Season 2 of the Virtuosa Society Podcast kicks off with a tale close to heart for host Katie Harman as she unfolds the largely unknown story of the Miss America Pageant that almost wasn’t.

Weaving interviews with her fellow competition sisters and fascinating historical references, Katie unfurls the events surrounding 9/11 that led to an unprecedented vote by the 51 young women competing for the title and crown of Miss America 2002. A decision that documentary filmmakers later dubbed as “pop culture that saved America.”

Interviews include:

Meghan Shanley, Miss Virginia 2001

Kim Grice, Miss Kansas 2001

Erin Smith, Miss Iowa 2001

Monica Hardin, Miss Kentucky 2001

Tony Danza interview ℅ “When Pop Culture Saved America”

Atlantic City Press coverage of Bob Reneissen, Miss Hawaii 2001 Denby Dung and Miss New Jersey 2001 Julie Barber

Under the Crown: 51 Stories of Courage, Determination and the American Spirit

Bring My Crown!: Miss America Sings Broadway

Producer: Katie Harman @katieharmanebner

Audio Engineer: Will Cowser @williamcowser

Title Song: “Reflection of the Sun” by Anna Landström

www.virtuosasociety.com

Follow @virtuossociety on Instagram & Facebook

Host Katie Harman takes a trip down memory lane to revisit some of her favorite moments in each of Season 1’s seven episodes. She reveals the common thread of collaboration within each story and the “moments of convergence” that are the apex of each story - when one talented woman meets another talented woman and spontaneous combustion happens in the form of something impactful, innovative, imaginative or awe-inspiring. Producer: Katie Harman @katieharmanebner Audio Engineer: Will Cowser @williamcowser Title Song: “Reflection of the Sun” by Anna Landström www.virtuosasociety.com Follow @virtuossociety on Instagram, Facebook and Threads

Episode 7 is a ghost tale!

The mystery of a name that was only known to paper… and a woman who wrote hundreds of Tin Pan Alley tunes in the shadow of a pseudonym. Host Katie Harman unfolds the story of composer Irene Higginbotham, and how she - along with three other legendary women of Tin Pan Alley - helped shape American popular music in the 1930s-1950s. The episode also features a portion of Katie’s interview with Broadway and cabaret star Natalie Douglas, as she shares her thoughts on the influence of Irene Higginbotham. Catch their full conversation in Virtuosa Society Podcast’s companion series “Between the Bio” which dives deeper into Natalie’s fascinating life and career, including the challenges, triumphs and lessons learned between the highlights in her bio.

Research referenced throughout the episode:

The Jazz Standards, by Ted Gioia

Lady Sings the Blues, by Billie Holiday with William Dufty

“Good Morning Heartache,” by David "Chet" Williamson Sneade https://worcestersongs.blogspot.com/2012/12/good-morning-heartache.html

“Recording Studios: A History Of The Most Legendary Studios In Music,” by Martin Chilton https://www.udiscovermusic.com/in-depth-features/history-of-recording-studios/

“The History of Tin Pan Alley” by Nate Wooley https://soundamerican.org/issues/big-band/history-tin-pan-alley

“The Harlem Renaissance: What Was It, and Why Does It Matter?" by Cary D. Wintz https://www.humanitiestexas.org/news/articles/harlem-renaissance-what-was-it-and-why-does-it-matter

“Glenn Gibson Biography” by Eugene Chadbourne https://www.allmusic.com/artist/glenn-gibson-mn0001331660#biography

Producer: Katie Harman @katieharmanebner

Audio Engineer: Will Cowser @williamcowser

Title Song: “Reflection of the Sun” by Anna Landström

www.virtuosasociety.com

Follow @virtuossociety on Instagram, Facebook and Threads

Episode 6 is the intentionally hidden story of the two most important collaborators in the life of celebrated writer Jane Austen: her older sister Cassandra and Anne Sharp, a governess and Jane’s only fellow writer friend.

Host Katie Harman unfolds the story of the influence of both women in Jane’s life and writing, as well as the shocking background of why their names have been buried in historical accounts of Jane’s life.

The episode also features several snippets of Jane’s private letters (read by AI voice!) and a terrific interview with researcher and author Dr. Anna Beer.

Research referenced throughout the episode:

Eve Bites Back: An Alternative History of English Literature

By Anna Beer

A Secret Sisterhood 

By Emily Midorikawa & Emma Claire Sweeney

“Reveries under the Sign of Austen: Jane Austen & Anne Sharp” (Article)

By Ellen Moody

https://reveriesunderthesignofausten.wordpress.com/2019/01/06/jane-austen-anne-sharp-she-is-an-excellent-kind-friend/

Producer: Katie Harman @katieharmanebner

Audio Engineer: Will Cowser @williamcowser

Title Song: “Reflection of the Sun” by Anna Landström

www.virtuosasociety.com

Episode 5 is a special mid-season “live broadcast” recorded in partnership with In A Landscape. Recorded for a live audience in the lush center of Moore Park, in Klamath Falls, Oregon, this episode unveils the story of pioneering, prolific photographer Maud Baldwin. Host Katie Harman recounts how Maud embodied the Oregon State Motto: “She Flies with Her Own Wings” and how she continues to inspire others long after her remarkable life was cut short by a truly tragic ending.

To close the episode, Katie joins IAL founder and pianist Hunter Noack in a performance of “The Heart of a Women” written by virtuosas Florence Price and Georgia Douglas Johnson. Florence and her work with Marian Anderson was featured in Episode 3.

Maud Baldwin’s photographs have been digitized by the Klamath County Museum. Pop over to their website to send an inquiry to view them, and also follow @virtuosasociety’s Instagram to see a tour of Maud’s studio and more!

Research referenced throughout the episode:

Maud Baldwin - Photographer By Harry Drew

Maud & Mary: A Century of Change By Valeree Lane

“The Woman Behind the Lens” By Kimberly Bowker, from 1859 Oregon’s Magazine 

“The Heart of a Woman” for voice and piano By Florence Price, with poem by Georgia Georgia Douglas Johnson

Producer: Katie Harman @katieharmanebner

Audio Engineer: Will Cowser @williamcowser

Title Song: “Reflection of the Sun” by Anna Landström www.virtuosasociety.com

Episode 4 uncovers the hidden story of the first all-female film and its British amateur filmmaking club roots. Sally Sallies Forth is a 26-minute comedy romp about a young woman who becomes a maid for a day at a garden tea party. Written, directed and produced by 26-year-old Frances Lascot alongside 9 other fellow female film enthusiasts, the film was shot over two blustery weekends in October 1928 for the December meeting of the London Amateur Cinematographers Association.

Host Katie Harman recounts how the lost film and subsequent records of the 10 women who made the film were discovered and made public for the first time in over 90 years by the University of East Anglia and the East Anglian Film Archive.

In connection, Katie has a fascinating conversation with Elizabeth Gracen, Founder of the nonprofit, Flapper House Inc. Elizabeth is a filmmaker, writer and actress with a mission to create educational, informational, inspirational content and support creatives across all mediums. She is the owner of Flapper Films, Flapper Press, and the creator of the ongoing documentary film archival project and support platform, The Gen Z Collective. Take a look at Flapper Press’ feature on Virtuosa Society!

Films and research referenced throughout the episode:

Sally Sallies Forth, at the East Anglian Film Archive

The Polite Burglar, at the East Anglian Film Archive

“Invisible Innovators: Making Women Filmmakers Visible Across the UK Film Archives” report by Dr. Keith Johnston, Dr. Sarah Hill, and Dr Stephanie Clayton

TNA Project: Cataloguing of the Institute of Amateur Cinematographers Women Film Makers' Films

“The hidden history of women’s filmmaking in Britain”

Laura Rossi’s Silent Women Film Project

British Women Amateur Filmmakers: National Memories and Global Identities by Annamaria Motrescu-Mayes, Heather Norris Nicholson

Subscribe to www.virtuosasociety.com and follow @virtuosasociety on Instagram and Facebook for access to bonus materials from this episode.

Producer: Katie Harman @katieharmanebner

Audio Engineer: Will Cowser @williamcowser

Title Song: “Reflection of the Sun” by Anna Landström

In Episode 3 of Virtuosa Society’s inaugural season, host Katie Harman recounts world-renowned singer Marian Anderson’s groundbreaking moments, including a little-know collaboration with fellow virtuosa Florence Price on a signature piece that closed her historic Easter Sunday concert on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in 1939. 

In connection, Katie sits down with Ginette DePreist, wife of the late James DePreist – renowned conductor and Marian Anderson’s beloved only nephew. Marian came to live with James and Ginette in Portland during the years before her peaceful death at the age of 96 in 1993. Ginette shares wonderful personal stories of “Aunt Marian”. 

A listening guide to pieces heard and referenced throughout the episode:

Subscribe to www.virtuosasociety.com and follow @virtuosasociety on Instagram and Facebook for access to bonus materials from this episode.

Producer: Katie Harman @katieharmanebner

Audio Engineer: Will Cowser @williamcowser

Title Song: “Reflection of the Sun” by Anna Landström

In Episode 2, host Katie Harman tells the story of when avant-garde artist and Parisian fashion designer Sonia Delaunay collaborated with Hollywood’s silent screen star Gloria Swanson on a one-of-a-kind coat. A coat that now travels the world as an icon at the intersection of art and fashion. Was their collaboration possibly the first fashion collab? Katie makes her case for why she thinks it deserves the title.

In connection, Katie sits down with Morgan Hutchinson, founder of BURU, who shares her inspiring founder’s story and touching details about the women who serve as her design inspiration. They also reminisce about their mutual love for one particular piece from the BURU x Katie Harman collab - which happens to be a cousin to the coat: the Katie Cocktail Blazer. Shop the blazer, collab, and all of BURU's designs at www.shopburu.com.

If you’re interested in seeing the work of Sonia Delaunay in person, I highly encourage a visit to www.mutualart.com which lists where her art is on display in museums throughout the world.

Subscribe to www.virtuosasociety.com and follow @virtuosasociety on Instagram and Facebook for access to bonus materials from this episode, including video from Katie's visit to the comprehensive Sonia Delaunay exhibit at Louisiana Museum of Modern Art in Humelbaek, Denmark in May 2022. 

Producer: Katie Harman @katieharmanebner

Audio Engineer: Will Cowser @williamcowser

Title Song: “Reflection of the Sun” by Anna Landström

In Episode 1 of Virtuosa Society’s inaugural season, host Katie Harman weaves together two different tales of collaboration between royal circles.

First, the little known behind-the-scenes story of what is widely considered one of the first operas ever written: La Liberazione di Ruggiero dall’isola d’Alcina (“The Liberation of Roger from the Island of Alcina”). The twist? It was deliberately meant to send a collaborative message of gender equality by three wildly different women in service to the Medici Family in 1620s Tuscany: Francesca Caccini - chief composer for the Medici for over three decades and a professional female musician able to carve out an extraordinarily rare career during the Italian Renaissance, alongside powerful Medici matriarch Christine de Lorraine and her headstrong Austrian daughter-in-law Maria Magdelena. Together they formed The Women’s Court, and their desire to protect and project the lives of strong women converged on one unforgettable night in 1625.

In connection, Katie recalls a poignant reunion between her Miss America sisters in 2015 and shares a meaningful snippet of her conversation with Miss America 2012 Laura Kaeppeler, talking about the importance of sharing our stories to uplift the experience of womanhood.

Special thanks to the extensive research of Professor Suzanne Cusick, author of Francesca Caccini at the Medici Court: Music and the Circulation of Power, as well as Dr. Anna Beer, author of Sounds and Sweet Airs: The Forgotten Women of Classical Music. Their work was referenced throughout this podcast. Stay tuned for a feature interview with Dr. Anna Beer in a future episode!

The music of Francesca Caccini’s La Liberazione di Ruggiero dall’isola d’Alcina was from a terrific 2017 recording by Allabastrina.

Subscribe to www.virtuosasociety.com and follow @virtuosasociety on Instagram and Facebook for access to bonus materials from this episode.

Producer: Katie Harman @katieharmanebner

Audio Engineer: Will Cowser @williamcowser

Title Song: “Reflection of the Sun” by Anna Landström

Welcome to the Virtuosa Society podcast, where I'll be diving into remarkable secret and hidden-in-plain sight stories of collaborations that were born from various shared struggles between female creatives. We're going to unlock the memory banks of women to discover the experiences that resonate most with womanhood – beyond the missing pages in history books – to the nuanced truths and realities and revelations that have unlocked true creativity in women. All in an effort to elevate the future for women carving out artistic, creative, nonlinear lives.