It’s really no big secret that having children involved in the performing arts can have a major impact on them in school and out of school. Well, today’s guests are training some of these young artists in a fine arts conservatory down in Miami, Florida called MoonAmie Productions. Monica Rosell and Priscilla Blanco join me to discuss their important work and the creative home they provide their students.?

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In the last episode we learned the importance of producing our own work as actors. Well today's guest, Joel B. New, will show us that just because you build it doesn't mean people will come. After the hard work of creating, then comes the daunting task of producing and promoting it, getting others to take notice and support that work. Learn how Joel found unique ways to get the word out on one of his own musicals.

"Str...

At one point or another there is a lesson that all actors have to learn, and this past year has driven home that lesson even more so, and that is the need to create our own work. Today’s guest, Ashley Kate Adams, Not only added producing to her already sizable acting resume, but she put all of her thoughts and lessons learned into a new book called Be Your Own Producer. 

#BYOP - https://amzn.to/3wUPUF9 (pre-order for August public...

On today’s podcast journalist Marcus Scott shares his love of telling stories and how he suddenly found himself writing musicals. 

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Real life writing, that’s really the best way to describe the kind of work Marcus does. It’s something of the moment. It's meaningful, insightful, and true to the experiences that Marcus knows firsthand or has researched down to a minute detail. And one of the mos...

While natural talent certainly plays a part in the capabilities of any actor to perform, there’s one skill that has to be learned and nurtured for any actor to really make it in this business, and in part two of my conversation with Joyce Hshieh, she talks about this all important ability to learn and memorize lines. 

As an actor she struggled with memorizing lines, but as a trivia enthusiast she learned several simple and easy te...

Almost every actor would seize upon the opportunity to be in a big TV show. But even with a BFA in acting and conservatory theater training, none of it had really prepared Joyce Hshieh for one of the biggest roles of her life, Becoming a three day champion on the game show jeopardy.

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In part one of my conversation with Joyce, we talk about her theater training and her struggle to find fulfillment...

On December 23, 2020, Broadway and musical theater lost one of its most beautifully talented leading ladies, Rebecca Luker. In the second half of my conversation with Sally Wilfert, we talk about their close friendship and the last project of Rebecca’s life, a duo album called All the Girls. 

We also touch on what made her such a unique and special individual who touched the lives of so many. We also share personal stories of know...

Sally Wilfert is a Broadway actress and an amazing vocalist who understands the rigors and demands of performing at the top of her game. In part one of my conversation with Sally, she and I discuss the difficulties, injuries, and self-doubts she’s endured. 

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Unlike other jobs like accounting, engineering, or even medicine, singing is uniquely personal, expressing parts of ourselves that may go un...

As we talked about in Part One, Crazy Ex-Girlfriend is what put Gabrielle Ruiz on the map. However, it was her theater training and performance abilities that made it possible for her to be cast in the show. In this episode we talk more about her time on the stage and what drives her most as an artist. 

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My good friend and amazing performer Gabrielle Ruiz joins me for Women's History Month to chat about her journey from ensemble member on Broadway to a principal role on primetime television. It's a path many of us actors wish to have, but hers has not been without personal and professional setbacks. And in part one of our conversation we touch on some of the highlights as well as how she's handled the low points.

Get t...

Fifty years ago this month 10 people were inducted into the songwriters Hall of Fame. Included on that list are well-known names like duke Ellington, Ira Gershwin, and Alan J Lerner. The only woman in that group was Dorothy Fields. But despite her talents for lyrics and storytelling, her journey to becoming a songwriter wasn’t easy. In fact, there were some pretty big roadblocks in her way.

This episode Is presented in conjunction...

This week for Women’s History Month, I’m sharing a special conversation with Dr. Broadway about prolific lyricist and librettist Dorothy Fields, who collaborated with some of the most iconic and legendary composers in Broadway history. For much of the Golden Age of the American musical, Fields was one of the only women writing for the Broadway theatre.

This episode Is presented in conjunction with Maestra Music.

Even if the name ...

The church plays and school musicals of Carrie's childhood eventually gave way to on-camera acting and her desire to become a "black girl James Bond." So she was introduced to stunt work and martial arts classes, giving her a whole new set of skills that she also created careers of themselves. That's when she also discovered WeAudition and it online video community for actors.

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Carrie Bernans is the perfect person to kick off Women's History Month. She is a strong individual who knows who she is, what she wants, and usually how to get there. That’s not to say it’s been all smooth sailing for her, either personally or professionally, but she never lost her faith or belief in what’s possible.

She isn’t just an actress, she’s also trained in martial arts, stunt work, and body movement in addition to the...

In part two of my conversation with Brie Eley, she talked about her latest project that has been such a mountaintop experience for her and we get into her organization that promotes and supports black actresses, providing them with opportunity and community but also showcasing the vast diversity among these black actresses.

Topics discussed:

When it comes to being an artist, Brie Eley is the very definition of a multi-hyphenate. She is a classically trained actress and improviser, spent more than 10 years in marketing and small business development, and she creates, produces, and directs independent productions.

As Black History Month comes to a close, Brie joins me to talk about the wide variety of projects in her career, the daily grind of being an actor, and the pe...

One of the hardest lessons for any actor to learn is to not take constant rejection personally. Adrienne Walker and I continue in part two of our conversation with stories from our own struggles and failures in the audition room and on stage.

We also get into her YouTube Series called 32 Bar Cut as she seeks to help others navigate this tricky business. But first, I did a little deeper into something she said about bringing her bl...

While the goal of every actor is to perform, our day-to-day job is actually auditioning. As we continue Black History Month here on the podcast, Adrienne Walker from The Lion King on Broadway joins me for a very open and candid conversation about being in such an iconic show. We also touch on some very important issues: auditioning as a black actress and the need for authentic black voices in theater.

But we start off talking abou...

In the second half of our conversation, Erin Cherry focuses on her weekly show Sundays with a Cherry on Top, a health and lifestyle show that showcases Black Culture in all its forms. She also joined playwright Mfoniso Udofia, Ngozi Anyanwu, and Chinyere Anyanwu as a founder producer of NOW Africa. This playwrights festival seeks to introduce, and sometimes reintroduce, artists and academics to the masters of African Dramatic Liter...