As You Mic It

PA Shakespeare Festival continues its second season of As You Mic It with a conversation about legacy, mentorship, and how theatre traditions continue through the artists and audiences who encounter them.

In this episode, hosts Jason King Jones, Kim Carson, and Connie Behringer open with a roundtable exploring how legacy moves from one generation to the next, both through the stories we produce and the artists who bring them to life. From The Piano Lesson to Romeo and Juliet, The Complete Works of Jane Austen, Abridged, and Moriarty, they consider how great works endure through reinterpretation and care.

Later in the episode, Jason speaks with Pulitzer Prize–winning playwright and director James Ijames about August Wilson’s The Piano Lesson, the responsibility of directing a play with such a powerful history, and how each production becomes part of its continuing life.

In A Peek Behind the Curtain, the team shares a look at PSF’s expanded summer education offerings, including new camps for students in grades K–6, and how early theatre experiences help shape future artists and audiences.

Hosted by: Jason King Jones, Kim Carson, Connie Behringer

Featuring: James Ijames

• James Ijames
• Summer Camps 2026 - Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival
• @pashakespeare - Follow us on Instagram

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PA Shakespeare Festival continues its second season of As You Mic It with a special one-act conversation focused on leadership, stewardship, and the responsibility of carrying performance traditions forward.

In this episode, Artistic Director Jason King Jones sits down with Vanessa Morosco, Executive Artistic Director of the American Shakespeare Center, for a conversation about what it means to lead a classical theatre company in this moment. Together, they explore how Shakespeare’s plays continue to ask urgent questions of artists and audiences alike, and how rehearsal rooms can become spaces where shared purpose shapes the work.

Their discussion also reflects on the connection between artistic leadership and community building, the balance between honoring tradition and encouraging discovery, and how theatre organizations create cultures that allow artists to do their best work.

Hosted by: Jason King Jones

Featuring: Vanessa Morosco

As You Mic It is produced by Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival.

• American Shakespeare Center | Blackfriars Playhouse
• Shakespeare Theatre Association

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PA Shakespeare Festival continues its second season of As You Mic It with a conversation about community, legacy, and the ways theatre brings people together.

In this episode, hosts Jason King Jones, Kim Carson, and Connie Behringer begin with a roundtable exploring how the 2026 season reflects different visions of community. From the spontaneous gathering of musicians in Million Dollar Quartet to the chosen fellowship of As You Like It and the inherited bonds of August Wilson’s The Piano Lesson, they consider how communities are formed, challenged, and sustained across generations. Along the way, they reflect on the moment when a rehearsal room becomes something more than a group of individuals.

Later in the episode, Jason sits down with Bill George, co-founder of Touchstone Theatre, to discuss the work of building theatre at the grassroots level. Their conversation reflects on the role artists play in shaping civic life and the power of gathering people around shared stories.

In A Peek Behind the Curtain, the team shares how those ideas take shape in rehearsal, reflecting on the first moments when a company begins to move, listen, and create as a community.

Hosted by: Jason King Jones, Kim Carson, and Connie Behringer

Featuring: Bill George

As You Mic It is produced by Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival.

• Steelbound Finale, 1999 - Mourning and catharsis on the loss of “the Steel."
• Kingfisher Theatre - Dedicated to advancing the creative work of Bill George.
• Drama Club Mixer RSVP - Join the LV Drama Club's Inaugural Mixer!

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Subscriptions for the 2026 Summer Theatre Series

pashakespeare.org/tickets/

Become an Underwriter Today!

Contact [email protected] for more information.

Collaboration makes great theatre!

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Single Tickets on Sale Now

PA Shakespeare Festival continues its second season of As You Mic It with a conversation about language, time, and how stories from the past find meaning in the present.

In this episode, hosts Jason King Jones and Connie Behringer begin with a roundtable on how the 2026 season lives in two moments at once. From Shakespeare to Million Dollar Quartet to The Piano Lesson, they examine how inherited words carry history and how performance determines what those words mean now. What do we preserve? What do we clarify? And how do we help audiences hear both?

Later in the episode, Jason sits with Ben Crystal to discuss original pronunciation, rhythm, and why hearing Shakespeare as it once sounded can sharpen clarity rather than obscure it.

In A Peek Behind the Curtain, we turn to our Shakespeare Competition, where young performers are doing this work firsthand — finding voice, intention, and meaning as they prepare to step onstage.

Hosted by: Jason King Jones, Kim Carson, Connie Behringer

Featuring: Ben Crystal

As You Mic It is produced by Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival.

• PSF's Annual Shakespeare Competition - For more information, contact [email protected]
• Ben Crystal - Actor, author, original pronunciation pioneer
• Shakespeare Theatre Association

Mentioned in this episode:

Join us at the Bard and Beyond Book Club

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Subscriptions for the 2026 Summer Theatre Series

pashakespeare.org/tickets/

Become an Underwriter Today!

Contact [email protected] for more information.

Collaboration makes great theatre!

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PA Shakespeare Festival continues its second season of As You Mic It with a compelling conversation about what love demands when it challenges tradition, authority, and expectation.

In this episode, hosts Jason King Jones and Connie Behringer open with a roundtable exploring love as both obligation and choice across the 2026 season. Drawing connections between Romeo and Juliet, Coriolanus, and Million Dollar Quartet, they examine how love can bind, liberate, or defy the systems that shape our lives, and why those tensions still resonate today.

Later in the episode, Jason sits down with Suzanne O’Donnell, who returns to Romeo and Juliet this summer as the Nurse after originating Juliet in PSF’s inaugural season. Their conversation reflects on artistic growth, shifting perspective, and what it means to revisit a story of love and defiance from a new vantage point.

In A Peek Behind the Curtain, PSF’s new Director of Production, Kevin White, offers a behind-the-scenes look at what it takes to bring this ambitious season to life, from repertory logistics to the unseen work that supports every performance.

Hosted by: Jason King Jones, Connie Behringer

Featuring: Suzanne O’Donnell, Kevin White

As You Mic It is produced by Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival.

Mentioned in this episode:

Become an Underwriter Today!

Contact [email protected] for more information.

Join us at the Bard and Beyond Book Club

For more details, visit pashakespeare.org/bookclub

Collaboration makes great theatre!

Become a supporter, today! https://pashakespeare.org/support/

Subscriptions for the 2026 Summer Theatre Series

pashakespeare.org/tickets/

As You Mic It heads north for a special two-act episode recorded at the annual conference of the Shakespeare Theatre Association in St. John's.

Act One opens with a roundtable conversation as hosts Jason King Jones, Kim Carson, and Connie Behringer reflect on why PSF participates in the STA conference, what conversations are shaping the field, and what ideas they’re bringing back to the Festival. It’s a candid look at how artists and leaders learn from one another and why national exchange matters.

In Act Two, the hosts sit down with Scott Jackson, Mary Irene Ryan Family Executive Artistic Director of Shakespeare at Notre Dame and President of the Shakespeare Theatre Association. Jackson discusses leadership, applied Shakespeare, and his work co-founding the Shakespeare in Prisons Network, exploring how theatre can expand access, restore agency, and create connection far beyond the stage.

Hosted by: Jason King Jones, Kim Carson, Connie Behringer

Featuring: Scott Jackson

As You Mic It is produced by Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival.

Mentioned in this episode:

Subscriptions for the 2026 Summer Theatre Series

pashakespeare.org/tickets/

Become an Underwriter Today!

Contact [email protected] for more information.

PA Shakespeare Festival continues its second season of As You Mic It with a conversation spotlighting the women of the season and the artists shaping PSF’s work on stage and behind the scenes.

Hosts Jason King Jones, Kim Carson, and Connie Behringer open with a roundtable conversation on the women of the season, considering how these characters drive story and perspective across the Festival’s lineup.

The conversation then turns to Jessica Bedford, who shares her perspective as both director and one of the writers of this summer’s The Complete Works of Jane Austen, Abridged. Drawing on her long-standing relationship with PA Shakespeare Festival, Bedford reflects on Jane Austen’s sharp wit and lasting influence, and on how the friendships among the self-described “Jane-ites” who created the piece helped shape its humor and point of view.

In A Peek Behind the Curtain, the hosts turn their attention to the design process for the season, offering insight into how directors and designers collaborate to create cohesive worlds across productions and support the Festival’s storytelling goals.

Hosted by: Jason King Jones, Kim Carson, Connie Behringer

Featuring: Jessica Bedford

• Mary Wollstonecraft (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy)
• Helena Kelly - Author of Jane Austen, the Secret Radical (2016)

Mentioned in this episode:

Collaboration makes great theatre!

Become a supporter, today! https://pashakespeare.org/support/

Subscriptions for the 2026 Summer Theatre Series

pashakespeare.org/tickets/

Join us at the Bard and Beyond Book Club

For more details, visit pashakespeare.org/bookclub

Become an Underwriter Today!

Contact [email protected] for more information.

This season, we offer a simple holiday gift to you, our PSF Friends and Family. Artistic Director

Jason King Jones reads Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol in this special episode of As You Mic It.

It is a story shaped by memory, generosity, and the choices we pass forward.

As your home moves between bustle and quiet, with paper folded, ribbon tied, or a simple pause taken, we hope this reading keeps you company and offers a moment of warmth along the way.

From all of us at Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival, thank you for being part of our community.

Featuring track "November Restore" by mobygratis

PA Shakespeare Festival continues the conversation on As You Mic It through the stories we tell and the service that upholds them.

In this episode, hosts Jason King Jones, Kim Carson, and Connie Behringer open with a fast-moving roundtable that introduces the 2026 season. They share quick synopses, first impressions, and what they are most eager for audiences to experience this summer.

Later, JKJ speaks with Managing Director Casey Gallagher about his lasting work with PSF. He reflects on the path that brought him to the Festival, the work that shaped nearly three decades of leadership, and the partnership that drives PSF today.

In A Peek Behind the Curtain, we welcome H. Lloyd Carbaugh, President of the PSF Volunteer Guild. Lloyd highlights the award winning Guild’s essential role and the many ways volunteer service strengthens PSF’s community and legacy.

Hosted by: Jason King Jones, Kim Carson, and Connie Behringer

• PSF's Volunteer Guild

Mentioned in this episode:

Become an Underwriter Today!

Contact [email protected] for more information.

Be a Maker of Theatre

Support PSF: https://pashakespeare.org/support/

Join us at the Bard and Beyond Book Club

For more details, visit pashakespeare.org/bookclub

Collaboration makes great theatre!

Become a supporter, today! https://pashakespeare.org/support/

PA Shakespeare Festival continues its second season of As You Mic It with a conversation centered on this year’s theme, Legends and Legacy.

In this episode, hosts Jason King Jones, Kim Carson, and Connie Behringer open with a roundtable on what defines a “legend” and how legacy takes shape within an artistic community.

Later in the episode, we turn to the next generation of theatre-makers through PSF’s new Muse of Fire Project. They share what draws them to Shakespeare, why live performance matters to them, and how the program is shaping their early steps as artists.

In A Peek Behind the Curtain, Kim offers insight into casting the inaugural Muse of Fire ensemble and how the project supports PSF’s commitment to mentorship, access, and legacy-building across the Festival.

Hosted by: Jason King Jones, Connie Behringer, and Kim Carson

Mentioned in this episode:

Be a Maker of Theatre

Support PSF: https://pashakespeare.org/support/

Become an Underwriter Today!

Contact [email protected] for more information.

Collaboration makes great theatre!

Become a supporter, today! https://pashakespeare.org/support/

Join us at the Bard and Beyond Book Club

For more details, visit pashakespeare.org/bookclub