←Recommendations of ICE CREAM STOOL PIGEON

You know a play is something special when it leaves you both laughing and shedding tears of genuine grief over an inanimate bowl of ice cream. This short Steven G. Martin spoof of the police procedural drama is just such a play. Officers Beck and Bull have just ten minutes to get their “witness” to spill the beans on an international criminal conspiracy or else their opportunity beat the mob may melt away like yesterday’s sundae. A tautly crafted (and delightfully tasty) absurdist treat..

"In the criminal justice system, the people are represented by two separate yet equally important groups: the police, who investigate crime...." You know the rest, but in this wonderfully delicious dessert of a send-up, Steven G. Martin doesn't get past the police before we're scooped up into it, and no cone of silence will keep you from laughing and groaning at this dish that is best served cold. You'll eat it up.

I love when a play leaves me going "what the f#¢&"! This play is crazy, wild, absurd and hilarious! It's a play that shouldn't make sense but everything comes together in a way that surprisingly works beautifully. I would definitely love to be front row for a production of this marvelous play.

This play had me at the puns, but by the time the ice cream slapping started, I was on the floor! I am obsessed with the ridiculously brilliant theatricality of putting a bowl of ice cream on stage as a character. This entire play is a charming, sticky mess that will be the bane of every stage manager's existence... and the delight of every audience member's! And , like so much good theatre, the production would be a little unique every performance! Just plain delightful... with a cherry on top!

[2026-05-14]

Ice cream takes a starring role in this hilarious sendup of police procedurals. I love how Steve Martin makes the bowl of ice cream a central character, but without turning it into anything beyond what it is: A bowl of ice cream. Audiences will howl at the jokes and the physical comedy of this delightful short piece.

Great. Now I'm hungry.

What a cool idea! Every bite of this short play is sprinkled with clever puns, sure to melt your theatergoing heart. Lots of opportunity for ridiculously fun physical comedy as well!

One of the greatest strengths of Martin’s brilliant “Ice Cream Stool Pigeon” is that it uses the familiarity of cop-interrogation frameworks as the comedic engine but amplifies that humor as it’s filtered through the insanity of one devious…villainous…bowl of vanilla ice cream. What a great visual! There’s so much whimsy and imagination built into this play, any audience would be in for quite the sweet treat.

Wildly absurd and deliciously punny, Ice Cream Stool Pigeon turns a police interrogation into pure farcical joy. Martin commits fully to the silliness, balancing noir stakes with creamy comic chaos that would melt an audience with laughter.

Taking a scoop from the absurd brilliance of Ryan M. Bultrowicz’ “Two-Timing Loaf of Bread,” Martin’s homage is coming dangerously close to creating the Inanimate Object Theatrical Universe. Personally? I’m for it. I could revel in this surreal silliness forever. The puns alone are (if you’ll excuse me…) a delicious treat, but the interrogation room set-up is just the cherry on top. You'll be cackling at this all evening.

It's a wild premise, but Martin plays it with the perfect balance of seriousness and absurdity, layering in an abundance of puns to this clash of wills between two cops and the bowl of ice cream caught in a web of mob interests and off-the-record interrogation techniques. A delightfully fun read that would also play to great amusement on a stage.