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No Script: The Podcast

An unscripted conversation about theatre’s best scripts with theatre-philes Jackson Nickolay and Jacob Mann Christiansen

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#332
Monday · 48 min
"Tragedy: a tragedy" by Will Eno | S17.E10
Have you ever seen a news broadcast go wrong? That's the subject of "Tragedy: a tragedy" by Will Eno, which portrays a less-than-steady group of newscasters trying to report on the end of the world. Listen in as Jackson and Jacob explore the Beckett influences on Eno and on this play. ------------------------------ 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.
#331
October 26 · 50 min
"The Misanthrope" by Molière | S17.E09
Famous comic playwright Molière strikes again! His play "The Misanthrope" is one of his best known works, and is a drawing-room-comedy-turned-character-study. Sound intriguing? Listen in as Jackson and Jacob break down some of the best moments in this quippy play. ------------------------------ 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.
#330
October 19 · 58 min
"Six Characters in Search of an Author" by Luigi Pirandello | S17.E08
Themed Month continues with the meta-play of all meta-plays. Luigi Pirandello's play "Six Characters in Search of an Author" starts at what appears to be an ordinary rehearsal. But what happens when the characters come to life? Listen in as Jackson and Jacob go down the rabbit hole in this wild, mind-bending play. ------------------------------ 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.
#329
October 13 · 54 min
"House of Desires" by Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz | S17.E07
Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz is often considered the first Latina playwright. Her door-slamming farcical comedy "House of Desires" contains all the great elements of classic comedy: eavesdropping, ridiculous disguises, witty exchanges... and drag! Listen in as Jackson and Jacob discuss this surprising, delightful comedy. ------------------------------ To learn more about Sor Juana and "House of Desires," we recommend you check out the Expand the Canon podcast: https://www.expandthecanon.com/ ------------------------------ 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.
#328
October 5 · 1 hr 4 min
"Twelfth Night, or What You Will" by William Shakespeare | S17.E06
Themed Month is here! Join Jackson and Jacob as they explore four "classic" plays. First up, William Shakespeare's "Twelfth Night," also titled "What You Will." Sometimes referred to as Shakespeare's perfect comedy, "Twelfth Night" is a love-triangle-romantic-comedy with a heavy dose of disguise, mistaken identity (twins are involved, of course), and dramatic irony. 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.
#327
September 28 · 51 min
"Cambodian Rock Band" by Lauren Yee | S17.E05
What happens when the music you love is also tangled up with the history you’re trying to forget? Lauren Yee’s play "Cambodian Rock Band" follows a father and daughter as they return to Cambodia, confronting the ghosts of the Khmer Rouge regime, and the choices made so long ago. Oh, and there’s a live rock concert happening along the way. Jackson and Jacob dig into Yee’s wildly theatrical collision of history, music, memory, and family. Join us for the conversation! ------------------------------ Please enjoy these other conversations on "Cambodian Rock Band": This interview with Lauren Yee for "Backstage Pass": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V3v9kdD9k7c This interview with Yee for "Hyphen": https://hyphenmagazine.com/blog/2020/11/%E2%80%9C-play-gateway-many-other-stories%E2%80%9D-conversation-lauren-yee-her-play-cambodian-rock-band This panel on Asian American Arts Activism with Brooke Ishibashi and Joseph Ngo: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=In36OnELzCY ------------------------------ 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.
#326
September 21 · 58 min
"Athena" by Gracie Gardner | S17.E04
Gracie Gardner's play "Athena" follows two rival fencers who become training partners and, maybe, friends? Listen in as Jackson and Jacob celebrate Gardner's brilliance in dialogue writing and explore the play's structural twists and turns. ------------------------------ 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.
#325
September 14 · 51 min
"Stop Kiss" by Diana Son | S17.E03
Jackson and Jacob discuss Diana Son’s play "Stop Kiss." The story follows Callie and Sara, two women whose unexpected friendship develops into something more... and whose first kiss has devastating consequences. It’s a tender, often playful, and popular play. Listen in as J&J examine how Diana Son expertly moves her characters through a series of difficult, can't-go-back decisions! ------------------------------ Please enjoy these other conversations on "Stop Kiss": Marie Bernard's review in The Michigan Daily: https://www.michigandaily.com/uncategorized/stop-kiss-provides-simple-love-story/ This interview with Director Roberta Emerson: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r_cYBbtrxaU Diana Son's interview with "Women in Theatre": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eJzjMhIa-T0 This review for Rescripted: https://rescripted.org/2020/01/23/stop-kiss-pride-arts/ ------------------------------ 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.
#324
September 7 · 1 hr 3 min
"Eureka Day" by Jonathan Spector | S17.E02
What happens when a community built on inclusivity, empathy, and (especially) consensus suddenly has to make a decision that not everyone can agree on? In Jonathan Spector’s Eureka Day, the progressive parents and administrators of a Berkeley private school find themselves facing a mumps outbreak—and a seemingly simple question about vaccination quickly becomes anything but simple. This week on No Script, Jackson and Jacob chat about Spector’s sharply funny, deeply uncomfortable play. 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.
#323
August 31 · 1 hr 3 min
"A Chorus Line" by by Michael Bennett, Marvin Hamlisch, Edward Kleban, James Kirkwood Jr., and Nicholas Dante | S17.E01
Season 17 has arrived! Jackson and Jacob discuss the landmark musical "A Chorus Line" by Michael Bennett, Marvin Hamlisch, James Kirkwood Jr., Nicholas Dante, and Edward Kleban. Set during an audition for a Broadway musical, this deeply theatrical piece asks what happens when performers are stripped of their characters and asked to reveal themselves. Listen in as Jackson and Jacob explore the show's unforgettable characters, its innovative structure, and its complicated portrait of ambition, identity, and the lives of performers. ------------------------------ 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.
#322
June 16 · 52 min
"Crimes of the Heart" by Beth Henley | Special Summer Episode
Jacob hosts Eve Bianco, Ana Radice-Morras, and Violet Levinson of Red Door Productions to talk about their upcoming production of "Crimes of the Heart" by Beth Henley. See the show at Theatre 154 on Christopher Street in NYC (July 15-26, 2026). Get tickets here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/red-door-productions-presents-crimes-of-the-heart-by-beth-henley-tickets-1991060722218 Listen to our previous conversation about Crimes of the Heart (Season 8, Episode 19): https://open.spotify.com/episode/5A4qNrmbsOqmNabWI129bi ------------------------------ 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.
#321
May 28 · 1 hr 3 min
"untitled hamlet play" by Rory O’Neill | Special Summer Episode
Director Cora Therber joins the podcast to talk about "untitled hamlet play" by Rory O'Neill, which opens this weekend by LOVECHILD Theater in NYC. See the show at the John DeSotelle Studio, May 29 - 31, 2026. Get tickets through the LOVECHILD Insta (@lovechildtheaterco) or here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/lovechild-presents-untitled-hamlet-play-tickets-1988245208942 ------------------------------ 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.
#320
May 11 · 55 min
"Natasha, Pierre & the Great Comet of 1812" by Dave Malloy | S16.E015
Jackson and Jacob discuss Dave Malloy's hit musical "Natasha, Pierre & the Great Comet of 1812." This fiery piece adapts a small segment of Tolstoy's "War and Peace." Listen in to this final episode of Season 16! ------------------------------ 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.
#319
May 4 · 53 min
"Mr. Wolf" by Rajiv Joseph | S16.E014
Rajiv Joseph's play "Mr. Wolf" follows the family of a kidnapped child when that child returns home. It's a poignant, theatrical story in which Joseph assembles the most complicated possible cast of characters to undergo this highly unlikely event. Listen in as Jackson and Jacob discuss Joseph's exploration of messy human relationship... and infinity? ------------------------------ 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.
#318
April 27 · 1 hr
"How I Learned to Drive" by Paula Vogel | S16.E013
This season's Themed Month, Paula Vogel Month, wraps up with her most famous play. The incomparable "How I Learned to Drive" is a haunting, hilarious piece of theatre. Listen in as Jackson and Jacob revisit its whirling theatricality and specificity. ------------------------------ Please enjoy these other conversations on "How I Learned to Drive": Playwright Sarah Ruhl's essay on the play: https://www.3viewstheater.com/views/how-i-learned-from-how-i-learned-to-drive Paula Vogel's essay on the play for American Theatre: https://playmakersrep.org/enduring-lesson-learned-drive/ Vogel's video essay when the Broadway run was cancelled due to Covid: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uEGTp8542LE Interviews with the Second Stage cast: https://www.broadway.com/videos/153901/beyond-broadway-how-i-learned-to-drive/ Cleveland Play House Artistic Director Laura Kepley on the play: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AEb5KIYg5_E ------------------------------ 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.
#317
April 20 · 52 min
"Desdemona, A Play About a Handkerchief" by Paula Vogel | S16.E012
Jackson and Jacob discuss Paula Vogel's play on "Othello." "Desdemona, A Play About a Handkerchief" (great title!) explores the behind-the-scenes action of "Othello." It contains Vogel's characteristic humor and irreverence, while also asking important questions about our relationship to Shakespeare's famous play. 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.
#316
April 14 · 59 min
"The Long Christmas Ride Home" by Paula Vogel | S16.E011
Paula Vogel Month continues! Jackson and Jackson discuss Vogel's hauntingly brilliant one-act play "The Long Christmas Ride Home." The story follows one family across a particularly memorable Christmas holiday. Vogel deploys her characteristic sense of theatrical intimacy, using puppets alongside narrative actors to bring the supernatural to bear on the play. 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.
#315
April 6 · 55 min
"Mother Play" by Paula Vogel | S16.E010
We kick off Paula Vogel Month with her newest play, "Mother Play: A Play in Five Evictions." Jackson and Jacob discuss this theatrical look at a family across time. A semi-autobiographical piece, "Mother Play" is described by Vogel as her way of saying "Hi Mom." 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.
#314
March 31 · 50 min
"Peter Pan and Wendy" by Lauren Gunderson | S16.E09
Lauren Gunderson's adaptation of JM Barrie's famous Peter Pan stories is full of humor, imagination, and robust stage challenges! Listen in as Jackson and Jacob discuss "Peter Pan and Wendy," a play in which Gunderson refocuses the narrative on Wendy and Tiger Lily, even while she delivers much of what audience's expect from the story of Neverland. ------------------------------ Our first episode about Lauren Gunderson was Season 5, Episode 12, her play "I and You" -- https://noscriptpodcast.podbean.com/e/no-script-the-podcast-s5-episode-12-i-and-you-by-lauren-gunderson ------------------------------ 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.
#313
March 23 · 1 hr 1 min
"The Best We Could" by Emily Feldman | S16.E08
This week on No Script, Jackson and Jacob discuss a play which has been called a combination of "Death of a Salesman" and "Our Town." Emily Feldman, a sharp and theatrical emerging playwright, has always wanted to write a play with a Stage Manager character, like in Thorton Wilder's famous play. Now she has. Her play "The Best We Could" explores some of the same themes and structure as Arthur Miller's classic, while taking place in a highly contemporary 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 listening! We’ll see you next week.

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