When Lightning Strikes! – Details, episodes & analysis

Hannah Cruz currently stars opposite Aaron Tveit, Lea Michele, and Nicholas Christopher in Chess on Broadway, directed by Michael Mayer. Her other credits include her Broadway debut in Suffs, standout roles in Only Gold and The Connector, the Peacock TV series The Copenhagen Test, and Richard Linklater's upcoming film, Merrily We Roll Along. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Nicole Travolta is an actor and writer whose TV credits include recurring roles on Anger Management, Two and a Half Men, and,The Middle. She wrote and stars in her solo show Nicole Travolta Is Doing Alright, where she shares her Hollywood dreams—alongside her struggles with compulsive shopping, credit card debt, and the pressure of having a famous last name. After runs in Los Angeles and at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, Nicole Travolta Is Doing Alright is now playing Off-Broadway at SoHo Playhouse. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Linus Karp and Joseph Martin are actors, writers, and theater makers. They created Awkward Productions to bring ridiculous genre-mixing comedy, niche pop culture references, audience participation, and queer joy to the stage. Their shows include Gwyneth Goes Skiing, Diana: The Untold and Untrue Story, The Fit Prince, and How to Live a Jellicle Life: Life Lessons from the 2019 Hit Musical 'Cats.' These shows have all been performed for sold-out audiences at the Edinburgh Fringe. As they say, "An Awkward Productions show isn’t performed for you—it’s performed with you, making each show unique." In January 2026, Gwyneth Goes Skiing and Diana: The Untold and Untrue Story will be performed in select U.S. cities. Diana: The Untold and Untrue Story made its New York debut at SoHo Playhouse. Gwyneth Goes Skiing will be presented in Aspen for Gay Ski Week from January 14 to 17 at the Wheeler Opera House. Afterward, the show will be performed at the Elysian Theater in Los Angeles from January 21 to 24, followed by Diana from January 25 to 28. For more information about Awkward Productions and tickets to the shows, visit awkwardprods.com and www.instagram.com/awkwardprods. . This episode was recorded November 21, 2025. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Samuel D. Hunter is a playwright and screenwriter whose work includes the critically acclaimed play The Whale and its Oscar-winning film adaptation. This past fall he made his West End debut with Clarkston, and he is currently making his Broadway debut with Little Bear Ridge Road at the Booth Theatre. Drawing deeply from his upbringing in Idaho, Samuel's work, including the plays A Case for the Existence of God, A Bright New Boise, and Greater Clements, is celebrated for its humanity, humor, and intimate portraits of life. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Crystal Skillman is an award-winning dramatist. Her play Open, which was awarded a New York Times Critics’ Pick, has been running Off-Broadway at WP Theater through July. Her next play, The Rocket Men, is about to receive a National New Play Network Rolling World Premiere across the country. This episode was recorded on July 25, 2025 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jak Malone co-stars in the hit new musical, Operation Mincemeat, which is nominated for four Tony Awards, including Best Musical and a nomination for Jak. He also received Oliver, Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle awards for his show-stopping performance as Hester Leggatt and other characters. Operation Mincemeat is based on the unlikely, but completely true, story of how during WW2 the allies deceived the Nazi's by attaching fake war-plan documents to a corpse and washing him up on the shores of Spain. The success of the mission transformed the war. Operation Mincemeat is now playing at the John Golden Theatre. In 2026, the production will be launching a world tour going around the globe throughout the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, China, Mexico and New Zealand. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jesse Eisenberg wrote, directed and co-stars in A Real Pain. In the film two mismatched cousins embark on a Holocaust tour through Poland to understand the history of their late grandmother who is a Holocaust survivor. It's a beautiful, honest, poetic and hilarious film that is listed as one of the ten best movies of 2024 by the New York Times, Los Angeles Times, and the National Board of Review. As Owen Gleiberman wrote in Variety "Eisenberg has scripted with an ear for the music of ideas and for contrasting voices, he presents the story of these two cousins — how they interact, what they mean to each other, how their past intersects with the present — in a way that’s so supple you can touch their reality." I sat down with Jesse at the Ram's Head Inn, a seaside hideaway in Shelter Island. The historic property was the site of several famous physics conferences that hosted J. Robert Oppenheimer and Stephen Hawking over the years. The Ram's Head continues the tradition of being an incubator for great talents. Jesse took part in a new film series there called, The Ram Film Society. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Susan Jaffe is the artistic director of American Ballet Theater. Called “America’s quintessential American ballerina," and “born to dance,” by the New York Times, Susan was a principal dancer at American Ballet Theatre. She performed on stages around the world for 22 years. This summer American Ballet Theatre celebrates its 85th anniversary at the Metropolitan Opera House. Their anniversary season also marks 30 years of ABT Studio Company and two decades of the ABT Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis School. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jenny Lyn Bader is a prolific playwright whose stage plays include None of the Above, Equally Divine: The Real Story of the Mona Lisa, In Flight, and The Whole Megillah. She also wrote the audio works Tree Confessions and Communal Table. Jenny Lyn's play, Mrs. Stern Wanders the Prussian State Library, produced by Luna Stage, is currently presented off-Broadway at the WP Theater. This episode was recorded December 23, 2024. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Daniel Roy is a magician and mentalist who has headlined at the Hollywood Magic Castle, appeared on Penn & Teller: Fool Us and performed throughout the country. In his latest show, The Parlour of Deceptions, he intertwines sleight-of-hand, misdirection, and storytelling before an intimate crowd of 50 guests. Using his neuroscience degree from the University of Pennsylvania, Roy provides a peek behind the curtain into how magic tricks the brain. The Parlour of Deceptions is currently playing at the Salmagundi Club in New York City. This episode was recorded December 16, 2024. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices