Job

by Max Wolf Friedlich

Jane, an employee at the big tech company (you know the one), has been placed on leave after becoming the subject of a viral video. She arrives in the office of a crisis therapist – Loyd – determined to be reinstated to the job that gives her life meaning. A psychological thriller, JOB zooms in on two careerists of different generations, genders and political paradigms to examine what it means to be a citizen of the internet and our obligation to help the people who need it most.

Genres: Plays, Library Science, Fiction, Drama, Theatre

68 pages, Paperback

Published June 20, 2024

Reviews

[Doug · Rating 4 out of 5]

This debut play has had quite the resounding success in NY, playing a lengthy extended run off-Broadway, before moving to the Great White Way itself, where it is currently running. The premise sounded intriguing, and the fact it is set in the Bay Area, where I am from, made it a must read. It concerns a young employee at a tech company (that is pretty clearly Google), who has been mandated to see a therapist after she has a freak-out at work that is captured by her co-workers and has become a viral sensation; he needs to sign-off that she is stable enough to go back to work.

For a first effort, it is very accomplished and both characters are given meaty stuff with which to work. Still, for a brisk 80-minute run-time, the play feels a bit 'padded', and there are some clunky passages that don't ring true-to-life. And all the surrealistic touches (at one point the shrink inexplicably spouts off some indecipherable Russian for no apparent reason!) really need to be ditched. And once what the play is 'really' about becomes apparent, it just leaves you with an 'ooky' feeling - you want to go soak your brain in a soothing bath! Still, would love to see how this works in production.

https://www.nytimes.com/2023/09/22/th...
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/07/30/th...
https://www.vulture.com/2023/09/theat...

[Audrey Kang · Rating 5 out of 5]

Had to relive this - this play stayed with me weeks after taking my neighbor to see it (haha! totally unexpected and we were completely blindsided.) Incredible! Unhinged! Mind-blowing!

[Zachary · Rating 5 out of 5]

THIS PLAY IS POSSIBLY THE MOST STOMACH CHURNING THINGS YOU CAN POSSIBLY READ. I don’t think I’ve ever had a time where I’ve viscerally reacted to a book/play, but this fantastic piece of writing has to take the cake. It was phenomenal and had all the perfect elements of a psychological thriller that I didn’t think possible in a play like this from the brief synopsis I was given. Very excited to see this on Broadway.

[Grace Brown · Rating 5 out of 5]

Maybe my favorite play of all time. Wish I could see it again as I am always thinking about it, had to read it. Felt just as nauseous as I did seeing it on stage.

[m. · Rating 5 out of 5]

     це напевно ідеальний твір для різного типу книжкових клубів.

     сюжет одразу розпочинається з того, що Джейн, на прийомі у психотерапевта, тримає пістолет біля голови Лойда, власне терапевта, до якого її направила її компанія «G..» через нервовий зрив на роботі (у тексті ніде прямо не говориться, але очевидно, що ця компанія — гугл)

     і далі сюжет крутиться-вертиться, попри те, що герої й надалі перебувають виключно в одній кімнаті, і героїв виключно двоє.

     ліричний відступ.
     очевидно, що сучасне покоління чималу частину свого часу проводить в Інтернеті. очевидно, що соціальні мережі так чи інакше впливають на нашу поведінку як онлайн, так і в реальному житті. і звісно що, так як це тепер є безпосередньою частиною життя, то це життя й намагаються письменники відобразити у своїй творчості.
     проблема в тому, що переважно це виходить доволі крінжово, неживо й натужно, і сприймається більше символічно «автору треба було подати цей епізод хоч якось»

     тут ж, автор чудово розуміє що і як впливає на життя, і виразно це подає через Джейн, та її ставлення до життя, до соцмереж, до роботи.

     взагалі, хоч формат оповіді «розмова із терапевтом» далеко не новий, проте це саме сеттінг та бекграунд героїв тут робить цю п'єсу визначною. Лойд та Джейн по черзі ставлять під сумніви думки одне одного, поступово відкриваючись як для опонента у розмові, так і для читача.

     швидкість сюжету під завершення п'єси наростає, і все це завершується феєричною кінцівкою, після чого одразу хочеться повернутися до окремих епізодів, щоб переосмислити дії головних героїв.

твір сторінок на 60, читається неймовірно легко та швидко.
рекомендую.
4.5/5

[Olivia Landsverk · Rating 5 out of 5]

I did not see that coming ahhh

[Kathryn Mawhinney · Rating 5 out of 5]

SO intense and dark. i simply couldn’t put it down.

[Jason · Rating 4 out of 5]

A tense and dark two-hander with a gut punch of an ending. This is a prescient, taut thriller that will keep you on the edge of your seat and make you rethink your relationship to your screens!

[Sara Alanis · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5/5 ⭐️
I’m sorry, what?!?!
Truly upsetting. Love it.

[Cassie Landt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oh my gosh what an insane play, and I was not expecting that twist at all!!

[Madelein · Rating 5 out of 5]

Made me ill

[Madelynn Faith · Rating 5 out of 5]

HOLY SHIT. i’m so sad i never got to see this on THE broadway. I never won the lottery!!! poop. I- is loyd actually that guy? is jane actually just crazy? i have so many questions.

[Scott · Rating 4 out of 5]

A tense examination of current concerns. Interesting characters that are well-drawn.

[EJ Paras · Rating 5 out of 5]

“I’m not denying anything — I feel it all — and it’s a privilege to suffer as much as I do.”

There’s so much I can say about this play, about this show. And I will! This is my Goodreads, and I can ramble and rant if I want to.

For the longest time, the ads of this show on social media or the subway always intrigued me. “Oh, it’s Frank from Succession. And it looks like he’s typecast again to be a corporate ‘employee.’” The office visuals and the stapler to Sydney Lemmon’s face made me think this was about two co-workers shooting the breeze existentially at their cubicles.

However, that is not what the show’s about. I went into the show mostly blind, and was successfully going to be able to do so until my summer Adler classmate Jared (who I took with me the first time I saw the play) told me at dinner prior to the show that, ‘yeah, so it’s about a social media worker who has a viral video and needs to see a therapist?’ I wish I hadn’t known that, but still, that is only the tip of the iceberg of what this play’s about.

When I tell you my jaw dropped when I realized what the show’s “about”… I think I even teared up. The specificity, me working in social media for the past seven years, and watching a young woman in disarray vent, process, and ramble about an uncertain world, her sense of ‘purpose,’ and every little thing in between: there was so much to love. Jane is truly one of my all-time favorite characters — I see a lot myself in Jane, and I think a lot of young people would, too. And Sydney Lemmon’s performance? Lord have mercy. Absolutely incredible stuff.

“It’s endless and hopeless because you just get trapped in the like “discourse” of it all and you just end up mindlessly reposting GoFundMes all day, begging for spare change on your little Instagram street corner on behalf of strangers instead of actually doing something so I’m just not sure therapy aligns with how I deal with things.”

So that first night I saw the show, I walked with my friend Jared to the subway. We parted, but I had it in the back of my mind, since I was still so floored by the show, “I gotta see if they’re going to do stage door!” I went back to the theater and a few folks were still waiting. I asked if anyone came out yet, and they said no one yet. Soon, Peter Friedman came out and he was so generous talking to everyone who waited. When he got to me, I told him about how much I loved the show, how I went in blind and was floored; that my day job is in social media. And how moved I was with his performance and Sydney’s because… the following week I’d be starting at Stella Adler in their conservatory! He did this cool little hop and clapped his hands and said to me, “wow, that’s some change! What inspired this?” And I told him just the burning inside of you to want to create, to want to say something. Watching the two of them perform was the perfect primer for school. He extended his hand and shook my hand, wished me luck, and thanked me for coming again.

And then Sydney came out — some people had cleared out, didn’t feel like waiting. But I knew I needed to speak to her because her performance was just so, so moving for me. Kind of had a similar intro as with Peter, and when I told her I was starting at Stella Adler next week, she said, “hell yes!” and then she gave me a high-five, and then did a little hand-hug with me. She was genuinely floored for me, it seemed, and she told me that part of what took her so long to come outside was that one of her acting school professors was at the show and so she caught up with him; the training and education is absolutely essential. She told me to keep seeing theater, keep staying inspired. I had gushed to her how great I thought she was and how moved I was and she was so appreciative of that. Took pics with both Peter and Sydney that night and I remember walking back and getting a late-night bite at Junior’s still floored.

“You don’t know yourself and so you can’t accept the idea that anyone else might.”

Through TKTS, I got discounted tickets to see the show again — this would make it two viewings in about three weeks. It didn’t matter to me, I knew the show was closing soon and I just wanted to immerse myself once more. I ended up taking my conservatory classmate Nour — it was his first Broadway play! And he was so grateful for the chance. He ended up really enjoying the play, and that was validating for me. Glad it didn’t go to waste! Such a great show to have a conversation about after; it invites so much discourse. Nour even wanted to see it again the weekend after with a friend from Chicago; I was like, “this was your first Broadway play, you could see anything else!”

Cut to the announcement of Closing Night. And the very effective social media-posting by Max Wolf-Friedlich and the JOB IG page — I splurged on second-row seats. I took my friend Andrew with me, heavily influenced by the fact that we both worked in social media together for a year; and we have conversations about ‘advertisers not wanting their ads to pop up next to neo-Nazi content.’ I’ve never seen a play three times before, but if there’s any show that would make me do it, it’s JOB. If it wasn’t closing, maybe I’d see it again! It was regularly featured in TKTS.

And this viewing was probably the best. Just leaned in, floored by the performances. The most I ever teared up — this is not really a ‘sobbing’ type of show, but there’s something about Lemmon’s vulnerability as Jane that moves me immensely. You just want to HELP her.

The night before Closing Night, I actually went to a table reading of Max Wolf-Friedlich’s new play currently called HEAD. In regards to that play, it’s already a hit for my money’s worth; authentic in its portrayal of young people, specifically people… my age! That was such a lovely night because it really felt like being in the NYC creative scene; everyone walking around was interesting. I got to speak with the director of JOB and HEAD Michael Herwitz for about 10 minutes; a bit before the reading and then after with my classmate Romeo. The tangibility of everything, being around these creatives… it was so vibrant, it was so alive. Madeline Weinstein, who I loved in Between the Temples, played the lead female character and it was nice talking to her for a few minutes after the reading as well.

By the end of the night, I finally got to speak with Max. Went totally the uncool way and just gushed about JOB, about HEAD, and said, “I’m gonna ask a real cornball thing of you” and I pulled out my script and asked him to sign it. Told him I was going back to JOB tomorrow for the third time, and he was like, “three times! Thank you. And I’ll see you there! It’ll be a special one, since it’s Closing Night.” I also told him that I was planning on doing Jane’s “Nordstrom Rack” monologue in my Technique class and he thought that was pretty great. I said, “I know it’s a part I’ll never play, but—" and he cut in with, “hey, who knows? Why not!” and that was pretty funny to hear. If he ever revisits this but decides to gender-flip it and make Jane instead Gene and make him an anxious Filipino-American… I’ll demand an audition (and also would think, main character syndrome of me, this has to be for me, no?).

And at the end of the Closing Night performance, I was able to chat with Sydney again for a moment, and she signed my script as well. When she saw me, she said, “hey you!” I also told her I was going to be doing the Nordstrom Rack monologue in my technique class and she was excited about that, and said, “you’ll be able to give the character your own spin! Have fun with it.”

As I was walking out of the theater, Max was standing in the aisle. He extended his hand and shook my hand, said, “thanks for coming out again, EJ!”

I mean, I didn’t actually say much about the script itself or the play. It’s just so damn good. The ideas communicated, Sydney and Peter with the acting masterclass. Max was 26 when he wrote this. Come on. It helped me realize the necessity for youth in theater; for young, new perspectives. This is the play that really made me think, “okay, I can do this.” Be specific, have a point of view; be curious. Andrew and I are gonna powwow one of these days and shoot the breeze on the early Ameritrade days. That’d be a fun little project to work on; maybe it can be something!

“It’s like there’s another person there with me, rubbing my back, telling me to keep going as I march into the bathroom and I brush my teeth and fuck around with my hair and eat my muesli and I drink my coffee and as I do each of those things the panic turns them into little missions – I have to NAIL flossing, I have to DESTROY my emails from Nordstrom Rack. I delete them and I EMPTY the trash and I imagine my emails burning. These little morning routine fucking inconsequential things become a sense of real…purpose…but on days like today there just isn’t anything else – there’s only me and the panic, alone together.”

[Reagan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Saw it on Broadway and had to read it too to get the full picture. Also so much happens in this play that rereading it helps you see where the seeds are planted. God the writing is brilliant, the concept is amazing, the story ebbs and flows so well and really tackles some great topics. New personality trait

[a · Rating 5 out of 5]

“I’m famous and nobody knows who I am”

“I couldn’t do anything to help so I was afraid to care”

“It’s trendy to have everything be ‘inclusive’ these days but it’s only through appointing some people as special that any sort of progress happens”

[CJ Cronk · Rating 5 out of 5]

HOLY SHIT. I don’t think I have ever read a play before, or even many psychological thrillers, so this was very different for me. I decided to read it after seeing the posts from library science on instagram and announcements that the play would be moved to broadway. This was insane. I’d love to see the play.

[Mija · Rating 4 out of 5]

chills

[Fiona Hellerman · Rating 5 out of 5]

finally got my hands on the script after seeing it performed off-broadway in october of 2023! JOB tells the story of an anxious Big Tech worker bee begging her employer-mandated therapist to sign off on her return to work following a viral breakdown at the office. as he tried to untangle the stories he painstakingly draws out of her, the two are forced to confront generational and gendered differences in the ways they view their respective careers, the things we owe to each other, and the obligations we take on in pursuit of safety and security. if there’s a long-winded german word describing the feeling of being simultaneously impressed and disgusted and winded at once, this entire script would be aptly found under the dictionary definition for it. as exhilarating as an adrenaline rush following a brass-knuckled punch to the stomach. it’s thrilling and piercing and truly unforgettable. immaculately written, with myriad opportunities for directors and actors alike to exert their respective individual talents in each production— a rare instance where i feel that the stage affords so much to this show that would otherwise be lost in any attempted film adaptation. as both an abolitionist, a law student interested in the working on the outskirts of the criminal legal system, a former philosophy major, an avid theatre fan, and an older gen-z woman, this play was fascinating and engaging; whether you fit into any of the above-mentioned categories or not, i cannot recommend this play enough.

[mia van de loo · Rating 5 out of 5]

my hand hurts so bad. i read this in one sitting (ok, i napped in between) and it took me way longer to read than when i saw it on broadway because i wrote A LOT in it. i don’t want to injustice it with a pithy review here because the real thoughts are in the annotations but GEEZ. the plot twist had me agape on broadway, but noticing the way the two characters are more similar than they’d like to admit was so fascinating this time around, as well as the idea of binary opinions and whether there are inherently good and bad things and the consequences of pushing the formation of those ideas to the limit. this critiques a lot of what stresses me out about society and politics this days and makes me feel very free in that regard. but it is also such a claustrophobic plotline, and for good reason. my favorite play i’ve ever seen.

[Drew Morris · Rating 5 out of 5]

A short and not-so-sweet two-hander about the corrosion of the internet from its front lines, with an insane twist and ambiguous ending. Friedlich is clearly of a generation of chronically online millennials, and his understanding of the "Weird Facebook"/4chan-Reddit simulacrum subculture is evident in his commentary on modern leftism and urban life. As someone who is/was also in these subcultures, it was refreshing to see this point of view from someone who also has lived it and understands its role in the modern clusterfuck of society. Jane's role as a Christlike figure is also impressive, in the long canon of dramatic characters taking Biblical characteristics, this felt very appropriately modern.

Need to read "We Removed Your Post" next, which I hear carries similar themes.

[Paige Felger · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow the twist at the end is insane! I feel like I need to reread this to fully grasp it. I like do not understand Jane whatsoever and I think I need to read it again to better get her. I can’t decide if she’s a tragic hero or just a psycho. Is she making the world a better place or a glutton for punishment who isn’t actually fixing a problem but aiding it? I wish I would’ve seen it on broadway or off broadway!

[Tom Holehan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A tense thriller from the very first moments of the play, this two-hander concerns an unbalanced young woman (or so it seems) sent to a therapist in order to get approval to return to her job. Friedlich keeps you off-center throughout, switching alliances, adding some surreal images and providing a key twist or two. Riveting.

[Cailin Doran · Rating 5 out of 5]

Saw this and immediately bought the script - needed to give myself some time to step away from their projection before reading again and it’s just a great, fast, terrifying, taut and timely ‘lil play and I want to play Jane immediately.

[Mandee · Rating 5 out of 5]

ripped through this in one sitting. surreal, intense, thorny, weird. wish i'd seen it staged because i know some of the big moments would've played better in performance, but man this still absolutely rips.

[syd · Rating 4 out of 5]

wow that was really good now never show it to me again

haha

wow no really please don't

(actually really riveting i love thrillers on stage and the depiction of the horrors of the tech world + california are beautiful)

[Bill · Rating 5 out of 5]

One man and one woman. The play follows the trajectory of a woman who had a breakdown at work due to the stress and trauma of her job. She needs a positive review from a therapist to get her back to work and things spiral to the point where she confronts the reality in front of her.

[Jordan Muschler · Rating 3 out of 5]

A younger play, both extremely relevant to its time and also perhaps too eager to surprise. Our therapist character isn't given much to do besides support, which is tricky in a two-hander. Interested to see how this will do regionally and with younger audiences.

[Jason Sweeten · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sometimes I get annoyed when a play feels like a bunch of Twitter threads strung together, a bunch of internet handles told to stand on stage and scream. And this has some of that, sure, but it’s allowed. It’s worth it. Job good. Good Job.

[Maya Campbell · Rating 5 out of 5]

TY GB for the fantastic idea to read this play and also for calling me and Grace and forcing us to buy tickets when it was off broadway. It's really just so fantastic. Tech bro theatre for the boys at its finest