This Is A Classic returns! And we have new voices! Listen in to get to know our new curators.

This season we're covering all the plays in the 2022 Expand the Canon List, as well as serving up exciting interviews with other incredible artistic leaders whose work is adding to our knowledge of the classics.

Episodes will air weekly on Wednesdays!

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If you’re looking to tackle race, imperialism, and the prejudice of the Western world towards African countries… consider this mesmerizing masterpiece. Set in a rural Christian mission in an unnamed African country, this play explores the complexities of navigating personal relationships across racial divides when every decision you make is inherently political. Intricate, atmospheric, and shimmering with emotional truth, this play is as relevant to our modern world now as it was fifty years ago.

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Hosted by Skye Pagon and Emily Lyon.

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If you’re looking for a Restoration play with even more hijincks than Merry Wives of Windsor… consider this energetic, bawdy comedy that centers around the tricksy courtship of the clever Clarabell and the rakish Rightwit. Through a series of deceptions, plots, pranks, and manipulations, they find a way to be together – and manage to marry off everyone else in the cast as well. Complete with doltish country suitors, deceitful women, trusting husbands, untrusting fathers, and trendy dances, this play covers all the best staples of the Restoration. The plot itself is simple, and yet the events that lead us along the way are delightfully frothy, foolish, and fun.

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This episode is hosted by Mary Candler, Emily Lyon... and two special guests, ensemble members Sara Hymes and Greg Phelps! The scene is performed by Skye Pagon & Jory Murphy.

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If you want a high-octane alternative to Two Gentlemen of Verona… consider this tight rollercoaster of a poetic play instead. Here, two of the closest friends fall deeply in love with the same woman. Spurred on by an Iago-like character, the plot careens toward a tragic end – yet each character reflects on the ramifications of their actions, which makes it all the more impactful. Fall in love—and out—with this epic tale of romance and duty. Undeniably, the poetry of this play is one of its biggest strengths, so be careful of confusing it with the Bard! Bonus: with some minor cuts to avoid a puzzling suicide, this tragedy could easily be presented as a dark comedy!

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Episode hosted by Skye Pagon and Emily Lyon. Scene performed by Javan Nelson and Madeline Addis.

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Victoria Collado is a Cuban-American director who lead our reading of A Happy Country in 2021's Expand the Canon festival! We loved her insights and approach to the play, discussing its translation, and her reasons that this Maruxa Vilalta play is a classic. She chats with Skye Pagon and Shannon Corenthin.

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https://www.victoriacollado.com/

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If you’re seeking a play about revolution where the family drama is the political drama… consider this powerful portrait of love, protest, class, and voyeurism. This play follows the recently impoverished Jiménez family in an unnamed Spanish-speaking country as complex conversations are brought to the foreground by the arrival of a tourist staying in their home. How do you balance your activism with your desire to just live? Do you fight for your family, or your country? And how do you be an ethical tourist in a culture that is not your own? This play leaves an audience asking all the right questions and drawing their own timely parallels.

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Episode hosted by Skye Pagon and Shannon Corenthin. Scene performed by Mariana Mondragón and Reza Salazar.

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If you’re looking for a fun rom-com where your wingman is a flock of wingwomen… consider this witty Restoration comedy. A rollicking, hilarious, and touching tale of Mrs Rich, the wealthy widow of a banker, who wants to marry a Lord to improve her social status. She listens to all the wrong people for advice– eventually leading her straight into the arms of a notable rogue. Through sparkling discourse, interwoven with a moving subplot, Mrs. Rich’s friends and brother-in-law come to her rescue in the nick of time and prevent their friend (and a few other women) from throwing it all away for an undeserving man.

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This episode is hosted by Mary Candler and Shannon Corenthin, and the scene is performed by Desiree Baxter and Rachel Schmeling.

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If you’re looking for a clever class comedy by a Noel Coward contemporary… consider this zany play that takes on tradition, marriage, and capitalism. The spoiled but sweet Wanru has a watchful father… who she is desperate to avoid when sneaking in her hot new boyfriend. In this story, family is often run like a business and financial prospects are important across the board – but not everyone is clearly showing their cards. Wanru’s Dad keeps trying to run her love life like a business, Yanhua gets the world’s worst proposal, and everyone’s trying to keep up the face of tradition... even if it’s just a show. Chinese comedic playwright Yang Jiang brings light, love, and clarity to this relatable family situation.

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This episode is hosted by Emily Lyon and Mary Candler, and the scene is performed by Dorothea Gloria and David Huynh.

Family Tree: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Jq5XvtvQw1tott2PED5D-FGIK-WPMhLe/view?usp=sharing

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Catherine Boyle is a professor, as well as one of our favorite translators. You may know her from our 2020 list, having translated Sor Juana Inez de la Cruz's House of Desires. Luckily for us, she's been working on a title from our 2021 List – Ana Caro's Valor, Agravio, y Mujer!

For more information on Out of the Wings, visit: https://outofthewings.org/

Mary and Skye host this fun conversation about translations!

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If you want a scorned heroine who is determined to live in a revenge tragedy but accidentally finds herself in a comedy… consider this Spanish Golden Age play. With cross dressing, love triangles, swordplay, and soaring verse, this is a celebration of women’s agency. Doña Leonora dresses like a man and crosses Europe to get revenge on her ungrateful ex who left her unmarriageable. Along the way, she manipulates others in her sphere (often through the clever use of funny voices) causing confusion and antics – and ends up with a triumph that she deems better than any murder.

*Disclaimer: we had an audio mishap, so bear with us –– Skye's audio gets better 7 minutes in!

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This episode is hosted by Skye Pagon and Mary Candler, and the monologue is performed by Ashley Kristeen Vega.

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