Episodes
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November 11, 2024 - Charles Coe and Ken Field, Vinny Deponto's "Mindplay", and BoriCorridor
Charles Coe’s Cricket Symphony is a new collection of poetry and music based on the poetry of award-winning African American writer and musician Charles Coe, with music including original compositions by Ken Field. They’ll perform tomorrow night at Arts at the Armory in Somerville. Charles Coe and Ken Field join The Culture Show with a preview and in studio performance. To keep abreast of upcoming Revolutionary Snake Ensemble performances, which includes one on November 23rd at Peabody Hall, Parish of All Saints, go here. And to read the latest from Charles Coe, check out his new book “Charles Coe: New And Selected Works”From there mentalist Vinny DePonto discusses his show “Mindplay.” Presented by The Huntington Theatre, “Mindplay” invites audiences to participate in an experience infused with intrigue and mystery. Vinny DePonto guides participants on a jaw-dropping, interactive journey as he reads minds while revealing his own. Mindplay is onstage November 13th through December 1st. Finally, Elsa Mosquera Sterenberg joins The Culture Show to discuss the arts organization she co-founded, Agora Cultural Architects, which has created BoriCorridor, a cultural corridor that connects Puerto Rican artists from the island with the mainland. Borricorrdor 2024 is wrapping up its tour with the production of the play “Quintuples,” onstage at the Emerson Paramount on November 14th, -
November 8, 2024 - Week-in-Review: Quincy Jones, celebrity endorsements and Hello Kitty at 50
Today on The Culture Show co-hosts Callie Crossley, Jared Bowen and Edgar B. Herwick III go over the latest headlines on our arts and culture week-in-review.First up: Remembering Quincy Jones. He influenced popular music for half a century, producing the best selling album of all time: “Thriller.” He scored movie soundtracks, he produced television, launching Will Smith’s acting career with “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air” and he facilitated the greatest night in pop: producing “We Are the World. “ From bebop to hip hop Quincy Jones did it all. From there it’s the one piece of music Quincy Jones didn’t produce–what has been dubbed “The Most Mysterious Song on the Internet”–well thanks to some cyber sleuths: mystery solvedFinally, Hello Kitty, says hello to the AARP. The feline phenom turned fifty,. -
November 7, 2024 - Ken Burns and Sarah Burns, Graffiti artist Sobek, Manet at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum
The latest documentary film by Ken Burns, his daughter Sarah Burns and her husband David McMahon is a portrait of an artist as a Renaissance man: Leonardo da Vinci. As the documentary, Leonardo da Vinci, illustrates, he was a man with infinite curiosity about the world and how it works. His passions and obsessions prompted him to study all manner of the world: from the human heart to the complexity of water; flying machines to weaponry. Through his paintings, drawings and writings, this documentary explores one of humankind’s most curious and innovative minds. Ken Burns and Sarah Burns join The Culture Show to discuss. “Leonardo da Vinci” airs on PBS November 18th and 19th.From there graffiti artist Jeremy “Sobek” Harrison joins The Culture Show to talk about his latest mural "Return to Nature" in Dudley Square. “Return to Nature” is Sobek’s mixed medium eco-installation that creates an organic interaction between nature and humans. It’s located at The Food Project’s West Cottage Farm and Langdon Street Farms, 42 Langdon Street in Roxbury.Finally, we get an overview of the new exhibition at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, “Manet: A Model Family.” Nearly 150 years since his passing, this is the first exhibition to explore Manet through the lens of the complex familial relationships between and amongst the artist and his sitters, shedding new light on the life and masterpieces of the “father of modernism.” The exhibition’s curator, Diana Seave Greenwald joins The Culture Show to talk about conceptualizing this show. “Manet: A Model Family,” is on view through January 20th. -
November 6, 2024 - Susan Glisson and Tracy K. Smith
Historian Susan Glisson helps people reckon with the country's fraught racial history who sees the past not necessarily as an anchor but rather a buoy, as a navigational tool to point us toward a better way. She joins The Culture Show for her thoughts, and guidance on how to navigate the world post Election Day.She is the founder and president of the Glisson Group, a healing and equity consulting firm and founder and executive director of the Welcome Table Collaborative. She is a 2024 Advance Leadership Initiative fellow at Harvard University.From there we are joined by Pulitzer Prize-winning poet and former U.S. Poet Laureate Tracy K. Smith. She joins us to talk about her latest book, which is now out in paperback, “To Free the Captives: A Plea for the American Soul.” It is part manifesto, part memoir–and all parts mesmerizing. -
November 5, 2024 - The BSO's Duke Ellington Tribute Concerts, Puppet Free Library, and "Countdown to 2026"
Thomas Wilkins, the Boston Symphony Orchestra’s artistic partner for education and community engagement and vocalist Renese King join The Culture Show to talk about the BSO’s tribute to Duke Ellington concerts, which includes a free concert on Friday, November 8 at 7 p.m. The performance will take place at Boston’s Basilica in the Mission Hill neighborhood. The all-Duke Ellington program marks the 50th anniversary of Ellington’s death with a selection of the jazz great’s most seminal works, including excerpts from his three Sacred Concerts, featuring vocalist Renese King and a specially formed ensemble of singers. To learn more about the free concert go here. And find out more about the November 7th concert here and the November 9th concert here.From there legendary puppeteer Sara Peattie joins us to talk about running the Puppet Free Library, which lives in the basement of Emanuel Church on Newbury street. Sara Peattie is the co-founder of the Puppeteers’ Cooperative, a nonprofit started in 1976 with the late puppeteer George Konnoff.Finally, we continue our series, Countdown to 2026, with historian Catherine Allgor leading the way, with a focus on the culture, the people on the ground, and the events leading up to the American Revolution. Catherine Allgor is President Emerita of the Massachusetts Historical Society, an author, historian and visiting scholar with the Department of History at Tufts University. On this month’s episode we’re looking at the fight for women’s rights by way of Abigail Adams and her famous letter to John Adams, urging him to “Remember the Ladies.” -
November 4, 2024 - The Ufot Family Cycle and Andre Dubus III
Growing up in Southbridge, Massachusetts the acclaimed playwright Mfoniso Udofia rarely saw stories about Africans and African Americans that felt true to her own family. Inspired in part by August Wilson’s Century Cycle, she set out to create a cycle of nine plays that follows one Nigerian American family through three generations. Titled the Ufot Family Cycle, all nine of those plays will be produced as part of a two-year city-wide festival in Greater Boston. Led by the Huntington Theatre Company, a wide range of local cultural organizations will collaborate on the project. With the first play of the cycle, “Sojourners,” onstage now, Mfoniso Udofia and the Huntington’s artistic director Loretta Greco join The Culture Show to talk about launching this unprecedented endeavor. “Sojourners,” is on through December 1st. To learn more, click here.From there the writer Andre Dubus III joins The Culture Show. His nine books include the New York Times’ bestsellers “House of Sand and Fog,” “The Garden of Last Days,” and his memoir, “Townie.” His most recent novel, “Such Kindness,” was published in June 2023, and today he joins the show to talk about his latest work, a collection of personal essays, “Ghost Dogs: On Killers and Kin,” Andre Dubus teaches writing at the University of Massachusetts Lowell. To learn more about his upcoming appearances and events, click here. -
November 1, 2024 - Week in Review: Martha Stewart, Teri Garr, and Mariah Carey's early return
November 1, 2024 - Week in Review: Martha Stewart, Teri Garr, and Mariah Carey's early return -
October 31, 2024 - Secret Byrd, Night of the Living Books, and Mary Grant
St. Paul’s Cathedral in Boston will transform into a clandestine location for six intimate performances October 31st through November 2nd, of Concert Theatre Works’ production of “Secret Byrd,” an immersive musical experience celebrating the music and activism of English Renaissance composer William Byrd. Presented by Revels, this is how Byrd intended for his Mass for 5 Voices to be sung- for worship and in strict secrecy. “Secret Byrd,” was created and directed by Bill Barclay, and features The Gesualdo Six, one of England’s leading vocal ensembles, and Abendmusik, New York’s Early String Band. Bill Barclay Artistic Director of Concert Theatre Works and Revels Senior Artistic Advisor, Paddy Swanson join The Culture Show. Tickets and information are at revels.org. From there we get a preview of Porter Square Books’ “Night of the Living Books ( a Halloween Party).” It kicks off at 7:00 PM at the Porter Square Books: Boston Edition in the Seaport District. Assistant Store Manager Jen Fryar joins us for a preview. To see Porter Square Books' staff recommendations, visit their website.Finally Mary Grant, President of Massachusetts College of Art and Design, joins The Culture Show for her monthly appearance to discuss a range of topics, which includes her thoughts on Ballot Question 2, and the recipients of the 2024 MassArt Common Good Award, which celebrates individuals who demonstrate the transformative impact of the arts on civic life.The Culture Show, which presents,Community Canvas, is an initiative at GBH that features artwork from community members on our Digital Mural. Today’s mural, in the spirit of Halloween, is titled Spooky Mookie by Corinn Colford. -
October 30, 2024 - Subject:Matter, Keith Mascoll, Pedro Alonzo and Sam Durant
Subject:Matter, the Boston-based tap ensemble joins The Culture Show to perform and preview their debut jazz album “Songbook,” which will be released on November 8th. They will also be performing at the ICA on November 8. Ian Berg, a choreographer, composer and founder of Subject:Matter, Dance Captain Sam Emmond and Subject:Matter Music Director Max Ridley discuss it all with Jared Bowen.From there Keith Mascoll previews a live taping of his podcast at the Museum of Science, “Living The Triggered Life Podcast, “ which he co-hosts with his wife Roxann Mascoll. They are a Black couple who have their own trauma histories. On their podcast they talk about love, mental health, relationships and family dynamics. Finally culture show contributor Pedro Alonzo, the Boston-based independent curator and interdisciplinary artist Sam Durant join The Culture Show for our recurring segment AI: Actual Intelligence. Sam Durant, who grew up near Boston discusses how being part of Boston Busing influenced his perspective as an artist. -
October 29, 2024 - American Sports Story: Aaron Hernandez, the best books of 1925, and Erik Andrade
Nina Jacobson and Brad Simpson, Executive Producers of FX’s “American Sports Story: Aaron Hernandez,” join The Culture Show to talk about adapting his story to a 10-part limited series.From there Linda Weld, who is a board member of the Associates of the Boston Public Library and co-chair of the Hundred-Year Retroactive Book Award joins us to talk about their Hundred-Year Retroactive Book award and the upcoming deadline to vote for the 1925 literary work that has the most relevance today.Finally, poet Erik Andrade joins us to talk about his work, being included in the prestigious anthology, “Black Fire This Time Vol. 2,” and the tradition of the spoken word as a form of activism. For more information about Andrade's upcoming open mic nights in New Bedford, visit his Instagram page.
