Here are some of the best theatre podcasts we heard in November, in no particular order. What podcast do you love to listen to?
THE PRODUCER’S PRESPECTIVE: TED CHAPIN
Ken Davenport sits down with Ted Chapin, President of R&H. As Ken put it, “the equivalent of being the President of R&H is like someone saying, ‘Hey, you . . . stand outside Fort Knox. You decide who goes in and what goes out’.” Find out how to pronouncing Hammerstein the correct way, what happens when the copyrights on the R&H classics expire, what the Tony Administration Committee is and what it does, and how Ted decides what can be done and can’t be done in new R&H productions. Listen here. Transcription of the episode here.
THE ENSEMBLIST: American Sign Language on Broadway
Mo Brady and Nikka Graff Lanzarone sit down with Joshua Castille (Spring Awakening), Cathy Markland (ASL interpreter), and Kevin Massey (Big River) to discuss ASL on Broadway. Making sure stories are accessible to everyone who wants to experience them is a difficult task, and one way to accomplish that is with American Sign Language (or ASL) and interpreting for the deaf and hard of hearing. How do Broadway actors interpret ASL for the stage? What are the cues like for the deaf and hard of hearing actors IN the shows? How do interpreters prepare for a show? What is it like to be speaking two languages at the same time, all while trying to remember everything else? Listen here. Transcription of the episode here.
Theater People: CATCHING UP WITH ANNALEIGH ASHFORD
Annaleigh Ashford stops by Theater People to talk married life, the TONY AWARDS, Masters of Sex, and her live album called Lost in the Stars. She’s currently starring alongside Matthew Broderick and Julie White in the Broadway revival of Sylvia. Listen here.
Maxamoo: ALL THE FACES OF FAMILY: HIR, FIRST DAUGHTER SUITE, ALLEGIANCE, AND TRAPPER
Maxamoo discusses Hir, First Daughter Suite, Allegiance, and Trapper. Listen here.
Go See A Show: Daria Miyeko Marinelli and Elana McKelahan of “Untamable”
Ever wanted to watch as a major heist unfolds in front of your eyes? Not on film, but actually happening right in front of you Thanks to the magic of immersive theatre, you can. Daria Miyeko Marinelli and Elana McKelahan, the playwright and directors of Untameable, respectively, give you that opportunity in a Brooklyn church they’ve converted for the occasion. Listen in as Daria and Elana discuss fascination with “illegal teamwork movies,” what it takes to act in an immersive show, the opportunities for connection that this style of theatre can provide, and how to invite the audience in by breaking all the rules. Listen here.
Reduced Shakespeare Company: Writing ‘Almost, Maine”
John Cariani (Something Rotten!) talks about writing his play Almost, Maine, one of the most popular and widely produced scripts in the U.S. John reveals love stories for character actors, F. Scott Fitzgerald’s definition of romantic, the glories of doing something (at first) for the love of it, generating controversies, the feeling one gets acting opposite Christopher Walken, and the secret of the only way to play ingenues. Listen here.
National Theatre: Podcasts: Geraldine McEwan Remembered
Actors Delena Kidd and Alan Rickman, and former theatre critic Michael Ratcliffe, join Richard Digby Day to celebrate the life and career of the much-loved actress, whose work ranged from Feydeau, Webster and Brecht to award-winning performances in The Rivals and The Way of the World at the National, as well as Oranges Are Not The Only Fruit and The Barchester Chronicles on TV. Listen here.
The Set List: Heidi Blickenstaff – First You Dream
On this episode of The Set List, Broadway’s Heidi Blickenstaff talks FIRST YOU DREAM The Songs of Kander & Ebb on PBS. Listen here.
