Every Thursday, we round up Pay-Whats and other cheap seats at local theaters. Just so’s your weekend is a little easier.

Before we start, remember the general rules: (A) Reservations for these? Not so much. (B) They’re offered on a space-available basis, so have a backup plan. (C) Click each theater name for details and contact info. Oh, and you might tell ‘em City Paper sent you.

So there’s this Hatchery Festival thing going on, and there are a couple of Pay-What performances associated with that this weekend (see the second item below), but really, all the shows are pretty cheap. They’re not letting me in to review this stuff—technically they’re workshop productions—so you pays your money and you takes your chances.

Still, it’s right here in Adams Morgan through Aug. 20, and it’s fresh plays from emerging playwrights—and if you’re a DCAC member, even the regular-price performances are the same $10 you’d spend on a movie. (It’s only $15 for non-members.) So think of it this way: Even if it’s not so hot, it’s probably better than The Descent. So go check out a show or two, and then come back here and post your review as a comment. Since, y’know, I can’t, and all.

So that’s that. Pay-What wise, here’s what I know about:

• 3/4 of a Mass for St. Vivian, Theater Alliance. Two young women go looking for the meaning of love, life, and faith. Set in the early ‘70s—and written, if my math is right, by a playwright born in the late ‘80s: Phoebe Rusch is roughly 17 years old. Critics see it this weekend. Pay-What previews tonight and Friday at 8p.m. At the H Street Playhouse, 1365 H St. NE.
• The Disappearance of Janey Jones, The Hatchery. Canadian writer Jennifer Fawcett tackles what sounds like chronic depression. In a “hopeful and darkly humorous way,” though. Part of the ongoing Hatchery Festival. Pay-What workshop performances Saturday and Sunday at 3 p.m. At DCAC, 2438 18th St. NW.
• Rosencrantz & Guildenstern are Dead, Longacre Lea. Ever felt like life was living you, rather than the other way ‘round? Yeah, well: Try being a minor character whose fate depends on Hamlet’s mood. Tom Stoppard‘s breakthrough play, directed by Kathleen Akerley, starring many of her usual suspects. Pay-What preview next Wednesday, Aug. 16, at 7:30 p.m. At the Callan Theatre, on the Catholic U. campus, 3801 Harewood Road NE.