Some Broadway shows are lavish musicals with high production costs and acclaimed stage stars, while others are humble productions that start out at smaller Off-Broadway playhouses and generate momentum via rave reviews. Job, a play written by Max Wolf Friedlich that explores the modern work-life relationship and how the internet has shaped the experiences of Millennials and Gen Z, is the latest Off-Broadway production to parlay industry buzz and strong ticket sales into a limited Broadway engagement.
Job begins previews on July 15 at the Hayes Theater, a two-level, 597-seat venue on West 44th Street in Manhattan. The show officially opens on July 30 and is scheduled to run until September 29. Below is everything you need to know about the psychological thriller, which received a Critic’s Pick from The New York Times.
What the Play is About
Job is an intimate two-person play that involves therapy sessions between Jane, a tech company employee, and crisis therapist Loyd. Jane is forced to see Loyd after being placed on leave by her employer due to the personal impacts of her appearance in a viral video. She is determined to complete these sessions and get back to the work that defines her life, but her way of thinking about her job and its importance in her life is challenged through conversations with Loyd, who is from a different generation and has different political opinions and ideals.
“I’m an avid theater goer. I grew up in New York and have seen a s***load of theater, and I simply don’t see a lot of things that address our generation’s experience,” Wolf Friedlich said in an interview with Broadway’s Best Shows. “And I think that that can exist across lines of race and gender and sexuality. Job is really about our modern relationship with labor. First and foremost, it’s a play about how Millennials and Gen Z see work and see their role in the world.”
Wolf Friedlich added that another theme of the play is “growing up online” and how unrestricted internet access has altered the brain chemistry of young people. The play also questions mental health care, particularly in regard to its application in work environments.
Off-Broadway Success
Job premiered off-Broadway in September 2023 at the SoHo Playhouse and played a three-month encore engagement at the Connelly Theater in early 2024. In addition to strong ticket sales, the play received critical acclaim from several publications, including Vulture and The New Yorker, while Wolf Friedlich earned a nomination for the Outer Critics Circle’s John Gassner Award. The Off Broadway Alliance also nominated Job for Best New Play.
Succession Stars
Jane and Loyd are played by two well-known performers also known for their work in film and TV: Sydney Lemmon and Peter Friedman. Both actors previously appeared together in the critically-acclaimed HBO hit Succession and portrayed the characters in the two off-Broadway productions. Lemmon also played the lead character in the Marvel and Hulu series Helstrom and appeared in the Oscar-nominated film TÁR. Her other credits include Velvet Buzzsaw and Fear the Walking Dead. She made her Broadway debut alongside Uma Thurman in Beau Willimon’s The Parisian Woman.
Friedman, meanwhile, is a veteran stage actor who, in addition to Succession, has appeared in film and TV projects such as The Affair, The Path, and The Savages. His Broadway credits include Twelve Angry Men, Ragtime, and Execution of Justice.
The Daily Beast was one of many publications to praise both actors, noting that they delivered “riveting” performances in the tense, 80-minute drama.
The Creative Cast
Michael Herwitz, who directed both Off-Broadway productions of Job, is returning to direct the Broadway show at the Hayes Theater. As a child, Herwitz appeared in Broadway productions of Dracula and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and is returning to Broadway for the first time in two decades. He has also developed original plays shown at venues outside of Broadway, including JACK, Fault Line Theater, Ensemble Studio Theater, and Martha’s Vineyard Playhouse.
Alex Levy, a co-producer for the Off-Broadway shows, is producing the Broadway version of Job in partnership with Craig Balsam and P3 Productions. The vice chairman of Playwrights Horizons, Levy has won three Tony Awards for Parade (Best Revival of a Musical), A Strange Loop (Best Musical), and Company (Best Revival of a Musical). His other recent credits include Stereophonic and Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club.
Scott Penner (scenic design) and Michelle J. Li (costume design) are among the other creative personnel for Job. Penner has designed sets for several Grand Theatre London productions, including The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. He has also designed sets for shows at Shattered Globe Chicago, Coalmine Theatre Toronto, and Arts Club Vancouver. Li, meanwhile, has designed costumes for film and TV projects, including Theater Camp, Meet Cute, Shiva Baby, and Season 3 of Awkwafina Is Nora from Queens.