Playing on Air 9/19/21 Playing on Air 9/19/21

PLAYING GOD by Alan Zweibel (Re-Release)

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!

Playing on Air 6/27/21 Playing on Air 6/27/21

THE DONOR by Avery Deutsch

Single mom Suzanne needs an actor for a discreet personal favor. It should be simple. But when she casts Mike, she grossly underestimates the lengths an out-of-work actor will go to to make an impact.

Written by Avery Deutsch and a winner of the 2020 James Stevenson Prize for Short Comedic Plays, THE DONOR stars Sakina Jaffrey (Timeless) and Hamish Linklater (The Big Short, “Legion”). It is directed by Tony nominee Moritz von Stuelpnagel (Bernhardt/Hamlet).

Download on iTunes, search ‘Playing on Air’ in your favorite podcasting app – or stream below! [27 Minutes 39 Seconds]

Playing on Air 6/20/21 Playing on Air 6/20/21

OWNER OCCUPY by Jonathan Spector

In Alvin and Mia’s neighborhood, property owners flip houses or parcel them out for AirBnBs. No one’s investing in the community. So they’re thrilled by the arrival of a new homeowner — a tech entrepreneur who’s rich, ambitious, charismatic, and strangely pale. And he’s an excellent drinking companion. Scotch, anyone?

A comedy about bloodsuckers of all kinds, OWNER OCCUPY stars David Patrick Kelly (Twin Peaks), David Furr (Noises Off), and Kalyne Coleman (Lessons in Survival). It’s written by Jonathan Spector (Eureka Day), and directed by Taibi Magar (Capsule).

Download on iTunes, search ‘Playing on Air’ in your favorite podcasting app – or stream below! [43 Minutes ,16 Seconds]

Playing on Air 6/13/21 Playing on Air 6/13/21

REVELATIONS by JuCoby Johnson

Mahalia, a Black trans woman, returns to her hometown of Minneapolis during the tumultuous summer of 2020. Against a backdrop of fire and protest, she and her father tentatively rekindle a long-dormant bond.

REVELATIONS is written by JuCoby Johnson (How It’s Gon’ Be) and directed by Goldie E. Patrick (Paradise Blue). It stars Lady Dane Figueroa Edidi (Klytmnestra: An Epic Slam Poem), John Douglas Thompson (Public Theater’s Julius Caesar), and Lynnette R. Freeman (Ensemble Studio Theatre).

Download on iTunes, search ‘Playing on Air’ in your favorite podcasting app – or stream below! [25 Minutes 23 Seconds]

Playing on Air 6/6/21 Playing on Air 6/6/21

CAMBERWELL HOUSE by Amelia Roper

A tale of old age, murder and gingernut biscuits.

CAMBERWELL HOUSE, a darkly comic one-woman play by Amelia Roper (“The Great”), stars five-time Tony nominee Dana Ivey (The School for Scandal, “Sex and the City”). After the performance, Dana Ivey joins host and director Claudia Catania for an intimate conversation about family and the different stages of life.

Download on iTunes, search ‘Playing on Air’ in your favorite podcasting app – or stream below! [21 minutes and 38 seconds]

Playing on Air 5/30/21 Playing on Air 5/30/21

DUMMY DIALOGUE by David Ives

Norman and Max may be dummies, but they’re no fools. Offstage, ventriloquist dummies are the same as anyone else — smack-talking their bosses, worrying about being behind the times — but beneath their hard wooden exteriors lurk sensitive, philosophical, funny souls.

A world premiere by a master of the short form, David Ives (The School for Lies, Venus in Fur), DUMMY DIALOGUE stars Richard Kind (A Serious Man, “The Goldbergs”) and Tony winner Gabriel Ebert (Matilda the Musical). It is directed by celebrated Tony winner Walter Bobbie (Chicago, Venus in Fur).

Download on iTunes, search ‘Playing on Air’ in your favorite podcasting app – or stream below! [30 Minutes 19 Seconds]

Playing on Air 5/23/21 Playing on Air 5/23/21

REAL AMERICAN DINNER PARTY by Jen Silverman

Sometimes you lose your keys, sometimes you lose your temper, and sometimes you lose the most unexpected of things. When Marcy and her difficult boyfriend come for a visit, what we know about ourselves can change in the blink of an eye...

REAL AMERICAN DINNER PARTY is written by Jen Silverman (Witch, novel We Play Ourselves) and directed by Tony winner Rachel Chavkin (Hadestown). It features April Matthis (Toni Stone), Quincy Tyler Bernstine (Marys Seacole), Sean Carvajal (King Lear on Broadway), and Matthew Rauch (The Wolf of Wall Street). After the performance, host Claudia Catania discusses family dynamics with the artistic team.

Download on iTunes, search ‘Playing on Air’ in your favorite podcasting app – or stream below! [14 minutes and 43 seconds]

Playing on Air 5/16/21 Playing on Air 5/16/21

I THINK IT’S WORTH POINTING OUT THAT I’VE BEEN VERY SERIOUS THROUGHOUT THIS ENTIRE DISCUSSION OR, DAVE AND JULIA ARE STUCK IN A TREE by Mallory Jane Weiss

When runaway snow tubes send a dad and his grown daughter flying off a cliff, they’re left hanging on for dear life -- and testing the limits of a punchline. This winning comedy, recipient of the 2020 James Stevenson Prize for Short Comedic Plays, cheerfully prods family bonds between parents and their grown children.

Written by Mallory Jane Weiss and directed by Tony nominee Moritz von Stuelpnagel (Hand to God), I THINK IT’S WORTH POINTING OUT… is a world premiere starring real-life father and daughter Danny DeVito (“It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia”) and Lucy DeVito (“The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” ). It was first performed live at Playing on Air’s 2020 Digital Holiday Benefit.

Download on iTunes, search ‘Playing on Air’ in your favorite podcasting app – or stream below! [30 Minutes 4 Seconds]

Playing on Air 2/28/21 Playing on Air 2/28/21

HOW MY GRANDPARENTS FELL IN LOVE by Cary Gitter (Re-Release)

“A gorgeous high note...a Jewish screwball romance… uproarious and beautifully cast, with tone-perfect direction by Colette Robert."
— The New York Times

It's 1933, and a young Jewish immigrant has returned to his Polish hometown in search of a wife. On a snowy afternoon, he sets his sights on Chava, a savvy, sarcastic shopgirl in a local hat store.

Directed by Colette Robert (STEW, Behind the Sheet), HOW MY GRANDPARENTS FELL IN LOVE by Cary Gitter (EST’s Youngblood, The Sabbath Girl) features a sparkling cast: Eli Gelb (Skintight, Indignation) and Lucy DeVito (“The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel,” PoA’s Gun Show). After the play, host Claudia Catania moderates a conversation with the artists.

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

Playing on Air 2/21/21 Playing on Air 2/21/21

NAPOLEON IN EXILE by Daniel Reitz (Re-Release)

“I felt I really had given birth ... rebirth ... to Napoleon.”

“So wait. Am I Napoleon? Or do I need to look for a job?”

Everyday life is a battlefield for single mother Evelyn and her adult son Corey, who has ASD (Autistic Spectrum Disorder). But underneath their sparring over Minecraft and job applications, a game-changing crisis is bubbling.

Directed by Golden Globe winner Marsha Mason (“Grace and Frankie,” The Goodbye Girl), NAPOLEON IN EXILE by Daniel Reitz (New Dramatists, Ensemble Studio Theatre) is a moving, unexpectedly funny portrait of a family on the brink. Emmy nominee Jane Kaczmarek (“Malcolm in the Middle,” Good People) and Will Dagger (HBO’s “I Know This Much Is True,” PoA’s The Press Conference) star as mother and son. After the performance, the artists join host Claudia Catania to discuss writing for actors and bringing theater chops to the world of sitcom TV.

Download on iTunes, search ‘Playing on Air’ in your favorite podcasting app – or stream below! [39 Minutes 23 Seconds]