Onstage

Step behind the scenes of your own theatre company. In Onstage you compete with the other players for the best performers for your troupe. This is a trick-taking game with a must-follow rule, but with a fun twist: the trump colour is set by the performers who are on stage at that moment. And that line keeps changing, as players recruit performers and shuffle the line-up. The game uses 36 cards, numbered 1 to 9 in four colours. In each colour you will find three performers, worth 1, 2 or 3 points. Think of a supporting role, a second lead and the real star of the evening. The cards with the values 1, 4 and 7 have special effects that let you move the performers on stage and in the line. That way you change the trump and your chances of scoring points. At the end of a round there is a surprising rule: if you are the only player without performer tokens, you take all the performers on stage as your score. Play as many rounds as there are players, and whoever has the most points then stands in the full spotlight. There is also a variant for two teams of two, in which partners add up their points but may not reveal anything about their cards during the game.