Episodes

• 2021

• 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.
  February 28, 2021

  20 min

• 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.
  February 21, 2021

  40 min

• SKIN by Naveen Bahar Choudhury (Re-Release)

  Nobody comes to the campus health clinic looking for love. But as he waits for the nurse to call him in, Robby (Vandit Bhatt) finds himself drawn to Angie (Nitya Vidyasagar), a disenchanted Bengali writer with problems of her own. Can two strangers find unexpected poetry in each other? And do they even want to? SKIN by Naveen Bahar Choudhury (My Name is Yusuf, Ma-Yi Writers Lab) features Bhatt (“Quantico,” Indian Ink, “New Amsterdam”) and Vidyasagar (“Sesame Street,” The Glorious Ones) in a rom-com for cynics. Playwright Naveen Bahar Choudhury joins host Claudia Catania for a post-performance conversation.
  February 14, 2021

  16 min

• THE FINAL INTERROGATION OF CEAUSESCU’S DOG by Warren Leight (Re-Release)

  In the wake of the 1989 Romanian Revolution, a dictator’s beloved pet must answer for the crimes of his owner. What’s the cost of staying loyal to the hand that feeds you — especially if that hand belongs to a tyrant? Jesse Eisenberg (Zombieland, Happy Talk, PoA’s The Blizzard) and Golden Globe winner Ed Asner (Elf, “The Mary Tyler Moore Show,” PoA’s New York Story) open the 2021 Winter Mini-Season with a sly satire: THE FINAL INTERROGATION OF CEAUȘESCU’S DOG by Tony winner Warren Leight (“In Treatment”, Side Man, “Law & Order: SVU”). After the play, host Claudia Catania joins Asner and the playwright for a behind-the-mic interview.
  February 7, 2021

  12 min

• Winter Mini Season Begins Next Sunday, February 7th!

  Throughout February, Playing on Air returns with four episodes from our back catalog starting Sunday, February 7th.
  January 31, 2021

  1 min
• 2020

• BIRD by Rachel Bonds

  The year is 2030. On the snowy outskirts of DC, an underground musician (Tony winner Julie White) and her pragmatic teenage daughter (Erin Wilhelmi) battle the forces, seen and unseen, that threaten their survival. Directed by Adrienne Campbell-Holt (Colt Coeur, PoA’s 52nd to Bowery…), Bird is a world-premiere recording and, in partnership with the Axe-Houghton Foundation, a Wordsmith Duo commission. After their previous run as mother and daughter in Broadway’s A Doll’s House, Part 2, White (Gary: A Sequel to Titus Andronicus, “Alpha House”) and Wilhelmi (To Kill A Mockingbird, The Crucible) reunite in this final episode of the 2020 Fall Season. After the play, they join Bonds, Campbell-Holt, and host Claudia Catania for a behind-the-mic interview.
  December 13, 2020

  26 min

• THIRD GRADE by Dominique Morisseau

  THIRD GRADE continues Playing on Air’s yearlong celebration of MacArthur ‘Genius Grant’ winner Dominique Morisseau (The Detroit Project, Pipeline, Ain't Too Proud — The Life and Times of the Temptations). Elementary school teacher Kai is dedicated to helping her students thrive. But when one of her third-graders is brutally bullied, Kai must unexpectedly go to battle with the boy’s father over how best to protect his son. J. Alphonse Nicholson (Starz’s “P-Valley”, A Soldier’s Play) stars alongside playwright-performer Morisseau. Directed by Stori Ayers ("The Last O.G.," Chautauqua Theater Company), THIRD GRADE is a searing look at the impossible choices that parents and public school educators are making to protect America’s kids. Later in the episode, the artists join host Claudia Catania to discuss their own third grade experiences and the need to ”go deep.”
  December 6, 2020

  32 min

• THE THOMPSONS by Andrew Massey

  Ah, the holiday season! The wine is flowing. In-laws are gossiping in the kitchen. And the Thompson family is indulging in their most bizarre Thanksgiving ritual: the Turkey Trot. Mischievous and tender, THE THOMPSONS by Andrew Massey (EST’s Youngblood) is a comedy about the wacky families we love, break, and remake. Arin Arbus (TFANA, Broadway’s Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune) directs an all-star cast of PoA regulars: William Jackson Harper (“The Good Place,” PoA’s 2B Or Not 2B), Sue Jean Kim (Office Hour, PoA’s 52nd to Bowery…), April Matthis (Toni Stone, PoA’s G.O.A.T.), and Amy Ryan (“The Office,” PoA’s Clean Slate). After the play, host Claudia Catania joins the cast, director, and playwright to discuss Thanksgiving traditions and family dynamics.
  November 29, 2020

  25 min

• THANKSGIVING FOR ONE by Hamish Linklater

  After his hit Nudity Rider, OBIE winner Hamish Linklater returns for another helping of irresistible comedy: the world-premiere commission THANKSGIVING FOR ONE. Marjorie Mumms (Jean Smart) would rather not be eating her holiday turkey alone at the Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse. She can’t get a decent gin & tonic, her daughter is spending Thanksgiving in another state, and her crazed waiter has cast her in a festive audio play. It might just be time to flip the table – and the script. With direction by Tony winner Ruben Santiago-Hudson (Paradise Blue, Your Blues Ain’t Sweet Like Mine), THANKSGIVING FOR ONE unites actor-writer Linklater (“Legion,” "The Big Short," The Public’s Shakespeare in the Park) with Emmy winner Jean Smart (HBO's “Watchmen”, “Fargo,” “Frasier”). After the play, join host Claudia Catania for a behind-the-mic chat with the artists.
  November 22, 2020

  31 min

• SCRAPS AND THINGS by Melis Aker

  At a laundromat in Istanbul, a chatty seamstress (Carol Kane) and a guarded, young academic (Melis Aker) discover that they're linked, and haunted, by the myth of the same man. Written by, starring, and featuring original music by Melis Aker (Kilroys List, Ars Nova Play Group), SCRAPS AND THINGS also marks the PoA return of legendary Oscar nominee Carol Kane (The Princess Bride, “Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt,” PoA’s Hedgehog Years) and is directed by Neil Pepe, Artistic Director of the Atlantic Theater Company. After the play, host Claudia Catania joins the artistic team to discuss personal legacies and how artists divulge their deepest secrets through their work. SCRAPS AND THINGS was originally commissioned by Atlantic Theater Company as part of their 2018 Middle Eastern MixFest.
  November 15, 2020

  32 min

• HOW TO BE A WIDOW by Tori Keenan-Zelt

  On a sweltering afternoon in 1864, two Civil War widows meet in a graveyard. Mirabelle is trying to paint a pineapple; Annaleigh needs to make sure that her husband hasn’t turned into a vampire. Together, the women begin to imagine the futures that might await them beyond corsets, lockets, and bullets. HOW TO BE A WIDOW by Emmy nominee Tori Keenan-Zelt (Kilroys List, Bay Area Playwrights Festival) features Mary Bacon (Lost Girls, Coal Country) and Naomi Lorrain (“Orange is the New Black,” Behind the Sheet). Lucie Tiberghien (Molière in the Park) directs. After the play, Tiberghien joins the cast, the playwright, and host Claudia Catania to discuss how the rules of womanhood and widowhood have — and haven’t — changed from the Civil War to today.
  November 8, 2020

  24 min

• JEZELLE THE GAZELLE by Dominique Morisseau

  JEZELLE THE GAZELLE continues Playing on Air’s yearlong celebration of MacArthur ‘Genius Grant’ winner Dominique Morisseau (The Detroit Project, Pipeline, Ain't Too Proud — The Life and Times of the Temptations). Jezelle is ready to prove that she’s the best runner on her block: young, fierce, and definitely faster than any boy. But is she fast enough to outrun grief and claim her greatness? Starring Mirirai Sithole (School Girls; Or, The African Mean Girls Play, “Black Mirror”), JEZELLE THE GAZELLE by Dominique Morisseau is directed by Goldie E. Patrick (Detroit Public Theatre, Kennedy Center). This clear-eyed coming of age story — originally created for the 10 x 10 Festival at American Theater Company — was recorded live at New York’s Pershing Square Signature Center in November 2019. Stay tuned after the performance for an onstage conversation between the artists and host Claudia Catania.
  October 25, 2020

  27 min

• THE COURTSHIP OF ANNA NICOLE SMITH by Lucas Hnath

  “Back when I was a kid my mother took me to see a fortune teller for my 12th birthday… She said that when I am in my 20’s I will reach two paths. Two paths J. And I don’t know which one to pick.” In the parking lot behind a Houston strip club, a young dancer considers a proposal from an octogenarian billionaire. Before the world devours her story, she has to choose it. Written and directed by OBIE winner Lucas Hnath (Broadway’s Hillary and Clinton, A Doll’s House, Part 2), THE COURTSHIP OF ANNA NICOLE SMITH features Quincy Tyler Bernstine (“Power,” Marys Seacole) and David Patrick Kelly (“Twin Peaks,” Thérèse Raquin). After the performance, the artists join host Claudia Catania to discuss theater in the age of Quarantine, directing your own plays, and the double-edged sword of celebrity. THE COURTSHIP OF ANNA NICOLE SMITH was first produced at Actors Theatre of Louisville as part of The Tens, presented by the Professional Training Company.
  October 18, 2020

  28 min

• ST. FRANCIS PREACHES TO THE BIRDS by David Ives (Re-Release)

  In the middle of the desert, two vultures find their lunch interrupted by a man of faith. Now, they have a bone to pick with Saint Francis of Assisi. Full of miraculous and mischievous wit, ST. FRANCIS PREACHES TO THE BIRDS by David Ives (Venus in Fur, PoA’s The Blizzard) features Carson Elrod (Peter and the Starcatcher, PoA’s Evening at Anaheim), Julie Halston (Tootsie, PoA’s Relative Strangers), Matthew Saldivar (Bernhardt/Hamlet, PoA’s The Philadelphia), an appearance by the legendary Lois Smith, and a surprise cameo from the playwright. Stay tuned after the performance for a conversation with Tony Award-winning director John Rando (Urinetown, PoA’s The Mystery at Twicknam Vicarage), the cast, and host Claudia Catania. Help us get to know you a bit better; go to playingonair.org/survey to fill out our listener survey.
  August 23, 2020

  35 min

• CELL by Cassandra Medley

  Tony winner Tonya Pinkins (Jelly’s Last Jam, “Fear the Walking Dead,” PoA’s Poof!), Tony nominee Condola Rashad (Saint Joan, “Billions”), and Melanie Nicholls-King ("The Wire," "Little Fires Everywhere”) star in Cassandra Medley’s CELL. When a jaded supervisor at an immigrant detention center finds jobs there for her sister and niece, family tensions erupt into a battle over home and homeland security. Directed by Diverse City Theater Company founder Victor Lirio, CELL by Cassandra Medley (Relativity, Coming Up for Air) “deftly explores the dirty antidemocratic secret of institutionalized racism” (New York Times). After the play, host Claudia Catania joins Pulitzer Prize-winning immigration journalist Julia Preston, Broadway producer Cheryl Wiesenfeld, and playwright Medley to move beyond headlines and explore the real lives that inspired CELL. Help us get to know you a bit better; go to playingonair.org/survey to fill out our listener survey.
  August 16, 2020

  55 min

• ANNIVERSARY by Rachel Bonds (Re-Release)

  “This doesn’t seem like your kind of place - Why? I dunno. You don’t look like you eat a lot of crappy deli meat.” Through a haze of gin, mediocre roast beef, and horrible apartment parties, a grieving New Yorker finds herself drawn to a quirky, flirtatious friend-of-a-friend. Hurtling through time, ANNIVERSARY by Rachel Bonds (PoA’s Winter Games, Goodnight Nobody) follows a journey back to love. Ensemble Studio Theater’s Linsay Firman directs Sarah Sokolovic (“Big Little Lies,” PoA’s The Blizzard), Michael Esper (Lazarus, PoA’s Rules of Comedy), Sue Jean Kim (Office Hour, PoA’s 52nd to Bowery…), and Tony nominee Steven Boyer (Hand to God, PoA’s If You Win). After the play, playwright Bonds joins host Claudia Catania to discuss her roots as a writer. Help us get to know you a bit better; go to playingonair.org/survey to fill out our listener survey.
  August 9, 2020

  24 min

• HAPPY by Alan Zweibel (Re-Release)

  Never underestimate the persistence of a Mets fan. In HAPPY by Alan Zweibel (“SNL,” 700 Sundays with Billy Crystal), a baseball fan shows up at the home of his childhood hero, George "Happy" Halliday. Has the stranger come to pay his respects or to throw a curveball? A comedy for anyone who’s ever wished for an extra inning, HAPPY stars Frankie Faison (“The Wire”) and Scott Adsit (“30 Rock,” PoA’s Wild and Precious Life), directed by Fred Berner. After the live recording, join the artists and host Claudia Catania for an onstage interview. Help us get to know you a bit better; go to playingonair.org/survey to fill out our listener survey.
  August 2, 2020

  35 min

• Getting to Know You!

  Hi Playing on Air listeners! We hope you're all safe and well. If you're willing to give us around 10 minutes of your time, we'd like to get to know you a bit better; it'll help us to program episodes of Playing on Air that you'll love. Go to playingonair.org/survey to fill out our listener survey. And, as a thank-you, you'll be treated to a message from a very special guest.
  July 26, 2020

  2 min

• G.O.A.T. by Ngozi Anyanwu

  Jay, Bonita, and Row have gathered on the rooftop to burn the sage and drink the sacred Gatorade. To pray to the goddess Nike, and the ghosts of Billie Jean King and Arthur Ashe. To summon victory for their beloved champion: Serena Williams, the Greatest Of All Time. Directed by Whitney White (What to Send Up When It Goes Down, Our Dear Dead Drug Lord) and featuring original music by Jeremy Lloyd (Marian Hill, clear eyes), G.O.A.T. is an electric celebration of Black Girl Magic, on and off the court. Denise Manning (Daddy, PoA's Wild and Precious Life), Obie winner April Matthis (Toni Stone, PoA's Hate Baby), and playwright/performer Ngozi Anyanwu (Good Grief, The Homecoming Queen) star - and Drama Desk nominee Bobby Moreno cameos - in the final episode of Playing on Air’s Spring 2020 season. After the episode, stay tuned for host Claudia Catania’s conversation with the artists, about ritual, their multi-hyphenate talents, and the G.O.A.T. herself, Serena Williams. Playing on Air is a non-profit, listener-supported production. To help support our fall season, visit https://playingonair.org/donate. Thank you for listening!
  May 31, 2020

  24 min

• IF YOU WIN by Emily Chadick Weiss

  John Lithgow ("The Crown," "3rd Rock from the Sun," Hillary and Clinton) and Tony nominee Steven Boyer (Hand to God, PoA's An Upset) star in Emily Chadick Weiss's IF YOU WIN. On the eve of a local election, candidate Hal Wheelwright (Lithgow) receives an unexpected offer from his opponent's son (Boyer). Is this an act of political sabotage or a blessing in disguise? After the play, director Giovanna Sardelli (TheatreWorks Silicon Valley, Atlantic's Describe the Night) joins Chadick Weiss (Ensemble Studio Theatre, “The Share”) and the cast for a behind-the-scenes interview moderated by host Claudia Catania. Playing on Air is a non-profit, listener-supported production. To help support our fall season, visit https://playingonair.org/donate. Thank you for listening!
  May 24, 2020

  23 min