Talking Theater

Mark Armstrong is a Brooklyn-based theater director and the Executive Director for The 24 Hour Plays, where he recently oversaw the 16th annual The 24 Hour Plays on Broadway.  Mark spent four years as the Director of New Work for off-Broadway’s Keen Company, where he created the Keen Playwrights Lab for mid-career playwrights and led Keen Teens. Mark spent three years as the Literary Director for Playscripts, Inc. His writing has appeared in American Theatre, HowlRound and the Brooklyn Rail. And, as Artistic Director of The Production Company, he directed premiere productions of Dan O’Brien’s The Angel in the Trees, Blair Singer’s Meg’s New Friend and The Most Damaging Wound, Alan Berks’ Goats, and many more. Mark is a proud member of Ensemble Studio Theatre, the Stage Directors and Choreographers Society and Lincoln bCenter Theater Directors Lab. This post Bringing Together Artists to Create 24 Hour Plays appeared first on Talking Theater. Also, please click here to Subscribe. Thanks so much for listening!  

Jared Zeigler is an Equity stage manager, arts administrator, and theatre artist based in Minneapolis. As a stage manager, Jared has worked with many of the leading professional theaters in Minneapolis, including Dark & Stormy Productions, Frank Theatre, Guthrie Theater, Sod House Theatre, Workhaus Collective, Playwrights' Center, and Theatre Novi Most. He is also the Managing Director of Theatre Novi Most. Jared earned his degree in theatre at the University of Minnesota. Jared shares with Marc about his directing project for Urinetown:The musical, the keys of a successful stage manager, including how to work with directors and actors, calling a show, working tech, and the role safety, support, collaboration, and creating a safe space play in the life of a professional stage manger. Jared also talks about his new administrator role at Theatre Novi Most. This post Creating a Supportive and Safe Space as an Equity Stage Manager appeared first on Talking Theater. To help out this show, please click here to 

Annie Enneking is an actor, songwriter, musician, teaching artist, and fight director. She started performing at the age of 14, and has acted on or created fights for almost every stage in the Twin Cities. Annie is an associate instructor with Dueling Arts International and teaches the art of stage combat at the University of Minnesota. Annie fronts and founded the rock band, Annie and the Bang Bang, and also has an acoustic singer-songwriter project. She was a 2010 Playwrights’ Center McKnight Theater Artist Fellow, and has received support from the Jerome Foundation and the Minnesota State Arts Board for her work as a music theater maker. Annie shares with Marc about the tools she needs in order to live a creative life, how physicality and body inform all her work, what she does with action and commitment in order to direct violence on stage, and the latest news about her band and solo acoustic projects. This post Body, Connection, and Collaboration appeared first on Talking Theater. You can help out this

Annalisa Stahler is a production stage manager with Disney based in Orange County, California, and she also works with Disney Studios. Some of the shows she manages or oversees include Fantasmic and Jedi Training: Trials of the Temple. She earned her degree in theatre with an emphasis in stage management at Arizona State University. Annalisa shares with Marc about the role and responsibilities of a stage manager at Disney and how it compares to traditional professional theater, what it takes to work at Disney, what being a stage manager means to her, and how positivity, kindness, and hope have helped her get to where she’s at today. This post Managing Shows at Disney appeared first on Talking Theater. To help out this show, please leave and honest review on Apple Podcasts. Your ratings and reviews really make a difference. Also, please click here to Subscribe. Thanks so much for listening!

Kevin Harris is the Managing Artistic Director of the San Luis Obispo Little Theatre, soon to be San Luis Obispo Repertory Theatre. He spent three years at the Atlantic Theatre Company studying acting under David Mamet, William H. Macy, and Felicity Huffman; he also spent a year at CAP 21 learning the finer intricacies of “jazz hands”. In 2005, Kevin traveled to the West Bank and Gaza Strip to co-write and direct an original play with Ashtar Theatre, Palestine’s only professional theatre company. He has taught at the University of Iowa and has led dozens of workshops on A Practical Handbook for the Actor across the country.   Kevin received his MFA in Directing from the University of Iowa, and his BFA in Acting from New York University. He is very happy to be back on the California Central Coast with his two beautiful children, Dominick and Ella. This post Growing a Community Theater Into a Professional Repertory Company appeared first on Talking Theater. To help out this show, please leave and honest review

Erin Cronican is an actor, producer and an acting career coach. She belongs to both SAG-AFTRA and Actors Equity with many credits performing in film, TV, plays, and musicals across the country. Erin is the lead producer and managing director of The Seeing Place Theater, an exciting, independent actor-driven ensemble in New York. She’s the founder and coach of The Actors’ Enterprise, a one-on-one coaching service that provides affordable career-coaching to actors who want to feel more fulfilled and in control of their careers. Listen as Erin shares with Marc the philosophy behind her theater company, the announcement of their new season, her approach to type and actor branding, and how she likes to tell messy, intimate, exciting stories on stage. And, as always, we finish our talk with a fun, Spot-Lightning round! This post Theater as Messy, Exciting, Organic Storytelling appeared first on Talking Theater. To help out this show, please leave and honest review on Apple Podcasts. Your ratings and reviews really

Marc Ensign is a musician who played bass guitar for the hit Broadway musical, RENT. Marc is also a marketing specialist. Those outside the world of theatre may not be able to grasp just how far one is willing to go to get the gig or job one really wants. For Marc Ensign, it meant collecting Broadway Playbills and stealing a phone book from a Manhattan bus station to get leads, and, then disguising himself as a journalist so that he could interview other Broadway musicians in his field. Regardless of what it took for Marc, it worked in his favor for some serious returns. It's a fascinating, and often funny story. Listen as Marc Smith interviews Marc Ensign: a bass player, an author, and an entrepreneur who went the extra mile just to prove to others and himself, that he can go after his dreams, determine his mission, and to connect the world with those who want to change it. This post Musician for RENT (Getting the Broadway Musical Gig) appeared first on Talking Theater. To help out this show, please leave an

Bernard Bunye is a New York talent manager with over 10 years experience in the business. Bernard joined SirenSong Entertainment to work alongside Donna DeStefano in August 2016. He began his career in talent management working for manager/producer Lillian LaSalle at Sweet 180 Talent Management and Production. After three years of learning the business from Ms. LaSalle, Bernard co-created Intrepid Talent Management with Jen Namoff. Building on the success of ITM, Bernard launched Brownstone Entertainment Management in January 2012. Bernard and Marc talk about the mindset needed to be a successful actor, what a talent manager does for actors, how actors can build stronger careers , what motivates Bernard with his clients, and two mistakes actors should avoid at auditions, and much more! This post Advice for Actors from a New York Talent Manager appeared first on Talking Theater. To help out this show, please leave and honest review on iTunes. Your ratings and reviews really make a difference. Also, please clic

Joseph Megel focuses on developing and directing new plays and works for theatre, film and video. He is an artist in residence in Performance Studies at the University of North Carolina’s Department of Communication. Joseph is the founder and Artistic Director of the Process Series: New Works in Development, now in its ninth year. He is also Artistic Director of StreetSigns Center for Literature and Performance. His most recent directing credits include: Howard L. Craft’s Freight:  The Five Incarnations of Abel Green for StreetSigns Center at HERE Arts Center in New York City and in Chapel Hill, which received a critics' pick distinction in the New York Times and year-end rave reviews, Joseph holds an MFA from the University of Southern California, an M.A. from the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, and a Bachelors degree from Northwestern University. Joseph talks about his dedication to diversity and social justice, collaborating with playwrights on directing new plays, the thrills and l

Suzy Newman resides in San Luis Obispo, California where she is an actor, director, and teacher & coach. She now works frequently on the “Central Coast” for The Great American Melodrama & Vaudeville and the San Luis Obispo Little Theatre, and recently with the Central Coast Shakespeare Festival, Pacific Conservatory Theatre (PCPA) and Oregon Cabaret Theatre. Some of her favorite shows include The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe, House of Blue Leaves, Always, Patsy Cline, 9 to 5, and The Foreigner. Suzy completed her MFA in acting at the University of Alabama. Suzy is also the singer with Up in the Air, a rock/world beat band. Suzy and Marc talk about the benefits of her MFA acting program, the decision to begin a career in theater after college, her rehearsal process in a one-person play, and how doing what you love keeps you doing your best work on stage, and much more! This post Doing Your Best Work On Stage appeared first on Talking Theater. To help out this show, please leave

Nikki Kaplan is the Associate Director of Education at Imagination Stage, one of the largest and most respected theatre arts organizations for young people in the country. Nikki began her career as a performer, studying as an actor, singer, and dancer. After graduating with a B.A. in Acting, she moved to New York and earned her M.A. in Educational Theater from NYU (focusing on Theater for Young Audiences and Directing). She’s also studied at A.C.T. in San Francisco. Nikki has directed over 15 shows at Imagination Stage, working with students ranging from 4th grade through high school. Nikki and Marc talk about the vision and mission of Imagination Stage, working for a theater for young audiences (TYA) organization, her rehearsal process with high school students, and how parents can introduce their kids to theater performances, and much more! This post Directing for Young Audiences at Imagination Stage appeared first on Talking Theater. To help out this show, please leave and honest review on iTunes. Your rat

David Vining has been working professionally in theater, since 1972. He has Bachelor of Arts in Theater and Speech Pathology from the University of Redlands and an MFA in Acting from the University of Minnesota. David shares with Marc some amazing lessons in theater from his experiences as an actor, director, and theatre professor. For most of his life, David has maintained dual careers as an actor and director in the professional theater and as a professor of theater at the University of Iowa, Arizona State University, and the University of London. His teaching specialty has been acting and all aspects of voice, speech, and heightened language. David has directed over 60 productions for Arizona theatre, including Phoenix Theatre, Southwest Shakespeare Company, and Actors Theater. This post Amazing Lessons in Theater appeared first on Talking Theater. To help out this show, please leave and honest review on iTunes. Your ratings and reviews really make a difference. Also, Subscribe on iTunes. Thanks so much fo

Jason Kuykendall performs in regional theaters all across the country and has had various roles in television and film. He has been with Cincinnati Playhouse, St. Louis Repertory Theatre, Florida Studio Theatre and is currently a member of the B Street Theatre in Sacramento, California. B Street Theater is one of the leading theater companies in Northern California where he has performed in more than 50 shows. Some of these productions include Last Train to Nibroc, The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, The Ugly One, Detroit, Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike and The Hound of Baskervilles. In addition to being a working actor, Jason is also the company owner, along with his wife Elisabeth Nunziato, of NK Media - an award-winning entertainment media solutions company. This post Working Film by Day and Theater by Night appeared first on Talking Theater. To help out this show, please leave and honest review on iTunes. Your ratings and reviews really make a difference. Also, Subscribe on iTunes. Thanks so much for

D Scott Withers is an award-winning actor and director who began his professional acting career with Childsplay in Tempe, Arizona, where he eventually became an associate artist – a relationship that has lasted 25 years. Scott was the Founder and Managing Director for In Mixed Company. In addition, he served as the interim Artistic Director at the Stagebrush Theatre, and the Artistic Director of Greasepaint Youth Theater. As a playwright, Scott’s original play, Big Dreams, was selected for the Hormel New Works Festival at Phoenix Theatre. Scott has performed or directed with almost all the major theater companies in Phoenix. Across the country, Scott has performed with several regional theaters including Seattle Children’s Theatre, Fulton Opera House, Quisisana, Geva Center Theatre and Arkansas Repertory Theater. Most recently, Scott has plunged into the New York City talent pool and has been in the Broadway national tours of Catch Me If You Can, Memphis, and Elf the Musical. Scott is currently performing in

Trista Baldwin is a playwright and currently a member of the Writers Group at the Seattle Repertory Theatre. She is also the recipient of Jerome Fellowships, a McKnight Advancement Grant, and a new play development grant from the Saison Foundation International Artist Residency. She is an alum of the Core Writer program at the Playwrights’ Center in Minneapolis. Trista’s work has been produced in the States and internationally, and a few of her plays include Eye of the Lamb, American Sexy, Sand, Patty Red Pants, and Chicks with Dicks. Trista is a former associate professor of Dramatic Writing at St. Cloud University and currently, she teaches playwriting for youth in Washington State. Listen in as Trista walks Marc through many of her plays, and how she is connecting to people with theater and making an impact on today’s society.

Talking Theater is really a simple idea. It’s about theater professionals talking theater. Each week I’ll talk with actors, directors, playwrights, designers, stage managers, teachers, and many more theater artists and professionals, and I’ll ask them to talk about their career, their craft, and their community. I want this podcast to be for you, a theater lover – either as an artist or a fan – who enjoys hearing stories about the lives of theater artists making a living in theater working across the country in local and regional professional theater. Maybe that’s someone like you, or someone you know in your city. Each week you’ll hear from a theater professional who makes a living sharing their talent in the theater world. In addition to listening to their amazing stories, you’ll also hear their answers to the Spot-Lightning Round. It’s 5 questions at the end of each episode that I’ll ask every guest. It’s a lot of fun to hear their answers! Thanks for listening to this episode and show! I appreciate it so