Ryan's Pub, Trivia Night

Marci and Richie have a story to tell. A story about trivia night at Ryan's Pub in Pittsburgh where they're winners week after week until a new team comes in cheating. And when Marci comes face to face with her demons, with, perhaps, the devil himself, she bets a game of trivia for a man's soul. Can Marci and Richie beat a rigged game to save a stranger's life? Grab a seat, pop a can of Iron City, and find out.

Marci and Richie have a story to tell. A story about trivia night at Ryan's Pub in Pittsburgh where they're winners week after week until a new team comes in cheating. And when Marci comes face to face with her demons, with, perhaps, the devil himself, she bets a game of trivia for a man's soul. Can Marci and Richie beat a rigged game to save a stranger's life? Grab a seat, pop a can of Iron City, and find out.

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Ryan's Pub, Trivia Night

Recommended by

  • Zach Barr: Ryan's Pub, Trivia Night

    An American folk tale about the tension to prove yourself to people and forces beyond your control, recounted by two enormously likable and rough-edged voices. It brilliantly captures the congenial nature of a bar setting – it's begging to be staged site-specifically. Two people the world has deemed dispensable proving their worth, in more ways than it seems.

    An American folk tale about the tension to prove yourself to people and forces beyond your control, recounted by two enormously likable and rough-edged voices. It brilliantly captures the congenial nature of a bar setting – it's begging to be staged site-specifically. Two people the world has deemed dispensable proving their worth, in more ways than it seems.

  • Wolfgang Jones: Ryan's Pub, Trivia Night

    What might at first appear as a mundane setting with mundane people blossoms into a high-stakes and heartfelt story rooted in the profound dignity of working-class.

    What might at first appear as a mundane setting with mundane people blossoms into a high-stakes and heartfelt story rooted in the profound dignity of working-class.

  • Mora V. Harris: Ryan's Pub, Trivia Night

    The stakes for a game of bar trivia have never been so high! I got to hear a reading of this play at the Pittsburgh Public Theatre and loved every minute with these funny and flawed friends. Richie's struggle to stand up for himself in a world full of managers is especially poignant, and Marci's crush on the bartender still makes me laugh. Additionally, the Pittsburgh bar setting is so specific, and full of spot-on hilarious details. A perfect two-hander I would love to see staged.

    The stakes for a game of bar trivia have never been so high! I got to hear a reading of this play at the Pittsburgh Public Theatre and loved every minute with these funny and flawed friends. Richie's struggle to stand up for himself in a world full of managers is especially poignant, and Marci's crush on the bartender still makes me laugh. Additionally, the Pittsburgh bar setting is so specific, and full of spot-on hilarious details. A perfect two-hander I would love to see staged.

View all 5 recommendations
Two hander

Development History

  • Type Reading, Organization Third Avenue Playworks, Year 2024
  • Type Workshop, Organization Seven Devils Playwrights Conference , Year 2023

Production History

  • Type Professional, Organization Clifton Players, Cincinnati, Year 2026
  • Type Professional, Organization Third Avenue PlayWorks, Year 2025

Awards