The Pillowman

The Pillowman

By Martin McDonagh

Directed by Summer Bohnenkamp and David Jenkins

Mar. 12 – Apr. 6, 2025

Shimberg Playhouse, Straz Center

On This Page

Tickets

March 2025

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Mar. 9, 2025
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Mar. 18, 2025
Mar. 19, 2025
Mar. 24, 2025
Mar. 25, 2025
Mar. 29, 2025
Mar. 31, 2025
Apr. 1, 2025
Apr. 2, 2025

Please Note

The Pillowman is approximately 2 hours and 45 minutes including the intermission. The first act is roughly 1:35, we take a 15 minute intermission, and the second act is around :55. Due to the intimacy of the space and longer first act run time, we're asking everyone to make sure they're "on empty" before the start to avoid disruption of the proceedings. 🙂

2006 Distinctions

Creative Loafing Best of the Bay

Jobsite Jobby

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.

Paul J. Potenza and Georgia Mallory Guy in Jobsite's The Pillowman. (Photo: Stage Photography of Tampa)
Paul J. Potenza and Georgia Mallory Guy in Jobsite's The Pillowman. (Photo: Stage Photography of Tampa)
Georgia Mallory Guy and Troy Padraic Brooks in Jobsite's The Pillowman. (Photo: Stage Photography of Tampa)
Georgia Mallory Guy and Troy Padraic Brooks in Jobsite's The Pillowman. (Photo: Stage Photography of Tampa)

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

Undoubtedly one of the best plays of the year – All That Dazzles

Wickedly funny – Evening Standard

A modern classic in waiting, ready to meet our current moment – Independent

Critic Reviews

hard to point out one performer over another, the unit as a whole is the strongest company I have seen for quite some time, probably one of the strongest I have seen over the last decade. – BroadwayWorld

Excellent acting … Everything: The themes and premises get under your skin, especially at a time when the news tells of an equally brutal world. – Kulturspiegel

if you desire to see one of Jobsite’s strongest plays in memory, one that more than earned its standing ovations on the night I attended, then please don’t miss this. It had me laughing and gasping and holding my breath all within seconds. There are moments when you want to cry out and others when you dare not make a sound. You leave shaken and satisfied, smiling and cringing, uplifted by great theater and bruised by the emotional punch that THE PILLOWMAN delivers. It ranks way up there with Jobsite’s very best. – Peter Nason, BroadwayWorld

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
  • Porter Long – Child
  • Paul J. Potenza – Tupolski

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

* Denotes a member of Actors’ Equity Association

Patron Reviews

After seeing Pillowman @ Jobsite Theater I am filled with thoughts, feelings and an unsettled energy that is palpable. I will say this, of my MANY thoughts: RUN!!! Don’t walk, to see Pillowman. The performances: nothing short of truthful anguish. The comedic timing: close to flawless. The directorial vision: clear, crisp, and harsh. The script: disturbing, but hilarious. This show is a game changer. I was not prepared for the experience. Eat your wheaties folks … the cast are equally sharp in their performances, finding the humanity in an inhumane set of circumstances. – Kyle Stone

My friends and I found the show completely gripping, the performances arresting. – Mona Lim

Such a tight ensemble giving delightfully disturbing performances that will also get ya laughing. The material is HAUNTING but if you’re the type who loves to unwind with a good true crime doc, you’ll LOVE this play. Running now through April 6th! – Colleen Cherry

Disturbingly amazing show from Jobsite Theater. Defies explanation and gets a full house standing ovation for how strong it is. Wow! – Chris Hart

Caught a preview show and I very much recommend going out to see this. Darkly hilarious, at times terrifying, and contains plenty of unexpected twists. Also the cast nails every line. Go see it. – @blametage.bsky.social

McDonagh is one of the most interesting writers working in plays and movies. It’s hard to laugh at death, but he somehow pulls it off.  – Michael Kilgore

This is the best theater you will see all year. This is one of the best shows you will see in your life … This is what theater is supposed to be, something that will challenge you and make you think … You will not be the same person after seeing this. – David Hood

What a great play and an inspired production of it! It was a bit longer than typical but I wouldn’t cut a single second as every moment was gripping. We loved it!! – Tiffany Schilling

What amazing performances!! The best I have seen so far!! Well done 💕 – Tanya Abresch

Fuck yes 👍 AWESOME SHOW!!! Congrats! – Nicole Jeannine Smith

Brilliant show tonight! Riveting, riotous performance! Bravo to the cast and crew! – @robertfthethird

Wow – a truly captivating performance by all. I couldn’t get over Georgia’s delivery. Broadway is missing out. – Jim Walther

What a great production! – Sara Nower

A stunner. Brilliant ensemble work. – David Warner

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 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

2006 Cast & Crew

  • David M. Jenkins – Director
  • Erica Porch – Stage Manager

Cast

  • Davis Brown – Boy
  • Steven Sean 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

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Jonathan Harrison in Jobsite's Gorey Stories. (Photo: Stage Photography of Tampa)

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