Pig on the Wall

A special guest takes a special quiz: Do you know your Bruce?

DJ, musician, and musicologist Les Coole is going to find out.

Bruce Springsteen and Tom Petty: two artists from the same time period who share similar career arcs and methodologies in the madness of the music industry.

Springsteen and Petty achieved the same creative longevity and inventiveness, a rare feat, and taking a look at Bruce's story and music will certainly shed some light on Tom Petty and his journey.

Tom Petty managed to stay creative and inventive for four decades. Forty years of quality music.

How did he do it? 

I will try my best to figure it out.

Act Two of this series explores the creative process behind the first five Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers albums. During this time period, 1976 to 1982, the band will face various ordeals: from the record industry, within the band, and exploring what Joseph Campbell calls the Inmost Cave.

Musicians and producers call this fearful, claustrophically fraught, and perilous setting . . . the recording studio.

Tom Petty managed to stay creative and inventive for four decades. Forty years of quality music.

How did he do it? 

I will try my best to figure it out.

Act One of this series examines the origin story of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers-- a narrative that sounds like something out of Joseph Campbell's seminal 1949 book The Hero With a Thousand Faces— aside from the weed, the Volkswagen bus, the topless dancers, and the electric guitars.

The final scene of the most haunting work of drama ever written. There is no question that Shakespeare stuck the landing.

This episode features detailed analysis of scene 5.2 and plenty of context and connections to previous scenes; there are also clips from a wide range of adaptations to bring the text to life (plus plenty of bonus clips).

No prior knowledge is required to enjoy this production. 

Hopefully, this series will be a valuable resource for those who wish to teach the play; a clear and accessible introduction for newcomers; and a source of fresh analysis for those already familiar with this ambiguous and awe-inspiring work of literature.

In Act Five, Scene One of Hamlet, we confront and meditate upon death—impending, current, and past—but don't worry, there are plenty of jokes.  

Thanks to some kindly pirates, Hamlet is back in Denmark and reunited with his ever-loyal college buddy Horatio. They meet in a cemetery, and things get profound, philosophical, and pandemonious.

This episode features detailed analysis of scene 5.1 and plenty of context and connections to previous scenes; there are also clips from a wide range of adaptations to bring the text to life (plus plenty of bonus clips).

No prior knowledge is required to enjoy this production. 

Hopefully, this series will be a valuable resource for those who wish to teach the play; a clear and accessible introduction for newcomers; and a source of fresh analysis for those already familiar with this ambiguous and awe-inspiring work of literature.

Hamlet, Act Four is one thing after another. 

A dead body to deal with, Hamlet goes on a diplomatic trip to England, pirates, a soliloquy inspired by Fortinbras, madness, vengeance, some major scheming, and a tragically beautiful, beautifully tragic ending. 

This episode features detailed analysis of all this and more, plus there are clips from a wide range of adaptations to bring the text to life.

No prior knowledge is required to enjoy this production. 

Hopefully, this series will be a valuable resource for those who wish to teach the play; a clear and accessible introduction for newcomers; and a source of fresh analysis for those already familiar with this ambiguous and awe-inspiring work of literature.

The second half of Act Three of Hamlet features some of the most profound meta-theatrical writing, direction, and performance in the history of stage and screen.  

This episode features detailed analysis of the play within the play, the many roles of Hamlet, King Claudius's confession, and Hamlet's visit to his mother's bedroom. There are clips from a wide range of adaptations to bring the text to life.

No prior knowledge is required to enjoy this production. 

Hopefully, this series will be a valuable resource for those who wish to teach the play; a clear and accessible introduction for newcomers; and a source of fresh analysis for those already familiar with this ambiguous and awe-inspiring work of literature.

Hamlet: Act Three, Scene One contains some of the most iconic lines ever written.

This episode is a thorough analysis of this celebrated scene, including clips from various performances. This is the scene when the actor playing Hamlet must completely immerse himself in the role.

No prior knowledge is required to enjoy this production. 

Hopefully, this series will be a valuable resource for those who wish to teach the play; a clear and accessible introduction for newcomers; and a source of fresh analysis for those already familiar with this ambiguous and awe-inspiring work of literature.

Act Two of Hamlet is full of plots, schemes, and ruses. The characters are laying traps and setting wheels into motion

There is also meta-dramatic theatrical trickery and both a literal and a symbolic Trojan Horse. Wild stuff.

This episode features detailed analysis of all the various schemes and clips from a wide range of adaptations to bring the text to life.

No prior knowledge is required to enjoy this production. 

Hopefully, this series will be a valuable resource for those who wish to teach the play; a clear and accessible introduction for newcomers; and a source of fresh analysis for those already familiar with this ambiguous and awe-inspiring work of literature.

Hamlet: a ghost story, a revenge play, and so much more.

In the second half of Act One, as The Big Lebowski puts it, "New shit has come to light."

We will examine all this new information, and there will be clips from a wide range of adaptations to bring the text to life.

No prior knowledge is required to enjoy this production. 

Hopefully, this series will be a valuable resource for those who wish to teach the play; a clear and accessible introduction for newcomers; and a source of fresh analysis for those already familiar with this ambiguous and awe-inspiring work of literature.