122 - Why Vulnerability is Both Terrifying AND Necessary (with Melissa Leilani Larson)

It’s not “just the two of us” today, Queens! We have a special guest–the incredible Melissa Leilani Larson. Mary met her bonding over a giant plate of cheese, while watching a production of Pride and Prejudice at the Parker Theater in Salt Lake City, and invited her to be a podcast guest that night. What a great discussion!

 

Melissa is an author and playwright, and we discuss a bit about Melissa’s own adaptation of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice (#foreshadowing) which enjoyed a completely sold-out run at Hale Center Theater Orem in 2023. She also has written an adaptation of Jane Austen’s Persuasion. We also mention Wonka (2023) (stream it here on Max), Paddington (2014), which you can stream here on Netflix, and Paddington 2 (2017, which can be streamed on Disney+.

 

We discuss why marketing and social media are such pain-points for us. Please don’t be like pancake_blender1465, and don’t listen to trolls like him. But if you don’t open yourself up to the trolls, you don’t allow good things to happen, either. 

 

Melissa mentions Lauren Gunderson, who is one of the most produced playwrights, and if you have the chance to see one of her shows, you definitely should. She also references the song “Too Much Exposition” from Urinetown the Musical.

 

All of the links to Melissa’s social media (everywhere as @mel_leilani), as well as her upcoming productions and projects can be found on her excellent website here at melissaleilanilarson.com. Also, check out this article about Melissa in the Salt Lake Tribune from February 25, 2024. 

 

Mary is going to see Melissa’s adaptation of Pride and Prejudice at SLCC’s Grand Theater on Friday May 17, 2024; if you’d like to join us for this performance, please get your tickets here! You can also check out Melissa’s play Bitter Lemon at Plan B Theater Company in Downtown Salt Lake in April 2024. 

 

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