YOU BELONG TO ME by Daniel Reitz (Summer 2022 Re-Release)
This week's summer re-release features Daniel Reitz's (NAPOLEON IN EXILE) affecting one-act YOU BELONG TO ME, featuring Amy Ryan (Oscar nominated for Gone, Baby, Gone, "The Office," "Only Murders in the Building," and a five-time Playing On Air MVP) and Michael Stuhlbarg (a recent Emmy nominee for "Dopesick," "The Staircase," "Boardwalk Empire," A Serious Man, and four-time Playing On Air veteran), as former lovers--who've gone very separate ways in the intervening years--having a chance meeting on the subway. Stay tuned after the performance for a spirited conversation between Reitz and the play’s director, Playing on Air founder and consulting director Claudia Catania.
Download on Apple Podcasts, iTunes, Podbay, Player FM, subscribe to our RSS feed, search ‘Playing on Air’ in your favorite podcasting app – or stream below! [ 17 Minutes 58 Seconds]
Gun Show by David Auburn (Summer 2022 Re-Release)
From David Auburn, Pulitzer and Tony winner for PROOF, comes a riveting, witty world-premiere commission for Playing on Air: GUN SHOW. In the aftershock of a national tragedy, a congenial double-date morphs into a battle of the sexes. As tempers blaze, two couples must reconsider the possibility of safety in a divided nation. Along with Emmy winners Bobby Cannavale (“Will & Grace,” “Boardwalk Empire”) and Martha Plimpton (triple Tony nominee, “The Real O’Neals,” “The Good Wife”), the star cast features Eisa Davis, David Furr, and Lucy DeVito. Gun Show was directed by Wendy Goldberg and performed in front of a live audience at Playwrights Horizons in New York City. After the play, host Claudia Catania talks shop with the entire creative team.
Gun Show was commissioned by Playing on Air with the support of The Gilchrist Foundation and Phyllis and Joel Ehrlich.
Download on Apple Podcasts, iTunes, Podbay, Player FM, subscribe to our RSS feed, search ‘Playing on Air’ in your favorite podcasting app – or stream below! [31 Minutes 56 Seconds]
JUNE WEDDINGS by Barbara Hammond
One summer morning, in a cool and dusty bar, two strangers seek refuge from the past. RJ is a single father, on a break from his only son’s wedding. The mysterious Sonja is patient and sympathetic, but may have her own priorities. Two strangers meeting is an old story, but the possibility of a true connection always feels new.
Academy Award winner Marisa Tomei (“My Cousin Vinny,” Broadway’s The Rose Tattoo) stars with Michael C. Hall (“Dexter,” Hedwig and the Angry Inch) and Alfredo Narciso (Broadway’s Time and the Conways, PoA’s The Blizzard) in JUNE WEDDINGS by Barbara Hammond (Terra Firma). Directed by Jenn Thompson (Abundance, Lost in Yonkers). After the play, host Claudia Catania joins the artists to talk about romance, parenting, and people-watching in New York City.
Download on iTunes, search ‘Playing on Air’ in your favorite podcasting app – or stream below! [33 Minutes 9 Seconds]
NIGHT VISION by Dominique Morisseau
Content Warning: Violence
“I don’t want you hunting anyone. What if you become the prey?”
On a night walk in Brooklyn, pregnant Ayanna and her husband Ezra witness a sudden, violent attack. But when they call the police, doubts arise. Did they get a good look at the attacker’s face? What color was his sweatshirt? And — why do their memories differ so drastically?
Originally commissioned as part of New Black Fest’s “Facing Our Truth: Ten-Minute Plays on Trayvon, Race and Privilege,” NIGHT VISION launches Playing on Air’s yearlong celebration of MacArthur ‘Genius Grant’ winner Dominique Morisseau (The Detroit Projects, Pipeline, Ain't Too Proud—The Life and Times of the Temptations). Directed by Stori Ayers (Chautauqua Theater Company, "The Last O.G.”), NIGHT VISION stars OBIE winner April Matthis (Toni Stone, Elevator Repair Service, PoA’s Hate Baby) and Eden Marryshow (“Jessica Jones,” Broadway’s Ink) and features music by guest composer Jimmy Keys.
Download on iTunes, search ‘Playing on Air’ in your favorite podcasting app – or stream below! [21 Minutes 41 Seconds]
CRAZY EIGHTS by David Lindsay-Abaire
Two recovering addicts (Rosie Perez, John Leguizamo) have their Saturday night card game interrupted by a love-struck parole officer (Bobby Cannavale) with major boundary issues.
Written and directed by Pulitzer Prize winner David Lindsay-Abaire (Rabbit Hole, Good People), the madcap comedy CRAZY EIGHTS features Emmy winner Bobby Cannavale (The Irishman, “Boardwalk Empire,” PoA's Gun Show), Tony winner John Leguizamo (Latin History for Morons, Ghetto Klown, Moulin Rouge), Oscar nominee Rosie Perez (Do The Right Thing, Fearless, "The View"), and Kevin Hogan ("Mr. Robot"). Stay tuned after the performance for an interview with David Lindsay-Abaire and the cast, moderated by Artistic Director Claudia Catania.
CRAZY EIGHTS was recorded live at BRIC House in Brooklyn, New York.
Download on iTunes, search ‘Playing on Air’ in your favorite podcasting app – or stream below! [32 Minutes 10 Seconds]
A LITTLE PART OF ALL OF US by Jesse Eisenberg
Jesse Eisenberg (The Social Network, PoA's The Blizzard) is both playwright and actor in the satirical short A LITTLE PART OF ALL OF US. Since 9/11, anxious hipster Joey (Eisenberg) has been haunted by survivor's guilt. Or -- maybe he's just co-opting a national tragedy to justify a decade of depression? A LITTLE PART OF ALL OF US also stars Justin Bartha (The Hangover trilogy, “The Good Fight”) as Joey's deadpan friend, who is definitely, totally listening to Joey. Really. Stay tuned after the performance for a conversation between host Claudia Catania and the cast.
Download on iTunes, search ‘Playing on Air’ in your favorite podcasting app – or stream below! [16 Minutes 48 Seconds]
MY HUSBAND by Paul Rudnick
A wedding isn't a competition - until the mothers get involved.
After gay marriage is legalized in New York, one meddling matriarch will stop at nothing to get her son to the altar. Starring Michael Urie (Broadway's Torch Song, "Ugly Betty," PoA's A Departure) and Tony winner Harriet Harris ("Frasier," "Desperate Housewives," Phantom Thread), MY HUSBAND by Paul Rudnick (The New Yorker, the upcoming The Devil Wears Prada) is directed by Claudia Weill (Girlfriends, HBO's "Girls," PoA's Hate Baby). After the short comedy, host Claudia Catania joins the artists for a behind-the-scenes discussion.
MY HUSBAND was recorded live at BRIC House in Brooklyn, New York.
Download on iTunes, search ‘Playing on Air’ in your favorite podcasting app – or stream below! [19 Minutes 58 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 HELPERS by Cusi Cram
What do you do when your former therapist starts talking to a cat that isn't there?
When Nate meets his longtime psychiatrist in the park, he realizes that she may be losing it. With tenderness and humor, Cusi Cram's THE HELPERS asks if we can reconnect with the life-altering figures who were never exactly our friends to begin with. THE HELPERS stars Tony & Emmy winner Jane Alexander (Warm Springs,The Great White Hope) and Peter Jacobson (Dr. Chris Taub on “House,” "The Americans"). After the episode, director Mimi O’Donnell (Executive Director, Scripted at Gimlet), Cram, and the cast join host Claudia Catania to discuss pet loyalty, funding for theater, and the art of costume design.
Download on iTunes, search ‘Playing on Air’ in your favorite podcasting app – or stream below! [29 Minutes 21 Seconds]
52ND TO BOWERY TO COBBLE HILL, IN BROOKLYN by Chiara Atik
"I just don't like you very much... Just. Middle of the road not liking you, I think."
In Chiara Atik's 52nd to Bowery to Cobble Hill, in Brooklyn, Halle is taking a late-night cab ride through Manhattan with her bubbly acquaintance Alison. Halle didn't mean to blurt out how she really feels about their "friendship," but now they're stuck in traffic on Broadway and 4th, dealing with it. Directed by Adrienne Campbell-Holt (Colt Coeur), Atik's modern comedy features Molly Bernard ("Transparent," "Younger") and Sue Jean Kim (Bachelorette, Playwrights Horizons, Public Theater).
Download on iTunes, search ‘Playing on Air’ in your favorite podcasting app – or stream below! [24 Minutes 7 Seconds]