Plays by Dan Rodricks
Dan Rodricks has written, produced and performed in three original plays. The first two, “Baltimore, You Have No Idea” (December 2022, 2023 and 2024) and “Baltimore Docket” (February 2024), are based on stories from his newspaper column. “No Mean City” (March 2026) is a historic drama set in 1966, the year the Baltimore Orioles won their first World Series. All three plays sold out every performance and were enthusiastically received by audiences.
Performed December 2022, 2023 and 2024
Written by Dan Rodricks
Directed by Will Schwarz
Original music by Mat Lane
“Baltimore, You Have No Idea” is an original play written by longtime journalist Dan Rodricks. The show features stories from his more than four decades as an award-winning columnist for the Baltimore Sun and as a local radio and television host.
Rodricks’ one-of-a-kind Baltimore stories and characters come to life on stage with a blend of emotion, insight, respect and humor. Stories like his very first column interviewing the ex-wife of a local burglary fence and her bemusing legal predicament. Or Dan’s award-winning “Dear Drug Dealers” columns as a desperate gambit to reduce criminal violence. And his many funny observations and touching interactions with people around Baltimore every day.
This multimedia play seamlessly weaves the action on stage with live music and audio clips, as well as projected images and video. “Baltimore, You Have No Idea” was initially produced in December 2022 at the Meyerhoff Auditorium at the Baltimore Museum of Art. The play was so well received that it returned in December 2023 and 2024. In all three runs, every performance sold out.
Performed February 2024
Written by Dan Rodricks
Directed by Dan Rodricks, Vanessa Eskridge and Thomas “Toby” Hessenauer
Original music by Mat Lane
“Baltimore Docket” is an original play written by longtime journalist Dan Rodricks that premiered in February 2024 at the Meyerhoff Auditorium at the Baltimore Museum of Art. The show features stories from his more than four decades as an award-winning columnist for the Baltimore Sun and as a local radio and television host.
As a veteran observer of hundreds of trials and other legal proceedings, Rodricks spotlights seven stories “Baltimore Docket.” On the stage, Rodricks narrates and interacts with a cast of 16 local paid actors portraying the real-life people in his stories.
“While many people know Baltimore’s criminal justice system all too well, there’s another side that not everyone sees. I’ve watched a lot of courthouse scenes where the people and circumstances unfolded into compelling, unusual or just plain funny stories,” says Rodricks. Like his first play, every performance of “Baltimore Docket” sold out.
Performed March 2026
Written by Dan Rodricks
Directed by Vanessa Eskridge
Original music by Brandi Overstreet and Jerrod Stephens
A season of baseball, politics and the fight for civil rights. With the Orioles on a historic run leading up to their first-ever World Series championship, a visionary mayor confronts the daily problems and racial tensions in his city while civil rights groups increase their calls for racial equality. Dan Rodricks narrates these pivotal and interconnected stories of 1966 Baltimore in a multimedia stage production as actors bring key figures to life, including Mayor Theodore McKeldin, Juanita Jackson Mitchell, Frank Robinson, Brooks Robinson and many others. “No Mean City” is the final installment of Rodricks' trilogy of plays about Baltimore starting with “Baltimore, You Have No Idea” and continuing with “Baltimore Docket.”