Author of two memoirs about her life in Iran, Reading Lolita in Tehran and Things I've Been Silent About, Azar Nafisi talks about her books, her life in Iran, her parents, the Iranian Revolution, and, of course, the power of literature. [25:05]

Bert Crenca talks about founding the community arts center AS220, its interaction with the city Providence, and its arts education offshoot AS220 Youth. [24:46]

Author Luis Alberto Urrea talks about the inspiration for and writing of his novel Into the Beautiful North, which takes place from Sinaloa, Mexico, all the way up north to Kankakee, Illinois. [25:54]

Dan Morgenstern, recipient of the 2007 A.B. Spellman NEA Jazz Masters Award for Jazz Advocacy, discusses the 2011 class of NEA Jazz Masters. [27:27]

Molly Smith talks about American theater, including the often-overlooked musical, her commitment to new play development, and her vision for the newly-renovated Arena Stage at the Mead Center. [27:16]

Shirley Sneve talks about the mission of the Native American Public Telecommunications organization, which shares stories of Native American people through the creation, promotion, and distribution of Native media on television and radio. [27:33]

2010 MacArthur Fellow Sebastian Ruth talks about the community-based arts organization he founded, Community MusicWorks, which won a 2010 National Arts and Humanities Youth Program Award for its teaching, mentoring, and performing activities with urban youth in Providence, Rhode Island. [27:11]

Choreographer Parker Esse talks about his experience creating new choreography for Arena Stage's revival of Rodgers and Hammerstein's classic musical Oklahoma!. [26:29]

Jeffrey Sweet talks about the revitalization of theater in Chicago through the Second City and other theater companies, as well as his own experience as a playwright and the art of theater and musical theater.  [26:50]

One of the most well-regarded postwar American artists still working, Frank Stella discusses his five-decade career in the visual arts, from paintings to sculptures to murals to architecture.  [21:40]