The Turning: The Sisters Who Left

Today we present the second of two episodes featuring Karen Valby, author of The Swans of Harlem: Five Black Ballerinas, Fifty Years of Sisterhood, and Their Reclamation of a Groundbreaking History. The book records the largely forgotten stories of five Black ballerinas who changed the art form. Their stories are surprising and vivid and poignant… and totally worth your time if you enjoyed our most recent season of The Turning.  In our second episode of the series, Karen Valby speaks with former ballerina and founding member of the Dance Theater of Harlem, Sheila Rohan. You can buy The Swans of Harlem here: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/716415/the-swans-of-harlem-by-karen-valby/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As we work on Season 3 of The Turning, we have something special for you: two episodes featuring Karen Valby, author of The Swans of Harlem: Five Black Ballerinas, Fifty Years of Sisterhood, and Their Reclamation of a Groundbreaking History. The book records the largely forgotten stories of five Black ballerinas who changed the art form. Their stories are surprising and vivid and poignant… and totally worth your time if you enjoyed our most recent season of The Turning.  On the first episode, Karen Valby talks with former prima ballerina Lydia Abarca. You can buy The Swans of Harlem here: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/716415/the-swans-of-harlem-by-karen-valby/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Simon travels to Boulder to meet Alana's mother Joyce, and becomes determined to help her understand what happened to Alana. To hear more Dear Alana visit apple.co/dearalana or on the iHeartRadio app. For ad-free listening and exclusive content subscribe to Tenderfoot+ at tenderfoot.tv/plusSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On November 13, 2022, four students from the University of Idaho are brutally stabbed to death in an off-campus house. After a lengthy investigation and cross-country manhunt, a Ph.D. student from a neighboring university is charged with the crimes. As it turns out, the 28-year-old was majoring in criminology, studying the behavior of killers like the ones he would later be accused of becoming. Did he use his skills to become a real-life Dexter? Were the Idaho victims his first, or was a serial killer hiding in the midst? The producers of The Piketon Massacre explore all sides of the shocking crime in pursuit of the truth. Listen here or on the iHeartRadio app. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Hi Turning Fans! Explore the secretive and immoral multi-billion-dollar SUGAR INDUSTRY and the 25-year case that exposes how sugar is grown, cultivated and sold in the new podcast called Big Sugar.  About Big Sugar: Big sugar is a deep dive into the inner workings of the industry. Hear firsthand from the workers, lawyers and journalists exposing the lies, exploitation and ultimately the truth.This is a story of our time, an untold story that focuses on human rights, lobbying, nutrition and the environment. We travel from the Oval Office to the nightclubs of Havana to the sugarcane fields of Florida. Hosted by Celeste Headlee. Listen here and subscribe to Big Sugar on the iHeartRadio app or wherever you get your podcasts!See omny.fm/listener for privacy information.

A grab-bag of stories and extras. For more content, follow us on Instagram @RococoPunchSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The countdown to curtain begins. For more content, follow us on Instagram @RococoPunch TRANSCRIPT - https://www.rococopunch.com/turningtranscriptsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

PART TEN - "If it is going to stick with us forever, it matters that we get it right." For more content, follow us on Instagram @RococoPunch TRANSCRIPT - https://www.rococopunch.com/turningtranscripts See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

PART NINE - "I remember thinking, am I the only one like me who's ever walked these halls?" For more content, follow us on Instagram @RococoPunch TRANSCRIPT - https://www.rococopunch.com/turningtranscripts See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Here's a preview of Deep Cover, a show about people who lead double lives. Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Jake Halpern reveals webs of deception and dark underworlds, through interviews with federal agents and convicted criminals. In Deep Cover's new season, Never Seen Again, we hear the story of two young women, living on opposite sides of the country, who went missing at almost the exact same time. Seven years later, their stories collided when one of these young women resurfaced – posing as the other. A small town detective became obsessed with the case. He believes he's uncovered an imposter. A fraud. A foreign spy. A nationwide manhunt commences. No one can find her. Twenty years later, that woman is telling Jake her side of the story. Binge the full season of Deep Cover: Never Seen Again now at https://podcasts.pushkin.fm/dc3?sid=turning.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

PART EIGHT - "Blackness is a vehicle. It's a vehicle to get people where they need to go."For more content, follow us on Instagram @RococoPunchTRANSCRIPT - https://www.rococopunch.com/turningtranscripts See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

PART SEVEN - "Who decided this? ... Did the skies open up, and the ballet God said, 'This is how it has to be'? No, it's just what we've all been programmed." For more content, follow us on Instagram @RococoPunch TRANSCRIPT - https://www.rococopunch.com/turningtranscriptsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

PART SIX - "It feels like this hazy distant silhouette of a thing that doesn't feel real, like a wild dream that I can't fully recall." For more content, follow us on Instagram @RococoPunch TRANSCRIPT - https://www.rococopunch.com/turningtranscriptsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

PART FIVE - "Gone unchecked, bad things can happen. And they did." For more content, follow us on Instagram @RococoPunch TRANSCRIPT - https://www.rococopunch.com/turningtranscriptsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

PART FOUR - "Balanchine was so fond of perfume that leaves the scent of that dancer behind, and it still permeates." For more content, follow us on Instagram @RococoPunch TRANSCRIPT - https://www.rococopunch.com/turningtranscriptsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

PART THREE - "There are no windows, because we don't need windows, because the outside world doesn't matter. He was God in the theater. Ever observing, ever present. Are you a patriot? Are you a citizen? Are you willing to do whatever I ask you to do?" For more content, follow us on Instagram @RococoPunch TRANSCRIPT - https://www.rococopunch.com/turningtranscriptsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

"I would experiment a little. I would go to the theater, and the lights would go down, and I would say, 'Okay, I'm going to give you my mood. I'm going to give you all these troubles, and you do something with it,' said I to the stage. And then I would walk out, and I felt like somebody had rinsed me."For more content, follow us on Instagram @RococoPunchTRANSCRIPT - https://www.rococopunch.com/turningtranscriptsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

"He used to say, 'What are you looking at dear? You can't see you. Only I can see you.'"   For more content, follow us on Instagram @RococoPunch TRANSCRIPT - https://www.rococopunch.com/turningtranscriptsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A closed, elite group asks for sacrifice and extreme devotion from its members. It produces elegant dancers, but at what cost?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

When Mangesh Hattikudur (Part-Time Genius, Humans Growing Stuff) set out to do a big, sweeping show on astrology, he didn't realize the first interview would change the course of his life. But as he tries to put his world back together, he realizes the incredible ways astrology presents itself in modern society: from NASA employees who keep their belief in astrology in the closet, to world leaders who've used astrologers to guide foreign policy, to moneyball statisticians who use astrology more than statistics to build baseball teams, to a little shop in India where your fortune was written for you centuries ago, and is waiting for you to come claim it. Over the course of 8 episodes, Mangesh tries to decipher why we keep looking to the stars for answers, and what happens when you don't believe in astrology, but astrology keeps happening to you. Listen to Skyline Drive on the iHeartRadio app or wherever you get your podcasts. https://www.iheart.com/podcast/867-skyline-drive-104974284/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

BONUS - Jenna Cooper is a 36-year-old consecrated virgin who lives in Winona, Minnesota. She tells us what that means, what her life is like now, and what it's like to feel called when you're 12 years old. For additional content and information, follow the show on Instagram @RococoPunch This series was inspired by Mary Johnson's memoir, “An Unquenchable Thirst.” Find it HERE - https://amzn.to/3whsTeO Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com

PART TEN - “I couldn't come to any clarity unless I took off the habit and was seen.” For additional content and information, follow the show on Instagram @RococoPunch This series was inspired by Mary Johnson's memoir, “An Unquenchable Thirst.” Find it HERE - https://amzn.to/3whsTeO TRANSCRIPT - https://www.rococopunch.com/transcripts Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com

PART NINE - Is this a cult? How do you leave? For additional content and information, follow the show on Instagram @RococoPunch This series was inspired by Mary Johnson's memoir, “An Unquenchable Thirst.” Find it HERE - https://amzn.to/3whsTeO TRANSCRIPT - https://www.rococopunch.com/transcripts Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com

PART EIGHT - "She used to tell us, ‘If ever I will be a saint, I will be the saint of darkness.' ... And we didn't know what she meant." For additional content and information, follow the show on Instagram @RococoPunch This series was inspired by Mary Johnson's memoir, “An Unquenchable Thirst.” Find it HERE - https://amzn.to/3whsTeO TRANSCRIPT - https://www.rococopunch.com/transcripts Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com

PART SEVEN - This episode contains descriptions of alleged sexual abuse. Listener discretion is advised. We meet two former sisters who say they wanted more than anything to be part of the Missionaries of Charity. Along the road to taking their first vows, they allege their mistresses took advantage of the vow of obedience. They claim they were sexually abused by the women tasked with guiding them through the early days of their religious vocation — one in 1987 and the other in 2014. This episode was produced in partnership with Type Investigations. For additional content and information, follow the show on Instagram @RococoPunch This series was inspired by Mary Johnson's memoir, “An Unquenchable Thirst.” Find it HERE - https://amzn.to/3whsTeO TRANSCRIPT - https://www.rococopunch.com/transcripts Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com

BONUS - You know Kelli Dunham from previous episodes. Kelli joined the Missionaries of Charity looking for a life that made sense. That's not what she found. She had a painful exit from the MCs.  But there's so much more to her story. We talked with Kelli about her life before the Missionaries of Charity and after. About her faith. About her comedy. But mostly about her complicated relationship with her mom. For additional content and information, follow the show on Instagram @RococoPunch This series was inspired by Mary Johnson's memoir, “An Unquenchable Thirst.” Find it HERE - https://amzn.to/3whsTeO TRANSCRIPT - https://www.rococopunch.com/transcripts Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com

PART SIX - Siblings Joan and Sue both join the Missionaries of Charity, and they steal secret moments on the third floor — the only time they can be alone to talk. Like all MC sisters, they live by the vow of obedience. Their story shows how power works in the order: who has power, and what happens when you push back on it. Sue grapples with this from above, as a superior; Joan from below.  Content warning: This episode includes a mention of suicide.  If you are having thoughts of suicide, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline in the United States at 1-800-273-8255 (TALK). You can find a list of additional resources at SpeakingOfSuicide.com/resources. More support (via text) can be found at: https://www.crisistextline.org/ For additional content and information, follow the show on Instagram @RococoPunch This series was inspired by Mary Johnson's memoir, “An Unquenchable Thirst.” Find it HERE - https://amzn.to/3whsTeO TRANSCRIPT - https://www.rococopunch.com/transcripts Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com

PART FIVE - MC sisters are forbidden from having “particular friendships.” They're not supposed to get close to anyone. They're supposed to detach from their human relationships so that they can focus on God. They live a vow of chastity to the extreme. But even in the convent, secret love emerges, and two sisters begin a forbidden relationship. For additional content and information, follow the show on Instagram @RococoPunch This series was inspired by Mary Johnson's memoir, “An Unquenchable Thirst.” Find it HERE - https://amzn.to/3whsTeO TRANSCRIPT - https://www.rococopunch.com/transcripts Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com

PART FOUR - The world's most admired woman lived a life dedicated to helping the poor – but was it always in their best interest?  After Mother Teresa became famous, controversial claims about her work began to emerge. Dangerous medical practices? Secret baptisms? In this episode, we meet Mother Teresa's biggest critics and hear from sisters who were there. For additional content and information, follow the show on Instagram @RococoPunch This series was inspired by Mary Johnson's memoir, “An Unquenchable Thirst.” Find it HERE - https://amzn.to/3whsTeO TRANSCRIPT - https://www.rococopunch.com/transcripts Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com

PART THREE - She wasn't always a saint. When Mother Teresa is 36 years old, she hears a mystical voice on a train. Then she has visions — visions she believes are sent by God to tell her to bring souls to Jesus. Little does she know these moments of near ecstasy will lead her to international celebrity. But her path to founding her own religious institute is dotted with challenges and skepticism, even spiritual darkness. For additional content and information, follow the show on Instagram @RococoPunch This series was inspired by Mary Johnson's memoir, “An Unquenchable Thirst.” Find it HERE - https://amzn.to/3whsTeO TRANSCRIPT - https://www.rococopunch.com/transcripts Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com

PART TWO - The sisters learn more about sacrificial love and what it means to be married to Jesus. Mother Teresa believed suffering brings you closer to Christ, so the sisters look for opportunities for sacrifice – including sacrifices Mary never expected. She also meets a charismatic sister who makes her question whether God's love is enough. For additional content and information, follow the show on Instagram @RococoPunch This series was inspired by Mary Johnson's memoir, “An Unquenchable Thirst.” Find it HERE - https://amzn.to/3whsTeO TRANSCRIPT - https://www.rococopunch.com/transcripts Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com

PART ONE - We enter a hidden world behind convent walls to learn what it's like for a young sister to join the Missionaries of Charity. MC sisters take strict vows of poverty, chastity, obedience, and wholehearted and free service to the poorest of the poor. As aspirants, they start to learn the rules of this closed society, one that contains secret ceremonies and countless rituals For additional content and information, follow the show on Instagram @RococoPunch This series was inspired by Mary Johnson's memoir, “An Unquenchable Thirst.” Find it HERE - https://amzn.to/3whsTeO TRANSCRIPT - https://www.rococopunch.com/transcripts Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com

If you make a lifelong vow, what does it mean to break it? Can you truly give yourself to God or will your humanity get to you first? Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com