ToB: Wednesday, July 30, 2025 | Rishi Varma on ‘Sulfer Bottom’

Summary

BroadwayRadio Episode Summary: "ToB: Wednesday, July 30, 2025 | Rishi Varma on ‘Sulfer Bottom’"

Release Date: July 30, 2025

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Introduction

In this episode of BroadwayRadio, hosts Matt Tammini and Grace Aki delve into the latest happenings on Broadway, spotlighting new productions, casting updates, and industry insights. The episode culminates with an exclusive interview with playwright Rishi Varma about his upcoming play, “Sulfer Bottom.”

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Upcoming Production: The Ballisters

Matt Tammini kicks off the discussion by sharing exciting news about the Manhattan Theater Club's world premiere of David Lindsay Abeart's new play, "The Ballisters." Set to debut at the Samuel J. Friedman Theater in spring 2026, the play boasts an impressive cast:

• Mary Louise Burke (Drama Desk Winner)
• Carl Clemons-Hopkins (Emmy Nominee)
• Margaret Collin (Drama Desk Nominee)
• Renee Elise Goldsberry (Tony & Grammy Winner)
• Richard Thomas (Emmy Winner and Theater Hall of Fame Inductee)

Directed by Kenny Leon, known for directing approximately 37 shows this season, "The Ballisters" is described as a "raucous, wild ride through a small community with big feelings." The narrative centers on the Vernon Point Neighborhood Association, whose members engage in humorous yet intense disputes—ranging from “historically inaccurate porch railings” to the dramatic proposal of installing a stop sign, sparking a "Neighbor vs. Neighbor battle royale" (Tammini, [02:15]).

Matt Tammini shares his personal disdain for Homeowners Associations (HOAs), stating, “I hate HOAs, Grace. So anytime we can make fun and lampoon HOAs, that is good” ([03:12]). This sentiment aligns with similar thematic elements found in Tracy Letts' "The Minutes" and "Eureka Day," both of which explore politically charged, micro-level conflicts within insular communities.

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Stage Adaptation of The Hunger Games

Shifting gears, Tammini and Aki discuss the groundbreaking stage adaptation of "The Hunger Games." Premiering on October 20th at the Troubadour Cannery Wharf Theater, the production stars Maya Carragher as Katniss Everdeen. Despite not being a household name, Carragher brings notable talent from British cinema and is set to appear alongside original cast member Josh Hutcherson in an upcoming comedy (Tammini, [04:22]).

Maya Carragher expressed her enthusiasm for the role, stating, “I'm really excited to play Katniss. I relate to her quite a lot. I think she's very fearless. But then she's also got that nurturing quality about her” ([06:00]). The production promises a fresh take, aiming to differentiate itself from other IP-driven shows like "Cursed Child" and "Stranger Things: The First Shadow." Tammini believes that with experienced theater professionals like playwright Connor McPherson and director Matthew Dunster at the helm, this adaptation will deliver a unique and engaging theatrical experience ([07:00]).

Grace Aki highlights the increasing trend of adapting major franchises for the stage, suggesting that this move signifies a “future exploration of IP in theater” and anticipates more innovative adaptations on the horizon ([08:06]). They debate potential candidates for future adaptations, with Aki proposing "The Mandalorian" as a promising candidate due to its rich storytelling rooted in the original books, positioning it well for a theatrical setting ([09:22]).

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Broadway Grosses and Show Updates

The hosts provide a comprehensive update on Broadway grosses, noting a slight decline from $29 million to $28 million and a total revenue of $31,581,085 last week. Key highlights include:

• "Wicked" topped the grosses with $2,386,982 ([10:00]).
• "The Lion King" and "Hamilton" followed closely with $2.3 million and $2.2 million, respectively.
• Notable declines were observed in "Death Becomes Her" due to casting changes, specifically Jen Simard's temporary absence ([12:30]).

Despite these fluctuations, 22 out of 28 shows maintained 90% capacity or above, with "Omari" and "Wicked" exceeding 100% capacity. "Just In Time" led attendance at 103.53% ([14:00]). Additionally, "Pirates of Penzance" concluded its Broadway run with impressive grosses of $567,633.

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Show Closures and Casting News

Tammini and Aki discuss recent updates in the Broadway scene:

• "Duke and Roya" will close earlier than planned, ending its run on Saturday at the Lucille Lortel Theater.
• "Elf the Musical" is set to launch a national tour starting November 1st at the Clark State Performing Arts Center in Springfield, Ohio, with stops in cities like Chicago, Atlanta, and San Antonio ([13:00]).

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Exclusive Interview: Rishi Varma on “Sulfer Bottom”

The episode concludes with an insightful conversation between Grace Aki and playwright Rishi Varma about his new play, “Sulfer Bottom.”

Grace Aki initiates the interview by highlighting the play’s relevance to New York Climate Week and its focus on environmental justice, stating, “...raising awareness for environmental justice is very exciting. I think this is a conversation that a lot of us have been wanting to have in the arts and theater community for a while” ([14:32]).

Rishi Varma shares his inspiration: “I saw the story about a guy who was living in a house and it was in a place of high pollution. And the interviewer was like, why don't you just leave? And he was like, where do I go? Or how do I just leave? Or who can I sell this house to? That's not fair to them” ([15:09]). This led him to explore the complexities faced by individuals in polluted environments, culminating in a narrative that spans three generations over 40 years, addressing increasing pollution and air quality issues. The play also incorporates surreal elements, such as the appearance of a whale, blending gothic and eco-drama genres ([16:12]).

Aki appreciates the genre-blending approach, remarking, “...everyone thinks that these things have to be, like, four different things... but I actually do believe that the Hunger Games on stage is going to unique” ([17:55]). Varma echoes this sentiment, hoping that the play offers a digestible yet multifaceted experience for audiences.

Regarding logistics, Varma mentions that rehearsals have just commenced in different spaces, with plans to move into the Jerry Orbach Theater for tech rehearsals and previews in about two weeks. He expresses enthusiasm about sharing the venue with other diverse and outstanding shows ([18:07]).

Grace Aki concludes the interview by emphasizing the play's premiere date and encouraging listeners to attend, stating, “...sulfur Bottom will premiere at Off Broadway's Theater Center starting Aug. 13 at the Jerry Orbach Theatre” ([18:39]).

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Conclusion

This episode of BroadwayRadio provides a thorough overview of the current Broadway landscape, spotlighting new and upcoming productions, significant casting changes, and financial performances. The exclusive interview with Rishi Varma about "Sulfer Bottom" offers listeners a deep dive into the creative process behind a play that intertwines environmental themes with gothic elements, reflecting the evolving nature of contemporary theater.

For more updates and exclusive content, listeners are encouraged to visit patreon.com/broadwayradio or follow BroadwayRadio on social media platforms.

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Note: All timestamps correspond to the episode's transcript and are provided to contextualize quoted material.

Transcript

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[Matt Tammini]

Welcome to Today on Broadway for Wednesday, July 30, 2025. I'm Broadway Radio's Matt Tammini and I'm.

[Grace Aki]

Tell Me on a Sunday Podcast Grace.

[Matt Tammini]

Aki Grace, we are going to do a hybrid episode today. We are going to have some news up front and then you have an interview that you did with. Honestly, I don't even know who it was with, who was this interview with and for what show are they talking about?

[Grace Aki]

So I'm going to be chatting with Rishi who is the playwright of Sulfur Bottom, which I can't wait to discuss. We are talking a lot about climate activism and in theater and I think this is the perfect time to do this play.

[Matt Tammini]

Awesome. So we will hear more about that at the end of the episode. And of course if you want to hear everything from Broadway radio, you can head over to patreon.com broadwayradio broadwayradio.com patreon our patreon exclusive episode of this week for right now I might change things that I have reserved the right to do is going to be a Some Like It Pop. But there was a very interesting study that came out yesterday and I might move things around depending on who I can get to talk to about this. So just stay on your toes but head over to Patreon and subscribe at the Mezzanine Tier and above to hear all of that. But yesterday, Grace, we did get some news about an upcoming show that a new play coming to us from the Manhattan Theater Club and yesterday we found out a whole slew of stars that are going to be a part of it. This is the world premiere of David Lindsay Abeart's new play the Ballisters and it is going to begin performances at the Samuel J. Friedman Theater sometime in the spring of 2026. We don't exactly know when, but what we do know is who is going to be starring in it and basically everybody in it, to some degree or another, is a fairly big star. We're going to start with Drama Desk winner Mary Louise Burke, Emmy award nominee and one of the stars of my favorite shows, hacks Carl Clements Hopkins. Then we have Drama Desk award nominee Margaret Collin, Tony and Grammy winner Renee Elise Goldsberry and Emmy winner and I believe recent Theater hall of Fame inductee Richard Thomas. They're going to be joining this show that is being directed by Kenny Leon, one of, I'm sure what will end up being about 37 shows that he directs this season. The Ballisters is a raucous, wild ride through a small community with big feelings. The Vernon Point Neighborhood association is a passionate bunch, whether squabbling over historically inaccurate porch railings or debating trash can protocol. Still, no one is prepared for the Neighbor vs. Neighbor battle royale that ensues when a newcomer to the board suggests the unthinkable installing a stop sign on the corner of the enclave's prettiest block. I hate HOAs, Grace. So anytime we can make fun and lampoon HOAs, that is good. It also feels very similar to things like Tracy Letts is the minutes Eureka Day where it's like these small, insular communities and organizations that have these very, very politically charged, on a micro level, battles and personalities. So we saw how both of those shows had a lot of fun and drama that come with it. I'm imagining that this, especially from David Lindsay at Bear, will be pretty similar.

[Grace Aki]

I love that. I didn't know that you had so much animosity for hoas. That's pretty funny.

[Matt Tammini]

My God, they're terrible here in Celebration. They're awful. My sister used to work for Celebration and she still works for a management company that runs towns that don't have, like their own government. So she knows all about it. But the hoas here and Celebration are awful. Just awful. I can't stand it. But anyway, but a great cast and I'm really excited to see some of these folks on stage together. All right, Grace. Going to a very, very different type of show. Yesterday we found out who is going to be leading the first ever stage adaptation of the Hunger Games. Are you a Hunger Games girly? Like, is this something that you grew up watching this franchise?

[Grace Aki]

Not even a little bit. But I will tell you that today our two months of interns put together a pitch for the Hunger Games as if it was coming to Broadway, which was super fun. So I have been inundated with Hunger Games news just today alone.

[Matt Tammini]

So kind of as like a thought experiment, not Actually to pitch it yet because it's coming to Broadway, but just like, as a. As a thing that they're doing for their intern.

[Grace Aki]

Yeah. What if it did?

[Matt Tammini]

Very cool. Uh, do you think that their. That their pitch would have won the account?

[Grace Aki]

I think that they did excellently and I. I think that we will be reviewing their pitch deck because they did a great job.

[Matt Tammini]

Okay, awesome. Well, what we learned yesterday is that when this show begins, performances coming up on October 20th at the Troubadour Cannery Wharf Theater, the star of the show playing Katniss Everdeen will be Maya Carragher. And not a huge name by any stretch of the imagination. She has had a number of British film credits, including. She is getting ready to star opposite original Hunger Games film star Josh Hutcherson in a comedy called let's Love opposite Martin Freeman and Malin Ackerman. She's also the daughter of a famous former English football player, soccer player for Liverpool named Jamie Kerrigan, who is also, like, a TV analyst, but fairly recently out of drama school. She graduated in 2022, but she is taking on the role Katniss. The show released a couple social media clips that included an introduction to her and also, like, her shooting a bow and arrow, which is obviously something iconic with Katniss. And Mia said, quote, I'm really excited to play Katniss. I relate to her quite a lot. I think she's very fearless. But then she's also got that nurturing quality about her. Everyone needs to come and watch the Hunger Games on stage because it's going to be nothing like you've ever seen. And I find this so interesting, Greece, because when we've had these very, very obvious, IP driven shows, spectacle, IP driven shows come to the stage, they all have actually been quite different. When she says it's like nothing you've ever seen, we go back to Cursed Child, you go to Stranger Things, the First Shadow. They are very, very unique in the terms of how they take something that is very much an action film in various ways and then turn it into a stage property. Like, I actually do believe that the Hunger Games on stage is going to be unique and is going to do things that we've never really seen on stage because of the track record of some of these other shows where it might just sound like it's something the lead actress says about a show, but I actually do believe it at this point. We have a track record now to see, like, theater professionals. Connor McPherson is the playwright behind this one. It's being directed by Matthew Dunster like, these are theater people. I believe that they can figure out how to make this thoroughly engaging and still work as the Hunger Games, but in a theatrical setting.

[Grace Aki]

You know, what I think is so interesting is that this is the, I mean, do you want to say maybe the third IP in a major fandom in the last 10 years that are, you know, derives from a book series like Harry Potter or a television and film series like Stranger Things that is now going to have this incredibly innovative theatrical production. And you know, Matt, I think we talked about this a year ago where I'm saying that this is the future of an exploration of ip. I really feel strongly that this is going to become even bigger and better as a last foray of any existing IP franchise. So I think that there's more to come here. But I'm very excited about this one.

[Matt Tammini]

Thinking about that, is there a franchise that you think is situated perfectly to be the next one, a book series, a film series, a TV series that you think would equate its well to coming to the stage as the next in this ever evolving line of IP titles?

[Grace Aki]

I think because I'm thinking outside of myself because this is not my particular like scope of interest, but I think about like the Rogers musical and the marvel of it all and all of those things, even into the parks. I'm thinking like, you know, look at how to Train youn Dragon did that world tour, the live show before they did the, the parks and now they're doing the live action film. Like I think that China production company in China bought it from Australia. Because I did look into this because I do care. But I'm thinking about like some of those opportunities that could be really optimal for a franchise like Marvel or DC that doesn't feel hokey or like, oh, we got him to fly, you know what I mean? Like in a WandaVision type of scope. I'm sure that there is something that could happen there. I think that's the best I can do. If I. If it's up to me though, it's. It's Mandalorian.

[Matt Tammini]

Oh, a Star wars type thing. I think that makes more sense.

[Grace Aki]

Yeah, but from the books. Because the books have informed those series. Because as you all know, like, those aren't from the films. A lot of those storylines come from the books. And so I think that the opportunity there is to take one person's story that is not tied to like Carrie Fisher or somebody else that could really play well on stage.

[Matt Tammini]

I think that makes more sense than a Marvel thing. The Rogers, music of it all notwithstanding. Just because that is so much more like a Stranger Things or a Hunger Games where it is a little bit darker, a little bit more grounded of a story. You still have all of the fantastical elements to it without all of the super colorful costumes and all of the weird comic book lore. I feel like Star wars or something like that actually makes a ton of sense. And if you do go to the gritty side of that universe, whether it's from the books, from the animated series, from the comic books, there's a tons of stuff to mind us that's brilliant as always, which should not be a surprise coming from you in this space. All right, let's real quick dive into last week's Broadway grosses. We were down from 29 to 28 Broadway shows following the closing of Sunset Boulevard. And with that we also saw about a $3.3 million decline to come in at $31,581,085. A couple shows that led the way in this, obviously the loss of Sunset Boulevard. But another show that had a casting change that we'll talk about here in a little bit that saw a massive decline. Overall attendance came in at 246,701 people and the average ticket price was at $128. And a single penny at the top of the grosses ladder was Wicked last week coming in at $2,386,982. Very close behind was the Lion King at 2.3 million and Hamilton at 2.2. The rest of the shows in descending order above 1 million do were Aladdin, MJ, maybe Happy Ending, Just In Time, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. Death Becomes her, the Outsiders, Buena Vista Social Club, oh Mary, Stranger Things, the First Shadow, Moulin Rouge and Anne Juliet. The Great Gatsby was very close. We saw Death Becomes her have about a $234,000 decline last week. I'm assuming that is at least in part because Jen Simard was out of the show last week. She was on vacation. Then we had the casting change over at cabaret, the KitKat Club, where we saw Marisha Wallace and Billy Porter come in to take on the roles of Sally Bowles and the mc. And there was a massive drop in that show from even Abuzada and Orville Peck's final week. Obviously it went up because it was their final week. They actually had a $517,000 decline to come in at $648,000, $649,000. Obviously we know that show is going to be wrapping up later this fall. So if you want to see it, get in there. Now. It does seem like there are tickets available. Fortunately, now that Gene Smart is back doing the show full time at Call Me Izzy, they had a fairly substantial increase to come in at $427,000. Still the lowest show on the grosses board, but a pretty healthy return after having a standby last week for only and only running about half of the shows. So overall a fairly good bounce back for them. In total, 22 of the 28 shows on Broadway last week played to 90% capacity or above. We had Omari and Wicked at 1 and Juliet and Hadestown above 100%. But below 101 between 101 and 102 where John Proctor is the villain Pirates and Hamilton 102 to 103% was maybe happy ending and the Outsiders and then Just In Time continues to lead that pack at 103.53. I should note that Pirates, the Panzance musical closed up its run on Broadway last week with $567,633. All right, Grace, just two real quick show and casting stories. Yesterday was announced that Duke and Roya will close up a little early off Broadway than it had originally planned. It is going to wrap up its run this weekend on Saturday, actually, over at the Lucille Lortel Theater. We know that Dylan Mulvaney's show is going to go in there later this year and then Elf, the musical, which was seen on Broadway last year during the holidays, is going to launch a national tour. It is going to kick off on November 1st at Clark State Performing Arts center in Springfield, Ohio. Springfield has like an hour and 15 minutes, minutes from where I grew up. I have never heard of Clark State. So whatever that means, that is that it is going to play 10 tour stops during this holiday season, including Chicago, Atlanta, San Antonio and more. All right, Grace, now it is time to wrap up the show and send it over to your interview talking about Sulfur Bottom Off Broadway, which Begins performances on August 13th at the Jerry Orbach Theater on Broadway. But before we get into that, thank you for listening to Today on Broadway. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Rodrigo. If you want more Broadway radio, head over to patreon.com broadwayradio Grace, where can people find you?

[Grace Aki]

You can find me at graceaki.

[Matt Tammini]

All right everybody, here is Grace's conversation with playwright Rishi Varma of Sulfur Bottom.

[Grace Aki]

Hi, this is Grace. We're talking on Today on Broadway with the playwright of Sulphur Bottom we can't wait to have you on the show. Welcome, welcome.

[Rishi Varma]

Hi. Thanks so much for having me. My name is Rishi Varma, and as you mentioned, I'm the playwright of the upcoming Off Broadway play Sulphur. Bottom.

[Grace Aki]

So tell me a little bit more about the show. I've obviously read the little synopsis. I know that this is in tandem with New York Climate Week, but I'm curious. And also raising awareness for environmental justice is very exciting. I think this is a conversation that a lot of us have been wanting to have in the arts and theater community for a while. So tell me what inspired you to write this show?

[Rishi Varma]

Yeah, so I started the show a couple years ago, and the inspiration for the show is I saw the story about a guy who was living in a house and it was in a place of high pollution. And the interviewer was like, why don't you just leave? And he was like, where do I go? Or how do I just leave? Or who can I sell this house to? That's not fair to them. And that just got me thinking about that world of what it's like to be somewhere that you know is hurting you, but what choices do you have and what can you make? And that's the inspiration for this show, which is about a family who lives in a house in an industrial park. And it follows them over three generations, over 40 years, as they deal with the increasing pollution, air quality, and how that affects their life. And there's some other surreal aspects, like there's a whale that is in the play at some point, but that's. That's the gist of the show.

[Grace Aki]

Yeah, I was, you know, reading about the. It said echo gothic drama, and I don't think I've ever read that in a show synopsis. So I was really excited to hear your thoughts on, like, what. What kind of, like, conjured up that disclaimer about the piece.

[Rishi Varma]

Yeah, I think we made that up. But I'm not. I'm not sure if maybe someone's done an eco gothic play before. It was just kind of a combination of words. Try to describe this play. We have, like, gothic elements. There's, you know, some afterlife stuff and there's some spirits and all these kind of things that are exist in the play in a weird way. So that's where the gothic elements come from. And then it's an eco drama as well. It's about the environment and the world that they live in in the park. So eco gothic was the closest we could get to finding a genre for this play.

[Grace Aki]

I like that. I'm a big fan of not, like, not adhering to, like, the explicit rules of, like, this play is a drama. This play is a comedy. It's like, okay. But there's so much that vacillates between all of these different spheres. So I'm excited that you took something that, like, is very uniquely inherent to this show. But also, how does. How do audiences understand how to digest what they're about to see? Which I think is. It's. I think it's a big trick of modern theater where it's like, everyone thinks that these things have to be, like, four different things, you know, and there's actually a lot of interesting conversation within all of it that it's like, okay, just come see a play then. Like, just come see a play. I don't think that it has to be, like, one definitive thing, but I appreciate that a lot.

[Rishi Varma]

Definitely. This is definitely not one definitive thing, but I hope it's. It is something people can digest.

[Grace Aki]

So you're doing the show at the Jerry Orbach Theater. Have you guys been rehearsing in there?

[Rishi Varma]

We haven't got into the space yet, except, let's look at it right now. We just started rehearsals this last week in some other spaces, and then we'll get into the space in about two weeks for our tech rehearsals and for our previews. So we're really excited because it's an amazing space, and there's lots of great shows that already exist in that that we're going to be sharing the space with. So it's kind of unique in that we are rotating with other shows that are playing there that are very different from our own show but are awesome.

[Grace Aki]

Right? It's like. So if you're listening, the Jerry Orbach Theater is on West 50th Street. So you're right in the heart of Times Square. You're right in the middle of all of these different Broadway venues that are, like, housing hundreds of thousands of seats. Well, we can't wait to see the show. Thank you so much to Rishi Varma, whose new play sulfur Bottom will premiere at Off Broadway's theater Center starting Aug. 13 at the Jerry Orbach Theatre. I'm so excited for this show. Thank you again so much for joining us today on Broadway Radio. You can make sure that you can get your tickets at the Theater Center. Do.

[Rishi Varma]

Sam.