The Play Podcast

Episode 106: End by David Eldridge Host: Douglas Schatz Guest: David Eldridge Welcome to The Play Podcast where we explore the greatest new and classic plays. Each episode we choose a single play to talk about in depth with our expert guest. We'll discuss the play's origins, its themes, characters, structure and impact. For us the play is the thing.  David Eldridge's new play End is the final instalment of what David has described as a "triptych for the theatre", following Beginning in 2017, and Middle in 2022. Each of the plays in the series presents a snapshot of a couple at a particular time of life. In End we meet a couple who are facing the premature end of their life together. The play is not only an emotionally painful meditation on mortality, but also a testament to the life affirming power of love. As we record this episode End is playing at the National Theatre in London, with Saskia Reeves and Clive Owen as the couple. I was privileged to talk with David about Beginning way back in episode 11 of the podcast, and then Middle in episode 47, so I am delighted to be able complete the trilogy by welcoming David back to talk about End.

Episode 105: The Weir by Conor McPherson Host: Douglas Schatz Guest: Conor McPherson Welcome to The Play Podcast where we explore the greatest new and classic plays. Each episode we choose a single play to talk about in depth with our expert guest. We'll discuss the play's origins, its themes, characters, structure and impact. For us the play is the thing. The curtain rises on a small rural pub in northwest Ireland. A few of the regulars have dropped in for company and bit of the craic. This is the simple premise of Conor McPherson's breakthrough, internationally successful play, The Weir. The play is a quiet, yet mesmerising piece of drama that consists of nothing more than a handful of people coming together and telling a few stories. Stories which reveal not only personal anxieties, regret and grief on the part of its characters, but which, in the telling, draw us into a collective experience of the mystery of being alive. The Weir premiered in a tiny space at the Royal Court Upstairs in July 1997. It has since been performed all over the world, and as we recorded this episode a new production was playing in London's West End, directed by the author himself and starring Brendan Gleeson as Jack. I'm delighted to be able to talk with Conor himself about his magical play.

Episode 104: Twelfth Night by William Shakespeare Host: Douglas Schatz Guest: Will Tosh Welcome to The Play Podcast where we explore the greatest new and classic plays. Each episode we choose a single play to talk about in depth with our expert guest. We'll discuss the play's origins, its themes, characters, structure and impact. For us the play is the thing. William Shakespeare's romantic comedy, Twelfth Night, or What You Will is one of Shakespeare's most popular comedies, renowned for its clever cross-dressing plot and festive hi-jinks, but also for its elusive tone, fluctuating between the comic and a darker cruelty. The play is also infused with desire, both declared and suppressed, even subversive, as the characters search for love, status and identity. As we record this episode a new production of the play is playing at Shakespeare's Globe theatre in London, and I'm delighted to welcome to the podcast the Globe's Director of Education, Dr Will Tosh.

Episode 103: Titus Andronicus by William Shakespeare Host: Douglas Schatz Guest: Max Webster Welcome to The Play Podcast where we explore the greatest new and classic plays. Each episode we choose a single play to talk about in depth with our expert guest. We'll discuss the play's origins, its themes, characters, structure and impact. For us the play is the thing. Titus Andronicus is Shakespeare's first tragedy, although in fact, scholars believe that Shakespeare did not write the whole play himself. Whatever its origins, the play is notorious for its graphic horror, which includes multiple killings, amputations, decapitations, rape and cannibalism. Horrors that have overwhelmed audiences and alienated critics for centuries. Although the play was hugely popular in Shakespeare's time, later critics dismissed it for its excessive violence and crude, fragmented structure. However, the play's bleak portrait of amoral leadership, sexual violence, racial conflict, and personal and political despair has struck a chord in more recent times, with several acclaimed productions and restored critical opinion. As we record this episode an exciting new production of the play is on stage at the Hampstead theatre in London, having transferred following its acclaimed run at the Royal Shakespeare Company in Stratford. The production is directed by Max Webster, who joins me to explore Shakespeare's full-blooded tragedy.

Episode 102: Every Brilliant Thing by Duncan Macmillan and Jonny Donahoe Host: Douglas Schatz Guests: Duncan Macmillan              Jonny Donahoe Welcome to The Play Podcast where we explore the greatest new and classic plays. Each episode we choose a single play to talk about in depth with our expert guest. We'll discuss the play's origins, its themes, characters, structure and impact. For us the play is the thing. Every Brilliant ThingWhen their mother attempts to take her own life, a seven-year old child decides to start a list; a list of "everything brilliant about the world. Everything worth living for." A list for mum. This is the premise for Every Brilliant Thing, the hit one-person play created by playwright Duncan Macmillan and performer Jonny Donahoe. The play started life at Ludlow Fringe Festival in 2013, and in the decade or so since, it has been seen in over 70 countries around the world. As we record this episode Every Brilliant Thing has reached London's West End, with a rotating cast of five different performers appearing over its three-month run at the Soho Place theatre. The critic, Lyn Gardner, described Every Brilliant Thing as "one of the funniest plays you'll ever see about depression." She is spot on – it is funny and poignant and finally life affirming.  I am very privileged to be joined in this episode by the show's two creators, Duncan Macmillan and Jonny Donahoe.