Cruising Audiobook By Michael Shayan cover art

Cruising

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Cruising

By: Michael Shayan
Narrated by: Christine Baranski, Tituss Burgess, André De Shields, Andrew Rannells, Cecily Strong
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About this listen

Welcome aboard Cruising, an uproarious and wildly original comedy that will leave you breathless with laughter and touched to your core.

Max is having a relapse summer. He’s an aspiring playwright and professional pie addict with a PhD in self-sabotage. Stuck in his grim Encino apartment with a leaky ceiling and a declining will to live, he escapes into an intoxicating fantasy cruise ship in his mind that’s full of bottoms and people who are hitting them.

As Max's imagination sets sail, his reality begins to capsize, blurring the lines between truth and fiction in a spectacular collision that forces him to confront the very demons he so desperately wants to outrun.

Written by Emmy nominee Michael Shayan, directed by Tony nominee Robert O’Hara, dazzlingly performed by Christine Baranski, Tituss Burgess, André De Shields, Andrew Rannells, and Cecily Strong, Cruising is a darkly funny, unabashedly sexy exploration of the human spirit, offering listeners a delicious slice of hope.

Available in Dolby Atmos on Audible.

Please Note: Cruising contains adult language and mature themes. Listener discretion is advised

©2025 Michael Shayan (P)2025 AO Media, LLC
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Cruising - Featuring
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Shayan's play Cruising is a tour-de-force. It perfectly combines heart and humor, with the touch of crass you'd want from a play set on a cruise ship. It had me in tears and in stitches. This play will hit anyone who has experiences with 12-step programs, either directly or via friends and family (i.e., anyone and everyone), right in the gut. It will speak to anyone who has ever struggled to reconcile big dreams and self-doubt, who has felt analysis paralysis, or who wants something more but just doesn't quite know how to get there (again, everyone). The cast is at their peak powers, with Christine Baranski and Andrew Rannells sounding just as if they'd leapt from a top Broadway stage. The new medium is forward-looking, innovative, and allows creative opportunities traditional theater and radio programs/podcasts don't. If you're looking for a laugh out loud fun time, a good cry, a Pride catharsis, or an opportunity to reflect on decision-making, body image, and addiction, Cruising checks the boxes. I am so excited to see what Shayan does next (quick research shows he already has an impressive run of credits).

A tour-de-force and immediate classic

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Brilliant story telling with hilariously real characters, The story is heartwarming and funny while being so close and real to daily struggles and triumphs. the author develops the characters so beautifully as the layers of the story unfold and the underlying story manifests. Loved every moment of it.

Brilliant storytelling- funny - entertaining

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I loved the performances -- bunch of comedic actors with great timing and fun material. Explores many forms of addiction in the context of a playwright trying to finish a new work as he fights the demons of compulsive eating and sex addiction. Smart and innovative. Loved.

Hilarious and actually poignant

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This play is such a ride and once it begins it doesn’t slow down. Fast-paced and funny writing, but also deeply moving. I loved.

Hilarious & moving

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I can see why some don't like this. But if you are a gay man, this audio play makes perfect sense. The play is funny, laugh out loud funny. But underneath are themes many gay men fear: aging, weight gain, becoming invisible as you age, fear of rejection, and the need many have to numb the pain with something, whether it be drugs or food or sex. The author does a great job of coming at these topics from weird angles that make you think; all the while you are laughing.

The voice actors are top-notch - how could they not be? These are seasoned theater and screen actors. 5 stars

Fantastic short

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Michael Shayan’s Cruising is a poetic masterpiece. This play took my breath away. Shayan’s writing is raw, lyrical and
deeply personal. Every line is like a secret being whispered in your ear. He explores queerness, identity, memory and longing with such honesty and grace that it leaves you emotionally disarmed.

Michael Shayan’s Cruising is a masterpiece.

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This is brilliantly clever and funny, while also being tremendously insightful and heartwarming. And even better with some of my favorite names narrating. Loved this very much.

Love!

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Gagging all of life's vices and addiction, Cruising illuminates how our introspections manifest into our creative, self-loathing, multi-faceted selves. And the characters' hilarity keeps me craving more.

The PERFECT harmony of wit, personality, and charm

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How does Michael come up with so many funny lines in one play? You have to listen carefully so as to not miss any. Brilliant!

Brilliant

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I just finished listening to Cruising by Michael Shayan, and I honestly can’t stop thinking about it. This Audible production is one of the most unique and powerful things I’ve ever listened to. It takes on the incredibly tough subject of addiction and somehow manages to do it with humor, heart, and so much creativity.

The story pulls you right in and takes you on a journey that’s both emotional and magical. It captures the chaos, confusion, pain, and beauty of what it feels like to be in the middle of addiction—and what it takes to begin finding your way out. It’s raw, honest, funny, and completely absorbing.

What really struck me is how the characters seem to represent different aspects of the main character himself—his fears, desires, history, and imagination. The performances by Christine Baranski, Tituss Burgess, André De Shields, Andrew Rannells, and Cecily Strong are absolutely phenomenal. Each actor brings such depth and personality to these roles, and together, they create this vivid, inner world that feels surreal and yet so emotionally true. They capture not just characters, but pieces of a person’s soul in the middle of transformation.

Also, the sound design is absolutely top-notch. I listened with headphones, and it was such an immersive experience. Every sound, every shift in tone, every detail was so well done, it made the whole thing feel alive.

Cruising is not just entertaining, it’s meaningful. It gets to the heart of what it means to struggle and survive and rediscover yourself. It’s a beautiful, funny, and deeply human piece of work. I’m so glad I listened to it, and I can’t recommend it enough.

Absolutely Brilliant and Deeply Moving

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