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]
BEYOND GLORY: JOHN WILLIAM FINN by Stephen Lang
Content advisory: this episode contains language and themes that may not be appropriate for younger listeners.
"One of the richest, most complex pieces of acting I've seen in my theater going life."
- The Wall Street Journal, on Stephen Lang's Beyond Glory
A special release for Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day, BEYOND GLORY: JOHN WILLIAM FINN is part of the longer work Beyond Glory, by Stephen Lang. On the morning of December 7, 1941, when the attack on Pearl Harbor began, Medal of Honor recipient John William Finn was in bed with his wife. This is the sailor's own account of that day - and the life that came before and after - as adapted and performed across the world by Lang (Avatar, "Salem"). This installment also features Jeremy Davidson (Netflix's "Seven Seconds," "Army Wives").
Download on iTunes, search ‘Playing on Air’ in your favorite podcasting app – or stream below! [18 Minutes 44 Seconds]
THE WONDERFUL THANKSGIVING VIOLET by Max Baker
I know I’m not your therapist. I’m your brother.
In THE WONDERFUL THANKSGIVING VIOLET by Max Baker, two brothers struggle with three of life’s great fears: death, guilt, and the false sparkle of domestic bliss. Brandon Dirden (All the Way on Broadway) and Jason Dirden ("Greenleaf," Broadway's A Raisin in the Sun) star, with direction by Carrie Preston (“True Blood,” “The Good Wife”).
Stay tuned after the performance for a conversation with the artists moderated by host Claudia Catania. This episode was recorded in front of a live audience at BRIC Arts Media in downtown Brooklyn.
Download on iTunes, search ‘Playing on Air’ in your favorite podcasting app – or stream below! [24 Minutes 17 Seconds]
3:59 AM: A DRAG RACE FOR TWO ACTORS by Marco Ramirez
It's summer in the city, and Laz and Hector are both on the run from something they can't quite name. Maybe the sudden need for speed has something to do with Laz's sister, who took off two weeks ago, or with Hector's wife, who just called from the hospital. Featuring Bobby Moreno ("Homeland," Lazarus, PoA's Acorn) and Sean Carvajal (Broadway's King Lear, Jesus Hopped the A Train), Marco Ramirez's 3:59am: a drag race for two actors paints a blazing, late-night portrait of two young men tearing up the open road - and themselves.
After the play, host Claudia Catania joins director Christian Parker (New Neighborhood, Chair of Graduate Theatre at Columbia) and the cast for a behind-the-mic interview.
Download on iTunes, search ‘Playing on Air’ in your favorite podcasting app – or stream below! [21 Minutes 38 Seconds]
LA TRAVIATA by Lisa D'Amour
Debra Monk, Johanna Day, Katie Finneran, and Zach Appelman star in the world-premiere audio production of LA TRAVIATA by Lisa D’Amour (Pulitzer Prize finalist for Detroit, Airline Highway).
Outside of New Orleans, three sisters have gathered to celebrate Mother's Day and lament the scandalous fate of their poor, wayward nephew. But beneath their breezy porch gossip, there are family secrets of operatic proportions waiting to be uncovered. Tony & Emmy winner Monk ("Mozart in the Jungle," "NYPD Blue"), OBIE winner Day (Sweat, Proof), double Tony winner Finneran (Noises Off & Promises, Promises), and Appelman ("Sleepy Hollow," War Horse) are directed by Michael Wilson (Broadway's The Trip To Bountiful, PoA's An Upset).
After the episode, join the artists & host Claudia Catania for a behind-the-mic discussion about Southern storytellers and family dynamics.
LA TRAVIATA was commissioned by Playing on Air with the support of the Pearson Family Foundation.
Download on iTunes, search ‘Playing on Air’ in your favorite podcasting app – or stream below! [28 Minutes 48 Seconds]
2B OR NOT 2B by Jacquelyn Reingold
Sometimes, the most seductive offers come from unexpected messengers. Heartbroken on a Friday night, Franny (Jenn Harris) finds herself confronted by a charming bee (William Jackson Harper) with a buzzy - and delicious - proposal.
Recorded live, 2B OR NOT 2B by Jacquelyn Reingold ("The Good Fight," HBO's "In Treatment) features Harper ("The Good Place," Midsommar, All the Way) and Harris ("High Maintenance," Gayby). After the play, host Claudia Catania joins director Michael Barakiva (Hangar Theatre), the playwright, and the cast for a discussion of unlikely inspiration, in love and art.
Download on iTunes, search ‘Playing on Air’ in your favorite podcasting app – or stream below! [18 Minutes 33 Seconds]
THERE YOU ARE by Leslie Ayvazian
"Have you spoken of it?"
“No. No one."
After 31 years apart, two widows meet by chance at a concert and consider the whirlwind romance that they didn't dare to pursue - until now. Oscar winner Olympia Dukakis (Moonstruck, Netflix's "Tales of the City) and Tony nominee Maria Tucci (The Slap, Broadway's The Rose Tattoo) star in Leslie Ayvazian's THERE YOU ARE. After the play, Ayvazian and host Claudia Catania, the play’s director, discuss music onstage, desire, and the playwright's craft.
Download on iTunes, search ‘Playing on Air’ in your favorite podcasting app – or stream below! [12 Minutes 30 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]
THE GOODNESS OF YOUR HEART by David Ives
What would you sacrifice for a lifelong pal? A kidney? Your safety? $900 -- for a very specific television?
From acclaimed wordsmith David Ives (Venus in Fur, PoA's The Blizzard), THE GOODNESS OF YOUR HEART asks what the limits of friendship really are. Directed by Tony winner John Rando (Broadway's On the Town, PoA's The Philadelphia), the cast features comedic favorites Arnie Burton (Broadway's Peter and the Starcatcher, PoA's The Mystery at Twicknam Vicarage) and Rick Holmes (Broadway's Cabaret, "Fosse/Verdon"). After the play, the artists join host Claudia Catania to discuss morality, childishness, and the fruits of generosity.
Download on iTunes, search ‘Playing on Air’ in your favorite podcasting app – or stream below! [27 Minutes 55 Seconds]
AT THE WATER'S EDGE, WET by Jonathan Bernstein
The curtain is up. The show is in progress. But for two stage managers calling the cues behind the scenes, the night's most dazzling romance isn't playing out onstage. Written and directed by Jonathan Bernstein (PoA's Rules of Comedy & A Very Very Short Play), AT THE WATER'S EDGE, WET stars Callie Thorne (“Necessary Roughness,” “Rescue Me,” “The Wire”) and Tony nominee Jeremy Shamos (Broadway's Clybourne Park, "Better Call Saul," PoA's Hedgehog Years). Stay tuned after the performance for an in-studio conversation with the artists, moderated by host Claudia Catania.
Download on iTunes, search ‘Playing on Air’ in your favorite podcasting app – or stream below! [20 Minutes 13 Seconds]