No Script: The Podcast

Jackson and Jacob discuss Ayad Akhtar's new play "McNeal" which starred Robert Downey Jr. in its Broadway debut. In the play, Akhtar takes on the issue everyone's talking about: AI.  ------------------------------ Please consider supporting us on Patreon. For as low as $1/month, you can help to ensure the No Script Podcast can continue.  https://www.patreon.com/noscriptpodcast  ----------------------------- We want to keep the conversation going! Have you read this play? Have you seen it? Comment and tell us your favorite themes, characters, plot points, etc. Did we get something wrong? Let us know. We'd love to hear from you. Find us on social media at:  Email: noscriptpodcast@gmail.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/No-Script-The-Podcast-1675491925872541/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/noscriptpodcast/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/noscriptpodcast/ ------------------------------ Thanks so much for listening! We’ll see you next week.

To begin Season 15, Jackson and Jacob discuss another play from Lynn Nottage's fabulous library: "By the Way, Meet Vera Stark." In this story of an early black film star, Nottage deploys surprising meta-theatricality to cross time periods and ask powerful questions. Listen in!  ------------------------------ Check out these other voices and their discussions of "By the Way, Meet Vera Stark": Samantha N. Sheppard, associate professor at Cornell University, lectures on Nottage and black women's film history Lynn Nottage introducing the play for Signature Theatre Nottage and cast discuss the play for The Sit Down Actor Jessica Frances Dukes on Vera Stark Interview with Nottage about two of her comedies ------------------------------ Please consider supporting us on Patreon. For as low as $1/month, you can help to ensure the No Script Podcast can continue.  https://www.patreon.com/noscriptpodcast  ----------------------------- We want to keep the conversation going! Have you read this play? Have you seen it? Comm

Jacob is joined by Audrey Francis, Artistic Director of Steppenwolf Theatre Company, for a special conversation on Noah Diaz's incredible play "You Will Get Sick," opening at Steppenwolf later this month. Listen in!  Get your tickets to "You Will Get Sick" by Noah Diaz at Steppenwolf Theatre Company here: www.steppenwolf.org ------------------------------ Please consider supporting us on Patreon. For as low as $1/month, you can help to ensure the No Script Podcast can continue.  https://www.patreon.com/noscriptpodcast  ----------------------------- We want to keep the conversation going! Have you read this play? Have you seen it? Comment and tell us your favorite themes, characters, plot points, etc. Did we get something wrong? Let us know. We'd love to hear from you. Find us on social media at:  Email: noscriptpodcast@gmail.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/No-Script-The-Podcast-1675491925872541/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/noscriptpodcast/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/noscriptpodcast/ --------

In the final episode of the season, Jackson and Jacob discuss the worldwide phenomena that is "Jesus Christ Superstar"! Listen in as they breakdown how Webber and Rice trouble the familiar stories of Jesus and Judas, and how the changing view on rock n' roll has altered the story of "Jesus Christ Superstar." ------------------------------ Please consider supporting us on Patreon. For as low as $1/month, you can help to ensure the No Script Podcast can continue.  https://www.patreon.com/noscriptpodcast  ----------------------------- We want to keep the conversation going! Have you read this play? Have you seen it? Comment and tell us your favorite themes, characters, plot points, etc. Did we get something wrong? Let us know. We'd love to hear from you. Find us on social media at:  Email: noscriptpodcast@gmail.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/No-Script-The-Podcast-1675491925872541/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/noscriptpodcast/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/noscriptpodcast/ -------------------------

Jacob is joined by Amy Marie Seidel, director of the New York Theatre Company's upcoming production of "Machinal" by Sophie Treadwell. Jacob and Ms. Seidel discuss the continued relevance of "Machinal," and how Treadwell uses expressionist techniques to bring the audience inside the mind of the characters. They also discuss Seidel's production, which incorporates tap dance and live foley work. The production of "Machinal" opens on June 7 and runs through July 3, 2025.  Get your tickets here: https://www.nycitycenter.org/pdps/2024-2025/machinal/ ------------------------------ Please consider supporting us on Patreon. For as low as $1/month, you can help to ensure the No Script Podcast can continue.  https://www.patreon.com/noscriptpodcast  ----------------------------- We want to keep the conversation going! Have you read this play? Have you seen it? Comment and tell us your favorite themes, characters, plot points, etc. Did we get something wrong? Let us know. We'd love to hear from you. Find us on social med

Jacob is joined by Jack Cummings III, director of Classic Stage Company's co-production of William Inge's Bus Stop with NAATCO and Transport Group. Mr. Cummings and Jacob discuss Inge's legacy and his unique portraits of American loneliness. They also discuss Cummings' upcoming production, which begins previews on May 8, 2025. This production of Bus Stop begins on May 18 and runs through June 8. Get your tickets to Bus Stop here: https://www.classicstage.org/choose-seats/?eid=busstop2025 ------------------------------ Please consider supporting us on Patreon. For as low as $1/month, you can help to ensure the No Script Podcast can continue.  https://www.patreon.com/noscriptpodcast  ----------------------------- We want to keep the conversation going! Have you read this play? Have you seen it? Comment and tell us your favorite themes, characters, plot points, etc. Did we get something wrong? Let us know. We'd love to hear from you. Find us on social media at:  Email: noscriptpodcast@gmail.com Facebook: https:/

Jackson and Jacob discuss the play "Into the Beautiful North." In her stage adaptation of the novel by the same name, Karen Zacarías takes the audience across thousands of miles in an epic quest. Listen in! ------------------------------ Please consider supporting us on Patreon. For as low as $1/month, you can help to ensure the No Script Podcast can continue.  https://www.patreon.com/noscriptpodcast  ----------------------------- We want to keep the conversation going! Have you read this play? Have you seen it? Comment and tell us your favorite themes, characters, plot points, etc. Did we get something wrong? Let us know. We'd love to hear from you. Find us on social media at:  Email: noscriptpodcast@gmail.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/No-Script-The-Podcast-1675491925872541/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/noscriptpodcast/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/noscriptpodcast/ ------------------------------ Thanks so much for listening! We’ll see you next week.

Join us as Jackson and Jacob round out Halloween in April by discussing Chisa Hutchinson's revenge-horror play "Whitelisted." They chat about how Hutchinson deploys sometimes simple, sometimes not so simple spooky effects to make a larger observation about the world. Listen in!  ------------------------------ Please consider supporting us on Patreon. For as low as $1/month, you can help to ensure the No Script Podcast can continue.  https://www.patreon.com/noscriptpodcast  ----------------------------- We want to keep the conversation going! Have you read this play? Have you seen it? Comment and tell us your favorite themes, characters, plot points, etc. Did we get something wrong? Let us know. We'd love to hear from you. Find us on social media at:  Email: noscriptpodcast@gmail.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/No-Script-The-Podcast-1675491925872541/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/noscriptpodcast/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/noscriptpodcast/ ------------------------------ Thanks so much for liste

Halloween in April continues with Jen Silverman's play Witch. Jackson and Jacob discuss Silverman's loose adaptation of The Witch of Edmonton, paying particular attention to how -- though the play contains a literal devil! -- Silverman locates the real horror of the world in our trapped (and trapping) societal patterns.  ------------------------------ Please consider supporting us on Patreon. For as low as $1/month, you can help to ensure the No Script Podcast can continue.  https://www.patreon.com/noscriptpodcast  ----------------------------- We want to keep the conversation going! Have you read this play? Have you seen it? Comment and tell us your favorite themes, characters, plot points, etc. Did we get something wrong? Let us know. We'd love to hear from you. Find us on social media at:  Email: noscriptpodcast@gmail.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/No-Script-The-Podcast-1675491925872541/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/noscriptpodcast/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/noscriptpodcast/ ------------

Halloween in April continues with a discussion about Anne Washburn's play Apparition. Jackson and Jacob explore her mysterious, vignette-based exploration of what scares us... and why. Listen in!  ------------------------------ Please consider supporting us on Patreon. For as low as $1/month, you can help to ensure the No Script Podcast can continue.  https://www.patreon.com/noscriptpodcast  ----------------------------- We want to keep the conversation going! Have you read this play? Have you seen it? Comment and tell us your favorite themes, characters, plot points, etc. Did we get something wrong? Let us know. We'd love to hear from you. Find us on social media at:  Email: noscriptpodcast@gmail.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/No-Script-The-Podcast-1675491925872541/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/noscriptpodcast/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/noscriptpodcast/ ------------------------------ Thanks so much for listening! We’ll see you next week.

Halloween in April -- our Season 14 Themed Month -- begins today!  No Script begins a 4-week look at plays with spooky, frightening characters, situations, and themes. This week, Jackson and Jacob discuss York Walker's play Covenant, where a century old myth about making a deal with the devil comes to life... Listen in!  ------------------------------ Please consider supporting us on Patreon. For as low as $1/month, you can help to ensure the No Script Podcast can continue.  https://www.patreon.com/noscriptpodcast  ----------------------------- We want to keep the conversation going! Have you read this play? Have you seen it? Comment and tell us your favorite themes, characters, plot points, etc. Did we get something wrong? Let us know. We'd love to hear from you. Find us on social media at:  Email: noscriptpodcast@gmail.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/No-Script-The-Podcast-1675491925872541/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/noscriptpodcast/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/noscriptpodcast/ ------------

This week, Jackson and Jacob visit a classic of the stage: Three Sisters by Anton Chekhov. This puzzling play defies categorization. With a large ensemble cast, a surprising lack of plot, and several bids for love, Chekhov manages to gorgeously tell a story of human longing. Listen in!  ------------------------------ Please consider supporting us on Patreon. For as low as $1/month, you can help to ensure the No Script Podcast can continue.  https://www.patreon.com/noscriptpodcast  ----------------------------- We want to keep the conversation going! Have you read this play? Have you seen it? Comment and tell us your favorite themes, characters, plot points, etc. Did we get something wrong? Let us know. We'd love to hear from you. Find us on social media at:  Email: noscriptpodcast@gmail.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/No-Script-The-Podcast-1675491925872541/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/noscriptpodcast/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/noscriptpodcast/ ------------------------------ Thanks so much f

This week on No Script, Jackson and Jacob discuss a play described as a "companion" to "Topdog/Underdog." Suzan-Lori Parks' "The Book of Grace" is about borders... both those on land and the ones we place, intentionally and fearfully, in our hearts. Listen in.   ------------------------------ Please consider supporting us on Patreon. For as low as $1/month, you can help to ensure the No Script Podcast can continue.  https://www.patreon.com/noscriptpodcast  ----------------------------- We want to keep the conversation going! Have you read this play? Have you seen it? Comment and tell us your favorite themes, characters, plot points, etc. Did we get something wrong? Let us know. We'd love to hear from you. Find us on social media at:  Email: noscriptpodcast@gmail.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/No-Script-The-Podcast-1675491925872541/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/noscriptpodcast/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/noscriptpodcast/ ------------------------------ Thanks so much for listening! We’ll see y

A classic example of early twentieth-century expressionism, Sophie Treadwell's Machinal is an evocative depiction of an oppressive society. The 1928 play has recently been produced by companies around the world as its relevance, frighteningly, continues. Listen in as Jackson and Jacob discuss this moving, masterful work.  ------------------------------ Please consider supporting us on Patreon. For as low as $1/month, you can help to ensure the No Script Podcast can continue.  https://www.patreon.com/noscriptpodcast  ----------------------------- We want to keep the conversation going! Have you read this play? Have you seen it? Comment and tell us your favorite themes, characters, plot points, etc. Did we get something wrong? Let us know. We'd love to hear from you. Find us on social media at:  Email: noscriptpodcast@gmail.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/No-Script-The-Podcast-1675491925872541/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/noscriptpodcast/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/noscriptpodcast/ -----------

Listen in as Jackson and Jacob discuss Sugar in Our Wounds by Donja R. Love. Love's play is both heart wrenching and beautiful. It's a moving portrait of vile oppression and meaningful love.   ------------------------------ Thanks for listening. Check out these other conversations on Sugar in Our Wounds:  Regina Victor's Review for Rescripted: https://rescripted.org/2019/10/28/sugar-wounds-fft/ Julinda D. Lewis' review: https://jdldancesrva.com/2022/05/23/sugar-in-our-wounds/ Footage from the Manhattan Theatre Club production with commentary from Stephanie Berry: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W1zTuKs3dt0 Post show interview at Manhattan Theatre Club: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1aZzjtvmvoQ&list=PLVEQenvARs7GnhyKCoZ354NMCyfi4Vimt&index=10 ------------------------------ Please consider supporting us on Patreon. For as low as $1/month, you can help to ensure the No Script Podcast can continue.  https://www.patreon.com/noscriptpodcast  ----------------------------- We want to keep the conversatio

Jackson and Jacob discuss Nilo Cruz's play Two Sisters and a Piano. Cruz, a Pulitzer Prize winning playwright, explores the psychology of capture amidst the turbulent politics of communist Cuba. This lyrical, poetic play is beautiful, and terrifying, to witness. Listen in! ------------------------------ Please consider supporting us on Patreon. For as low as $1/month, you can help to ensure the No Script Podcast can continue.  https://www.patreon.com/noscriptpodcast  ----------------------------- We want to keep the conversation going! Have you read this play? Have you seen it? Comment and tell us your favorite themes, characters, plot points, etc. Did we get something wrong? Let us know. We'd love to hear from you. Find us on social media at:  Email: noscriptpodcast@gmail.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/No-Script-The-Podcast-1675491925872541/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/noscriptpodcast/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/noscriptpodcast/ ------------------------------ Thanks so much for listening!

What happens when the countercultural artmakers get old? What happens when their revolutionary criticisms of the establishment become the establishment? Pearl Cleage dives into these deep waters in her play "Angry, Raucous, and Shamelessly Gorgeous." Listen in as Jackson and Jacob discuss this smart, funny, and energetic play.   ------------------------------ Check out these other conversations on Angry, Raucous, and Shamelessly Gorgeous: Artistic Director of Hartford Stage, Melia Bensussen, discusses the play with Pearl Cleage: https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=2550992795208574 Interview with the cast of the Hartford Stage production: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qvJr-omr3UQ Discussion between Pearl Cleage and director Susan V. Booth: https://www.alliancetheatre.org/content/playwright-pearl-cleage-and-director-susan-v-booth-talk-angry-raucous-and-shamelessly  Alliance Theatre's Study Guide: https://www.alliancetheatre.org/sites/default/files/ARSG%20Study%20Guide.pdf  ------------------------------ Please

Jackson and Jacob discuss August Wilson's musical, volatile play Ma Rainey's Black Bottom. Listen in as they explore how Wilson masterfully links to characters, comparing and contrasting their interactions with an unjust world.  ------------------------------ Check out these other conversations on Ma Rainey's Black Bottom:  George C Wolfe discusses the film: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H6qEaTW3L58 MoMA interviews the cast of the film: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NW_ZksDkQME Gavin Dillon Lawrence, the director of the APT production: https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=485203414230728 Ron OJ Parson, director of the Writer's Theatre production: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1RgtThg3z74 ------------------------------ Please consider supporting us on Patreon. For as low as $1/month, you can help to ensure the No Script Podcast can continue.  https://www.patreon.com/noscriptpodcast  ----------------------------- We want to keep the conversation going! Have you read this play? Have you seen it? Comment and t

"Man from Nebraska" by Tracy Letts. Jackson and Jacob discuss this Pulitzer Prize finalist, exploring how different the play is from its headline plot.  ------------------------------ Please consider supporting us on Patreon. For as low as $1/month, you can help to ensure the No Script Podcast can continue.  https://www.patreon.com/noscriptpodcast  ----------------------------- We want to keep the conversation going! Have you read this play? Have you seen it? Comment and tell us your favorite themes, characters, plot points, etc. Did we get something wrong? Let us know. We'd love to hear from you. Find us on social media at:  Email: noscriptpodcast@gmail.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/No-Script-The-Podcast-1675491925872541/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/noscriptpodcast/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/noscriptpodcast/ ------------------------------ Thanks so much for listening! We’ll see you next week.

Season 14 begins! Jackson and Jacob discuss the Pulitzer Prize-winning play by Eboni Booth: Primary Trust. Listen in as they boys rave about Booth's theatrical imagination -- and debate her main character's affinity for mai tais.  ------------------------------ Please consider supporting us on Patreon. For as low as $1/month, you can help to ensure the No Script Podcast can continue.  https://www.patreon.com/noscriptpodcast  ----------------------------- We want to keep the conversation going! Have you read this play? Have you seen it? Comment and tell us your favorite themes, characters, plot points, etc. Did we get something wrong? Let us know. We'd love to hear from you. Find us on social media at:  Email: noscriptpodcast@gmail.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/No-Script-The-Podcast-1675491925872541/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/noscriptpodcast/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/noscriptpodcast/ ------------------------------ Thanks so much for listening! We’ll see you next week.