About the Show

This Is Not A Theatre Company presents an interactive homage to the importance of radical play for a healthy society.

From the show:

What do mass murderers have in common? They are play-deprived. What happens to rats when you deprive them of play? They die. The answer to inefficiency is not more work, it’s play. And the opposite of play is not work, it’s depression. Come PLAY! with us. PLAY! is an interactive dance-theatre piece co-created by Charles Mee, Erin B. Mee, Jonathan Matthews, and Ezra Brain, with additional text by Stuart Brown, Frederick Winslow Taylor, and Buzzfeed. Performed by Jonathan Matthews.

Critic Reviews (2)

"'Play!' reflects on the importance of play in everyday adult life…Jonathan Matthews executes elaborate choreography while delivering an absurdist monologue…[and then] the sense of joy and freedom that comes from playing is put to the service of building a better society."
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"A solo dance-theater piece performed by Jonathan Matthews on the subject of playing - as in playing games...Matthews rants, lectures…and at the same time moves his body in expert ways…In the second half the performer brings the audience on stage… to play together."
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Cast and creative team

This Is Not A Theatre Company

Jonathan Matthews (artist)

Writer / Performer