Broadway Bullet: Theatre from Broadway, Off-Broadway and beyond.

Raissa Katona Bennet talks about her career as a theatre actress and cabaret artist, with tons of great advice for those starting out. We might even listen to a couple songs from one of her many albums.

We're back with a brand new season, and to kick it off, we're going to be exploring the one-man show. What goes into them, why to do them. First, Baba Brinkman has been making his name doing one man rap shows about scientific concepts he describes as "part rap concert, part TED talk and part stand-up." He discusses his process of researching and writing these shows while talking about his latest, "Rap Guide to Consciousness". Next, Moises Belizario and Steven Prescod talk about putting together the one man show, A Brooklyn Boy, featuring Prescod playing over 25 roles. Both have served time in prison, and have used theatre as a way to escape their pasts, but use this show to illustrate it to help others avoid their mistakes. Robert Galinsky spends most of his time working with prison inmates and pre-release candidates. His dedication to using the arts to help others led to his creation of "The Bench" a show following the lives of several people before and after their troubles began. So sit back, and enjoy today's trip!

Frozen recently opened on Broadway, and we got a chance to talk with Jeremy Chernick, the effects designer for this tech heavy production. He talks about his job and work on this show, Alladin and others, as well as offering techniques to achieve FX gold on a dime budget. Following this, we have two excerpts from what might as well be called Broadway Master Classes. Broadway Lyricist Glenn Slater has been writing with arguably two of the most influential composers of the past 40 years, Andrew Lloyd Webber and Alan Menken. He has two shows currently running on Broadway, wrote lyrics for Galavant on television, and has a career, it is safe to assume, that any lyricist would sell their soul for. He didn't sell his soul, however, but spent years honing his craft. Here, he shares some of what he has learned. Book writer Rick Elice, came into the theatre by an unusual route, and became a book writer later than some others, but he has made a huge impact since his debut with Jersey Boys. Taking in a Tony nomination for that show and a second for Peter and the Starcatcher. With more shows in the works, this new titan discusses his various theories about what different techniques make a book work, using examples from his past and upcoming shows. The full versions of all these interviews are available in their complete, unedited form at broadwaybullet.com, so be sure to check those out. Now, let's discover how the masters of Broadway do their thing!

Book writer Rick Elice, came into the theatre by an unusual route, and became a book writer later than some others, but he has made a huge impact since his debut with Jersey Boys. Taking in a Tony nomination for that show and a second for Peter and the Starcatcher. With more shows in the works, this new titan discusses his various theories about what different techniques make a book work, using examples from his past and upcoming shows.

Frozen recently opened on Broadway, and we got a chance to talk with Jeremy Chernick, the effects designer for this tech heavy production. He talks about his job and work on this show, Alladin and others, as well as offering techniques to achieve FX gold on a dime budget.

In this episode, we talk with four people in the Dramatists Guild Foundation Fellowship program. DGF Fellows is a year-long development intensive led by esteemed writers. Participants spend a year honing their craft while developing full-length pieces, culminating in an industry presentation at an Off-Broadway theater. The program is highly sought after for its successful format of bringing playwrights and musical theater writers together in the learning process. Keelay Gipson is a multi-disciplinary artist including work as an activist, teaching artist, and award-winning playwright. He is the recipient of the Van Lier Fellowship (2016-2018) at New Dramatists and recently finished work as a Public Artist in Residence for the City of New York’s Department of Cultural Affairs and Administration of Children’s Services working with LGBTQ foster youth. Janine McGuire and Arri Lawton Simon are musical theatre fellows as well as members of the BMI Advanced Musical Theatre Workshop. They have collectively written and produced concerts, stage musicals, plays, film scores, orchestral pieces, choral works, and custom songs in addition to teaching musical theatre and performing arts outreach in the community. Riti Sachdeva is an alum of the The Public’s Emerging Writers Group and the Women’s Project. A theater maker and cultural worker, Riti has been creating art in some form for over 25 years. Incorporating text, installation, and dance into her writing and performance, she straddles the conventions of U.S. theater, performance art, and international approaches to theater. All this, inside!

In this episode,we have two shows that have passed, but we expect to hear more from their creators soon! Immersive theatre has exploded, and we talked with creators of Curiosities, Anthony Logan Cole and Bryan Knowlton. Both are veterans in the new trend of all things immersive. They discussed not only what they needed to keep in mind creating their piece, but perhaps what you should keep in mind creating yours. Next up, earlier in the Season we talked to the composer of Whiskey Pants, Christian DeGre, who, since I posted the interview, has gone on to be Director for Opera America. In this episode, we talk to book writer Serrana Gay and lyricist Joseph Reese, both of whom I certainly expect to hear from more. Finally, I talk to an old friend, Bret Tuomi who has been making his living for several years both on the road touring with Rock of Ages (a show he made his Broadway debut with) but also treading the boards on many legitimate stages in Chicago. He talks about life as an actor on the road, and in the Windy City. All of this, inside!

Are you wondering what a producer has to do or curious about producing yourself? We've got an episode chock full of interviews of interest to you. Cara Reichel and Peter Mills talk about their production company, Prospect Theatre company, their fantastic growth, and areas you need to look out for when creating a company. Seth Sklar-Hein discusses his job producing and associate directing for Cameron Mackintosh North America as well as his working relationship with arguably the most successful producer of the modern theatre. Ralph Lewis of Peculiar Works talks about dusting off the forgotten American classic, Androbourous and the challenges and joys of producing site-specific theatre. Peter Bogyo, General Manager for too many Broadway Shows to mention, talks about his numerous duties and his new book, aptly titled, "Broadway General Manager". Finally, Eleanor Speert, buyer for the Drama Book shop comes in to talk about the resources they provide everyone in celebration of 100 years of doing business. She also talks about writing your book... because face it, you know you want to write one. All of this, after this.

Cara Reichel and Peter Mills talk about their production company, Prospect Theatre company, their fantastic growth, and areas you need to look out for when creating a company.

Ralph Lewis of Peculiar Works talks about dusting off the forgotten American classic, Androbourous and the challenges and joys of producing site-specific theatre.