Talk Radio at The Players at The Barker Playhouse

The Players at the Barker Playhouse present the final production of their 117th mainstage season, TALK RADIO. This underperformed classic, originally created by Eric Bogosian and Tad Savinar, will open Friday, May 8th and run through Sunday, May 17th. Tickets can be purchased via The Players Box Office at https://www.playersri.org/.

Barry Champlain, controversial regional radio host, is on the air doing what he does best: insulting the pathetic souls who call in the middle of the night to sound off. Tomorrow, Barry's show is going into national syndication, and his producer is afraid that Barry will say something that will offend the sponsors. As his professional life ascends, Barry's personal life and sanity unravel, marked by escalating threats from listeners and a confrontation with a deranged caller that may have deadly consequences.

Based on a true story, Talk Radio is even more prescient today, where podcasts have become the primary medium for what used to be AM/FM radio shock jocks (mostly). The play walks the edge between exploring the boundaries of free speech and the consequences of exploring that right. Are the so-called warriors of the First Amendment really who they seem, or is it all a facade?

Talk Radio is a disturbing, often darkly humorous play. There are several triggers and hot button topics that firmly place the script in the late 1980's, but also firmly in 2026. This production will lean into a multimedia experience to tell a tense, harrowing, but necessary story.

West Bay Community Theater President Terry Shea makes his Barker directorial debut with Talk Radio, having appeared there as an actor several times, most recently in 2024’s They Promised Her The Moon and 2018’s Deathtrap. Having spent many years behind a microphone as an on-air personality, Talk Radio has a special place for Shea, combining his love for the mediums of theater and radio. Both have the power to make a direct, local, and immediate impact on a community – Talk Radio will provoke and inspire long after the “On Air” sign goes dark.

About the show:

Written by Eric Bogosian

Created by Eric Bogosian and Tad Savinar

Original New York Production by New York Shakespeare Festival, Produced by Joseph Papp

Originally produced at the Portland Center for Visual Arts through a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts

Talk Radio is presented through special arrangement with Concord Theatricals.

Director and Sound Design: Terry Shea

Scenic Design/Technical Direction: Ian Hudgins

Lighting Design: Bob Bonniol

Additional Sound Design: Andy Zukoski

Costume Design: Erin Malcolm

Properties/Set Dressing: Laura Ash, Terry Shea

Producer: Samantha Hudgins

Stage Management: Lydia Johnson, Anne Applegate

Cast:

Barry Champlain: Justin Pimental

Stu Noonan: Ian Hudgins

Spike: Kevin Thibault

Linda Macarthur: Lauren Kieler

Dan Woodruff: Ron Martin

Sid Greenberg: David Crossley

Bernie: Geoff White

Kent: Mark Roberts

Dr. Susan Fleming: Nancy Winokoor

Rachael: Emma Starbird

“Night Talk” Callers: Laura Ash, Jay Burns Tina Esposito, Paula Faber, Richard Griffin, Marcia A. Layden, Rick Pond, Lee Rush, Christopher Ricci, Emma Starbird, Geoff White, Kevin Thibault.

WHAT: The Players presents Eric Bogosian’s Talk Radio

WHEN: May 8, 9, 10, 15, 16, & 17, 2026 at 7:30pm/2pm (Sundays)

WHERE: The Barker Playhouse, 400 Benefit Street, Providence, RI 02903

TICKETS: Available via The Players Box Office at https://www.playersri.org/

About The Players:

The Players is a registered 501(c)(3) non-profit located on Providence’s Historic East Side. Incorporated in 1909, The Players was created with the objective of providing the opportunity for all to experience amateur theatrical productions. With its tagline “America’s Oldest Little Theatre”, Barker Playhouse is reputed to be the oldest continuously operating little theatre in the Country. The Club is a true American icon, the membership’s indomitable spirit enduring through two world wars, The Great Depression, and an acceleration of the pace of everyday life and competing forms of leisure time.