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[0:00] Jeff Malone: Welcome to Half Hour with Jeff and Richie, the podcast where we explore the latest shows we see, sharing our insights and opinions on the performances, storylines, and everything in between. In today's episode, we're discussing the London production of The Hunger Games On Stage. Whether you cannot catch the show in person or you want to expand your thoughts after seeing it, this episode is for you. And as always, we want to inform you that this episode will contain spoilers, so if you're ready to dive into this production, stick around with us. I'm Jeff.

[0:26] Richie Grasso: And I'm Richie, and we're thrilled to be your hosts for this episode today. But before we start the conversation about The Hunger Games On Stage, here are a few words from our advertisers.

[0:36] Jeff Malone: Welcome, everyone, to a new episode of Half Hour with Jeff and Richie. Today, we're discussing The Hunger Games On Stage. The Hunger Games On Stage brings Suzanne Collins' iconic dystopian story to the theater in a gripping new live adaptation by acclaimed Irish playwright Conor McPherson. The play follows Katniss Everdeen as she is thrust into the deadly televised Hunger Games, a fight for survival in the oppressed world of Panem. Filled with high-stakes action, courage, and rebellion, this production brings the story's intensity to life in an immersive, purpose-built London venue. It premiered at the Troubadour Canary Wharf Theatre in November 2025, directed by Matthew Dunster. We went to London this July 2026, and we saw a bunch of shows, and we're very, very excited to be spending this episode talking to you about a really special show that we saw, and this was on the top of our list.

We really wanted to make sure we got to this show. It hasn't even been playing a full year yet, but I would love to start us off with some bold statements. So, Jeff, let's start with what is your bold statement on The Hunger Games On Stage in London?

[1:41] Jeff Malone: Bold statement is that I feel like I may have enjoyed this Hunger Games On Stage more than I actually enjoyed the film.

[1:50] Richie Grasso: Wow, that is a bold statement. My bold statement is that I think this is the future for many ways in which stories can be presented to audiences in live, epic, arena-style tellings, especially with a plot like this. I really think this is the future for many ways we tell stories.

[2:04] Jeff Malone: Yeah, definitely. And I'm looking forward to diving into talking about this one more. All right, well, let's do things as we always do and get into the plot and concept here. So, many people are very familiar with the Hunger Games series. They have a new film coming out, and I think that this is very on the nose to be bringing something like this to the stage. So, if you get into the plot and concept here, what do you think is actually working on stage?

[2:26] Richie Grasso: Well, we have this story that is based off the original book and the original movie. So, I've only seen the movie once many years ago, and I was like, oh, should I kind of know more about this before I go into it? And a lot of people have said no, and I actually agree that you could kind of go into this pretty blind. If I had brought a family member or a friend that has never read this book or never seen this movie, they're going to get the plot, they're going to get the concept with this. I think when you have these pretty epic films like Harry Potter and like the Hunger Games and some of these things, you want to bring that epic level to the live performance of it, right? So, you have underscoring music and costumes and high-action thrill sequences, a plot that is driving multiple characters, and this is a really high-energy film.

And so, I think presenting this on stage maybe wasn't going to work in just your average proscenium-style house, be it Broadway or London, right? So, when I kind of talk about this concept, I can't help but not start at a place of a literal theater was built for this show. And how many times have I been able to say that? You don't see a lot of new theaters built specifically for things, right? It definitely has happened before, but I think when you look at most of the West End theaters and the Broadway houses, they were built for plays and musicals in general, right? The proscenium style, with the exception of a few in the rounds and whatnot and thrust stages. I think what's happening here is someone had the vision and the wallet to put this large, Troubadour Canary Wharf Theater together.

So, we take the train a few stops out of the West End area to this beautiful area, right, where there's shops and restaurants and it's on the water, and I thought that experience was nice. And you get to this theater and you're entering this arena-style theater. The only thing I can kind of compare it to here in the New York metropolitan area would probably be, and I'm talking about the space, right? It would probably be something like the Medieval Times Dinner Theater, where you're in the round and you enter this lobby and then you go to different doors to access this theater. Now, that is a much older space that is using live horses and there's dinner involved and there's a whole thing, right?

But dinner theaters, there's some big epic dinner theaters across the world that are that arena-style. Or you're going to Madison Square Garden, right? Or you're going to these arenas where there's multiple doors to enter and what section am I going to? And you're kind of assigned a section based on the plot of Hunger Games, right? You're going in and you're sitting. And when you're there, you're seeing other audience members all around. It is in the round, but there's so many special effects that happen with this that the concept seemed to be, keep the audience there, but also, you know, spoiler alert, of course, move the audience. The end sections of the arena, the audience sections literally moved and expanded and closed when different actors would exit and enter, right?

Not to mention there's a lot of aerial work in this show. So you're looking up, you're looking left, you're looking right, and you're filling the space. And as the audience, you're sitting and you're watching this arena style, you know, like maybe the way people watched theater epic years ago with the Coliseum and things. When you're in the round, or maybe not necessarily theater, but like you're seeing something happening in the center. We go to hockey games currently in today's day, similar, right? So we definitely have this, but we're not necessarily with plays. And so I thought this was really, really impressive, just that the concept was to put us and immerse us in this plot. Like we're part of these villages, like we're part of the people watching the Hunger Games.

[6:12] Jeff Malone: Right. I mean, we don't need to get too much into the plot of this. Many people know this story and this, and they have seen the film and it's been ongoing, but yes, from a concept standpoint, I actually look at this and why I said in my bold statement, why I think that this worked more is because you feel like, I don't, it's very like one dimensional when you're like seeing something in the movie theater and you're just like there and it's on stage. You're just like there and it's on the screen and great. This brings it into this interaction, which is really part of the plot of the Hunger Games anyway. It's like, everyone's watching these young tributes that need to go and fight for their district.

And you miss that when you're in the film. So when you're now seeing this on stage, you're part of that. You're part of a district. You're watching your cast member fight for you, who is a tribute to the district there. And I think that's what really connected for me. And I almost look at this and I'm like, yes, plays were written and stories have been written. And then like we get inspired by them and then we put them either into a stage or a film. And I actually am a bit surprised that something like this was not looked at earlier and put on the stage before it was even turned into a film, because I think it has all of the bones that really set up a piece like this. And now too many people are going to compare it to the film and say, oh, well, I like the film better. And I like the actors that are in the film and yada, yada, yada. And now this though, I think really brings and displays what the book text is actually trying to get across.

[8:30] Richie Grasso: Well, not to mention you have moments with Caesar and Effie's character where they're addressing the audience. They're saying the Hunger Games and we're applauding. We're part of this plot. We're part of the journey. I think when there were moments when someone left the district and that person was no longer in the games, like the red light appeared on that audience section, because what Jeff had said earlier was you're part of a district based on where you're sitting. I don't know if multiple people will go back and try to sit in different districts or not, but when that person has gone from their district, a red light shows up on you and it omits you from that. So it really allows you to be part of the TV show aspect of this, because this is like the televised screens and hosts and you're a part of it.

And similar to something like Medieval Times, if you've gone there in New Jersey, you're like rooting for your color, you're rooting for your team, your area cheers it on. So it brings the audience immersion in. And yet, then when there's the book scenes that are a little more intimate, a little more calm and a little more subdued, I think the audience did kind of get calm and quiet and watch those scenes like we're in a movie or like we're in a play in a proscenium. So I thought the grand was grand and I thought as large as this space was, the smaller, more intimate two-person scenes were really well crafted as well.

[9:56] Jeff Malone: Yeah. And I think, you know, maybe I'm just a little bit more older and more mature in how I watch things now, but there was something about being able to follow and connect with the story a bit more by seeing it on stage. You know, you really feel connected to the cast members that are performing in this that you say, oh wow, they actually feel like they have to go into battle in this piece. But all right. Well, I think this is a great time to kind of move into the next section of this episode. But before we do that, we're going to take a quick break and we're back. So let's kick things off with the direction and the creative team here and let me know what you think about the direction here.

[10:40] Richie Grasso: I think Matthew Dunster's direction is very strong. I think it's very difficult to have to direct a large amount of people in a space that has so many different entrance and exit points. You're incorporating video, you're incorporating music, and then there's so many special effects, there's action sequences that have to come across in so many different ways. And what I really appreciated with the direction was that each scene, I kind of said this in the first segment, each scene is delicately crafted differently. We're moving the show along, but the, like I said earlier, the epic is epic, and then the small is small. And then when you know, I actually thought the transitions were really impressive as the seating was opening up and we had lights changing and fog immersion and music swelling, or we know we're getting a big moment.

And then when someone goes away or there's a sad moment or a somber moment, we bring it in. Bringing that house crafted by the actors with the different pieces together center was so intimate. We could have had just a big projection of a house and they could have been chairs in the middle and that was it. No, it was brought in. There was things lifted from the ground. There was so many places to look and yet it didn't feel overwhelming as an audience. It's very strong direction for this large scale. I was very impressed.

[11:55] Jeff Malone: Yeah. And I feel like you can look at this creative team and you can definitely do with what we love saying is that they've all really worked together. This was not like a piece by piece, like, oh, you're just going to focus on this and you're going to focus on that. No, you could really see that there was a lot of cohesion that was happening within this piece. And like you were saying, too, like when you have a choreographer here, Charlotte Broom, who you can see is really helping with the transitions of this piece. You know, we have interpretive dance happening, building a home and getting those cast members to go through and kind of tell the story in that way. I thought it was beautiful, even with having a score that's happening throughout this piece. And that is really kind of like making this a little bit more filmic and adding to the whole like overall vibe of the show, which I thought was great.

[12:57] Richie Grasso: Totally agree. We also have so many designers because the set designer, Miriam Buhler, was also the auditorium designer, which was smart because the design of this space, you know, how lucky are you to say, oh, we want you to do this set for this space. We're also going to literally build this space and you're going to help us create the space too. It's not like they had to make it work amongst an already existing space. And so that was a very cool job. We have costume lighting, sound, but then we have a video designer and an illusion designer as well. There were so many illusions. I thought the chariot ride of Katniss and Peeta together, and they were like on fire. And they were like holes in their jacket to let these flames out.

I'm like, wow. I don't know if I've ever seen something like that. That was very, very cool. Just the things flying in and out, flying people out. We went way high and we went way underground, right? And so every inch of this space is used and you're like kind of strapped in, not literally, but you're like just in your chair like, okay, I'm here. I'm part of this. I'm submerged in this.

[13:43] Jeff Malone: Oh yeah. And you look at that they take a lot of great moments that are known and want to be probably seen in this as well. We have Katniss climbing up a tree that's at your sight level now, but also even higher at other times that they then have to bring in this fight choreography into the piece after as well. And we're bringing in now illusions and special effects that really help bring that and take that to the next level. And some of it was actually like you're watching and they're either vomiting or there's blood and gruesome things that are brought into the stage, but done in a tasteful way that really kind of give you that feel that you need to feel in the theater as well. It's almost as if all these designers are such a character presence in and of itself.

And that's nothing to say about the actors because the actors are so strong too. It just shows that it wasn't like the actors were left up there to fend for themselves because they had such a supportive design team, which I was really impressed with.

[14:48] Richie Grasso: In terms of the actors, there were so many wonderful performances. We saw Tamsyn Carroll as Effie Trinket. She was very strong. We saw Stavros Dimitrakis as Cesar Flickerman. Very strong performance. I really enjoyed them as well. To me, a standout though, definitely Mia Carragher as Katniss Everdeen. Very, very strong. I really, really was captivated by her. I found her to be so moving in the way she carries this whole...

[14:20] Richie Grasso: Jennifer is Jennifer. She gives her performance, but this is now Mia's real moment here to kind of say, no, I'm going to play Katniss a little bit more timid. I'm going to play it a little bit more emotional to, you know, putting herself out there and saying, I'm going to volunteer as tribute. And that's where I felt like there was a difference between the two performances. And yet so strong and have to, and to the physical agility of these actors to do this, it's such physical stamina. I'm so impressed by that. It's just, you clearly are physically and emotionally and mentally wrapped into these characters. It was so impressive. I just think that that ensemble works so well together too. And what a large cast this was.

And they all were really, really strong. And I was, what was something for you that really stood out in a different way in this stage production than you would say from like what you already know from the past in The Hunger Games? I just feel like I was able to get to know the characters a little better, which is ironic because usually you would think close film shots of character relations would help with that. To me, this kind of proved that I don't need to be like two inches away from someone's face on a large screen to understand the emotional impact of this. Like there's shouting, but there's no screaming. There's physical altercations, but there's nothing that's like too aggressive or abrasive for me.

I'm kind of like, wow, I understand that this is really serious and strong, but I also connect more. I've always connected with actors better in live performance than in a film. I've been moved to tears in film. Don't get me wrong. And this is not to try to say theater versus film. This is an opportunity for me to say, I find the connection with a live performance of this story. And it kind of allows you to take a step back and say, well, why is this story still working? Why are we getting film after film? Why do people want to go see this? And is this timely? These utopian, dystopian kind of avant-garde worlds that these writers create, we look at them and we say, oh, is there a reason why this is so popular right now?

Do people compare this to aspects of the real world? Of course, it's very different, but what is similar? What is different? What is the writer trying to say? And I think the design, the creation of this, the production of this allows you to say, hmm, I look at this and say, wow, I'm so immersed in this world that I'm kind of a little scared because I know I'm an audience member, but I'm here for a few hours in this land, in this world, and you've really got me here. It's kind of wild. Well, I think there's a big connection here for so many people and why something like this still does stick here is when you have someone like President Snow, who is truly owning and pawning people up against each other in such a way that they need to fight and kill, it is so related to the real world, especially when you have administrations that are there and controlling.

And what do they do? They create armies and attack and you have to fight. And it's like, yeah, this is relating to so many different aspects of something that we're all kind of told to do, or as one would say, volunteer yourself to join and fight for your country. And the emotional impact that has on those districts in this plot and the societies and the amount of land or food or supplies that are given that are based on this, it's kind of wild. It's a mind game. And you see these actors committed to the plot. It's just so strong. And I'm like, you're getting every inch of this story from beginning to end in the highest quality. Right. And I find too, one thing that I'll say that really stood out for me in this as well is I do think that you had a bigger connection to some of the characters like Haymitch and Effie and Caesar.

I find they're a little glossed over in the film. They're quick. We're very quick to get through this. I actually found that there was a lot more in the training and the storytelling around Katniss and Peeta that we got to see a little bit more background with those three characters of Haymitch, Effie, and Caesar to really see like, oh, you know, they're a little bit like they're just doing their job at a certain point. But like, how connected are they to this where you kind of get that moment where and maybe this is an actor portrayal that they kind of get to say like, oh, they're either rolling their eyes at what they have to do or their looks are starting to fall apart. And you get to kind of decide that as an audience member, like, oh, are they really in on the game for so long or do they actually care about the tributes that are arriving here? And do they want them to win or is it all about them? And you kind of get to make that decision when seeing this play.

[19:39] Jeff Malone: Yeah. Very cool. All right. Well, it's time to take another quick break. And when we get back, we'll move into our own experiences at the show and what we might think might be next for the future of this production. Yes. Okey dokey. And we're back. So let's kind of get into our own experiences at this show now. And I mean, I had said earlier going to this venue was just an incredible experience going to the West End and seeing theater in general. You and I have both been there before and have seen theater there before in years past. But to go together and see a bunch of things this summer was an incredible experience. But I just want to ask you, Jeff, what worked for you in this production of The Hunger Games on stage?

[20:15] Jeff Malone: I really feel that The Hunger Games became a more connective experience for someone like me as a viewer, whereas I was not fully invested in this series and the film when I did see it. I think the play actually has sparked interest for me to actually go and maybe even read the series or go and watch the other films, because I think that there is an interesting storyline that's happening here. And I do feel like there is a lot that can get related to what's happening in the world today. So I definitely think that this play is getting something right in there. So I hope, you know, it really finds a good full audience to kind of continue to keep something like this going on. It definitely, you know, it has something there, you know.

[21:06] Richie Grasso: Okay. And knowing how this theater was built for The Hunger Games on stage, how do you think that this show could possibly work in another theater or does it not?

[21:15] Jeff Malone: I think this should come to New York and America. We know that theater is very expensive in America to build a theater just like that here for the show would be obviously the best choice, but there are other spaces I think they could find to make this work. It may not match exactly what's going over on London, but I think that as we're seeing the Magic Mike Theater being built right now in New York and the ABBA Voyage Concert Theater being, we're finding site-specific areas of New York and the New York area to put things. I think this could happen. It should happen. Would it be harder than to tour or put in other places in the world? Maybe, but I think the next smart move would be to come here because Americans do like The Hunger Games, and I think it could work. I really do.

[21:59] Richie Grasso: I do think it could work as well because, you know, it's an arena-style show. It could potentially just tour arenas, and yeah, you might not be able to move the seats around in a specific way, but I'm sure they could figure that out. But I also think there's a ton of real estate in New York, especially empty warehouses, that could house something like this. Not to mention when you see things like Disney on Ice or Cirque du Soleil or some of these things do go and tour in these arenas, there's definitely possibility to find it. Maybe you're seeing something like The Hunger Games is going to run for one month at Madison Square Garden, right? Or it's going to go to Nassau Coliseum, or it's going to go to the Izod Center.

I'm thinking of places in the area that are arenas, although some of those I think are not even around anymore. But what do they call it? They change the names all the time. MetLife is huge, right? Maybe, maybe that's an outdoor theater, though. It might be hard to do outside. That's also very large.

[22:46] Jeff Malone: Yeah, very large, but I think there's definitely areas and places that this could go, and maybe it doesn't sit as long as it's sitting for this long in London. I also think it can last a long time in London. And I did leave the theater and thought to myself, well, what if this closes one day? What does this theater become? Well, find another piece of theater that could work in this space, because like I said, I think the area was lovely.

[23:10] Richie Grasso: Yeah, I mean, they've built a theater in the round. So anything could really work there. There's many things I think that could work very well there.

[23:16] Jeff Malone: Totally, totally, totally. And in general, just in terms of your experience at the show, Jeff, I mean, there was bars in the lobbies, there was a whole restaurant in this theater. The lobbies were large, the bathrooms were large, the entrances and exits, everything was just grandiose and more breathable room to get through and walk around and have an experience there. We were there on an afternoon on a weekend where we just got to spend the afternoon there. It felt really great for that space. Would you agree with a lot of that?

[23:37] Jeff Malone: Oh yeah. You know, I find it funny because I think we get into a little bit of theater snob territory when new things like this are created. And yes, does this have a lot of elements that could potentially verge on like, oh, well, that's not traditional West End or Broadway style theater. They've built a full experience for a show like that. Yeah, but look at everything that was around that theater. There's now restaurants and coffee shops and a whole experience for people to go out there and that creates a moment of time for people to be like, okay, we're going to go do this and we're going to do this and we're going to do this. And that's like a full experience in a day in itself. I also think theater is constantly changing.

Theater from the early 1900s to now has changed vastly and we're constantly changing. Even when you look at something from Broadway in the 90s, when like Broadway was literally dying, there were empty theaters basically on the verge of being condemned. And then new things came in and changed what was happening on Broadway. And now we have the Broadway that we have today. And I could feel that, you know, the West End has a lot of similarities to that whole Broadway audience. But when you have something like this come, it's kind of creating the new and next generation of theater makers and saying, like, we need to make more experiential theater because that's, I think, what people are hungry for.

And we're having the same thing happen here in New York. People want immersive, fun experiences. I mean, look at something like Masquerade. I mean, it's a hit and what's not working. A lot of what's on Broadway is not working. And it does come down to the venue and the site-specific area. And a lot of times in Midtown, it's very like, you can't get to the theater too early. There's nowhere to stand. Go in. And then the second the show's over, okay, go now, go out. And it's like, oh, that experience is, especially on a really rainy or really cold day, it's like, oh, did you make a dinner reservation? Oh, we got to go find where to sit and eat and like process the show. How many times do we leave the show?

Like, let's go get a coffee and just talk about that. But you can't really stand outside. This was just an experience of being in an area where, and I hope theater is a little more specific like that, where we can just have more immersive experience that are a little longer and a little more captivating. And we can see that now. Does every play work like this in an arena, like The Hunger Games on stage? No, but this one did.

[26:15] Richie Grasso: No, but I think it calls for it. I think when you look at something like Cats, the Jellicle Ball right now and how we look at something like that and say, oh, it didn't really work on Broadway, but it did work off Broadway. So maybe it needs to go off Broadway again and it needs to have more of an immersive experience for that show because maybe the Broadway house was not the right place for it. How cool would it be that you were on the floor with the Jellicle Ball and they're voguing all around you and having a great time? I think that's where people need to still feel welcomed and enticed into doing something more in the theater world.

[26:56] Jeff Malone: Yeah, good stuff.

[26:58] Richie Grasso: Oh my gosh, we're just about out of time. What are your final thoughts on The Hunger Games on stage in London?

[27:03] Jeff Malone: This one I was pleasantly surprised because I don't think it got massively great reviews when it came out. And I looked at this and I said, oh, it's something that I definitely want to see. So I'm happy that I did get to go and see it because I think that there is definitely something special there and new theater audiences, I feel like might appreciate something like this more. So I definitely highly recommend it from that perspective as well.

[27:30] Richie Grasso: I totally agree. I think this is the future of a lot of the ways we still tell stories. As I said earlier, I want to see more of this. I want to see site-specific arena style shows when they're called for in the plot. I think this is just engaging. It's enjoyable. If you're in London, you should totally go see this. And I hope it comes to New York or America in some way. I really do. I know it hasn't even been running a year yet there, but let's keep that longevity going because these are experiences for families and theater goers to have. And I think this is really important and wonderful. And I thoroughly, thoroughly enjoyed it.

[28:03] Jeff Malone: Right. Especially when you have a creative team and you have a cast that's really working hard too to put on a great piece of work. So.

[28:14] Richie Grasso: Yeah, good stuff. Well, that does wrap up our discussion for this episode. We hope you enjoyed our deep dive into The Hunger Games on stage. And remember, we want to hear from you. Continue the conversation with us on Instagram and TikTok at Half Hour Podcast, and drop us a comment on Spotify and let us know your thoughts on The Hunger Games on stage. Please also leave us a review. Your reviews mean so much to us. And remember to subscribe to our channel for all past and future episodes.

[28:36] Jeff Malone: Until next time, I'm Jeff.

[28:39] Richie Grasso: And I'm Richie saying ta-ta for now.

[28:39] Jeff Malone: Bye.