The Worst of All Possible Worlds

We’re not throwing away our shot. Media Referenced in this Episode: Hamilton. Dir. Thomas Kail. Written by Lin-Manuel Miranda. 2015. “Alexander Hamilton, the Wrong Founder” by William Hogeland. The Nation. June 16th, 2026. “Disaster Act” by Shellyne Rodriguez, Iris Dipni and Comité Por La Defensa An

LIVESTREAM AND IN PERSON TICKETS TO OUR MAY 24 LIVE SHOW IN BROOKLYN ARE AVAILABLE NOW! To get your tickets, go to Littlefieldnyc.com The lads ring in their fifth anniversary by finally explaining the show’s title as they cover the 1974 revival of Leonard Bernstein’s hit operetta: Candide. Topics in

We sort of enjoyed it. Jake Beckhard joined us once again on a classic New York City romp. We went and saw the unfixable musical, recently redone by Danny Strong, and we try to determine if any more blood can be squeezed from this weird Swedish stone. Also, Brian finally figured out how to fix Chess

Time to reach once more into the ol' Cool Vaultaire Jake Beckhard (Blue Balls NYCFC) challenges the lads to the match of the century as they try to outmaneuver the bopping songs and confounding political intrigue of the infamous Tim Rice/Benny Andersson/Björn Ulvaeus flop musical: Chess. Topics incl

MERCHANDISE NOW ON SALE THROUGH 12/31 ANNUAL SUBSCRIPTIONS AVAILABLE THROUGH 12/31 Tom Stoppard, the acclaimed, prolific playwright behind Arcadia, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead, Rock 'n' Roll and so many other plays, along with the screenplays to Shakespeare in Love, Brazil, and Anna Kareni

The lads throw on their bowler hats and blame on their shoes the faults of their feet as they cover Samuel Beckett’s tragicomic masterpiece: Waiting for Godot. Topics include the origins of Godot, the benefits of being stabbed in the chest, and the enduring legacy of a stage play where nothing happe

Mattie Lubchansky (Boys Weekend, Simplicity) and the lads grab their cow as white as milk, their cape as red as blood, their hair as yellow as corn, their slipper as pure as gold, and feed a potion to a rapping witch as they cover Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine’s 1986 fairy tale musical: Into the

The lads throw back some drinks and bray the night away as they cover Edward Albee’s 1962 nightcap from hell: Who’s Afraid of Virignia Woolf? Topics include Albee’s traumatizing childhood, the music of his dialogue, and the boomer mentality of being afraid of Virginia Woolf. Want more TWOAPW? Get ac

Dr. Eleanor Janega and Luke Waters from the We’re Not So Different podcast join the lads on a medievalist romp through the world of morality plays as they cover the story of Everyman and two of its progeny: the works of Jack Chick and a little show called Adventures in Odyssey. Topics include the Du

This lads kick off pride month by revisiting an oft-forgotten but foundational play in the queer canon: William M. Hoffman’s As Is. Topics include the history of the AIDS play, Hoffman’s exquisite weaponization of comedy in the face of overwhelming tragedy, and the legacy of a 90 minute play that in

The lads grab their broomsticks and defy gravity as they cover Stephen Schwartz and Winnie Holzman’s megahit musical: Wicked. Topics include the twisted mind of Gregory Maguire, the highs and lows of Stephen Schwartz, and how to reckon with a show that is simultaneously trying to tackle the horrors

Josh Sawyer (Pentiment, Fallout: New Vegas) and the lads grab their razors and complete their arms as they attend the tale of Hugh Wheeler and Stephen Sondheim’s 1979 barber-ic bloodbath: Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street. Topics include the show’s horror film origins, the unimpeachable

Dara Swisher (Sovereign Candle Collective) and the lads grab their masks and book a stay at the McKittrick Hotel as they dive into the deep secrets and complicated legacy of the industry-defining immersive theater piece: Punchdrunk’s Sleep No More. Topics include the history of immersive theater, th

The lads grab their Iver-Johnson .32s and make their way to the head of the line as they cover Stephen Sondheim and John Weidman’s 1990 murderous musical: Assassins. Topics include the show’s initial negative reception, the inevitable critical reappraisal, and the dissonant, violent chords lurking j

Pulitzer-Prize winning composer and playwright Michael R. Jackson (A Strange Loop, White Girl in Danger!) joins the lads in lighting up a mean blaze with posters (and screenplays!) as they dive headlong into the grunge and Gen X angst of Jonathan Larson’s Pulitzer-Prize winning musical watershed: Re

The lads cry havoc and loose the dogs of war as they cover Joseph L. Mankiewicz’s 1953 adaptation of one of Josh’s favorite Shakespeare plays: Julius Caesar. Topics include the messiness of revolution, the shockwaves of Brando’s career, and what it means to be masculine in a world where even your be

The lads hop into their ham trunks and floor it to the Great White North as they cover the trials and tribulations of the New Burbage Theater Festival in 2003’s hit Canadian TV show: Slings and Arrows. Topics include the series’ roots in the Stratford Theater Festival, magical Shakespeare harps, and

Phone rings, door chimes, in comes Patrick Flynn (The Original Cast) as he and the lads celebrate Bobby’s infamous 35th birthday in the Stephen Sondheim/George Furth deep-dive into marriage: Company. Topics include the many revivals of the show, the superb score/uneven book, and the incomparable per

Jake Beckhard (Blue Balls NYCFC) challenges the lads to the match of the century as they try to outmaneuver the bopping songs and confounding political intrigue of the infamous Tim Rice/Benny Andersson/Björn Ulvaeus flop musical: Chess. Topics include the many different versions of the show, the inn

The lads drink rum, swat flies, and endure the heat of Philadelphia in July as they try to crack the egg that is the Sherman Edwards/Peter Stone musical extravaganza: 1776. They discuss the surprisingly subversive book, the hit-or-miss score, and the inherent rot at the core of the American experime

The lads wave through a window as they force theme song composer/wandering troubadour Brendan Dalton (Dickinson, Younger) to climb the great rotting tree that is the 2022 film adaptation of the 2016 Broadway hit: Dear Evan Hansen. They discuss the musical’s baffling plot, Ben Platt’s trip to the bea

The lads hop on the midnight train to Güllen as they explore the delightfully weird and morally murky depths of Friedrich Dürrenmatt’s classic tragicomedy: The Visit. They discuss the many adaptations of the play, the enduring legacy of its themes, and the uneasy feelings brought on by the justice o

While Josh is out sick with the novel coronavirus, Brian and A.J. return once again to Elsinore Castle as they dive headlong into the four-hour, bloated monstrosity that is Kenneth Branagh’s adaptation of William Shakespeare’s Hamlet. They discuss the difficulties of adapting Hamlet to the screen, K

The lads and special guest Josh Sawyer (Fallout: New Vegas, Pillars of Eternity) go beard to beard with the mob as they face down one of Shakespeare’s most brutal and overlooked tragedies: Coriolanus. They discuss Ralph Fiennes’ excellent 2011 film adaptation, the dehumanizing weaponization of soldi

One week ago, the world lost the greatest musical theater composer of all time. This week, we brought in Graham Techler (The New Yorker, Tooning out the News) to record an episode about Stephen Sondheim’s life and legacy. What started out with sharing favorite shows and tunes turned into a broader c

Hey everybody! A.J. here. There was some interest shown in the poll yesterday about original comedy/drama as potential future content and, wouldn't you know it, I wrote a play that you can stream right now! It's called The Bøyg and I'm deeply, deeply proud of it. Here's the pitch: It's 1942 and the

There’s something rotten in the CORPORATION of Denmark??? Josh (@boshj), Brian (@spocks_brian), and A.J. (@TheFuzzyMask) whip out their bodkins and throw themselves headlong into the morose, brooding world of literal corporate backstabbing that is Michael Almereyda's Hamlet (2000). They dissect the