Ever met a guy who can answer basically any trivia question thrown at him but can’t quite figure out the ones that actually matter? Meet Jeff Wax, the mind behind The Trivia Guy, hitting The Workshop as part of the 2026 Scranton Fringe Festival on Thursday, October 8 at 6:00 PM, Friday, October 9 at 8:00 PM, and Saturday, October 10 at 6:00 PM. Equal parts trivia night and quiet gut-punch, this one-man show mixes comedy, audience interaction, and real trivia with something a lot more human underneath. We caught up with Jeff ahead of opening to talk about connection, comedy, and coming to Fringe — read on below.
In your own words, what is your show about?
Underneath the trivia, the humor, and the podcast, The Trivia Guy is really about connection — particularly our need to remain connected to the people we love, even when those relationships become complicated.
Jeff knows an extraordinary number of facts. Give him a trivia question, and there’s a pretty good chance he knows the answer. But life doesn’t work like trivia. There isn’t always one correct answer, and knowing a lot doesn’t necessarily help us navigate regret, disappointment, love, or the things we wish we could change.
That’s what I think the play is really exploring: the difference between knowing the answers and understanding what matters.
What sparked this piece?
The play was written by playwright Donna Hoke, so the original spark belongs to her. What sparked my connection to it was recognizing something very human in this character.
When I first encountered the play, I was drawn to the combination of humor and vulnerability. Jeff can be funny, enthusiastic, knowledgeable, and completely at home talking about trivia, but underneath it all is someone trying very hard to figure out something much more important.
I also loved that Donna doesn’t announce what the play is really about. She allows the audience to discover it.
What does “Fringe” mean to you as an artist?
Fringe is one of the few places where a small, intimate piece like The Trivia Guy can meet an audience exactly as it is. You don’t need elaborate scenery or a huge production. You need a performer, a story, and people willing to come into a room and take a chance on something they haven’t seen before.
There’s also something wonderfully democratic about Fringe. Audiences may see comedy, theater, dance, storytelling, or something they can’t easily categorize — all in the same day.
For me, that’s exciting. The Trivia Guy depends upon the relationship between the performer and the people in the room, so Fringe feels like its natural home.
What do you want someone to feel — or think about differently — after seeing your show?
First, I want them to laugh. I don’t want people walking into the theater thinking they’re about to receive an Important Theatrical Message.
But somewhere along the way, I hope something shifts.
Maybe they think about someone they love. Maybe they think about a relationship that hasn’t turned out quite the way they hoped. Maybe they recognize something of themselves in this man who can answer incredibly obscure questions but struggles with questions for which there may not be an answer.
If people leave entertained but find themselves thinking about the play later that night — or the next day — that’s everything I could ask for.
What’s been the hardest or most surprising part of making this?
The most surprising part has been discovering how delicate the balance is between the comedy and what lies underneath it.
You can’t play the destination. Jeff doesn’t know that he’s in a poignant one-man play. He’s hosting a podcast. He’s talking trivia. He’s trying to accomplish something important to him. The humor has to be genuine, and so does his optimism.
Finding that balance with my director, Errol Wilks, has been one of the most interesting parts of developing the performance. The less we try to tell the audience what to feel, the more powerful the play becomes.
And every audience teaches me something new about it.
Anything else you want people to know before they walk in?
Yes: come ready to play.
There really is trivia. There really is audience interaction. And you absolutely do not need to be a trivia expert.
Donna Hoke wrote The Trivia Guy, Errol Wilks directed it, and I’m enormously fortunate to have had both of them involved in bringing it to life.
Mostly, though, I’d tell people not to read too much about it beforehand. Come in, have some fun, answer a few questions, and let Jeff tell you his story.
Come for the trivia. Stay for the story.
The Trivia Guy plays The Workshop on Thursday, October 8 at 6:00 PM, Friday, October 9 at 8:00 PM, and Saturday, October 10 at 6:00 PM as part of the 2026 Scranton Fringe Festival. You can purchase tickets here Thank you to Jeff for sharing — we can’t wait for you to see it.
