Episode 88: Stage director, dramaturg – Sara Widzer

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Sara Widzer is my guest, this week. Sara and I met once-upon-a-time, during a production of Faust. I had a tie-on beard. That’s how long ago. She’s since gone on to direct in A houses across the country. Directorial style, the process, and politics in opera are all on the table, along with a whole bunch more interesting stuff. Enjoy, and thanks for listening!

Episode 87: Soprano and KUSC radio host – Jennifer Miller

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Jennifer Miller is my guest this week. Jen and I go back to 2009, where we performed together in a production of Faust- she as Marguerite and me as Faust. That’s us in the picture, way back then. Jen has since moved on to KUSC, where she hosts a show entitled, “California Classical All Night.” “How do you make a living when you get out of music school” is a constant theme on my show, and this episode is no exception. Jen’s at the beginning of her radio career, and she’s killing it! Enjoy!

Episode 86: Comedian, entrepreneur, filmmaker, author, and all-around polymath – Louise Palanker

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Louise Palanker is a true polymath. Comedian, author, performer, radio host, and entrepreneur are just a few words to describe her many fields of expertise, and we talk about it all in this great episode. She was also a witness for the prosecution and her eventual (and current) husband, Ron Zonen, during the Michael Jackson trial in 2005- and yes, we talk about that, along with sexual harassment at The Comedy Store, working on shows from That’s Incredible to Rick Dees Weekly Top 40, and a whole bunch of other stuff, too. I loved talking with Louise, and I bet you’ll love listening to her- enjoy!

Episode 85: Mezzo-soprano, illustrator, expert meditator – Veronica Christenson

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Veronica Christenson has been a colleague of mine at the LA Opera for over a decade, and this was my chance to have a few minutes with this lovely lady all to myself. She’s a world-class mezzo, but that’s not the only reason I wanted to chat… she’s also a student of Shaolin Kung Fu Meditation! I’ve dabbled both in martial arts and meditation, and I’m thrilled to have her on the show to teach me more about it all! Try meditation, folks. It’ll change your life- Enjoy!

Episode 82: Opera director, engineer, and designer – Thaddeus Strassberger

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Opera director, engineer, and designer, Thaddeus Strassberger is my guest this week! Thaddeus has been to LA before, and he’s one of my favorite directors working today. Art, commerce, politics- it’s all here- enjoy!

Episode 81: Tenor, impresario – Mario Chang

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Tenor, Mario Chang is my guest this week. We first worked with him in La Boheme, and now he’s back, singing the role of Ismaele in our current production of Nabucco, here in LA. We also talk at great length about the opera company founded by him and his wife with the purpose of supporting opera performance and training in his home country of Guatemala. Fascinating guy- Enjoy!

Episode 78: International Art Curator – Pedro Alonzo

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My cousin Pete is on the show!! Pedro Alonzo is an internationally recognized art curator who works with the biggest names in contemporary art. Shepard Fairey, Banksy, Yoshitomo Nara, KAWS, Takashi Murakami are just a few of the folks he’s worked with, but most recently, like- a week ago, Pete teamed up with artist JR and erected a border wall installation in Tecate, Mexico, which I bet you’ve come across if you read the news at all. It’s an amazing piece that couldn’t be more relevant in today’s political climate. I was so happy to catch up with my favorite cousin- I loved our chat, and I bet you will too. Thanks for listening!

Episode 77: POP Artistic Director – Josh Shaw

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Josh Shaw is the Artistic Director of the Pacific Opera Project, right here, in sunny Los Angeles. He’s a singer turned director and opera company owner. We talk the ins and outs of running a company, the motivation for undertaking such a crazy idea, and his take on how to be successful at it. Thanks for listening- Enjoy!

Episode 74: Susan Bennett- The original voice of Siri

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Musician, voice-over artist and the original voice of Siri, Susan Bennett is my guest today! It was great getting the scoop on how one becomes the voice of Siri, the hiring process and the secretive process that Apple uses for this kind of thing. Thanks for listening, and enjoy the chat!

Summer Break Flashback: Tony Silvestri

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Happy summer, y’all! For this week’s episode of my Summer Flashback Series, I’ve got poet, scholar, professor and all-around great guy, Tony Silvestri on the show! We had this chat a year ago, but it’s every bit as relevant as it ever was- we talk about life, death and everything in between- Enjoy!