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17 episodes with Raleigh Little Theatre
5 episodes with Raleigh Little Theatre
2 episodes with Raleigh Little Theatre
2 episodes with Raleigh Little Theatre
2 episodes with Raleigh Little Theatre
Hear what Raleigh Little Theatre's Executive Director Heather Strickland and HANDS ON A HARDBODY Director Brian Westbrook have to say about the evolution of Raleigh Little Theatre, musical theater, and more. LinksRaleigh Little Theatre''s WebsiteLet's Get SocialFacebook @beltlinetobroadwayTwitter @beltlinetobwayInstagram @beltlinetobroadwayTikTok @beltlinetobroadway
Listen as Raven Heyward, founder, and host of DiversifyHER, converses with Raleigh, North Carolina Mayor candidate Dr. Terrance Ruth. Dr. Ruth holds PhD in Public Affairs from the University of Central Florida. He is currently teaching and conducting research in the School of Social Work at NC State University. He believes strongly in the concepts of equity, diversity, and inclusion, as a community member, citizen, father, and teacher. His work with United Way has partnered with organizations including Red Hat, IBM, Raleigh Little Theatre, NAACP, AJ Fletcher Foundation, John Rex Endowment, and many others. In his role, he provided leadership in creating practical plans to solve existing problems in communities. Connect with Dr.Ruth:Website: https://truth4raleigh.com/meet/#meet-terrance
Beyond the material struggles artists and arts organizations have faced over the last two years, there was also an ever-present and less explored existential struggle. Being an artist, specifically a teaching artist, isn't just a career. It's an identity. And when you can't do the job that makes you who you are anymore, well, who are you? In this episode of Arts Across NC we talked with two teaching artists – Alfredo Hurtado, an Army veteran, actor, and professional dancer with Black Box Dance Theatre in Raleigh, and Lakeetha Blakeney a theatre educator and writer from Concord, North Carolina. Alfredo and Lakeetha both spent time reflecting on what a personal loss they felt when their creative avenues were shut off suddenly, how the virtual alternatives didn't quite fill in for that missing piece, and the joy and fulfillment they have felt as we cautiously return to a sense of normalcy. You can learn more about Lakeetha Blakeney's work at KeethaB.org. Alfredo Hurtado is a founding member of Black Box Dance Theatre, a modern dance company that uses dance as “a catalyst for meaningful human interactions, powerful storytelling, and transformative art-making”. Learn more about their work at BlackBoxDanceTheatre.org. This June, Alfredo will perform in Raleigh Little Theatre's presentation of Lin-Manuel Miranda's Tony Award-winning musical, In The Heights.
About the Guests Heather J. Strickland started as the Executive Director of Raleigh Little Theatre in June 2020. Prior to joining RLT, Heather was the Communications and Development Director for the North Carolina Partnership for Children (NCPC), the organization that leads the Smart Start network across the state. In this role, she has led a network-wide rebranding effort and created and implemented fund development strategies for the organization. Prior to joining NCPC in 2013, Heather was the Director of Communications for the NC Department of State Treasurer where she oversaw all communications, branding, and marketing strategies for the agency, including the North Carolina Retirement Systems, the State Health Plan, and the Local Government Commission. Heather also served as the Marketing Director for Carolina Ballet, one of the largest performing arts organizations in the state. Heather has over 15 years of extensive experience and success in developing organizational strategy and branding, fundraising, and cultivating engagement for nonprofit and public service organizations. She has been involved with RLT since 2005, starting as a volunteer and stepping into the roles of director, teaching artist, and board member over time. Heather has also worked as a director, actor, and dance/fight choreographer. She is a member of ArtEquity's first cohort of National Board Leaders and has a degree in Theatre Arts and Communications from Flagler College. Patrick Torres is RLT's Artistic Director and has more than a decade of experience as a professional director and theatre educator. His work as a freelance director has been seen at The Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, The Southwest Shakespeare Festival, Round House Theatre, The Source Festival, and the Hangar Theatre among others. In 2003, he was selected as a Drama League Directing Fellow and in 2005 was named a Young Leader of Color by the Theatre Communications Group. He has an MFA in Directing from the University of Southern Mississippi. Candis Cox is a Gender and Sexuality educator, lecturer, and advocate for the LGBTQ community in Raleigh NC, where she lives with her husband, and throughout the country. Originally from Syracuse NY, she relocated to Raleigh to attend NC State University where she obtained a BA in Sociology. Originally scheduled to attend Campbell law school, she instead chose to focus on becoming her authentic self, completing her gender transition in 2003. Candis serves on the Board of Directors for EqualityNC, works with HRC (Human Rights Campaign), and works by speaking at events, businesses, schools, and other organizations to educate on Gender and Sexuality. Candis has been featured in a number of http://www.candiscox.com/category/press/ (news specials), has been interviewed by news networks across the globe, and is, to date, the only transgender person to have met with the current http://www.candiscox.com/press/in-meeting-with-north-carolina-gov-mccrory-lgbt-equality-advocates-demand-repeal-of-anti-lgbt-law/ (Governor Pat McCrory) to discuss his anti-LGBT “bathroom bill” H.B.2. Links https://raleighlittletheatre.org/ (Raleigh Little Theatre) Connect with Us Facebook @beltlinetbroadway Twitter @beltlinetobway Instagram @beltlinetobroadway Support this podcast
We chat with Mike McGee about his favorite on stage roles as well as his experience as a director at several area theatres. We discuss his experience as director of area favorite, Cinderella at Raleigh Little Theatre, and what the future holds now that restrictions are loosening.Host & Creator: Matt Gore *Producer: Meta Toole *Music by: Cody Walker *Guest: Mike McGee
About the Guest Brian Westbrook was born and raised in Henderson, NC. He studied piano, voice, theatre, and dance at Appalachian State University. From 2000 – 2009 Brian worked and performed with Shadowbox Live in Ohio. Since returning to North Carolina he has directed and performed with many theaters in the area including Henderson Rec Players, Raleigh Little Theatre, North Raleigh Arts and Creative Theatre, and Theatre in the Park. Westbrook lives in Durham. Resources http://www.delanceystreetfoundation.org/ (The Delancey Street Foundation) https://healing-transitions.org/ (Healing Transitions) https://www.llfnc.org/ (Lavare Leith Foundation) http://www.oxfordhousenc.org/ (Oxford House of North Carolina) http://www.aanc32.org/ (North Carolina Alcoholics Anonymous) https://www.fellowshiphall.com/ (Fellowship Hall) https://www.trosainc.org/ (TROSA) https://www.samhsa.gov/ (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration) https://www.aa.org/ (Alcoholics Anonymous) https://al-anon.org/ (Al-Anon) Connect with RDU on Stage Facebook – @rduonstage Twitter – @rduonstage Instagram – @rduonstage Web http://www.rduonstage.com/ (www.rduonstage.com) Support this podcast
About the Guests Jeff. A. R. Jones has served as Resident Designer for Carolina Ballet for 17 years where he designed sets and/or costumes for many of the company's original works beginning with the company’s first new work, Dancers in a Gypsy Style, and continuing with such shows as Messiah, The Kreutzer Sonata, Carmen, Cabaret and Des Images. He created the scenery for Nutcracker, Swan Lake, Sleeping Beauty, Firebird, Tempest Fantasy, Dracula and The Little Mermaid among many others. He has designed throughout the southeast at theatres including Playhouse on the Square, Florida Studio Theatre, Asolo Conservatory Theatre, and TheatreWorks. As a Fight Director, he has staged fights for ballet, dance, theatre, opera, film, and television over the past 20 years. He has taught classes at Florida State, Asolo Conservatory, Duke University, and is currently faculty at Elon University and William Peace University. He holds the titles of Fight Director, Certified Teacher, and Instructor of Theatrical Firearms with the Society of American Fight Directors. Mr. Jones has a Bachelor’s degree from William & Mary and a Master of Fine Arts degree from Florida State University. Heather J. Strickland started as the Executive Director of Raleigh Little Theatre in June 2020. Prior to joining RLT, Heather was the Communications and Development Director for the North Carolina Partnership for Children (NCPC), the organization that leads the Smart Start network across the state. In this role, she has led a network-wide rebranding effort and created and implemented fund development strategies for the organization. Prior to joining NCPC in 2013, Heather was the Director of Communications for the NC Department of State Treasurer where she oversaw all communications, branding, and marketing strategies for the agency, including the North Carolina Retirement Systems, the State Health Plan, and the Local Government Commission. Heather also served as the Marketing Director for Carolina Ballet, one of the largest performing arts organizations in the state. Heather has over 15 years of extensive experience and success in developing organizational strategy and branding, fundraising, and cultivating engagement for nonprofit and public service organizations. She has been involved with RLT since 2005, starting as a volunteer and stepping into the roles of director, teaching artist, and board member over time. Strickland has also worked as a director, actor, and dance/fight choreographer. She is a member of ArtEquity’s first cohort of National Board Leaders and has a degree in Theatre Arts and Communications from Flagler College. Tara Nicole Williams is an actor, educator, and combat artist raised, right here, in Raleigh, NC. She has trained with the https://safd.org/ (Society of American Fight Directors) for the last 10 years, specializing in German Longsword and high fantasy choreography. She has also facilitated the introduction of intimacy choreography to the Triangle community; organizing workshops and special events. Currently, she is pursuing her Intimacy Director status with https://www.teamidi.org/theatre (Intimacy Directors International). Along with her own training, she manages the https://www.facebook.com/stagecombatacademync/ (Stage Combat Academy of North Carolina), assisting Fight Director Jeff A.R. Jones. Tara also teaches stage combat, acting, and movement with universities, schools, and organizations locally, regionally, and nationally. Her work focuses on empowering actors to own their unique physicality – using movement to tell intricate stories. Most recently she has appeared on stage in Raleigh Little Theatre’s production of DON’T DRESS FOR DINNER, for which she won a Cantey Award as Suzette. Tara is currently in Honest Pint Theatre’s production of THE METROMANIACS as Lucille. Her previous fight/intimacy choreography credits include: THE LEGEND OF GEORGIA McBRIDE (Honest... Support this podcast
What would you do if you were met in a voting booth by a mysterious stranger from the past? That is the crux of Deb Margolin’s short comedic play INALIENABLE RIGHTS. This play is being co-produced by Raleigh Little Theatre as part of THE 19th AMENDMENT PROJECT. Hear what Margolin has to say about her work, collaborating in a time of COVID, and the evolution of women's theater. Resources https://burningcoal.org/ (Burning Coal Theatre Company) (Inalienable Rights / 19th Amendment Project) https://raleighlittletheatre.org/ (Raleigh Little Theatre) http://dixonplace.org/performances/deb-margolins-with-my-mother/ (Dixon Place Theater (Just Give Me One Half Hour with My Mother)) About the Artist Deb Margolin is a playwright, actor, and founding member of Split Britches Theater Company. She is the author of numerous plays, including Imagining Madoff, Turquoise, Critical Mass, and Bringing the Fishermen Home, as well as 11 solo performance plays which she has toured throughout the US. OBIE award for Sustained Excellence of Performance, the Kesselring Prize for Playwriting, a Helen Merrill Distinguished Playwright award, and the Richard H. Broadhead Prize for teaching excellence at Yale. https://www.debmargolin.com/ (https://www.debmargolin.com/) Connect with Us Facebook – @rduonstage Twitter – @rduonstage Instagram – @rduonstage Web http://www.rduonstage.com/ (www.rduonstage.com) Support this podcast
Julius Tillery has innovative thoughts on Cotton.... On his website, he says "Black Cotton, a company that is going to change the game for you, me, all of us. Black Cotton comes from us, and is meant for us! For many years, cotton was the number one crop our people produced in the South, by our hands and feet, for no wage or compensation. After the Emancipation Proclamation, many of our ancestors made mere pennies off of the cotton produced from sharecropping. What’s worse, for the amount of money that’s made in the same industry today, black cotton farms are still making just pennies compared to the billions earned by their counterparts.I grew up in this system of poverty cotton farming. My farm home county of Northampton County in North Carolina is one of the poorest performers of economic health in the state by county, but it’s also ranked number two in the state for cotton production. Are we raising crops for our communities to suffer? As a black farmer, it has been depressing to see each year go by with farming communities struggling and deteriorating, while our efforts continue to be exploited across the world for others to profit." we look forward to our discussion about how business is going, and what he feels the future is like for Black Farmers... The number to call is 6466688393 and we hope that you wil tell your friends and family to join us in this discussion on black farming and it's merits and benefits...Who knows we might even motivate someone into farmingAlso joining us will be Charles Phaneuf of one of our premiere theatre companies....I first met Charles when he was a student from D.C. coming down to work at Durham Arts Council and have been impressed by his work ever since..
Julius Tillery has innovative thoughts on Cotton.... On his website, he says "Black Cotton, a company that is going to change the game for you, me, all of us. Black Cotton comes from us, and is meant for us! For many years, cotton was the number one crop our people produced in the South, by our hands and feet, for no wage or compensation. After the Emancipation Proclamation, many of our ancestors made mere pennies off of the cotton produced from sharecropping. What’s worse, for the amount of money that’s made in the same industry today, black cotton farms are still making just pennies compared to the billions earned by their counterparts.I grew up in this system of poverty cotton farming. My farm home county of Northampton County in North Carolina is one of the poorest performers of economic health in the state by county, but it’s also ranked number two in the state for cotton production. Are we raising crops for our communities to suffer? As a black farmer, it has been depressing to see each year go by with farming communities struggling and deteriorating, while our efforts continue to be exploited across the world for others to profit." we look forward to our discussion about how business is going, and what he feels the future is like for Black Farmers... The number to call is 6466688393 and we hope that you wil tell your friends and family to join us in this discussion on black farming and it's merits and benefits...Who knows we might even motivate someone into farmingAlso joining us will be Charles Phaneuf of one of our premiere theatre companies....I first met Charles when he was a student from D.C. coming down to work at Durham Arts Council and have been impressed by his work ever since..
I recently had the great pleasure of interviewing Heather J. Strickland, who on June 17th will begin her tenure as the new executive director at Raleigh Little Theatre taking over for Charles Phaneuf, who had departed back in late January this past year. Strickland brings with her over 15 years of extensive experience and success in developing organizational strategy, branding, fundraising, and cultivating engagement for nonprofit and public service organizations. She has been involved with RLT since 2005, starting as a volunteer and stepping into the roles of director, teaching artist, and board member over time. For more information, please visit: www.raleighlittletheatre.org Follow Heather J. Stickland on Twitter: @HeatherJayS Follow Kare Reviews at www.karereviews.net and on Twitter: @KareReviews Also please visit the newly launched Patreon page: https://www.patreon.com/jeffreykare?fan_landing=true Follow Jeffrey Kare on Twitter: @JeffreyKare If you like what you've heard here, please subscribe to any one of the following places where the Kare Reviews Podcast is available. Anchor: https://anchor.fm/jeffrey-kare Apple: itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/kare-reviews-podcast/id1453846013 Google: www.google.com/podcasts?feed=aHR0cHM6Ly9hbmNob3IuZm0vcy85NWFhZDFjL3BvZGNhc3QvcnNz Spotify: open.spotify.com/show/6GL69s4zoDQmBcZf3NALTG Breaker: www.breaker.audio/kare-reviews-podcast Overcast: overcast.fm/itunes1453846013/kare-reviews-podcast Pocket Casts: pca.st/47Vw RadioPublic: radiopublic.com/kare-reviews-podcast-6rMdXk --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/jeffrey-kare/support
Hear what Michael Larson, star of the https://raleighlittletheatre.org/shows/the-curious-incident-of-the-dog-in-the-night-time/ (Raleigh Little Theatre) production of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time and Patrick Torres, Artistic Director of Raleigh Little Theatre, have to say about the role community theater has in opening hearts and minds. About the Guests Patrick Torres is RLT’s Artistic Director and has more than a decade of experience as a professional director and theatre educator. His work as a freelance director has been seen at The Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, The Southwest Shakespeare Festival, Round House Theatre, The Source Festival, and the Hangar Theatre among others. In 2003, he was selected as a Drama League Directing Fellow and in 2005 was named a Young Leader of Color by the Theatre Communications Group. He has an MFA in Directing from the University of Southern Mississippi. Patrick will be directing the http://playmakersrep.org/show/native-gardens/ (PlayMakers Repertory Company) production of Native Gardens in April 2020. Michael Larson is a junior in high school. Some of his previous performances include: Into the Woods as Jack, Once Upon a Mattress as the Jester, Guys and Dolls as Nicely-Nicely Johnson, Elf the Musical as Buddy, Thoroughly Modern Millie as Ching Ho, Urinetown as Officer Barrel. He is ecstatic to have the opportunity to play the role of Christopher in The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time. He has performed in choir throughout school and has taken music lessons at Chapel Hill School of Musical Arts for even years. He plans to study performing arts in college. Zara Van Hemert (Co-Host) is a senior in high school. She is a competitive gymnast and hopes to be an elementary school teacher. Resources https://artsaccessinc.org/ (Arts Access) Connect with RDU on Stage Facebook – @rduonstage Twitter – @rduonstage Instagram – @rduonstage Web – http://www.rduonstage.com/ (www.rduonstage.com) Support this podcast
Raleigh Little Theatre's Executive Director Charles Phaneuf, Education Director Meredyth Pederson Cooper, and Women's Theatre Festival Executive Director Johannah Maynard Edwards talk about the evolution and importance of sensory-friendly performances and the upcoming production THE CURIOUS INCIDENT OF THE DOG IN THE NIGHT-TIME. About the Guests Charles Phaneuf is a Raleigh native who returned to the area and to RLT in 2012. He was previously Managing Director of Joe’s Movement Emporium, a multidisciplinary performing arts center located outside of Washington, DC, and Associate Managing Director at Shakespeare Theatre Company during the expansion into the Harman Center for the Arts. Charles is a founding member of the Capital Fringe Festival and Bohemian Caverns Jazz Orchestra, both in Washington. He is a UNC-Chapel Hill alumni, a board member of the Friends of the Gregg Museum at NCSU, and serves on the Dix Park Master Plan Advisory Committee. Charles was named “40 Under 40” by the Triangle Business Journal in 2014 and “Tar Heel of the Week” by the News & Observer in 2018. Meredyth Pederson Cooper joined the staff of Raleigh Little Theatre as the Director of Education in March 2017. Prior to moving to North Carolina, Meredyth served as the Associate Education Director at Lexington Children’s Theatre in Lexington, Kentucky where she focused on creating meaningful partnerships with schools and creating engaging arts education experiences for youth and families. Meredyth holds her M.F.A. in Drama and Theatre for Youth and Communities from the University of Texas at Austin and a B.A. in Theatre from American University in Washington, DC. Meredyth is also currently the Managing Editor of TYA Today, the top trade publication for the field of Theatre for Young Audiences in the United States. Johannah Maynard Edwards is the Executive Director of the Women’s Theatre Festival based in Raleigh, NC. Johannah began making theatre when she was 15 and co-founded her first company, p.i.e., when she was 19. She has directed, devised, and produced countless theatrical productions in NYC, Minneapolis, and the Triangle. A passionate arts educator, Johannah has been a teaching artist at Raleigh Little Theatre for the past ten years and has taught at Arts Together, Sterling Montessori, LearningSpring, NC Governor’s School, through the America Reads program in NYC public schools, and most recently as the Interim Theatre Program Director at Longleaf School of the Arts. Johannah is a Chief Rep for PAAL, the Parent Artist Advocacy League for the Performing Arts and serves on the Arts Learning Community for Universal Access through the Office of Raleigh Arts. She’s an outspoken advocate and consultant for access and inclusion in theatre and has created a resource guide for presenting sensory-friendly theatre. She’s a contributor to RDU Onstage and is developing audio content for theatre practitioners and producers. Johannah is a graduate of NYU/Tisch School of the Arts/Playwrights Horizons Theatre School. Connect with RDU on Stage Facebook – @rduonstage Twitter – @rduonstage Instagram – @rduonstage Web http://www.rduonstage.com/ (www.rduonstage.com) The Raleigh Little Theatre production of “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time” opens January 17. RDU on Stage's Lauren Van Hemert will be moderating a talkback with the cast after the January 26 performance. There is also a sensory-friendly performance scheduled for February 9. For more information visit https://raleighlittletheatre.org/ (https://raleighlittletheatre.org/). Support this podcast
On this episode, I'm doing something a bit different. I am chatting with two different artists about two different princess stories, one steeped in Raleigh theater history, and one working its way to becoming a holiday panto tradition. First up, I’m talking to Garrett Clayton who plays The Huntsman in the Lythgoe Family Panto production of A SNOW WHITE CHRISTMAS. A SNOW WHITE CHRISTMAS runs through December 8th at Raleigh Memorial Auditorium. For more information visit: https://nctheatre.com/snow-white-christmas (https://nctheatre.com/snow-white-christmas). Next, I'm chatting with Music Director Joanna Li. Li has been working with Raleigh Little Theatre's production of CINDERELLA for the last three years. This year marks the 36th year for the family production. The show runs December 6th - 22nd. For more information visit: https://raleighlittletheatre.org/shows/cinderella/ (https://raleighlittletheatre.org/shows/cinderella/). About the Guests Garrett Clayton is best known for his leading role in the hit Disney Channel movies “Teen Beach Movie,” and “Teen Beach Movie 2." Clayton starred as Tanner, the sun-bleached surf star of a classic teen beach movie "Wet Side Story," where two kids from the present find themselves mysteriously trapped. He recently made a dramatic shift to take the lead role opposite James Franco and Christian Slater in King Cobra, which premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival in 2016. Following that he took the lead in the thriller, Don’t Hang Up and joined the all-star cast of Harvey Fierstein, Jennifer Hudson, Ariana Grande, Kristin Chenoweth and Martin Short for NBC’s “Hairspray Live!” He recently finished up work on the drama, Reach, which will be released in 2018. Clayton has also recently found his way back to the stage, starring opposite Al Pacino and Judith Light in God Looked Away. The show premiered at the Pasadena Playhouse and is expected to make its way to Broadway later this year. He is currently working on a musical version of the popular film The Breakfast Club, which will open summer 2017. Past work includes a lead role in the musical version of Almost Famous. An actor, singer, and dancer, his television credits include a recurring role on the hit ABC Family series “The Fosters,” and guest-star roles on series such as Lifetime’s “The Client List,” and Disney Channel's "Shake It Up" and “Jessie.” Clayton also led a talented cast in the Lifetime TV movie "Holiday Spin," opposite Ralph Macchio. Raised in the suburbs of Detroit, Michigan, Clayton performed in regional theater productions of "High School Musical 2," "You're a Good Man Charlie Brown," "Peter Pan" and "Beauty and the Beast.” Joanna Li earned her Bachelors of Music from Baylor University and her Masters of Music from the Cleveland Institute of Music. Since then, she has music directed across the United States, including local organizations such as Theatre Raleigh, Cape Fear Regional Theatre, North Raleigh Arts and Creative Theatre, Temple Theatre, Raleigh Little Theatre, and her own newly-formed company Two-Way Street Theatre, all while serving as the organist for St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Cary. Connect with RDU on Stage Facebook – @rduonstage Twitter – @rduonstage Instagram – @rduonstage Web http://www.rduonstage.com/ (www.rduonstage.com) Support this podcast
Why is representation on stage so important? If you’ve followed this podcast, you know that is a question I frequently ask. And perhaps nobody has given me a more insightful, personal answer to that question than North Raleigh Arts and Creative Theatre’s Managing Artistic Director Timothy E. Locklear. Tim and I sat down to talk about the history of LGBTQ theater in this country from Mae West’s play THE DRAG to this season’s THE INHERITANCE. Hear what he has to say about that, the importance of honoring the past, and his personal account of why representation onstage is so important. About the Guest Timothy E. Locklear has been the Managing Artistic Director of North Raleigh Arts and Creative Theatre (NRACT) since 2014. As NRACT's Managing Artistic Director, he has directed THE TALE OF THE ALLERGISTS' WIFE, DOGFIGHT, SPRING AWAKENING, NEXT TO NORMAL, and the world premiere of GAY CARD. He also directed the acclaimed Raleigh Little Theatre production of MOTHERS AND SONS. Originally from McColl, South Carolina, Tim currently resides in Wake Forest. For more information visit http://www.nract.org/ (http://www.nract.org/). Links https://rduonstage.com/2019/11/25/feature-list-of-top-25-essential-lgbtq-plays/ (List of 25 Essential LGBTQ Plays) https://rduonstage.com/2019/11/25/feature-20-essential-lgbtq-musicals-everybody-should-see/ (List of 20 Essential LGBTQ Musicals) Upcoming Productions https://nctheatre.com/shows/kinky-boots (February 2020 - Kinky Boots - NC Theatre) https://theatreraleigh.com/subscribe/ (June 2020 - Fun Home - Theatre Raleigh) Connect with RDU on StageFacebook – @rduonstage Twitter – @rduonstage Instagram – @rduonstage Web http://www.rduonstage.com/ (www.rduonstage.com) Support this podcast
If you want to participate in racial reconciliation, "become a storyteller yourself." In this episode, Patrick interviews Wake County Teacher, Matt Scialdone, and his students KaLa and Abby, who provide wonderful insight into the play, the history of lynching in Wake County, and their own beliefs about truth and reconciliation. "Blood at the Root" runs September 27 - October 13, 2019, at Raleigh Little Theatre.
Last week, Bill Maher made a comment, “Fat-shaming needs to make a comeback.” As an actor, educator, and combat artist, Tara Nicole Williams, has experienced fat-shaming and bullying and has a lot to say about body image, typecasting, and representation on stage. About the Guest Tara Nicole Williams is an actor, educator, and combat artist raised, right here, in Raleigh, NC. She has trained with the https://safd.org/ (Society of American Fight Directors) for the last 10 years, specializing in German Longsword and high fantasy choreography. She has also facilitated the introduction of intimacy choreography to the Triangle community; organizing workshops and special events. Currently, she is pursuing her Intimacy Director status with https://www.teamidi.org/theatre (Intimacy Directors International). Along with her own training, she manages the https://www.facebook.com/stagecombatacademync/ (Stage Combat Academy of North Carolina), assisting Fight Director Jeff A.R. Jones. Tara also teaches stage combat, acting, and movement with universities, schools, and organizations locally, regionally, and nationally. Her work focuses on empowering actors to own their unique physicality – using movement to tell intricate stories. Most recently she has appeared on stage in Raleigh Little Theatre’s production of DON’T DRESS FOR DINNER, for which she won a Cantey Award as Suzette. Tara is currently in Honest Pint Theatre’s production of THE METROMANIACS as Lucille. Her previous fight/intimacy choreography credits include: THE LEGEND OF GEORGIA McBRIDE (Honest Pint Theatre), BASKERVILLE: A SHERLOCK HOLMES MYSTERY (Raleigh Little Theatre), JULIUS CAESAR (William Peace University), CARMEN (NC Opera), THE MIRACLE WORKER (Seed Art Share), and SHE KILLS MONSTERS (Meredith College). She will be revisiting SHE KILLS MONSTERS this month with the University of Nebraska. For more information visit https://www.taranicolewilliams.com/ (https://www.taranicolewilliams.com/). Links https://youtu.be/Ax1U04c4gaw (James Corden’s Response to Bill Maher’s Fat-Shaming Comments) https://howlround.com/body-shaming (Howlround: Body-Shaming, the Epidemic Plaguing Collegiate Theatre Programs) Connect with RDU on Stage Facebook – @rduonstage Twitter – @rduonstage Instagram – @rduonstage Web http://www.rduonstage.com/ (www.rduonstage.com) Support this podcast
Ethel Waters was a pioneer who broke down barriers on Broadway, in films, and on television. She was the first to sing the song “Stormy Weather” at the famed Cotton Club in 1933. In fact, her recording of the song was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame nearly 70 years after she recorded it and in 2004, The Library of Congress added it to the National Recording Registry. But behind Waters’ soft smile, was pain and sadness. Phyllis Morrison and Kenneth Hinton introduce us to the woman behind the music. Morrison is playing Waters in the Agape Theatre Project production of ‘Sweet Mama Stringbean, the Life and Times of Ethel Waters’ which Hinton is directing. About the Guests Kenneth Hinton is an educator, actor, stage and video director, and playwright. He directs plays at Shaw University, NCCU and community theatre. Mr. Hinton has won three national CASE awards for his documentary television work in 1988, 1989, and 1991 from Ford Motor Company. Mr. Hinton is an expert directing multi-camera video productions. Directing credits include: “You Ain’t My Daddy” by Ken Hinton, Chris Glover, “Homegirls” by Karen K.D. Evans,” and “Steal Away” by Romano King, “The Amen Corner” by James Baldwin, “Anatomy of a Woman Abused” by Jaison McMillian, “Ceremonies in Dark in Old Men” by Lonne Elder, and “Trouble in Mind” by Alice Childress. Acting Credits: Mr. Roberts, “The Watsons go to Birmingham,” Alphonso in the staged reading of Samm Art-Williams’ play, “Last of the Line,” Ozelle Graham in the play “Wise Ones,” Rev. Luke Roberts in the play “A Heart Divided,” Gerald in the Robin Armstrong play “Smoldering Embers,” and Randolph in the Sam Art-Williams play “Dance on Widow’s Row” at the Raleigh Little Theatre. Mr. Hinton is on the Board of Directors of the Durham Regional Theatre. He is currently the owner of The Media Group video productions and Artistic Director of Agape Theatre Project. Phyllis (Pia) Morrison is a relative newcomer to the theater. Although her list of acting credits isn’t extensive, she is making her mark on the stage. You may have seen her in “Sister Act” (as Deloris Van Cartier – Gallery Players – Burlington, NC), “Curve of Departure” (as Linda – Bulldog Theater Company – Durham, NC), or “You Ain’t My Daddy” (as Judge Jocelyn Beckett – Agape’ Theater Project) to name just a few. Phyllis’ passion is singing. She wrote and co-wrote several tunes that were performed in the Ovens Auditorium (Charlotte, NC), The Carolina Theatre (Durham, NC) and North Carolina Central University for the stage play, “Butterfly Wings.” This singer/songwriter/actor is most excited to now be the front person for her own R&B/Soul performing band, PM Groove. Phyllis studied and graduated from Georgia Southern University (Bachelor of Science degree in Education); North Carolina Central University (M.A. Educational Media); and East Carolina University (M.A. Ed Instructional Technology). Connect with RDU on Stage Facebook – @rduonstage Twitter – @rduonstage Instagram – @rduonstage Web http://www.rduonstage.com/ (www.rduonstage.com) Music Credits ‘Saint Louis Blues’ – Words and music by William C. Handy and Rosamond Johnson, Handy Bros. Music Co. Inc., ASCAP, used with permission. Sung by Phyllis Morrison. ‘Supper Time’ – Words and music by Irving Berlin, Irving Berlin Music Corp., ASCAP, used with permission. Sung by Phyllis Morrison. ‘Taking a Chance on Love’ – Words and music by Vernon Duke, Ted Fedder, and John Latouche, EMI Miller Catalog, Inc. and Taking a Chance on Love Music Company, ASCAP used with permission. Performed live by Ethel Waters, Armed Forces Radio Service, Jubilee!, July 17, 1945. Support this podcast
PART 2: A 6-time Tony Award winner (with 17 total nominations) over his 43 year career as a costume designer on Broadway, this Raleigh, NC native shares his incredible story. This two-part episode is the first of several coming at you this month as part of a Beetlejuice the Musical takeover! William Ivey Long literally lived in a Raleigh Little Theatre dressing room for the first few years of his life before ultimately leaving the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (where he originally studied art history) to attend the Yale School of Drama, rooming with some modern day celebrity powerhouses and studying set design under Ming Cho Lee. In 2000, Long was chosen by the National Theatre Conference as its "Person of the Year" and was honored with the "Legend of Fashion" Award by the Art Institute of Chicago in 2003. He was inducted into the American Theater Hall of Fame for 2005. His professional credits go on forever, but he won his Tonys for Nine, Crazy for You, The Producers, Hairspray, Grey Gardens, and the 2013 revival of Cinderella. He now has two productions currently running on Broadway: Beetlejuice and Tootsie, which both opened in the 2019 season 1 day apart from each other. Connect with Beetlejuice the Musical online:Instagram: beetlejuicebwayTwitter: beetlejuicebwayYouTubehttps://beetlejuicebroadway.comConnect with The Theatre Podcast:Support us on Patreon: Patreon.com/TheTheatrePodcastTwitter & Instagram: @theatre_podcastFacebook.com/OfficialTheatrePodcastTheTheatrePodcast.comAlan's personal Instagram: @alansealesJillian's personal Instagram: @jillianhochmanEmail us at feedback@thetheatrepodcast.com. We want to know what you think. Thank you to our friends Jukebox The Ghost for our intro and outro music. You can find them on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook @jukeboxtheghost or via the web via jukeboxtheghost.com. A very special thanks to our patrons who help make this podcast possible! Paul Seales, David Seales If you would like to see your name in this show notes or get a shout out on the pod itself, visit ttp.fm/patreon to become a member and show your support!
PART 1: A 6-time Tony Award winner (with 17 total nominations) over his 43 year career as a costume designer on Broadway, this Raleigh, NC native shares his incredible story. This two-part episode is the first of several coming at you this month as part of a Beetlejuice the Musical takeover! William Ivey Long literally lived in a Raleigh Little Theatre dressing room for the first few years of his life before ultimately leaving the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (where he originally studied art history) to attend the Yale School of Drama, rooming with some modern day celebrity powerhouses and studying set design under Ming Cho Lee. In 2000, Long was chosen by the National Theatre Conference as its "Person of the Year" and was honored with the "Legend of Fashion" Award by the Art Institute of Chicago in 2003. He was inducted into the American Theater Hall of Fame for 2005. His professional credits go on forever, but he won his Tonys for Nine, Crazy for You, The Producers, Hairspray, Grey Gardens, and the 2013 revival of Cinderella. He now has two productions currently running on Broadway: Beetlejuice and Tootsie, which both opened in the 2019 season 1 day apart from each other. Connect with Beetlejuice the Musical online:Instagram: beetlejuicebwayTwitter: beetlejuicebwayYouTubehttps://beetlejuicebroadway.comConnect with The Theatre Podcast:Support us on Patreon: Patreon.com/TheTheatrePodcastTwitter & Instagram: @theatre_podcastFacebook.com/OfficialTheatrePodcastTheTheatrePodcast.comAlan's personal Instagram: @alansealesJillian's personal Instagram: @jillianhochmanEmail us at feedback@thetheatrepodcast.com. We want to know what you think. Thank you to our friends Jukebox The Ghost for our intro and outro music. You can find them on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook @jukeboxtheghost or via the web via jukeboxtheghost.com. A very special thanks to our patrons who help make this podcast possible! Paul Seales, David Seales If you would like to see your name in this show notes or get a shout out on the pod itself, visit ttp.fm/patreon to become a member and show your support!
Hear what Carol de Giere, the author of DEFYING GRAVITY, Stephen Schwartz's biography, has to say about the evolution of PIPPIN, Schwartz's experience working with Bob Fosse which was recently dramatized in the mini-series ‘Fosse/Verdon,’ and more. About the Guest Carol de Giere is the author of two books that provide behind-the-scenes stories on popular musicals. The first book Defying Gravity takes readers into the world of the award-winning composer-lyricist Stephen Schwartz known for the musicals WICKED, PIPPIN and other Broadway shows and films. The second book The Godspell Experience: Inside a Transformative Musical records the history and song-by-song details for GODSPELL. Both books serve as historical records in addition to offering insights on the creative process for fans of musicals, working writers, and performers. For more information visit: https://www.facebook.com/TheSchwartzScene/?ref=br_rs (The Schwartz Scene) https://www.musicalwriters.com/ (Musicalwriters.com) http://musicalschwartz.com/ (MusicalSchwartz.com) http://www.caroldegiere.com/ (CaroldeGiere.com) Credits https://robinhoodradioondemand.com/podcast/leonard-lopate-at-large-stephen-schwartz-carol-de-giere/ (Special thanks to Leonard Lopate for allowing RDU on Stage to use an excerpt of his podcast interview with Stephen Schwartz. To hear Leonard’s complete interview with both Carol and Stephen on the Leonard Lopate at Large podcast, click here.) Special thanks also to Patrick Torres, Artistic Director of Raleigh Little Theatre (RLT) and Director of the 2019 RLT production of PIPPIN which runs through June 16th. On the Right Track, music/lyrics by Stephen Schwartz, performed by Deanna Richards and Jesse Farmer from the Raleigh Little Theatre 2019 production directed by Patrick Torres. Magic to Do, music/lyrics by Stephen Schwartz, performed by the cast of the Raleigh Little Theatre 2019 production. Corner of the Sky, music/lyrics by Stephen Schwartz, performed by Jesse Farmer from the Raleigh Little Theatre 2019 production. Connect with RDU on Stage Facebook – @rduonstage Twitter – @rduonstage Instagram – @rduonstage Web http://www.rduonstage.com/ (www.rduonstage.com) Support this podcast
For the Honest Pint production of Matthew Lopez's THE LEGEND OF GEORGIA MCBRIDE, Director Susannah Hough enlisted the help of Vivica C. Coxx, Durham’s Drag Diva, to coach the cast (Matthew Hager and David Henderson) on the art of drag by putting them through drag queen boot camp. Hear what Coxx, Henderson, Hager, and Hough have to say about drag, being the best version of yourself, and finding your logical family. About the Guests Vivica C. Coxx brings beauty, comedy, and social justice to a head in the most beautiful way. Crafting a nightlife culture AND making drag accessible to everyone, she has made a name for herself and keeps growing! Vivica seeks to create an open and inclusive drag community where love and entertainment are most important. If you’re not having fun, she’s not interested. Most often, her shows are amateur-centered and about giving young performers the opportunity to become something more. With a B.S. in Medical Anthropology and Gender Studies from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County and an M.Ed. from North Carolina State University, she is focused on progressing social justice efforts in Durham and the surrounding community. For more information visit: http://www.vivicaccoxx.com/ (http://www.vivicaccoxx.com/). David Henderson is the Founder and Co-Artistic Producer of Honest Pint Theatre Company. He is a Morehead Scholar graduate of UNC-Chapel Hill. Most recently, he was seen in Honest Pint’s one-man show, THE ABSOLUTE BRIGHTNESS OF LEONARD PELKEY. Prior to that, he played Doc in THE NIGHT ALIVE and played the title role in HAMLET, which earned him the Broadway World award for Best Actor in a Play. He also starred as Sweeney in SWEENEY TODD at Raleigh Little Theatre and understudied for the role for Playmakers Repertory Company. For the past 23 years, he has had the pleasure of playing Jacob Marley in Theatre in the Park’s annual production of A CHRISTMAS CAROL. Susannah Hough is the Co-Artistic Producer of Honest Pint. She hails from Los Angeles but has called the Triangle home for many years now, and is a veteran of numerous stage and film companies here. Some of her favorite Honest Pint roles are ANNAPURNA (Honest Pint Theatre Co.), THE NIGHT ALIVE (Director), and THE ABSOLUTE BRIGHTNESS OF LEONARD PELKEY (Director). She has appeared in the short films Righteous (Bombshell Studios), Endings (Turnip Films), and Katie’s Dog (Carbon Footprint), as well as numerous commercials, industrial videos, and TV. She coaches actors for auditions and teaches acting classes, as well. For more information visit: http://www.susannahhough.com/ (www.susannahhough.com). Matthew Hager is an actor, children’s musical theatre composer, and theatre educator based out of Raleigh, NC. He is a graduate of UNC School of the Arts (high school – drama) and UNC Chapel Hill (BA Dramatic Arts), with additional training at DePaul University, Shakespeare & Co., and Michael Howard Studios. Matthew has performed with many theatre companies in the Triangle, including North Carolina Theatre, Bulldog Ensemble Theater, Manbites Dog, Deep Dish, and Burning Coal (for whom he has been a company member since 2012). In 2017, Matthew founded https://www.aggregatetheatre.com/ (Aggregate Theatre Company) with the mission of developing a younger theatergoing audience in the Triangle. Connect with RDU on Stage Facebook – @rduonstage Twitter – @rduonstage Instagram – @rduonstage Web http://www.rduonstage.com/ (www.rduonstage.com) Support this podcast
When we talk about Latinx theater in the United States, we are not talking about a trend that started with In the Heights or Hamilton. We are talking about a movement that effectively began in the fields of central California with El Teatro Campesino. And that’s what we are talking about today, Latinx theater, with Patrick Torres, Artistic Director of https://raleighlittletheatre.org/ (Raleigh Little Theatre) (RLT). About the Guest Patrick Torres is RLT’s Artistic Director and has more than a decade of experience as a professional director and theatre educator. His work as a freelance director has been seen at The Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, The Southwest Shakespeare Festival, Round House Theatre, The Source Festival, and the Hangar Theatre among others. In 2003, he was selected as a Drama League Directing Fellow and in 2005 was named a Young Leader of Color by the Theatre Communications Group. He has an MFA in Directing from the University of Southern Mississippi. Patrick will be directing the http://playmakersrep.org/show/native-gardens/ (PlayMakers Repertory Company) production of Native Gardens in April 2020. Resources & Credits Special thanks to Elizabeth Quesada for providing the audio of America from a rehearsal of the West Side Story Symphony Concert. She is playing Anita in RLT’s concert version. You can follow Elizabeth on Instagram @elizabethmquesada. Click any of the links below to find out more about Latinx theater OR learn more about the theater companies Patrick mentioned in this episode. https://howlround.com/latinx-theatre-commons (Latinx Theatre Commons) http://elteatrocampesino.com/ (El Teatro Campesino) http://en.galatheatre.org/ (Gala Hispanic Theatre) Connect with RDU on Stage Facebook – @rduonstage Twitter – @rduonstage Instagram – @rduonstage Web http://www.rduonstage.com/ (www.rduonstage.com) Support this podcast
https://rduonstage.com/transcript-of-ep-14-kahei-shum-mcrae-on-art-costume-design-and-the-chaos-where-all-beautiful-work-is-birthed/ (To read a transcript of this episode, click here.) As Wake County’s first artist-in-residence, Kahei Shum Mcrae, also known as Ketti, has spent the last year working with theaters across the Triangle designing costumes for such shows as Raleigh Little Theatre’s Measure for Measure and the upcoming Theatre in the Park production of Godspell which opens in April. Ketti is originally from Hong Kong, where her passion for art was nurtured through Chinese painting and calligraphy classes. About the Guest Kahei Shum (Ketti) is a Costume Designer and Art Department Artisan. She received her MFA in Costume Design and her BFA in Production Design/Art Direction in Filmmaking from the University of North Carolina School of the Arts. She also holds a BA in Theatre and Drama from the University of Wisconsin – Madison. Shum is originally from Hong Kong, where her passion for Art was nurtured through Chinese painting and calligraphy classes. She started reading plays and writing stories when she was in secondary school and fell in love with the story-telling process. During her undergraduate years, Kahei was introduced to all areas of design which set a foundation for her well-rounded atheistic. Kahei started working professionally as a Costume Designer while pursuing her MFA. Her costume design work has been seen at Theatre Charlotte, Children’s Theatre of Charlotte, UNC Charlotte, Davison College, The Barter Players, Wake Forest University, the Triad Stage, the Arts Center of Coastal Carolina, Ash Lawn Opera, Peppercorn Children’s Theatre and the Orlando Repertory Theatre. She is the first Wake County Visiting Artist and has spent the last year designing for theaters around the Triangle and presenting workshops and master classes. For more information about Shum, visit https://www.kaheishumdesigns.com/ (www.kaheishumdesigns.com/). Connect with RDU on Stage Facebook – @rduonstage Twitter – @rduonstage Instagram – @rduonstage Web http://www.rduonstage.com/ (www.rduonstage.com) Support this podcast
Since 2011, the Theatre Development Fund, also known as TDF, has presented more than 15 autism-friendly shows on Broadway, starting with Disney’s landmark musical ‘The Lion King.’ Beyond Broadway, TDF works with theatres across the country to help create environments that are accessible to all, including working with Arts Access in training some of the staff at Raleigh Little Theatre in advance of their performance of ‘Alice @ Wonderland’ last spring. This season Raleigh Little Theatre is offering one sensory-friendly performance of each one of their family series productions, as well as their production of ‘The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time,’ in which they will not only be offering a sensory-friendly performance, but they will also be casting an autistic actor in the title role. Hear what Raleigh Little Theatre’s Executive Director Charles Phaneuf and Arts Access Executive Director Betsy Ludwig have to say about what goes into producing these sensory-friendly shows. For more information, click on the links below: https://raleighlittletheatre.org/ (Raleigh Little Theatre) https://artsaccessinc.org/ (Arts Access) https://www.tdf.org/nyc/40/Autism-Theatre-Initiative (Theatre Development Fund Autism Initiative) About the Guests Charles Phaneuf is a Raleigh native who returned to the area and to RLT in 2012. He was previously Managing Director of Joe’s Movement Emporium, a multidisciplinary performing arts center located outside of Washington, DC, and Associate Managing Director at Shakespeare Theatre Company during the expansion into the Harman Center for the Arts. Charles is a founding member of the Capital Fringe Festival and Bohemian Caverns Jazz Orchestra, both in Washington. He is a UNC-Chapel Hill alumni, a board member of the Friends of the Gregg Museum at NCSU, and serves on the Dix Park Master Plan Advisory Committee. Charles was named “40 Under 40” by the ‘Triangle Business Journal’ in 2014 and “Tar Heel of the Week” by the ‘News & Observer’ in 2018. Betsy Ludwig has been with Arts Access for eight years, originally hired as Program Director. She has a BA in Social Work from Salem College, an MS in Therapeutic Recreation from UNC-Chapel Hill and Course Work in Arts Administration from NYU. She has worked as a Social Worker, Therapeutic Recreation Specialist, Inclusion Specialist/Trainer, and Program Administrator for Group Homes, Day Programs, Hospitals, Public Schools and Community Non-Profits. Connect with RDU on Stage Facebook – @rduonstage Twitter – @rduonstage Instagram – @rduonstage Web http://www.rduonstage.com/ (www.rduonstage.com) Support this podcast
Artistic Director, Patrick Torres, and Executive Director, Charles Phaneuf, talk about the shows in Raleigh Little Theatre's 2019/2020 Season: Now and Then. Hear about the shows in our upcoming season, the reasons we picked these shows, and discover the joy of our brand new area premiere air horn.
Today's episode is with Patrick Torres, the Artistic Director at Raleigh Little Theatre. We talk about theater as a community experience, the social need for art and ritual, and the enduring relevance of Shakespeare's Othello.You can learn about the Theatre's upcoming shows and events at Raleigh Little Theatre and follow along on Twitter at @RLT1936. Enjoy!
Hear what Honest Pint Theatre Company’s Co-Artistic Directors David Henderson and Susannah Hough have to say about Rory Kinnear’s The Herd, reconciliation, and the irresistible pull of family. About the Guests David Henderson is the Founder and Co-Artistic Producer of Honest Pint Theatre Company. He is a Morehead Scholar graduate of UNC-Chapel Hill. Most recently, he was seen in Honest Pint’s one-man show, The Absolute Brightness of Leonard Pelkey. Prior to that, he played Doc in The Night Alive and played the title role in Hamlet, which earned him the Broadway World award for Best Actor in a Play. He also starred as Sweeney in Sweeney Todd at Raleigh Little Theatre and understudied for the role for Playmakers Repertory Company. For the past 23 years, he has had the pleasure of playing Jacob Marley in Theatre in the Park’s annual production of A Christmas Carol. Susannah Hough is the Co-Artistic Producer of Honest Pint. She hails from Los Angeles but has called the Triangle home for many years now, and is a veteran of numerous stage and film companies here. Some of her favorite Honest Pint roles are Annapurna (Honest Pint Theatre Co.), The Night Alive (Director), and The Absolute Brightness of Leonard Pelkey (Director). She has appeared in the short films Righteous (Bombshell Studios), Endings (Turnip Films), and Katie’s Dog (Carbon Footprint), as well as numerous commercials, industrial videos, and TV. She coaches actors for auditions and teaches acting classes, as well. For more information visit: http://www.susannahhough.com/ (www.susannahhough.com). For more information about Honest Pint Theatre Company visit: https://www.honestpinttheatre.org/ (https://www.honestpinttheatre.org/). Connect with RDU on Stage: Facebook – www.facebook.com/rduonstage Twitter – www.twitter.com/rduonstage Instagram – @rduonstage Web http://www.rduonstage.com/ (www.rduonstage.com) Support this podcast
In Episode 003 of the Origin Stories: A Podcast About Politics and People, longtime talk radio producer Brent Jabbour speaks Protect Our Care Executive Director Brad Woodhouse about going from being a theatre major in college to working as Communications Director for the Democratic National Committee. Woodhouse also discusses the interesting situation of having a brother who is the Executive Director of the North Carolina Republican Party. Subscribe to the podcast onItunes, Google Play, Stitcher, Spreaker, TuneIN, or wherever you consume Podcasts.Again, if you like the project share it with your friends, follow me on Twitter @BrentJabbour and/or like the page on Facebook.Transcript:This is episode three of Origin Stories: A Podcast about politics and People. My name Brent Jabbour and this week we speak with Brad Woodhouse. He is the executive director at Protect Our Care. He is the former DNC Communications Director, he was an Obama surrogate in 08 and 2012. He's what I would consider a Democratic operative, that is just a buzzword, it doesn't really mean anything in particular. It's like a Democratic strategist. It just means what's going on. He knows the inner-workings of what is going on with the party. And, we had a pretty good discussion. I always found Brad pretty interesting because his brother is the Executive Director of the North Carolina Republican Party and he is entering his second cycle there. So, he is this key Democratic operative his brother high ranking Republican in the North Carolina party. They've actually played that up, you've seen them appear on Fox together, on CSpan, there is a famous viral clip of them going at it and their mom giving a call into the program. He's a really personable guy, we've had him on the Ed Schultz Radio show and the Ed Show on MSNBC quite a bit. So I have spoken with him many times and he was always friendly. He was just a guy I thought has a lot of personality and I would love to sit him down and talk about what's going on right now in politics in the United States. So, we touched on that.We talked about his Origin Story, if you will, he started out thinking he could be a big movie star because he was a theatre major in college. Then he saw Bill Clinton accept the Democratic nomination in 1992. And, it just clicked for him. And he decided to go into politics as his family had in the past. We talk about a lot of things. We obviously re-litigate the 2016 election because you can't sit down with anyone today without doing that. But we also talk about what is important for Democrats to win in 2018 and then moving into 2020. He is very critical of President Donald Trump so we will talk a lot about that. I think it was a really enjoyable conversation. Just a little bit of a heads up. Next week, I have already recorded it, but I sat down with my first sitting United States Congressman, that's an elected official, that's a big deal for me. I go to go into Congress and actually sit down with somebody. I sat down with Kevin Cramer of North Dakota who is in a big Senate race and I speak a lot about that race. In fact, we talk about that in this particular episode of the podcast. Looking forward to that.If you like what you hear, remember to subscribe on Itunes or wherever you get your podcasts so you can get it delivered right to your ears. Would love for that to be the case for you every Thursday when we release new episodes. You can follow on Facebook. Facebook.com/podcastoriginstories or follow me on Twitter @BrentJabbour. Here we go. I'm not going to waste too much more time. It's Brad Woodhouse, Democratic Operative from Protect Our care. Origin Stories: A Podcast About Politics and People, Episode three, here we go!Brent Jabbour:I don't know why, but you were in my building one time and I rode the elevator up with you. And, I have this little anxiety issue, where I can never remember somebody's name when I see them. It happens to me...Brad Woodhouse:That happens to a lot of people. Brent Jabbour:I don't want to be like: "Hey there big guy, I know you." Because I am sure you get that regularly, being somebody television. But, I also, I should know. I immediately got off the elevator and I said: "It was Brad Woodhouse. Damnit!"Brad Woodhouse:Man, that happens to everybody. That being on the spot. And you have that classic brain fart, they call it. Brent Jabbour:I also have this new thing where I've realized that you see somebody and you say hello to them and then you realize: "Oh, now I have to have a conversation with this person."Not that I want to be rude or anything. But, I just wanted to say hello. Brad Woodhouse:It's also that question of whether you make eye contact or not. If you make eye contact it's like: "Hey, hello, how are you?" And sometimes it's just better to not make eye contact. Brent Jabbour:So, you grew up in North Carolina. Your brother is the RNC chair of North Carolina?Brad Woodhouse:So, he's the Executive Director of the North Caroline Republican Party. I guess this is his second full cycle doing that. So, he's been there awhile. Brent Jabbour:Let's how you guys got to be. How did you become a key Democratic operative and he becomes a face of the Republican party in your home state? Brad Woodhouse:Well, the long-ago story for both of us, the origin story, is our parents. They were both very involved politically. They went into politics right out of college. They both worked in state government, in state politics. My father went on, he had a myriad of interests. He was Democratic operative back in the sixties and then he went later to work for Jesse Helms, so complete opposite of how he started. And, just as a citizen, he supported Ross Perot for president in 1992. So, he was kind of all over the map. But, he was very engaged politically. My mom was engaged politically. And, another thing was, they really forced us to be engaged politically and to pay a lot of attention to the news. I knew at a very early age who Walter Cronkite was, who Frank Reynolds was, Eric Sevareid, all of these anchors. The anchors for our local television, we took two newspapers a day, back when there was an afternoon newspaper delivered in Raleigh. So, it was a combination of politics and news. So, I think it was inevitable. My brother, originally he got a degree in journalism. Originally he was a television reporter doing all the types of things television reporters do. And eventually went on to become the public affairs director for the NBC affiliate in Raleigh. And, had the local version of Meet the Press. And, then from that, he left and went directly into politics. Ya know, when I graduated from college I didn't think I was going to go into politics. My first job was with Marriott as a management trainee. It was always in the back of my mind. I had majored in political science. I was watching the Democratic national convention in 1992, I was in Birmingham, AL, I was working for Marriott. And, I saw Bill Clinton's speech and I basically quit the next day and moved back to North Carolina and volunteered for a congressional campaign. Brent Jabbour:I think that is what the interesting thing about the world of politics is. If you're interested in it. You don't have to be a professional in the business in any way. I mean, you grew up in that realm, so you had that background. But, you can be interested in it and something like that can just inspire you to say i might give up the next six months of my life to go knock on doors, sleep in an office where you eat pizza 6 nights a week.So, was your brother always leaning conservative and you were always leaning (liberal)? Brad Woodhouse:That's what's interesting. When I was in college, Dallas was still in High School in North Carolina. Frankly, we weren't particularly close. You know, he did some of the same things in High School that I did. He acted, he did musicals, he was in show choir, and he had an interest in being out there and being a performer. And, that is one reason... I did a lot of that in high school and college. I was a theatre major in college originally. And, politics gives you an outlet for people who are not actually that talented in performing arts to be on the public stage in another venue. So, I wasn't really sure what his political leanings were when he was in high school and early in college. Then, when he got out of college, he was a television reporter, so he played it kind of straight. And, when he took over, he was the host of NBC 17's version of meet the press every sunday, and you began to see his political leanings started to come out. You could see he had this antipathy towards governent and government programs, and people who recieve government assistance, and one thing led to another.But, he was probably in his mid-twenties before I realized he was moving in that direction. And then it became stronger and stronger and stronger. And incidently, the same thing happened to me. I didn't feel real ideoligically inclined when I was in college. I didn't volunteer for campaigns, I wasn't involved politically. I was just as likely to be inspired by George H.W. Bush giving a speech as somebody else. It's kind of incredible, that speech I watched Bill Clinton give, just turned me on. I said I want to do politics, I want to do government, I want to do that type of work. And then all my families connections in North Carolina were on the Democratic side. So, I moved home, and the rest is kind of history. Brent Jabbour:I have a couple of things I want to hit on here. First, on the theatre major thing, what really drew you to theatre?Brad Woodhouse:Well look, I had at an early age had an interest in acting. Probably when I was in Junior High school, I asked my mom to sign me up for acting classes. I did improvisation training. And then, whenever there was a little thing to do, we had a 6th-grade sing-a-long, and they needed someone to play Rudolf and I say: "I want to do that." I just was drawn to it. Like a lot of kids, I thought I was going to be a movie actor. Then I became a Springsteen freak and I wanted to sing Springsteen at a school show. Now, I can't carry a tune. So, that was another reason I couldn't continue as a performance artist. I can't sing. So, I never got the chance to play Bruce Springsteen in High School. But, I was really drawn to it. I had some leading roles in theatre in High School and even in Raleigh Little Theatre, Peace College, I did some work. And, you know I had the opportunity to go to the University of South Carolina as a theatre major. I went to the University of South Carolina the day after I graduated from High School and immediatly started in a summer musical. So, I thought I was going to be an actor. Brent Jabbour:And, I think the question I was really going to ask here... Because I think I felt the same way, which was initially the reason I got into radio initially too, because I thought there could be some... I wanted people to hear my voice. Like you said, it's easy to go into the political or punditry world. Not that you don't need talent. People, by the way, underestimate the amount of talent that people like you have. The people you see on television everyday. Believe me, there are a lot of people who show up one time and don't make it because they don't know how to articulate a thought, they don't have any exuberance. You can see Brad Woodhouse on television for three minutes, and you get a pretty good understanding of who you are, your personality. You have that southern, North Carolina draw, that kind of draws you in a little bit.Also, the reason I came up with this idea is because I think there are a lot of people who see you for three minutes and they make an immediate snap judgement on you and they don't really get an idea of who you are, besides, sometimes I see this blowhard on television, not that you are a blowhard. So, you were inspired by Bill Clinton in 1992, and I think a lot of people in my generation, I'm 34, we got inspired by Obama probably in the same way to get politically active. And I think you can see the paralells between those two, because they motivated people to get out, they motivated people who you see getting involved now because they saw Obama give that speech or Bill Clinton accepting the nomination in 1992. Who is going to be the next person in the Democratic party to inspire the masses to get out and do something. Look, I have spent a lot of time re-litigating the 2016 campaign.Brent Jabbour:I've said it a million times, Hillary Clinton was probably the most qualified person to ever run for the office, but she just didn't know how to connect with the people that way. And, we as a Democratic party clearly need that because we can't seem to motivate people on good policy.Brad Woodhouse:Right, yeah. Well, look it's a good question. I don't think we have seen that moment yet, where we know who that next person is. Politics is all about timing. It could be that the next Democrat who wins the nomination and hopefully becomes president and hopefully denies Trump a second term, may not be that person. It may be the person who is just the best person to defeat Donald Trump. And that might be what inspires the masses in the country, on our side, and among right-thinking independents might be OK, we have to defeat Trump. This is the best person to defeat Trump. It could be that we have that. But, sometimes it skips a generation. You don't have a Bill Clinton or Barack Obama type politician in every election cycle. So, it remains to be seen. Look, I think some of the potential that we have on the bench... People like to say Democrats don't have a bench, you look at the number of really talented people thinking about running for office, either in politics or not in politics. It's really impressive. The bigger problem we have is we may have 20 people on stage at some point. But, Barack Obama we knew after that 2004 speech. It was almost inevitable that... maybe not inevitable that he was going to be President. But, inevitable that he was going to lead a cohort of Americans down some type of path towards change. Because he was so inspiring. He captured so many people's attention. And, the interesting thing about Obama of course, is that all of the lucky, I don't want to say luck he is a talented politician. But all of the breaks he got. He had a primary that fell his way when divorce records came out. He had a general election when more divorce records came out. Remember they had to import Alan Keyes from Maryland to even run against him in the Senate race in 2004. But that speech that he gave in 2004 you knew... He wasn't in Senate a day before people started to speculating when he would run for president. There are other people who have that same speculation around them. Senators who are in their first term for example. But we'll see. No one right now has quite captured that imagination. Brent Jabbour:I think that in that particular situation as well. You talk about these first-term Senators, Kamala Harris is who you are mostly referring to. Maybe Elizabeth Warren, but she is in her second term. Not that I want to downplay those women's roles, but the fact is, they don't have that Pizzaz that Obama had. Obama/Biden is the most charismatic two politicians that I can think of ever been near each other. I don't know if they really did... but they looked... Look, I'm a big optics guy. While I perceive the reality of what things are, I also spend a lot of time understanding most people just see things on the surface level. And, Presidential races are popularity contests. They aren't about who has the best policies, they are about who can whip up the most votes in America. And, I think that those two Senators I love them both very dearly, I love their politics, I just don't think they move the dial in a national election in the middle of the Country. You would think that Obama/Biden wouldn't, but Biden speaks directly to your heart so that helps. And, Obama said all the right things. He may not have been the best in acting as a president to some people on the left, however, he, in my opinion, he knew what to say at all times. I spend a lot of time, I was just thinking about this-this morning. I spend a lot of time pretending with other people on the left that I don't just love Obama and every moment of the 8 years he was president of the United States. Sure, there were some issues I didn't really care for, but the fact is, I can wipe all that away because he was charismatic, he won, and I think most of the time he did the right thing. Brad Woodhouse:Well, I think, he accomplished a lot. He inspired millions of people in this country. His election, obviously, in 2008 was as historic anything that has ever happened in this country politically. And almost anything that has happened in the country period. And he is such a popular ex-president. I think this charisma that he had with Biden, and the relationship they have it's real, it's true. I mean you think about the fact that they still do things together.When Bill Clinton and Al Gore left the White House, it may have been years before they spoke or did anything together. Cheney and Bush, these are business relationships in the White House generally. I think it was a real friendship, there was a real kinship there. I do think that Biden is an inspiring figure for a lot of reasons. His life story. The travails he's gone through. His son, his family. And bringing himself up by the bootstraps. But, I think we are blessed a number of great candidates and we just don't know until we see them. There are so many tests. Their announcement speech. Did they move the dial? Did they move the needle? Did they move people to cheer and tear up? And maybe we take too much stock in that. Look, I think the country might be better off if the person with the best policies did win. But that's not realistic. Policies get you through editorial board meetings. They don't get you elected. Getting elected is a combination of smart policies, but really articulation of the American people are and where you want them to go. A really forward vision. And, I think Barack Obama had that. And it may have been an idealistic vision. It may have been an almost unreasonable vision that the country could come together. Washington could clean up its act. But It's what people wanted at the time. And, it was a reaction to people's antipathy towards both big government and big business. And, he had an opportunity, in the campaign, to fuse those strands of populism and idealism together. Democrats will find that person again. Is it the 2020 cycle? It might be. The true test is not some persons performance at a hearing on Capitol Hill or one appearance on Meet the Press or CNN. It's going to be when they are out there on the hustings. Are they connecting with the American People? Are they meeting the American people where they are and where the American people want to go? I think we are going to have it in 2020. Is it Obama redux or Clinton redux? It might not be. But given where we see this president, where we see his numbers, we see where he is taking the country down this path of divisiveness and everything. I am not sure we are going to have to have Obama 2.0 to win in 2020.Brent Jabbour:The more you talk about this, the more I think if Joe wants to run, he has my full support. Because he does have the charisma. We'll get to see a lot of Obama. Which I always appreciate. But, also, he speaks to the heart of people in the middle of the country. And, I know we've talked about all of this so much since the election. And there are a lot of people on the left who say: "Stop calling them working-class Americans, what you mean is white people who are racists in the middle of the country." No that's not what I mean, I mean people who work for a living. It's easy for people in Washington D.C., who are Democratic operatives, to say: "Oh, you guys are just mad because it was a woman who ran." No, while I think there was a little of that, I actually had a union leader tell me: "Look, I'm around these guys every day, some of them just aren't going to vote for a woman." But we will grow out of that. I mean ten years ago, everybody would have said: "Look, nobody's gonna vote for a black guy." And he became the President of the United States. Look, Hillary Clinton had so much baggage from the Bill Clinton years. When I was a kid during the Bill Clinton years, I didn't know much about it. All I really knew was Hillary was a ball buster. That's not actually true, it's just the impression that you are given. And, sometimes perception is reality...Brad Woodhouse:The Clintons were interesting. Because there was this vicious cycle where they distrusted the press. The press distrusted them. It fed more and more distrust. And then when you put on top of it all of the made up scandals. Travelgate, made up. Whitewater, made up. All of these kinds of made up scandals. And there was no reservoir of goodwill for the Clintons to go to the press because of their distrust for the press and the press' distrust for them. And to get the fairest of hearings. And, I get the resentment that the Clintons have about that. If you look at one of their chief antagonists, who came around to them, David Brock later on. Think about how many things David Brock, funded by Richard Mellon Scaife and those folks, fed into the American distrust of the Clintons that was all phony. It was all made up. Troopergate, Whitewater, all this stuff. And then the President ultimately stumbles into the Monica Lewinsky thing, which is on him. But, there is no reservoir of goodwill with the press to help him out of that, even though he won in the end. And ended his presidency very popular. Hillary had to live with all of that mud, so to speak. Brent Jabbour:Did Obama get away from the whole distrust for the press and everything because he had African American press to go to. I mean, you would always see him on the Joe Madison show, or several other...Brad Woodhouse:There was a healthy bit of (distrust) between the Obama White House and the press. I think that is true of all White Houses. It is a balancing act. Reporters want access. Presidents want unfettered ability to deliver their message. And to be covered. And, you will have a lot of reporters who felt like there was a little bit of heavy-handed tactics from the campaign and the White House. And, they think they should have gotten more access. But, I think given the state of affairs in the Trump presidency, it's been like 20 days since Sara Sanders held an on-camera television briefing. The pendulum has swung so far. In retrospect... And look, I don't think the press ever really had any antipathy toward the President. I think they occasionally felt like his spokespeople, or others, or when I was at the DNC and I was vociferously defending the President and his policies. And occasionally I went over the line in taking on journalists that I felt like were being unfair. So, I think there is a little bit of that that goes on. I think by-and-large the press looks back now on the Obama years and feels like that they had it pretty good. Ya know, Josh Earnest and Jay Carney, all of those people who stood at that podium tried to be fair and represent the President they worked for, but also tried to help the press.And, you don't have that. There is no feeling that Sean Spicer before or Sara Sanders now is trying to help the American people or help the press understand what the President is thinking and what the President is trying to accomplish. They are trying to bully the press into not being critical of this president and not reporting accurately on this president. Brent Jabbour:I'll tell you what. The White House Press Briefings are an hour long campaign ad for Donald Trump. Which, technically any press briefing is such a thing. Like you said, she just attacks the press and all that does is feed into the base and those people who love Trump and say: "See, he's not going to be pushed around by the Washington elite, they're not going to let them lie to me." And they win. The Trump Administration, they win on a lot of different fronts. And right now, I'm concerned about the Democrats, and as we talked about that whole thing about who will pick up that mantle. Who is going to be the next candidate to really move the dial. I think we are going to have a hard time running against Trump. Because, he is going to be able to talk to those establishment Republicans who maybe they don't really care for the Stormy Daniels payoff and everything. But he is going to be able to say several things to them that is going to really work to his base and those people who really voted for him. Number one, he nominated two Supreme Court Justices.Brad Woodhouse:It's the holy grail for a lot of Republicans. Brent Jabbour:Any other president who does that. You could start four wars and your going back...Brad Woodhouse:The truth is, the Evangelicals they could live with Donald Trump sleeping with and paying off 25 porn stars as long as they get Supreme Court Justices that will overturn a woman's right to choose. They could care less about the President's morality. Brent Jabbour:And we are in trouble because I hope RBG can hold on. Because he could literally go on stage when he's running in 2020 and say: "She's not going to make it 4 years, so you better re-elect me." He's got that. You can hate tariffs and all the things he is doing on trade all you want, but working-class Americans, not just white Americans, I mean people who work for a living they see that and say whether it works or not, he tried. Something that the Obama administration never did, Clinton put in a bad trade deal. So it's easy for him to say that. Job numbers are still going up, which is a lot of work the Obama Administration did. And, he may inadvertently negotiate peace on the Korean Peninsula. Brad Woodhouse:Yeah, well that I think is a big if. The backdrop of all that is the Mueller Investigation. The backdrop of all that is still Manafort is getting ready to go on trial again. Some backdrop of all that 2020 discussion is what happens in 2018. Do the Democrats take back the house? Do they maybe take back the Senate? How do they handle that? Do they push for partisan impeachment? Do they just investigate, investigate, investigate and let Mueller finish what he is doing? I think the most interesting thing that I see that could be... Look, Bill Clinton and Barack Obama had horrific midterms. So, we shouldn't overread what happens in November. But, if you look at the polls that are coming out now, Trump's approval rating is down into the mid-to-high thirties. He's even losing his base in that regard. And, his approval rating in some of the reddest states is at 50 percent or below. Now, those are not states that we are going to go and grab those electoral votes in 2020. But, if he's having to chase reliably red states to guarantee those electoral votes in 2020 there is something going to be left on the sideline. Maybe it's Michigan, maybe it's Wisconsin, maybe it's Pennsylvania. Brent Jabbour:Oh Brad, let me tell you why you are over analyzing this. Because we did the exact same thing in 2016. We looked at the same exact situation, we said: "He's not doing enough in Florida that's going to be a Democratic win, he's not doing enough here, he's not doing enough there." Meanwhile, we didn't go to Michigan and Wisconsin. We lost those states and he still won Florida. Brad Woodhouse:I agree one hundred percent. I'm not in the camp that believes Demographics is destiny and we should just follow that path. Or, that the entire solution is in the white working class. It's crazy, it's nuts, Obama didn't build a single coalition to win in 2008 or 2012. Bill Clinton didn't either. You've got to build a coalition of people that see in their self-interest and their inspiration and in their forward-looking vision for the country something in a President that will inspire a Latina woman to vote in Tucson and a factory worker to vote in Wilkes Barre, Pennsylvania. And, that's what we need. And, this either/or is the craziest discussion. It's also this either the Bernie side or the Clinton side. There is no Bernie side or Clinton side. Right now Clinton isn't running for president, Bernie's not running for President yet. If allow that inner seam warfare to continue then Donald Trump could get elected to a second term.Brent Jabbour:I think what you talk about with that Bernie/Hillary divide. And, I think there is a Bernie Sanders wing of the party, and there is a little wing of the party that is even further left than Bernie. And, i think the problem is... And, I'm going to call you an establishment type, I hope that doesn't offend you. Because I would say I'm a little left of establishment although there were many times when I lived in North Dakota running Ed's radio show for many years and I thought I was as progressive as you get then I moved to D.C. and I realized I may be center-left. But, I think that the people on the establishment side are doing as much damage as the people on the far left Bernie-side are to this conversation. Because, those establishment people are saying: "We're not going to let you run our party." Which means: "We're not going to let you be part of our party. We aren't going to appease you in any way." And there are a lot of things going on behind the scenes at the DNC which I don't want to talk about right now. It's just some nuanced nonsense. But, I just think there is a mutual hatred on both sides of this party for those people. I don't know what the solution in 2018 and 2020 is to kind of bring those two sides together. Brad Woodhouse:Well, first thing in 2018 is to focus on the Republicans. It is not to have an all-out war between various factions of the Democratic party. We've had primaries, and there have been a number of Democratic primaries where single payer was the issue. And single payer advocates won. And there have been other primaries where the single-payer advocate lost. And there are other issues like that that have played out in Primaries. We are almost done with Primary season. What we need to focus on is Republicans, they're in charge. And we need to focus on Republicans. And I say Republicans to the exclusion of Trump. Trump is going to be covered every single day. Trump is making negative news for himself and Republicans every single day. On Twitter, Bob Mueller is driving Trump news, Stormy Daniels is driving Trump news. Democrats need to focus on their Republican opponents and Republican Governance. If you look, people don't like the way Republicans have governed in Congress. They don't like what they did on healthcare. The tax bill is unpopular. Can you imagine? How fucked up are you as a party if you pass a tax bill, a tax cut and it's unpopular. I mean, Republicans couldn't sell Kool-Aid to children if they can't sell a tax cut to the American people. I think those are the things we need to focus on. Inevitably after this election, probably days after this election, we're going to start having a conversation as a party about what our priorities are. And you know what? Good. We'll have that fight. We'll have that argument. It will play out in the 2020 primary for President and maybe it will create a divide that we can't bridge but maybe we will have that person who can talk to both sides. This is not a choice between people who supported Hillary Clinton or people supported Bernie Sanders. In 2020 it's going to be about who can best deny Donald Trump a second term. Brent Jabbour:You made me think because I don't believe there is a "Blue Wave." I don't buy it for a couple of reasons. One, there aren't enough Senate seats up. I think Heidi Heitkamp in North Dakota is in trouble. I think Kevin Cramer can win that seat. I've talked about that a lot, I don't know why. It's the one that really strikes me as the one that will probably go Republican. But I think we will get the Nevada seat. Brad Woodhouse:I'll say this. We've done a lot of work with her and her office. And, she is making healthcare the number one issue in that race. She's a cancer survivor. Pre-existing conditions has exploded as an issue on the campaign trail because the Trump administration decided to weigh-in in favor of this lawsuit in Texas that would get rid of all those protections for people. I'll predict on this podcast that she does win. And, I think she'll win because Kevin Cramer can't explain what he would do to make people's lives better, particularly on health care. And I think she can. But, I'm with you in this respect. A blue wave in the Senate is going to be hard because of the map. The truth is we could very well find ourselves with about the same math as we have now. They could knock a Democrat or two. I think the numbers are showing that is going to be increasingly difficult. The President is going to be a drag, even in some of these red states. But, they could knock off a Democrat or two. But, I think there is a good chance that we win Nevada. And that we win either Arizona or Tennessee. But, the map is daunting. We are defending far more seats. But, I think it will be your definition of a wave. If we sweep out 50 Republicans in the House or 40 Republicans in the House and take some state legislative seats, chambers that we don't have, in advance of redistricting. I mean, I feel pretty good about that. Brent Jabbour:Do Democrats not realize that when they talk about the Blue Wave in the House, do they not understand what Gerrymandering is and what has been done to the map in most states. And I'm glad you mentioned House seats. Becaue, I was going to mention that as well. You know, I have strangely spoke with more Republicans than I have Liberals as I have been recording this thing, more scheduling issues than anything. And, a lot of them say, we are really working in the State Houses because we saw the Democrats doing that. And now we're doing better. Democrats aren't focused on those State Houses. We're not winning those State Houses. You've seen what happened, especially since 2010. We're not doing enough. We need to win those legislatures becuase we need to redraw those lines. Brad Woodhouse:There has been a cascading effect of Gerrymandering. People think of Gerrymandering as the U.S. House of Representatives. Remember, Legislative seats, State Senate seats, and it all ladders up. It is not just about winning. We need to win the House. We need to have Democrats in the House be a check on this President, investigate this President, push strong Democratic policies, even if we have a Republican Senate and a Republican President that won't adopt them. We do need to have an agenda going into 2020. Democrats are never going to maintain power in Congress for long if we don't get a hold of these state legislative chambers. Remember, we have a very undemocratic United States Senate. We've got states, where two Republican Senators represent about as many people as a member of Congress does in a Congressional district. Yet, they have as much power in the Senate as two Democrats who represent 40 million people in California. That's the constitution, that's how the Senate is going to be elected, and how it's going to be portioned. So we can do that in the House. We can do that by winning State Legislative chambers and fighting every bit of redistricting legally, legislatively, administratively, anyway we can to make sure we get a better result in this next reapportionment. Brent Jabbour:I just feel... I'm getting jaded even in the middle of my own...Brad Woodhouse:Well look, there is less going on than we'd like, but there is more going on than has been. We have the Holder/Obama group that is doing legislative redistricting. They have a legal strategy, they have a legislative strategy, they have an electoral strategy. That group, along with the DLCC, along with the work that we're doing. Remember, if we win the House of Representatives a lot of those victories are going to sweep in a lot of people below them. Because the turnout machines for some of these congressional races will far exceed anything that a state legislative or State Senate candidate can do. So, we can't count on that. We have to run races all the way down, down to the ZooKeeper level. We need to elect up and down the ballot. But, there is more going to affect the outcome of State Legislative chambers than we've seen in the past. Brent Jabbour:I just think that we need to get to talk about that. I feel like we try to trick people into doing what we need to do. When, if we simply just said: Hey Democrats in Georgia, in North Carolina, in any state that has a purple opportunity. We can say, hey Democrats there, just so you understand we need you to vote, not just because you love this candidate or you love that candidate. We need you to vote because we need to win, and we need to win this State House so we can make this work for everybody. We say "turn out the vote" and almost try to shame people into voting. Not just we, everybody does. There is no explanation of what's going on most of the time. And, normal people do not have an understanding, normal people, but people who are out there...Brad Woodhouse:They're Busy... People running their lives, they don't pay attention to this every day. And, the thing that you're suggesting is exactly right. We need to constantly have a civics lesson with the American people, particularly those we want to come vote for us, about political power. And, I think for too long Democrats across the country felt like political power resided in the presidency. Ask Bill Clinton after 1994 or Barack Obama after 2010. There is a whole lot of political power that resides in Congress, and those things bubble up from redistricting. From districts that are now more favorable to Republicans. You're right. One of the biggest headwinds against Democrats is the actual districts that we're running in. There are those districts that Hillary Clinton won in 2016. There are enough of them, if you turned every single one of them, to win a bare majority. You want a governing majority. But, you're right, we need a civics lesson to the American people. It is as important for Democrats to control the state legislature in Georgia as it is to control the House of Representatives in Washington. Because they all flow one to the other. Brent Jabbour:Also, the Democrats need to understand 51 Senators ain't going to win you anything. Number one, Republicans will obstruct, we saw that during the Obama administration. Essentially, Mitch McConnell should have been elected President of the United States because he is the one that did the most for Republicans over the last 8 years of his presidency. And, also, we can't always count on Democrats. It's funny, Republicans are now starting to face that now in the House with the Freedom Caucus and they can hold them hostage. Democrats don't do it as heavy-handed. But there are, it's a wide swath of a party, they don't fall in line all the time. So you're going to have people in red states, you know in the Senate it is the Joe Manchin, Heidi Heitkamp, Donnelly, Tester, that you will always have to worry about because they have to worry constituents who are constituents in a red state for the most part. Brad Woodhouse:That's exactly right. Now, look, let's be clear, I'll take 51 Democrats in the Senate over 51 Republican Seats in the Senate any day. The biggest impediment to progress in the event we take back the House and the Senate is obviously a Republican administration. This is looking way ahead. But, if you assume we took back the House and the Senate. You know, Trump's a deal maker. There are a lot of Democrats that will dilute themselves into the notion that they can go make deals with Trump. And, I think Trump is an immoral, illegitimate President. And fuck making deals with that guy. We would not need to help him get re-elected by cutting deals that may be in our favor in the short term and risk that long-term. Obviously, if you take back the House and the Senate you do have to cut some deals because you have to fund the military and keep the government open. Brent Jabbour:While I agree with you to a certain extent about screw that guy why would I want to help him, actually I'm sorry, I can say it. Fuck that guy, I don't want to help him. I don't want you to get the idea that I'm not with you here. But, I think there has to be some sort of governance. Brad Woodhouse:No doubt. But we should just impose our will on him instead of the other way around.Brent Jabbour:Right. The Democrats can give themselves trapped into giving him the wall or something. Brad Woodhouse:Right, give him the wall in exchange for something else. And, I mean that's not the approach we should take.Brent Jabbour:I'd like to go back to you for just a little bit before we wrap up for the hour. So, when you left your job at Marriott and were inspired by President Clinton. What was that road like from knocking on doors to...Brad Woodhouse:I was really fortunate because my parents had been involved in politics and state government since they were in college. I was fortunate, they had some really good people for me to lean on in getting a foot in the door. Look, anybody can make it in politics if they are willing to really gut it out. It helps to know people. The first thing that I did actually. I don't remember my parents having any influence on this. I volunteered for a congressional campaign. David Price was running for re-election in 1992. I got home, it was too late to get involved in the Presidential race, so I volunteered for David Price. He was already in Congress, he had a staff. He didn't have anything for me when it was all over with. So, that same year, Jim Hunt was elected again to his third term, non-consecutive, as governor of North Carolina. My parents knew Hunt, they had been in campaigns with Hunt, but also they knew a very influential State Senator who had a lot of influence over the Governor-elect's inauguration and transition. And, one thing led to another, and I worked in his administration. And, after he had served that first term, and was re-elected for a second, I had a chance to come to Washington and work for Congressman Bob Ethridge who spent seven terms here. Went back in 2001 to work in a Senate race. Erskin Boles ran for United States Senate against Liddy Dole, he lost, but I had the opportunity to succeed a friend of mine who had been Bob Ethridge's press secretary at the DSCC, the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee. Robert Gibbs had been in Ethridge's office, he'd gone on to work on Senate campaigns. Eventually, he made it to the DSCC. He recruited me to do my stint in North Carolina in 02. And then in 03-04 I succeeded him at the DSCC and went on from there. Brent Jabbour:What's it like being seen as a surrogate for the sitting President. Brad Woodhouse:It was a rush. So, I came kind of late in 08 to the presidential game. My wife was pregnant in 2007 when Obama started to run. Gibbs was always trying to get me to go to the campaign. He tried to get me to go to Iowa. Tried to get me to come to Chicago. And, I was running an organization, Americans United For Change at the time. A liberal organization. Biggest claim to fame early on was stopping the President's effort to privatize Social Security. So, I was running this. I was the President of it. It was a multi-million dollar thing. We were neutral, obviously, in the primary. My wife was pregnant. I could never get on the campaign. If I had had an opportunity to go work on the Presidential campaign during the primary itself, I would have worked for Obama. And, after he got the nomination, they asked me to come run the rapid response communications efforts over at the DNC on behalf of the campaign during the general election against John McCain. I got over there and I was nuts and bolts. I was hiring people, getting people out in the field, organizing bus tours, crafting web videos, doing all of the rapid response thing that the DNC is involved in, in a really robust way. And then, somebody asked me one day to go on television. And I was like, What? And, for all I know it could have been Ed Schultz's show, I'm sure it was probably MSNBC. So, it was such a rush. And you start doing it and you don't screw it up. I remember some of the moments. It was 2008, I was on MSNBC, probably with Alex Witt on Sunday morning. And the news broke that Colin Powel was going to endorse Obama. Of course, he was going on Meet the Press to announce it. But, I was just by happenstance the first Obama campaign surrogate on TV to react to it and that was a rush. And then at the end, I didn't know this until later. This is an interesting story, I've never even relayed. I believe it's true, but I heard it second hand. But, the Obama campaign stopped putting any of its surrogates on Fox. And, all of a sudden, I noticed I was doing Fox a lot. Karen Finney, who was Communications Director at the DNC at the time, we were like going down to the studio at the DNC doing Fox and Friends, Shep Smith, we were doing all of the Fox shows. Like, why are we doing so much Fox?We found out after the election, that the Obama campaign just made a decision that they were being so unfairly portrayed on Fox that they just weren't going to do it those last few weeks. That was a whole other thing where you got to be out there and have that kind of platform to yourself as a surrogate. So, there is the rush part of it, which is probably why I was in Theatre, to begin with. The kind of rush you get from being in front of an audience getting kind of instant feedback. And, the other part of it, and this kind of went on as I was in the DNC, and later working for the re-elect in 2012 is you take a lot of crap. I mean, you take a lot of crap. It's also very stressful too. It's very stressful to go on television and know that one misspoken word, one mangled word-salad could hurt the President or hurt the President's chances. Fortunately, I don't think I ever screwed up that badly. But, you do get a lot of incoming. Especially, I got on Twitter in 2010 and just getting killed by these conservatives, Obama haters. Brent Jabbour:It's funny because I have friends who go on Fox and go on a lot of other networks too. But, they go on Fox and they will say I go on MS, I go on CNN, they do some international news here and there. And Honestly, I get positive reaction. And, they are Democrats. And they will go do a Fox hit with Tucker Carleson and they say their voicemail will explode, their office email will get destroyed, their Twitter is just the nastiest, most disgusting things. And just because I am a liberal. And they have told me, I don't mind, Tucker treats me well on the air, but I get hammered by these crazies who are just followers of his. Brad Woodhouse:And you get it. During the height of the election season. I saw less of this in 08 because I wasn't on the campaign trail. But in 2012 and then in 2016 I was running Correct the Record which was a Super PAC supporting Hillary Clinton. I was appearing, basically, as a surrogate, or talker on her behalf. And, that went off the rails. Because all of a sudden, it was nothing like the period where I was at the DNC for Obama's first term, or during the re-elect. I mean, the level of nastiness... And then you know supporters of Trump on 4Chan put all of our addresses out from the FEC report. Our home addresses, our phone numbers. Of course, my phone number was in Wikileaks. And then, you start to really get blown up. So, then, you have these moments where you ask: Is it all worth it? Fuck yeah, it's worth it. I mean I've had death threats on my voicemail. "I wish you would die, and you should crawl off and die." That type of thing. It kind of shakes you up at first. But then you are like fuck this. It's a voicemail. Brent Jabbour:When do you start taking that death threat seriously? I mean, I know people call and they say... They will word it vaguely like: "You should die."Brad Woodhouse:I think you always want to take that type of stuff seriously. Where I think people got a little shook up in 2016 in particular... Never in 2012, I never felt like... I had nasty people on Twitter and voicemail, but never felt unsafe. In 2016, at Correct the Record, we had people doing things to just shake up the staff, because we were so vociferously supporting Hillary Clinton. They would send... You know you can order from the U.S. Postal Service boxes to be delivered to your house and then you paid for them. Well, we had people just getting massive delivery of these boxes to their home. And, it was all meant to freak them out. We had people getting Pizza deliveries to their house. We had a woman who lived out in Maryland who had a nasty note left on her doorstoop. So, some crazy ass person came to her house and left a note. I don't know what the tradition was. I don't know why everytime someone got paid in a campaign their home address had to be on the FEC report, so we just paid people at the office. Of course, it was out there by then. And we took people's names off the FEC report. We took people's names off the website unless it had to be on there. We tried not to release people's cell phone numbers widely to the press unless it was a spokesperson who had to be out there. And we at Correct the Record, at the building on Massachusetts, we hired extra security during the election. We put up extra firewalls for internet security. We know that during that period of time the hacking was going on at the DNC and of John Podesta's emails that there were attempted hackings over there. We don't know the source. But, we can assume, if all this other stuff was going on, that those hackings were coming from the same source. 2016 did more to shake me up, so to speak than 2008 or 2012. The level of nastiness, intrusion, and personal attacks... And then these tactics of things coming to your physical home. Never to mind. This is interesting... This strategy was even discussed on 4Chan, go after the junior people. The senior people have been through this, they know how to handle this. Go after the junior people, freak them out, make them not come into work, disrupt their activity. It was really insidious. Brent Jabbour:Do you expect that to continue. Not just with Trump, but as we move on. I mean, now that people have seen these dirty tactics. Look, probably not the first people in political history to order a bunch of pizzas to a campaign headquarters.Brad Woodhouse:These were going to people's homes. So the signal there is that hey, we have your home address. But, I don't see any end to the level of nastiness of the extremes on both sides. I don't see any end of the nastiness coming from the sitting President of the United States. He got elected dividing the country against itself. He got elected playing the race card, the sex card, everything. So, I have no doubt that that's going to continue. I'm not going to bullshit you and say "oh, I think it will get better." I just don't. I just think we are in a period here where we are essentially in political warfare and it's over the future of... It's not over the future of the country like the direction we will take, whether we have tax cuts or not. It's kind of over the future of our democratic institutions. I mean you have a President who is saying the FBI should investigate someone who submitted a fucking OpEd to the New York Times. It's a police state he wants. And, the people who support him... If the police state defends their interest, particularly what they believe is their birthright for the country to be more like them, and more like the way they look and the way they talk, than the diverse nation that we really are. Then they are going to live with that. And, it's going to be an existential fight. So, I think it's going to stay as nasty as it is. The hope on our side is... I like to believe that when they go low, we aim high. Michele Obama's famous phrase. I would like to believe we can do that and win. I do think, whoever is our candidate in 2020, should not try to out-Trump Trump. We need to be tough on Trump, but we can not divide and win. We have to put together a coalition and win. We can't divide and win. Brent Jabbour:I think we will wrap it right there. I always try to wrap on a solid moment and that one was dire and scary so, we will keep it there. Brad, did you have fun? Brad Woodhouse:Yeah, this was great. And, I'm thrilled. This might be my first podcast. Brent Jabbour:I don't know why I ask everyone if they had fun. Because that is the most important thing.Brad Woodhouse:No, it's great. I enjoy it. I look forward to hearing it and sharing it and lifting it up.Brent Jabbour:Thank you so much, Brad Woodhouse.
Diane talks to RLT Artistic Director Patrick Torres about their upcoming season, and Amy White, director of one of those shows “The Revolutionists.”
We have always wanted to be...ACTING! And this week we get the chance when we go live from the Raleigh Little Theatre! Starring brews form Sycamore, Starpoint, and Anchor! Featuring theatre mogul Charles Phaneuf plus two good friends from the charity event Groove in the Garden: Adam Lindstaedt and Nick LaRock! And we have props on stage including Sycamore Strawberry Lemonade Gose, Starpoint 12 Parsecs Session IPA, and Anchor SanFranPsycho IPA! In the beer news, we go financial with The Motley Fool and learn how to invest in craft beer! Next up Paste (thanks sfringer!) reveals that craft breweries are teaming up to raise funds for the ACLU with "People Power" beers, and then Forbes pictures beer being more popular than wine in 48 states on Instagram! We close in the world of baseball, first via The Mercury News with the excitement that beer lovers will enjoy A’s turning back the clock on seat alcohol sales, and finally MLB.com introduces Gabby DiMarco, the fan who caught a foul ball in her beer and finished it! We have your answers to last week’s #caskquiz which asked “what’s your 2018 summer band tour/beer pairing?” This week we want to know “have you ever invested in a brewery or bought stock? Which ones?” We so love hearing from you! Please send in feedback and beer suggestions by calling us at (919) 502-0280, Tweeting us, following our Instagram or friending us on Untappd, posting on and liking our Facebook page, or emailing us! And please rate & review us in iTunes or Stitcher if you haven’t done so!
Sara, Jenaye, and Phian chat with Adam and Charles (from The Pour House and Raleigh Little Theatre respectively)who have teamed up to put on Groove in the Garden, a day of local music and family fun held in Raleigh Little Threatre's rose garden! They also catch up with Mary Alta of Girls Rock NC, an amazing group which Groove in the Garden will benefit this year, as well as with Groove in the Garden performers Kate Rhudy and Marc Kuzio of Ghhost Bllonde.
Episode #164: A man endures over four decades of his life while keeping a debilitating secret from every single person he knows. Recorded live on January 19, 2016 at our Fish Out of Water show at Raleigh Little Theatre.
Episode #161: A woman describes growing up with an controlling, paranoid, and mysterious father. Recorded live at our Fish Out of Water show at Raleigh Little Theatre on January 19, 2016.
Episode #117: Two sisters conspire to get their mom high as she lay dying of Pancreatic Cancer. Recorded live at Raleigh Little Theatre on August 24, 2014.
Episode #115: A chili recipe leads opportunities for a young man that he could have never imagined. Recorded live at Raleigh Little Theatre on August 24, 2014.
Episode #112: A young Jewish man comes to terms with his bitter and negative relatives. Recorded live at Raleigh Little Theatre on August 24, 2014.
We talk with Charles Phaneuf, executive director of Raleigh Little Theatre, about the group's history, productions, and running an arts organization in the new economy. Learn more about Raleigh Little Theatre here: http://raleighlittletheatre.org/index.html
This week's show previews the Raleigh Little Theatre's holiday favorite, Cinderella. We also visit the Mountain Bike Museum in Statesville, learn about the Carolina Civic Center in Lumberton, explore the Roanoke Canal Museum in Roanoke Rapids and Bob Garner samples the fare at Alexander Michael's Restaurant and Tavern in Charlotte.
This week's show profiles the nation's oldest community theater: the Raleigh Little Theatre, previews a new exhibit at the Cameron Art Museum in Wilmington, goes ziplining at Hawksnest, checks out the food truck scene in Asheville, and Bob Garner visits Lilly's Pizza in Raleigh.
Five time Tony-winner and new ATW Chairman William Ivey Long talks about his extensive career as one of Broadway's top costume designers, from his earliest days on stage -- living in a dressing room at the Raleigh Little Theatre in North Carolina -- to his upcoming projects "9 To 5" and "Dreamgirls". Along the way, he describes how shocked he was by the first thing he saw on stage at the Yale School of Drama; how his career developed largely thanks to the support of his drama school friends; how he came up with Anita Morris' iconic body suit for "Nine" -- and how it resulted in his never working with Tommy Tune again; whether there's a difference between designing musicals and plays; how the paintings of Gauguin influenced his designs for "Guys And Dolls"; what its like to revisit the "Chicago" costumes for a variety of different actresses; and why he chooses to wear a largely unvaried "uniform" every single day. Original air date - August 22, 2008.
Five time Tony-winner and new ATW Chairman William Ivey Long talks about his extensive career as one of Broadway's top costume designers, from his earliest days on stage -- living in a dressing room at the Raleigh Little Theatre in North Carolina -- to his upcoming projects "9 To 5" and "Dreamgirls". Along the way, he describes how shocked he was by the first thing he saw on stage at the Yale School of Drama; how his career developed largely thanks to the support of his drama school friends; how he came up with Anita Morris' iconic body suit for "Nine" -- and how it resulted in his never working with Tommy Tune again; whether there's a difference between designing musicals and plays; how the paintings of Gauguin influenced his designs for "Guys And Dolls"; what its like to revisit the "Chicago" costumes for a variety of different actresses; and why he chooses to wear a largely unvaried "uniform" every single day. Original air date - August 22, 2008.
Five time Tony-winner William Ivey Long talks about his extensive career as one of Broadway's top costume designers, from his earliest days on stage -- living in a dressing room at the Raleigh Little Theatre in North Carolina -- to his upcoming projects "9 To 5" and "Dreamgirls". Along the way, he describes how shocked he was by the first thing he saw on stage at the Yale School of Drama; how his career developed largely thanks to the support of his drama school friends; how he came up with Anita Morris' iconic body suit for "Nine" -- and how it resulted in his never working with Tommy Tune again; whether there's a difference between designing musicals and plays; how the paintings of Gauguin influenced his designs for "Guys And Dolls"; what its like to revisit the "Chicago" costumes for a variety of different actresses; and why he chooses to wear a largely unvaried "uniform" every single day. Original air date - August 22, 2008.
Five time Tony-winner William Ivey Long talks about his extensive career as one of Broadway's top costume designers, from his earliest days on stage -- living in a dressing room at the Raleigh Little Theatre in North Carolina -- to his upcoming projects "9 To 5" and "Dreamgirls". Along the way, he describes how shocked he was by the first thing he saw on stage at the Yale School of Drama; how his career developed largely thanks to the support of his drama school friends; how he came up with Anita Morris' iconic body suit for "Nine" -- and how it resulted in his never working with Tommy Tune again; whether there's a difference between designing musicals and plays; how the paintings of Gauguin influenced his designs for "Guys And Dolls"; what its like to revisit the "Chicago" costumes for a variety of different actresses; and why he chooses to wear a largely unvaried "uniform" every single day. Original air date - August 22, 2008.
Five time Tony-winner William Ivey Long talks about his extensive career as one of Broadway's top costume designers, from his earliest days on stage -- living in a dressing room at the Raleigh Little Theatre in North Carolina -- to his upcoming projects 9 To 5 and Dreamgirls. Along the way, he describes how shocked he was by the first thing he saw on stage at the Yale School of Drama; how his career developed largely thanks to the support of his drama school friends; how he came up with Anita Morris' iconic body suit for Nine -- and how it resulted in his never working with Tommy Tune again; whether there's a difference between designing musicals and plays; how the paintings of Gauguin influenced his designs for Guys And Dolls; what its like to revisit the Chicago costumes for a variety of different actresses; and why he chooses to wear a largely unvaried "uniform" every single day.
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