PUT YOU ON BLAST! to Open at The Actors' Gang Theater

The Actors' Gang will present a new comedy PUT YOU ON BLAST!, a fun romp about a low-budget, homespun podcast whose guests are a bunch of eccentric malcontents all vying to justify their various ideologies in a battle royale of wits and nuttiness.

PUT YOU ON BLAST!, written and directed by veteran Actors' Gang member JR Reed, plays at The Actors' Gang Theater from October 8 to 24 on Thursdays and Saturdays at 8:00 PM; Fridays October 9 and 16 at 9:00 PM, and Sundays October 11 and 18 at 2:00 PM. After October 25, 2026, PUT YOU ON BLAST! performs November 12, 2026 at 9:00 PM, and then the second Friday of each month from January through June of 2027 at 9:00 PM.

PUT YOU ON BLAST! takes place in a small-town, suburban basement in mid-America. A middle-aged, unemployed and disenfranchised host and his female colleague (an upstart student sidekick) welcome some subculture extremists including: a UFO/UAP enthusiast, a crystal-worshipping commune member, an ex-military doomsday prepper, and a manifesto-writing ex-college professor. Together they discuss and have their off-kilter beliefs blasted and challenged.

Competing for attention and followers, this collection of modern societal malcontents is hoping for traction - only to be tempted by big industry buyers who have other ideas for their endeavors. A raucous comedy with the high-octane character stylings, BLAST has The Actors' Gang aesthetic on full display.

The various provocative guests have plenty to say about the status quo and the many injustices that exist to hold them and other “good folk” down. This world is not one of partisan adherence but a world of illuminating core grievances and radical ideologies that hover outside political party realms and which color the current landscape of modern counter-cultures.

“JR Reed, one of our Actors' Gang Vanguard members has long held a mirror up to the eccentrics and lunatics of our species with the plays he writes and directs.” Says Artisitc Director, Tim Robbins, “In PUT YOU ON BLAST!, Reed examines the world of DIY podcasting and goes deep into the basement to explore a fringe community of outcasts, all of whom believe that they have discovered a hidden truth that no one else can see. PUT YOU ON BLAST! satirizes a post-truth world and humorously appeals to the conspiracist and doubter in us all.”

PUT YOU ON BLAST! is written and directed by JR Reed, who first appeared with The Actors' Gang in the eighties in The Good Woman of Setzuan, directed by Tim Robbins. Other notable TAG acting credits include Peer Gynt, The Orestia, Broadway, Swan Ride and most recently The Physicists. As a playwright/director he helmed The World of Wrestling, Cool Cops!, The Kick-Ass Militia! and Tagteam Lovefest 2000, all at The Actors' Gang.

Reed is a long-time collaborator and performed extensively with Jack Black and Kyle Gass in their band Tenacious D – appearing in their HBO show: The Adventures of Tenacious D, in the New Line feature film: Tenacious D In The Pick of Destiny, and live in concert.

As a musician, Reed fronted the southern-rock character band: Trainwreck. He is a professional actor who has appeared in numerous TV, film and commercial projects. Originally from Las Vegas, Nevada, Reed studied at the UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television. He would like to gratefully acknowledge his inspirational theater gurus – Tim Robbins and The Gang, Michael Sargent, and the late-great David Schweizer.

Reed said, “As for the subject matter, I wanted to explore the many intriguing subcultures that evolved in the last decade or so that are coloring the counterculture ideologies currently feeding our collective angst. However, I wanted to avoid party politics and partisan bickering.”

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