Jack McManus

Jack McManus

Jack McManus is a New Jersey-based playwright, lyricist, comedian, and friend. His works often, but do not always, contain absurdist riffs, satirical angst, and sick guitar solos. He graduated from the University of the Arts in 2022 with a BFA in Directing, Playwriting, and Production.

Plays

  • All at Once [40th Anniversary Remaster] by Jack McManus
    Recommendations: 1
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    Cast: 
    2–8
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    Genre: biography, docudrama/historic + 4 more
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    Keyword: folk music, rock stars + 6 more
    Genre: biography, docudrama/historic, drama, experimental, musical, radio drama
    Keyword: folk music, rock stars, the 1970s, a marriage in crisis, career v. marriage, Art and Artists, documentary, memory
    In 1975, Margaret Carter and Danny Marino went into the studio to record their seminal album, All at Once. Then, one of music's most controversial couples, by the end of the recording they were divorced. In 2015, Margaret and Danny are invited back to discuss the making of the album, its songs, and their lives.

    It's a jukebox musical written about a fictional album by Jack McManus and Noah Slade
  • Henry Hicks, Attorney at Cowboy Law by Jack McManus
    Recommendations: 1
    ·
    Cast: 
    6–8
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    Genre: comedy, parody/spoof + 1 more
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    Keyword: Cowboy, lawyers + 5 more
    Genre: comedy, parody/spoof, satire
    Keyword: Cowboy, lawyers, courtroom, courtroom drama, Country Western, American Western, mash-up
    Jo Colston has spent her life running from cowboys. She is a daytime tv lawyer in a cowboy lawyer's world. When she's hired to defend Buck, a thief with a heart of gold on trial for murder, she finds herself in over her head. She struggles against the judge, rival attorney Henry Hicks, and cowboy court in general in this absurdist romp about cowboys, lawyers, and lawyers that specialize in cowboy law.
  • Julius Beagle by Jack McManus
    Cast: 
    3–4
    ·
    Genre: comedy, dark comedy
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    Keyword: dog, dog play + 8 more
    Genre: comedy, dark comedy
    Keyword: dog, dog play, Julius Caesar, political satire, dysfunctional government, Assassination, jealousy, based on Shakespeare, Shakespeare parody, puppetry
    Cash is a dedicated public servant who has just lost an election to Julius, a six-year-old beagle, to be the mayor of Rome, Montana. After a tense meeting with the mayor’s aide, Anthony, Cash attempts to convince Bruce to help her assassinate Julius. For the good of Rome, of course. This very silly, occasionally dark take on Julius Caesar asks questions about the imagery of assassination, and what it would be like if a dog was mayor.
  • A Play About Lucas Hnath, But Not By Lucas Hnath, But Written in the Style of Lucas Hnath by Jack McManus
    Cast: 
    4–5
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    Genre: biography, comedy + 1 more
    Genre: biography, comedy, parody/spoof
    2017. Lucas is a playwright who teaches at an elite New York institution. He is working on his latest play, a sequel to the classic play A Doll's House. He struggles with the challenges of writing his biggest play yet, as well as maintaining a relationship with his Romantic Partner. Told in his unique style of writing, this spoof is a love letter to Hnath's work, and an earnest reflection at the...
    2017. Lucas is a playwright who teaches at an elite New York institution. He is working on his latest play, a sequel to the classic play A Doll's House. He struggles with the challenges of writing his biggest play yet, as well as maintaining a relationship with his Romantic Partner. Told in his unique style of writing, this spoof is a love letter to Hnath's work, and an earnest reflection at the relationship between art, artist, and the people around them.
  • Unbiased by Jack McManus
    Cast: 
    6–18
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    Genre: comedy, dark comedy + 2 more
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    Keyword: anti bias, bias + 6 more
    Genre: comedy, dark comedy, satire, science fiction
    Keyword: anti bias, bias, artificial inteligence, artificial intelligence, art criticism, Criticism, mob mentality, office culture
    Elias is a technology reporter who writes a controversial review. When the public brands him as "biased," he begins a journey to find out what it means to be unbiased, and to write a review that will save his reputation. Along the way, he meets many different characters and gains perspective on perspective.