This episode of American Dad is probably one of the most insightful critiques of the state of mainstream American theater that I’ve ever seen. It hilariously skewers the torpid writing, tired narratives and predictable dramatic devices of mainstream theater. Everything from the overwrought acting to the obvious lighting designs and meaningless gestures at abstraction, poignance and profundity are relentlessly mocked. For better or worse, this is probably what most people think of when they think of theater.