKE NEWS by Pulitzer Prize winner Doug Wright (I Am My Own Wife, PoA’s Wildwood Park). After the episode, host Claudia Catania talks with the artists about writing plays specifically for audio and how these genius actors were able to play around with different accents and impressions on such short notice.

Doug Wright’s FAKE NEWS is Part One of a two-part thriller that continues next week with Rajiv Joseph’s CLEAN SLATE. Both pieces are world premieres through Playing on Air and Axe-Houghton Foundation’s annual Wordsmith Duo Project, which invites two extraordinary playwrights to explore a shared theme or story through original, partnered plays.

Download on iTunes, search ‘Playing on Air’ in your favorite podcasting app – or stream below! [23 Minutes 15 Seconds]

COUNTING IN SHA'AB by Emma Goldman-Sherman

"Life as usual and then the sky falls in."

There's a crater in the middle of the street - again. After a deadly car bomb explodes in the Sha'ab neighborhood of Baghdad, grocery store owner Abu Omar and his neighbors attempt to clear the rubble and assess the damage. Is this the new normal?  

Directed by Obie winner Omar Metwally (Guards at the Taj, "The Affair"), Emma Goldman-Sherman's COUNTING IN SHA'AB asks who - and what - counts in a community where everyday life is disrupted every day. 

Featuring Ramsey Faragallah ("Madam Secretary," "Mozart in the Jungle"), Rasha Zamamiri ("Ramy," NYTW's Aftermath), Peter Ganim ("Quantico," Broadway's Oslo), and Eden Zane (The Tempest, Project Olympus), the episode also includes a behind-the-scenes conversation with host Claudia Catania, the playwright, and the creative team. 

Download on iTunes, search ‘Playing on Air’ in your favorite podcasting app – or stream below! [21 Minutes 40 Seconds]

NEW YORK STORY by Mike Reiss

"It's not luck, it's fate. You, me - a couple of old showbiz pros. At the same place, at the same time..."

When a slick comedian (Ed Asner) and leading lady (Elizabeth Ashley), now both in their seventies, meet by chance in the shadow of the Brooklyn Bridge, the retired performers catch a glimmer of the magic they've been missing in their daily lives.

Also featuring Daphne Rubin-Vega and Peter Jacobson and directed by Michael Wilson, "The Simpsons" writer Mike Reiss's NEW YORK STORY is a wryly funny answer to the question, "Whatever happened to that guy?" After the play, the cast joins host Claudia Catania to chat about Vaudevillians and the tenacity showbiz requires.

New York Story was supported by Don and Linda Silpe.

Download on iTunes, search ‘Playing on Air’ in your favorite podcasting app – or stream below! [31 Minutes 27 Seconds]

THE BLIZZARD by David Ives

With a storm raging outside, a horror screenwriter (Jesse Eisenberg) and his wife (Heidi Schreck) are cozying up for a romantic weekend in the middle of nowhere. The weather outside is frightful -- and so is the mysterious couple that just arrived on their doorstep. 

Directed by John Rando and starring Eisenberg (The Social Network, Playing on Air's A Little Part of All of Us), Schreck (What the Constitution Means to Me), Alfredo Narciso (Time and the Conways, PoA's West of Stupid and Mere Mortals), and Sarah Sokolovic ("Homeland," PoA's Anniversary), David Ives's THE BLIZZARD will send a shiver down your spine.

Stay tuned after this special bonus episode for a conversation with host Claudia Catania and the artists about Agatha Christie fandom and what makes art creepy. 

Download on iTunes, search ‘Playing on Air’ in your favorite podcasting app – or stream below! [19 Minutes 54 Seconds]

PLAYING GOD by Alan Zweibel

In PLAYING GOD, a divine comedy from SNL's Alan Zweibel (Playing on Air's HAPPY), a self-involved OB-GYN (Scott Adsit of "30 Rock") creates chaos for his pregnant patient (Emily Bergl). Over the objections of a heavenly assistant (Susie Essman of "Curb Your Enthusiasm"), God himself (Bill Buell) challenges the doctor to an outrageous squash match for his faith. Following the play, director Fred Berner and host Claudia Catania join the cast and playwright to talk about their roots in comedy. 

Download on iTunes, search ‘Playing on Air’ in your favorite podcasting app – or stream below! [23 Minutes 46 Seconds]

IT'S ALL GOOD by David Ives

In IT'S ALL GOOD, a short play by a master of the form, David Ives (Venus In Fur, All in the Timing), a Chicago native visits his hometown and encounters his past. Directed by Tony Award winner John Rando, IT'S ALL GOOD features Carson Elrod, Rick Holmes and Kelly Hutchinson. As you'll hear, this is a four character play, but at the last minute, one stellar actress was struck down by extreme flu and Kelly valiantly assumed both roles! Stay tuned after the performance for a conversation moderated by our Producing Artistic Director, Claudia Catania.

Download on iTunes, Podbay, Player FM, subscribe to our RSS feed, search ‘Playing on Air’ in your favorite podcasting app – or stream below! [ 25 Minutes 10 Seconds]

ANNIVERSARY by Rachel Bonds

New podcast! Anniversary by Rachel Bonds, a comic drama about a young, grieving woman who finds love again. Featuring Michael Esper (The Last Ship, A Beautiful Mind), Sarah Sokolovic (“Homeland”), Steven Boyer (Hand to God), and Sue Jean Kim (Water by the Spoonful). Directed by Linsay Firman. Stay tuned after the performance for a conversation between the playwright and founding Artistic Director, Claudia Catania.

Download on iTunes, Podbay, Player FM, subscribe to our RSS feed, search ‘Playing on Air’ in your favorite podcasting app – or stream below! [ 21 Minutes 23  Seconds]