Talk of the Triangle

• Guest Lauren Kennedy Brady, local theater star and Theatre Raleigh's Producing Artistic Director.
• Lauren's early beginnings in the theater were influenced by her family's love for the arts.
• Lauren attended Broughton High School, where she participated in the school's performing arts programs, including show choir. 
• Lauren was mentored by the founder of North Carolina Theater, which led to opportunities for her to work with Broadway professionals.
• She attended the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music before starring on Broadway.
• Lauren discussed working with Broadway professionals like Terrence Mann when she was in high school, which set a high standard for her, and encouraged her to pursue a career in theater.
• Lauren attended the renowned University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, known for its top 10 musical theater program, thanks to the recommendation of New York friends.
• Lauren left college early to join the Broadway cast of "Sunset Boulevard," which starred Glenn Close, George Hearn and Judy Kuhn.
• Lauren found that working with professionals at the North Carolina Theater in high school was better preparation for her career than college, as it allowed her to learn from actors living their lives in the industry.
• Lauren discussed her 20-year acting career, working with notable stars like Hank Azaria and David Hyde Pierce, and eventually shifting to directing and producing.
• Lauren's parents were involved in the arts, and her father helped raise money to build the performing arts center now known as the Martin Marietta Center for Performing Arts, which included a black box theater, the Kennedy Theatre, named after them. She ran a summer series in the theater for three years.
• Lauren took over the theater project, which eventually became a nonprofit, and rebranded it as Theatre Raleigh. The pandemic forced her to move to a new location, but she successfully raised funds to upfit the space for theater performances.

• Adam Cave and Melissa Wistehuff discuss their experiences with old homes—including dealing with mice and snakes.
• George Smart is CEO of and Rebekah Laney handles development for NCModernist and USModernist, which documents and protects modernist homes across North Carolina and the U.S.
• George and Rebekah talk about their involvement in modernist architecture and their roles in the organization.
• They also offer tips for finding modernist homes, and discuss using the GIS map on ncmodernist.org.
• George and Rebekah discuss the four defining features of a modernist home: unusual geometry, a flat or low-pitched roof, an open floor plan, and a departure from traditional residential design.

Chasta Hamilton is an entrepreneur who believes everyone has the power to reach their fullest potential. She is also an author, owner of Stage Door Dance and creator of the Girls Geared for Greatness nonprofit.

• Originally from Tennessee, Chasta relocated to North Carolina as a Park scholarship student at North Carolina State University, where she graduated summa cum laude in 2007 with a degree in Arts Applications (theatre) and a minor in Film Studies. 
• In June 2009, Chasta opened Stage Door Dance Productions. The studio features two locations: Brier Creek and Lake Boone Trail.
• Chasta became a TedX speaker (while 36 weeks pregnant) with her talk, You Weren't Built to Break. 
• Learn more about Stage Door’s philosophy and exit from the competitive dance world in Chasta's best-selling book, Trash The Trophies.
• In her newest book, Handle the Horrible: Change. Triage. Joy., Hamilton shares insights that help readers develop the confidence to tackle  daily endeavors and the more challenging moments life throws at us.
• Hear Chasta's thoughts on balance, motherhood and entrepreneurship. 
• Chasta created the nonprofit Girls Geared for Greatness to help young girls and teens identify their strengths and skills. The nonprofit then seeks to provide them with the tools they need to achieve their goals. The girls are encouraged to believe that anything is possible for the betterment of their future.

• We discuss New Year's Resolutions and how they often pertain to fitness. 
• Paul and Elizabeth, both fitness experts, explain why TRX Freestyle offers a unique approach to fitness.
• TRX combines many different types of exercises. Learn about why TRX is like a multitool, and why having a balanced and fit lifestyle takes more than just one modality. Focusing on just yoga, cardio, strength or any single modality is not enough. 
• TRX Freestyle is mobile, with the ability to facilitate 16 people at once for fitness on-the-go.
• "Freestyle" comes from the idea that TRX straps incorporate a variety of modalities.
• We talk about Elizabeth and Paul's fitness journeys. Paul discusses the importance of discipline over motivation. You can lose motivation, but discipline will help you work out, even when you don't feel like it.
• Elizabeth shares her experience at the Sandman Triathlon in Virginia Beach on a red flag day.
• Find out why one having someone hold you accountable is key to a successful fitness journey.
• To see some examples of TRX Freestyle, check out TRX Freestyle on Instagram @trxfreestyleraleigh.
• TRX Freestyle offers both group and personal training. For more information, visit TRXfreestyle.com.

• A fun, loving and talented entertainment personality, Erica has been delighting audiences for nearly two decades. She is host of The Erica Show on G105 and an Influencer for ABC 11 – WTVD.  
• Listen to Erica from 1–5 p.m. in the afternoon for lifestyle entertainment and contemporary hits radio. Melissa joins her every Friday for her "What's Up Weekend" segment.  
• Find out who picks the songs she plays.
• Hear our conversation about records, tapes, CDs and the ever-changing landscape of music.  
• Erica shares stories of favorite events, red carpet experiences at the Oscars, the Country Music Association awards (CMAs), selfies with Brad Pitt and drinks with Reba McEntire.
• Since she was in fifth grade, Erica wanted to be Oprah, but she later changed her view on that.
• Find out how Erica met her husband and how she shared this experience in real-time on radio.
• Erica has interviewed presidents, rappers and singers. Hear highlights about her interviews with President Obama, Jay-Z, and Mariah Carey.  She spills the details on her interview with Charlie Murphy, who she thought was Eddie Murphy.
• Erica tells us about the time she went to audition for the OWN Network when she still dreamed of being the next Oprah.
• Erica lives authentically on the air. What you hear is what you get! 
• Check out our year-end review.

Ira David Wood III (born November 19, 1947) is an American actor, author, singer, theater director and playwright. He is the Executive Director of Theatre in the Park, a community theatre company in Raleigh, North Carolina. Wood is the father of actress Evan Rachel Wood. Wood is best known for conceiving, producing, and headlining (as "Scrooge") a popular musical comedy adaptation of "A Christmas Carol" that has been performed annually in Raleigh—since 1974, and more recently, in nearby Durham as well.

• Ira David Wood III shares how he first got into acting and gained admission to the North Carolina School of the Arts.
• We discuss some life-changing lessons Wood learned in high school and how to "play defiance on the forward foot."
• He plans to give up the role of Scrooge after next year's show, on its 50th anniversary, and turn it over to his oldest son, Ira David Wood IV, with whom he now alternates performances.
• After college, Wood spent summers in North Carolina's Outer Banks performing in "The Lost Colony" play and shared an entertaining story of meeting Andy Griffith during that time, while Griffith was still filming "The Andy Griffith Show." We learn about Griffith's competitive spirit and how would cheat at volleyball!
• Wood tells us, "You don't remember plays, you remember moments on stage."
• Wood's desire to perform the Charles Dickens classic stemmed from wanting to do a Christmas play because, at the time, none of the theaters in Raleigh  were open during the holidays.
•  We talk about the amazing heritage of theaters in Raleigh.
• Theatre in the Park was renamed the Ira David Wood III Pullen Park Theatre in 2004.
• Wood shares that his daughter, Evan Rachel Wood, who has starred in "Westworld," and "Frozen II," went to Hollywood to work when she was just 6 years old, and talks about how he missed so much and now strives to make every moment with her and his other children count.  

Find out more info on Theater in The Park
 

Nelson Nauss's first exposure to the paranormal came at a very young age in his childhood home, and it forever changed how he viewed the world around him. It wasn't until 2007 that his avid interest saw him join two other paranormal groups to seek answers. In 2016, Nelson met Kelly McConkey, and together they founded The Ghost Guild.

Al Parker has created several Ghost, Legends, and Lore tours and enjoys digging into research.

Kara Leinfelder's interest in the paranormal started at the young age of 3 after a particularly lucid sleep paralysis episode. Her family was deeply entrenched in Southern history. She then spent most of her childhood traipsing around historic sites and homes, often experiencing the sensation that she was not alone.

• The team at The Ghost Guild approaches their research from a science-based and skeptical point of view. Science has not been able to prove the existence of the paranormal yet, but they do approach their work with the hope of having an experience with the paranormal.
• Our guests explain the origin of their interest in the paranormal with personal experiences from their lives and the possible scientific explanations for their experiences.  
• Kara serves as the Creative Director of the North Carolina Museum of History and shares some of the possible ghost stories at the museum. They plan to do an investigation of the museum.
•  We discuss haunted objects and how they can make great movies. 
• Al shares legends and ghost stories from where he grew up in Murfreesboro, how he joined the Ghost Guild, and why he created ghost tours from the folklore and history of local cities.
• We ask how the Ghost Guild was started and how you can join the group.
• We discuss the tools of the trade for the Ghost Guild, microphones, data loggers, and collect humidity, pressure, and temperature. The Guild also tries to connect the data they collect with the property's history in mind and the research they've done on the stories they are investigating and trying to recreate.
• What is the most haunted place in Raleigh?

Find out more info on The Ghost Guild Website
 

Ernest A. Dollar Jr. is the director of the City of Raleigh Museum, as well as the director of the Pope House in Raleigh. He is also the author of "Heart's Torn of Thunder Trauma and the Civil War's Final Campaign in North Carolina."

• A Durham native, Ernest was born here in the Triangle and has been involved in local history since he was the director of the Orange County Historical Museum in Hillsborough in 2001.
• We discuss Ernest's book and North Carolina's role in the Civil War.
• Ernest discuss the question some have of, "Why have we forgotten the part North Carolina played in the Civil War?"
• The Bennett Place is a state historic site in Durham, just between Durham and Hillsborough where General William Tecumseh Sherman accepted the surrender of Confederate General Joseph Johnston.
• From Raleigh to Morrisville, we start to see ghost stories emerge from the woodwork about a wave of broken, diseased and horrifically mangled men seeking care in our hospitals. Many of them died in Raleigh.
• We talk about Peace College and it's history as a hospital during the Civil War.
• Any historian looks at the lived experience of the people we study—everything from economics, literature, arts and labor—but also the mythology and people's beliefs.
• We discuss the 2022 True Death, True Crime Dark Raleigh Walking Tours.
• We talk about the ghost of the governor's mansion.
• And more! Don't miss this convo!

From Executive Chef Oscar Gnapi's delicious Italian cuisine at Colletta Italian Food & Wine, to Master Blender Brandon McCraney's honey cask finished bourbon at Olde Raleigh Distillery, you'll be yearning for one—or BOTH—of these fine offerings after listening to this episode of Talk of the Triangle.

• Executive Chef Oscar Gnapi, originally from Paris, France, honed his craft over decades at restaurants and hotels in Paris, Italy, London, California and North Carolina (in Chapel Hill and Cary). For as long as he can remember, Gnapi has pursued the culinary arts. “I was raised in Paris with a very large family and am from a culture where cooking was as valued as breathing air.” 
• In addition to serving as executive chef for Colletta Italian Food & Wine, which opened in Cary's Fenton September 2, 2022, Gnapi worked across Europe at five-star hotels, including George V in Paris, and Le Meridien and SoHo House in London.
• Gnapi’s more than 20 years of experience in the culinary industry includes a range of cuisines and a wealth of experience from leadership positions. After moving to North Carolina in 2007, Gnapi served as Executive Sous Chef on the opening team at An: New World Cuisine for three years, followed by Executive Chef of La Residence in Chapel Hill in 2017, and at the Unscripted Durham in 2018. 
• Among his most noteworthy experiences, Gnapi credits his work at Le Jules Verne in the Eiffel Tower, as well as his time working with renowned chefs Michel Rostang, Daniel Boulud, Bruno Loubet, Pascal Even, Jean-Pierre Gagnaire, Christopher Mihy, Francesco Mazzei and locally with An's Michael Chuong.
• Gnapi, who met his wife in North Carolina, now resides in Fuquay-Varina with his two young boys. When not at the restaurant, he loves to draw, read, cook and create dishes for his family.
• Brandon McCraney, owner, operator and master distiller at Olde Raleigh Distillery, is a veteran of the U.S. Air Force and has spent years immersing himself in the spirits industry to dissect the world of whiskey. 
• McCraney's role extends beyond the walls of the distillery to fostering partnerships with local farmers and introducing heirloom grains to the heart of Old Tobacco country. 
• As a Raleigh resident, McCraney aims to build a meaningful brand that gives back to the community he loves. His goal is to showcase the positive environmental and economic impacts distilleries contribute from farm to glass.
• McCraney's desire to make a broad impact stemmed from his experience as a captain in the U.S. Air Force, where he proudly served for four years. 
• As the sole owner and operator of Olde Raleigh Distillery, McCraney is set on making his family name one to be reckoned with in the craft whiskey world.
• Find out what makes McCraney's old fashioned cocktail so unique and what is involved in making honey cask finished bourbon.

Did you collect baseball cards? There’s a good chance Gregg Forwerck was behind the camera that took your favorite athletes’ photos. In this episode, the Charlotte-based photographer, who also covers the Carolina Hurricanes, shares some of his favorite memories about life as a baseball card photographer and discusses how baseball card photos have changed over the years. 

• Baseball card collecting and trading made a huge comeback during the COVID-19 pandemic. eBay reported that its sports card sales increased by 142% in 2020, with more than 4 million cards sold. 
• Hear about the famous players Gregg photographed over the years and some of the more unique photos he has taken.
• Find out how baseball card photos have changed over the years and how prospects are featured prominently in the cards and established players.
• Find out how this baseball fanatic turned his love of baseball into a lifelong career by thinking outside of the box. 
• Hear Gregg and our sports writer, Kurt Dusterberg, discuss their experiences covering the Carolina Hurricanes.
• Listen to a discussion about youth sports and the many choices kids have today when deciding on what sports to play.