The Game Show
Staged Reading & Talkback
Written by Maggie Higginbotham
Directed by Lucien Oberleitner
August 18, 26 & 27, 2025 at 7:30 p.m.
Talkbacks to follow performances on August 18 & 27
Pay-what-you-can Admission, $15 suggested for in-person and live stream
Greta and Lynda find themselves trapped in a mysterious game show with a seemingly charming host. As the two women are forced to carry on increasingly absurd rounds of card games, they learn what it means to be a winner or a loser in a system rigged for failure, and what it means to be a winner or loser in their relationship. Dark, funny, and deeply rooted in audience participation, The Game Show is designed to leave you asking, “What did I just watch?” and perhaps more importantly, “What did I just do?”
Cast
Greta – Meg Carleton†º
Lynda – Anise Rau*
The Host – Joshua Erme^
Commercials – Amity Blight‡†
Creative Team & Crew
Playwright – Maggie Higginbotham†
Director – Lucien Oberleitnerº
Sound Designer – Lillie Wirthº
Stage Manager – Christine Grovesº†^
Production Manager – Catherine Blake Smith†
Graphic Designer – Justin Lauer^
Pronoun Guide: º they/them † she/her ^ he/him ‡ it/its * any
Live Stream
Every performance is human curated for the best perspective moment-to-moment in the show and will be available to stream live. Recordings will be available to view on demand for up to two weeks after closing.
Masking & Air Filtration
All audience and staff are required to wear masks in all spaces unless they are actively eating and drinking. The theatre has minimal airflow and air filtration devices, so utilizing masks maintains safety for our performers, patrons, and staff. If you forget your mask, we will have extras available at the box office.
Annex Theatre partners with Seattle Clean Air Collective to include air filtration devices in public areas.
Director’s Note
Maggie and I have worked together in developing this script since summer of 2024. It has been a huge gift to help guide its journey to where it is now. Maggie works and writes with a great deal of levity, which I admire as a response to our conveyor belt of societal crises. At the end of the day, The Game Show is about ordinary people struggling to understand the machine they’re trapped in, which is just about the most relatable thing I can imagine. Supporting playwrights continues to be my favorite part of theatrical work—thank you for being here.
Our politicians, they all seemed like game show hosts to me.
— Sting
Bios
Maggie Higginbotham — Playwright
A graduate of Emory university and a Georgia native, Maggie is thrilled to make the Pacific Northwest her new home. A playwright and a director, Maggie loves shedding light on the hidden women of history, and making sense of the world through theater. Her work has been seen most recently as a part of Copious Love’s Plays on Tap series with her play, Peggy. Maggie is thrilled to explore The Game Show on stage, and even more thrilled to do it with Annex!
Lucien Oberleitner — Director
Lucien Oberleitner is a trans, disabled theatre artist based in Seattle. They hold a BFA in Theatre with a focus in Original Works from Cornish College of the Arts. They have worked in Seattle as a performer, director, playwright, script consultant, choreographer, and producer. They are an Alum of Parley Productions and serve as a theatre educator for Freehold’s Engaged Theatre Program.
Meg Carleton — Greta
Meg Carleton has worked locally as a production manager, stage manager, and actor. Favorite theatre credits are Alice in Arabialand (Annex Theatre), Fellow Passengers (Strawberry Theatre Workshop), Much Ado About Nothing (UW), and showcases with Jet City Improv. Film and Television credits include Limbo, The Things She Left Behind, Wild Ragerz, and The Sex Lives of College Girls (Max).
Anise Rau — Lynda
Anise Rau is delighted to make their Seattle debut with Annex. Originally from NYC, Anise has spent much of their life immersed in STEM—studying astrophysics and working in tech. The theater, however, has always held a special place in their heart, and they’re excited to be embracing their dramatic side once more. When not performing, Anise enjoys pottering around their community garden, playing Dungeons & Dragons, and soaking up the sunshine out on the water.
Joshua Erme — The Host
Joshua Erme is thrilled to be making his Annex Theatre debut! Recently, he acted in Renton Civic Theatre’s And Then There Were None (Anthony Marston), Taproot Theatre’s Gift of the Magi (Jim), The 14/48 Projects. You may have also caught him in Pork Filled Productions’ and SIS Production’s Gregory Award-winning Vietgone as Quang Nguyen last summer, as well as their play festival Instant Noodles! Other local favorites include Yun Theatre’s Passage (R), Renton Civic Theatre’s Plaza Suite (Waiter, Borden) and Rope (Charles Granillo), and UW’s Baltimore Waltz (Carl). Joshua would like to thank his loved ones for their support of his lofty acting ambitions. Insta: @joshuaerme
Amity Blight — Commercials
Amity is a proud member of Annex Theatre who is delighted to be working on its second project with the company and for first time on the acting side of things in Seattle.
Creating art through storytelling has been her lifelong passion and vocational focus and there is no other stage it would rather be on and no other collective it would rather be a part of.
Lillie Wirth — Sound Designer
Lillie is thrilled to be working with Annex again for this reading! You may have previously seen their sound design work on Blue to Blue with Annex or their scenic creations at 14/48 in July. They also direct every once in a while—they most recently directed the one act Sleepover Play with Three Winks Productions. They hope you enjoy the show!
Christine Groves — Stage Manager
Christine is excited to be joining the Seattle theater community and to be working with Annex Theater for the first time! Christine’s previous theater experience includes various plays and musicals at their college, including stage managing Legally Blonde and performing as Cogsworth in Beauty and the Beast.
