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BSR_S10E02 - The Presented - Chris Davis
Today, Chris Davis returns to talk about the 2025 FringeArts offering, The Presented, a refreshed take on his 2018 performance of the piece. Here is my interview with Chris Davis for The Presented.
The Golden Age of Theater has ended: grants canceled, theaters shuttered, universities gone bankrupt. Amongst the wrecked landscape comes The Presented. First performed in Philly Fringe 2018, and later Edinburgh 2019, Chris Davis’ The Presented has been updated to address the challenges of making art in 2025 asking: where do we go from here?
The Presented follows Chris, a struggling artist working concessions at a movie theater, who finds himself spiraling into a surreal subconscious journey triggered (naturally) by popping popcorn. On his quest to confront artistic failure and doubt, Chris meets a parade of strange and compelling characters: a disgraced 19th-century actress, a volatile fringe producer, and a very large bear, among others. With wit, physicality, and an always theatrical flair, Davis explores what it means to be a “chosen” artist in today’s world - and why that pursuit might drive you to madness.
FOR TICKETS AND INFORMATION: https://phillyfringe.org/events/the-presented/
BSR_S10E01 - New Heaven New Earth - RAYNE
Join host Darnelle Radford as he sits down with Ang Bey, also known as Rayne, to discuss her innovative play "New Heaven, New Earth." This episode delves into the creative process behind adapting Shakespeare's "Antony and Cleopatra" into a modern narrative that explores themes of identity, power, and cultural legacy.
ABOUT NEW HEAVEN, NEW EARTH
On the edge of empire, Cleopatra battles a soothsaying Crocodile in this revisionist, Afrocentric adaptation of Shakespeare's “Antony and Cleopatra”. Written by Rayne, directed by Shamus, with live music by Karen Smith, "new heaven new earth” is an allegory that blends ancient history with poetic futurism. When peace demands war, what will you become, and for whom?
FOR TICKETS AND INFORMATION: https://phillyfringe.org/events/new-heaven-new-earth/
BSR_S09E28 - ON MY DEEN - Interact/ Theatre In The X - Amina Robinson
Today on the podcast:
Director, Amina Robinson drops in to talk about the Interact Theatre Company production in collaboration with Theatre In The X of ON MY DEEN by Antu Yacob, commissioned as part of The Philly Cycle, on stage through June 28th. Here is my interview with Amina Robinson for ON MY DEEN.
ON MY DEEN
by Antu Yacob
directed by Amina Robinson
(Fat Ham, Once On This Island, Intimate Apparel, The Color Purple)
June 6-28, 2025
World premiere, commissioned as part of The Philly Cycle (A new three-part play commission project. Sponsored by THE WILLIAM PENN FOUNDATION)
ON MY DEEN was written about and with Philadelphia’s Black Muslim Community.
West Philly. Spring 1962. Faye Ann has just joined the Nation of Islam, setting her life on a whole new path. Her best friend, Michael, would like to be a lot more than friends, but the two can’t seem to agree on religion, politics, or even what makes a good pie. Over the passing decades, personal circumstances and cultural upheavals bring Faye Ann and Michael together as much as they keep them apart. Can these would-be lovers find each other while seeking their own paths to peace?
FOR TICKETS AND INFORMATION: https://interacttheatre.org and https://theatreinthex.com
BSR_S09E27 - RENT - Arden - Steve Pacek
Today on the podcast:
Co-Director Steve Pacek stop say to talk about the Arden Theatre Company musical production of RENT, by Jonathan Larson. Here is my interview with Steve Pacek for Arden’s production of RENT.
ABOUT RENT
At the end of the millennium, a group of bohemians in the East Village struggle with love, loss, and gentrification amidst the AIDS crisis. In this exciting new production, Jonathan Larson’s Tony Award™ and Pulitzer Prize-winning musical will transform the Haas Stage and shake the rafters with the iconic chords of “Seasons of Love,” “I’ll Cover You, ” and the thrilling, soaring score that is RENT!
FOR TICKETS AND INFORMATION: https://ardentheatre.org
Learn more about Steve Pacek: https://www.stevepacek.com