The Pillowman
The Pillowman
By Martin McDonagh
Directed by Summer Bohnenkamp and David Jenkins
Mar. 12 – Apr. 6, 2025
Shimberg Playhouse, Straz Center
March 2025
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Mar. 17, 2025
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Hands down, the very best way you can save money on Jobsite shows is with one of our season ticket packages.
Jobsite offers special ticket discounts for group ticket sales and for special members of the community (military, seniors, etc.)
Jobsite Theater does not offer advisories about subject matter, as sensitivities vary from person to person. If you have any questions about content, age-appropriateness or stage effects (such as strobe lights or theatrical fog) that might have a bearing on patron comfort, please contact us by email or phone at 813.476.7378.
Single ticket prices listed ($29.50) are base-line prices. Prices for individual performances will increase based on demand.
2006 Distinctions
Creative Loafing Best of the Bay
- 2006 Top 10 Production
- Best Actor – Steven Sean Garland
Jobsite Jobby
- Best Play
- Best Director – David Jenkins
- Best Actor – Steven Sean Garland
- Best Supporting Actor – Paul J. Potenza
What It's About
The Pillowman is an electrifying and savagely funny black comedy about a fiction writer (Georgia Mallory Guy) in an unnamed totalitarian state who is interrogated when a number of bizarre incidents occurring in her town resemble the gruesome content of her short stories. Is this life imitating art or something more sinister?
When the writer’s brother (Troy Padraic Brooks) is also brought in for questioning by two officers (Steven Sean Garland and Paul J. Potenza), the police procedural takes unforeseen twists and turns.
This thriller was one of London’s hottest tickets when it premiered in 2003 starring David Tennant and carried the same magic to Broadway in a production starring Jeff Goldblum, Billy Crudup, and Željko Ivanek. The play received the 2004 Olivier Award and an Evening Standard Award nomination for Best New Play and went on to capture two Tony Awards (plus four more nominations), two Drama Desk Awards, an Outer Critic’s Circle Award and a Drama Critics Circle Award. A 2023 West End revival starred Lily Allen.
Other plays by Martin McDonagh include The Beauty Queen of Leenane, The Lonesome West, A Skull in Connemara, and The Lieutenant of Inishmore – all of which Jobsite has produced to acclaim. His short film Six Shooter won a 2006 Academy Award, and his feature films include The Banshees of Inisherin, In Bruges, Seven Pyschopaths, and Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri.
The Pillowman is a spellbinding stunner of a play. Comedies don’t come any blacker than this. – Ben Brantley, New York Times
This makes Wes Craven look like Mother Goose – The Guardian
2006 Critic Reviews
Excellent in every case, as professional as you'll find in any theater anywhere, it marks a new high in Jobsite's ascent to Bay area treasure... this formidable work deserves the attention of every serious – and thick-skinned – theatergoer. – Creative Loafing
The Pillowman may be one of the most encouraging surprises in American theater in recent years.... The powerful Jobsite production features some jarring performances that enhance the play's effectiveness.... [It] is packed with ideas and emotions that don't evaporate quickly. – St. Petersburg Times
It would be unfair to compare a local production to the Broadway version of the same play unless – as is the case here – the homegrown show holds its own. Part of the credit goes to the exceptional potency of the play, but major props are due to the Jobsite cast and crew. – Tampa Tribune
News
Cast & Crew
- Summer Bohnenkamp – Co-Director
- David Jenkins – Co-Director
- Chris Giuffre – Technical Director
- Jessie Dorsey – Stage Manager
Cast
- Troy Padraic Brooks – Michal
- Steven Sean Garland* – Ariel
- Georgia Mallory Guy* – Katurian
- Paul J. Potenza – Tupolski
*Denotes a member of Actors’ Equity Association
Crew
- Jo Averill-Snell – Light Design
- Jeremy Douglass – Sound Design
- Logan Franke – Props and Special Effects
- Chris Giuffre – Set Design
- Skylar Jay – Scenic Artist
- Eric Leas – Scenic Associate
- Spencer P. Meyers – Projection Illustrations
- Sebastian Paine – Technical Apprentice
- Katrina Stevenson – Costume Design
Production
- David M. Jenkins – Producing Artistic Director
- Greg Newcomb – Key Art
- Shawn Paonessa – Online Producer
- Jena Rashid – Producing Associate
- Nicole Jeannine Smith – Producing Associate
Archive
Production History
Jobsite first produced The Pillowman, directed by David M. Jenkins, Oct. 12 – Nov. 5, 2006 in the Shimberg Playhouse. That production starred Steven Sean Garland as Katurian and Paul J. Potenza as Michal, the two return for the 2025 production now in the roles of the detectives.
2006 Cast & Crew
- David M. Jenkins – Director
- Erica Porch – Stage Manager
Cast
- Davis Brown – Boy
- Steve Garland – Katurian
- Jaime Giangrande-Holcom – Mother
- Molly Jacobson – Girl
- Matt Lunsford – Tupolski
- Ryan McCarthy – Ariel
- Paul J. Potenza – Michal
- Charles Wilcox – Father
Crew
- Jaime Giangrande-Holcom – Assistant Stage Manager
- Chris Holcom – Special Effects
- John Lott – Light Design
- Brian M. Smallheer – Set Design
- Katrina Stevenson – Costume Designer
2006 Patron Reviews
Last night’s performance was awesome. I sat there completely engaged by the story and the performances. Tampa is indeed fortunate to have your company. Please accept my heartfelt thanks. – Bill & Diane Reeves
My students REALLY enjoyed The Pillowman… So thank you for a great evening and please congratulate the cast. – Bill Leavengood
I walked into the theater having never heard of the The Pillowman – guess I have had my head in a bucket for a year or so. It was a stunning performance. The story was a hard jolt, the actors were superb, with flawless performances, and the sets captured the imagination, creating so much in so little space. A must see. Thank you for bringing a jewel to Tampa. – Cara Cira
Congratulations! You have a winner in The Pillowman. The acting is superb. I think lots of people walked out stunned. I’ve encouraged my students at HCC to see (and critique it). I’ve told them it’s a play they’ll remember the rest of their lives. – Dan Khoury
Pillowman was amazing Wednesday night. What a great night at the theatre! You made it look so easy and we all know that it is anything but that. My daughter and I had seen it in NYC and she ordered tickets as soon as she saw you were doing it. I raved about it to my advanced class yesterday, and they immediately made plans to go see it last night.” – Carla E. Webster
My fiancée and I saw the performance Saturday night. I think it was one of the better shows I have seen Jobsite put on. My fiancée was impressed by the performances but felt the story was too dark. What makes life so interesting is that people can view performances in different ways. This is our second year as season ticket holders. I hope the remainder of the shows are close to the level of The Pillowman. Thanks, John
