call and response podcast

This week, we chat our first director guest! Saheem Ali discusses what excites him when reading a script, why immigrating to America changed his perspective on theatre, and how a trip to London—and a production of Grease—changed his life.

You can read Saheem's essay about Grease in the New York Times here: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/15/theater/grease-in-a-nairobi-high-school-saheem-ali-on-his-first-time-directing.html

We talk with Tiffany Denise Hobbs about acting in Donald Glover’s Atlanta on FX and Sara Bareilles’ Waitress on Broadway, overcoming the feeling of being an outsider as the only black student in ballet class, and accessing your ancestral home through art.

We chat with Lyric Danae about navigating the differences between dance genres—from Alvin Ailey’s Horton technique to pop musical Oscar at the Crown, performing on the Boston Celtics dance team, and finding home wherever you go.

Get ready, 'cause here she comes! We sit down with Obie winner and MacArthur Foundation Genius Grant recipient Dominique Morisseau to discuss being a student of playwriting, proactively diversifying audiences, and making her Broadway debut with Ain't Too Proud - The Life and Times of the Temptations.

We talk (and laugh…a lot) with Mean Girls’ Rick Younger about how he discovered comedy (shout-out to Peanut), the genius and work ethic of comedians, and the insider scoop on his audition experience for the Tina Fey Broadway musical.

We chat with storyteller Bill Posley about his solo-show The Day I Became Black, currently running at SoHo Playhouse, the isolation that comes with being biracial, and the power (and vulnerability) of laughter.

We celebrate a big milestone (episode 50!) with a big talent: Jordan Donica! We breakdown his experience of being the first black Raoul in Phantom of the Opera, the lessons he learned from his Hamilton family, and the vulnerability that comes with making your own work.

We chat with Tori Sampson about seeing her first play at age 21, combining her sociological background with her writing, and exploring black beauty and womanhood through her play If Pretty Hurts Than Ugly Must Be a Muhfucka, currently running at Playwrights Horizon.

Nobody puts Baby in the corner, nor Charly Evon Simpson! We sit down with the playwright to talk about declaring the identity of “playwright,” elevating important stories of black women, and expanding her artistry as a teacher.

You get a double dose of Capricorn this week as we sit down with Kristolyn Lloyd (Dear Evan Hansen, Paradise Blue, Invisible Thread, Blue Ridge) to talk about existing in all-white spaces, challenging the insecurity of “not feeling black enough,” and understanding that saying “no” as a black woman can mean sacrifices.