Stage Work

Below are some short descriptions and pictures of theater and devised productions that I have acted in. Contact me for more details!

Roots and Wings

Produced by The TurnPark Summer Festival

Devised and Performed by myself, Natasha Mirny, and Liza Yanovich, with help from Natalie Cutcher.

After around half a year of time spent creating and devising together Nata, Liza, and I were able to perform two of our pieces at the TurnPark Summer Festival, located in a marble quarry, turned sculpture garden and outdoor performance art venue in the Berkshires. Our pieces used a variety of physical performance techniques, puppetry, and poetry to explore our connection to the earth and each other. It’s hard to say how artistically satisfying and energizing it was to be devising again and with such lovely collaborators. What a gift!

Butterflies Are Free

Produced by Bluff City Theater

Directed by Lauren Shields

Character: Don

I loved getting the chance to travel to Hannibal, MO to work with this incredible team! This play offered the chance for me to work on a very quick and snappy small cast comedy that hits surprisingly hard as the play goes on. I was very impressed with the depth of this play, and level of emotional nuance that was contained within it. While playing Don, I learned how to play a bit of guitar, as well as how to play a blind character. Throughout this process, I really fell in love with Don – I’ll be sorry to see him go!

The Pliant Girls

Produced by Theatre Prometheus/Nu Sass Productions (2024)

Directed by Ileana Blustein

Character: Dean and Father

It was fantastic to get back to working on new works – the thing that drew me to theater in the first place! The Pliant Girls is a feminist retelling of Aeschylus’ The Suppliants. Theatre Prometheus describes it as “Combining humor, heart, and a healthy dose of rage, The Pliant Girls is a sharply insightful exploration of love, sisterhood, and reclaiming the power to make your own choices.” Read the reviews below!

[The playwright has created] a matrix in which ten capable actors excel, indeed, often shine. Along with brief choral passages, there are duets and monologues, long scenes and short ones, big moments and small, quiet times… Brown’s well-crafted use of different dramatic tools provides ample material for the actors to bring to their characterizations…. Max Johnson’s Dean must be bitterly cruel.” – Broadway World

“Max Johnson chills as the misogynist wolf Dean” – Washington City Paper

Inside Out and Backwards

Produced by Imagination Stage (2024)

Directed by Kathryn Chase Bryer

Character: Brother

It’s always a pleasure to work with Imagination Stage! Performing this show, designed for ages 0-4, has taught me so much about the importance of being present onstage – and, in this case, taking every opportunity possible to play with and connect to the audience! It’s been a joy to continue to refine my physical acting, and a privilege to be part of one of the first theater experiences that many of these kids have had!

A Commedia Romeo and Juliet

Produced by Faction of Fools (2024)

Directed by Kathryn Zoerb

Character: Romeo (and others)

I’ve wanted to work with Faction of Fools for a while, and this was a great project to work with them on! Faction of Fools describes their goal as “to entertain, educate, and experiment through the practice and performance of Commedia dell’Arte.” Throughout the process of rehearsing Romeo and Juliet, I learned a tremendous amount about how to integrate Commedia into a modern performance, as well as how to combine my knowledge of physical acting with the form of Commedia. See reviews below:

“Romeo (Max Johnson) has a boyish charm. His love for Juliet approaches utter adoration… Beneath the traditional forms of comedy and tragedy, Faction of Fools reminds us there is a more important value: truth. [The performance] is downright hilarious, except for the end of course. But the Fools pull even that off, with breathless ingenuity.”

DC Theater Arts

“The cast and creative team have deftly adapted one of Shakespeare’s most well-trod scripts into something that not only fits their oeuvre but feels genuinely fresh. [Kathryn Zoerb’s] scenes are impeccably readable, the performers have a near-flawless grasp of verse, and her additions to the text are carefully considered and universally hysterical.”

MD Theatre Guide

The Caretaker

Produced by Edge of the Universe Theater (2023)

Directed by Stephen Jarrett

Character: Mick

It’s been an enormous gift to work on the Caretaker, written by Harold Pinter, and to focus on this character. This often absurd, intelligent, lyrical, and intensely nuanced play received a Helen Hayes Awards Recommendation, as well as universally positive reviews – read below!

“The trio works because of all the talent bursting out of the actors directed with maniacal glee by Stephen Jarrett. It’s unusual to highlight casting directors but in this case, Naomi Robin is getting well-deserved accolades for securing this powerhouse trio.” DC Theater Arts

“As Mick, Johnson is just as enigmatic a presence though, versus the silent lurker that his brother seems to be, he gives us a man who frenetically rambles and intimidatingly threatens. The performance is certainly applause-worthy. We see a man who seems angrily adrift in a world that he doesn’t understand and that doesn’t necessarily understand him.” Maryland Theatre Guide

“…younger brother Mick played with slick ease by Max Johnson pops in. Mick is the live wire, dangling bits of sanity, periodically making sense, then tumbling into a morass of gibberish himself…. Mick slithers and slides onto the scenes, even points with his leg and foot while reclining. He confidently weaves a fantasy world for Davies.” DC Theater Arts

Angel Number Nine

Produced by Rorschach Theatre (2023)

Directed by Jenny Fredrick

Character: Billy

HELEN HAYES 2024 NOMINATED: Charles MacArthur Award for Outstanding Play or Musical Adaptation

It was incredible to work with Rorschach Theatre on world premier. This piece utilized filmed elements, a live band and bar, all built in a vacant Men’s Warehouse in the middle of DC. It was a gift to work on such an imaginative, creative, and innovative piece – called “Spectacular” by Maryland Theatre guide – see more reviews below!

“Rorschach Theatre, one of the D.C. region’s oldest and most resourceful small companies, as turned a conventional commercial property into a wholly unconventional theater space, for a world-premiere play with original punk rock songs.” – Washington Post

“Angel Number Nine made for a fun and worthwhile evening, hitting so many spots on my ‘things I love to see in the theater’ bingo card: bisexual and queer representation, kick ass rock music, naturalistic dialogue, magical realism, and a truly immersive experience.” – DC Theater Arts

WVL Radio Theatre Presents: It’s A Wonderful Life

Produced by The Immediate Theatre Project (2022)

Directed by Willie V R Repoley

Character: Mays, et al

I had a blast performing in this East Coast tour (performing in multiple venues in nine different states) with the Asheville, North Carolina-based Immediate Theatre Project! In this staged radio play, I voiced over 17 characters, allowing me to continue to grow my skills at playing multiple characters. It was such a gift to round out my year with a tour that allowed me to focus on my vocal performance more than I’ve had the chance to previously.

Mankind

Produced by Iron Crow Theater (2022)

Directed by Ann Turiano

Character: Mark

I had the gift of performing in Baltimore in Robert O’Hara’s Mankind. This edgy, hilarious, endearing, and absurd piece explores a range of topics – from abortion to religion! Some reviews are listed below:

“Johnson portrays a himbo with a soul, projecting the cocky air of Glenn Howerton while allowing his vulnerability to shine through as well… Stirred into this mix is a hefty macho protein-shake scooper of the chest-thumping “clueless bros” chemistry found in early-’00s stoner hits like Dude, Where’s My Car? and Harold & Kumar Go To White Castle. Not just any duo can make that sort of thing watchable, let alone memorable. These two definitely complement each other well.” Theatre Bloom

“Jake Stibbe (Jason) and Max Johnson (Mark) could easily be caricatures but they resist… They make smart acting choices that guide us a little bit easier through the absurdity of their world.” MD Theatre Guide

S.P.I.E.S 2

Produced by Imagination Stage (2022)

Directed by Strother Gains

Character: Stealth

Using a combination of filmed scenes and live performances, this piece by Imagination Stage seeks to engage children in a variety of ways to encourage them to interact, enjoy, and celebrate live theatre! I loved getting the chance to work with Imagination Stage and hold a very special place in my heart for the group of folks that made this innovative production happen!

Check out the trailer to the left!

Olney National Players Tour 72

Produced by Olney Theatre (2021-2022)

Directed by Danielle Drakes (A Midsummer Night’s Dream) and Christopher Richardson (A Raisin in the Sun)

Character: Bottom (Midsummer) and Lindner (Raisin)

I spent seven months touring the US with Olney Theatre’s National Players Tour 72, which was the first majority Black tour in the National Player’s history. We performed in 23 states, and traveled through a great deal more. In addition to performing the roles of Lindner and Bottom, I also was one of the assistant master electricians and the Covid Safety Manager. In many of the places we toured, we also taught a variety of education workshops, allowing me to continue to grow my expertise as a teaching artist.

Olney Theatre describes the National Players as “a unique ensemble bringing innovative theater to communities large and small across the United States. Founded in 1949, National Players stimulates youthful imagination and critical thinking by presenting classic plays in invigorating ways for modern audiences. National Players is the hallmark outreach program of Olney Theatre Center, a Helen Hayes Award-winning theatre in suburban Washington, DC. “

Intentions

Produced by the SheNYC Festival, at the Connelly Theater in NYC (2021)

Directed by Samantha Ozeas

Character: A

The Off-Broadway world premier of Intentions, by Allison Svagdis, would have opened in August, 2021 as part of the SheNYC theater festival (described as “the city’s premiere festival showcasing the new, original works of women writers, composers, and directors.”) This piece follows “a young woman who struggles to find her happy ending when trouble from her past keeps resurfacing. After a traumatic sexual assault experience as a teen, Girl tries to move forward but college, boys and herself get in the way of coping.” Unfortunately, due to complications around COVID, the premier of this piece was cancelled right before it would have gone up.

Sudden Adverse Effects

Produced by Rapid Lemon Productions, at the Motor House Theater in Baltimore (2021)

Directed by Noah Silas

Character: Brandon

The world premier of Sudden Adverse Effects, by Derek Lee McPhatter, opened in May, 2021 as Rapid Lemon Production’s first onstage performance since the pandemic started. This piece opened with resounding positive reviews, as can be seen in the adjacent photos.

“Johnson is well cast in this role and gives a terrific, intense performance …” In “Backstage Baltimore,” May 10, 2021

“Many theaters locally and nationally should take note . . . of [this] fascinating play . . Max Johnson lets Brandon cross the line, as the only male and only white character, into possessiveness and entitlement.” In “DC Metro Theater Arts,” May 11, 2021.

Next Time

Produced by The Candle House Collective (2021)

Directed by John Ertman and created by Evan Neiden

Character: Caseworker

Next Time is a deeply experimental, one person performance that occurs entirely over the phone with a single audience member. This piece is rooted in empathetic, collaborative improv and innovative storytelling. Recent reviews include:

“a laugh riot in sound and synchrony” – HorrorBuzz

“a playful, heartfelt journey of self-reflection” – Immersed

“twisted and surprising / what surfaces about yourself over the course of the exchange may surprise you.” – The Theater Mirror

Next Time was performed in October 2021 – January 2022, but will be performed again in the future. Check out this link for more reviews and a chance to see the rest of Candle House Collective’s work

Nesting

Produced by the 4208 Group (2020), as part of the 10-Minute Taste Festival

Directed by Brandon Rashad Butts

Character: Teddy

A new play written by Jennifer Jones Persechino produced in an all-audio format online.

Trofast Sigyn

Produced by the Pomegranate Room (2021)

Directed by Andrew Watring

Character: Voice

Trofast Sigyn, an all audio radio play, was produced by the Pomegranate Room as part of The Echoes festival. Pomegranate Room describes this festival as being, “inspired by Persephone, this festival of audio plays will focus on telling stories from mythology and folklore: particularly those of women, trans, and non-binary mythological figures, BIPOC cultures, and inversions of accepted race and gender norms within classic mythology stories.”