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Four smiling people in the center of a colorful graphic with the words "The Culture Show" written beneath them
Weekdays from 2 to 3 p.m.

GBH Executive Arts Editor Jared Bowen and a rotating panel of cultural correspondents and co-hosts provide an expansive look at society through art, culture and entertainment, driving conversations about how listeners experience culture across music, movies, fashion, TV, art, books, theater, dance, food and more. To share your opinion, email thecultureshow@wgbh.org or call/text 617-300-3838.

The show also airs on CAI, the Cape, Coast and Islands NPR station.

Come see The Culture Show LIVE at the  GBH BPL Studio every Friday at 2pm, and streaming on  GBH News YouTube.

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Listen to previous shows

  • On today’s arts and culture week-in-review Jared Bowen, Edgar B. Herwick III and Culture Show contributor Lisa Simmons, the artistic and executive director of the Roxbury International Film Festival and program manager at Mass Cultural Council, go over the latest headlines.First up, Taylor Swift endorses Kamala Harris for president and encourages everyone over the age of 18 to register to vote. Will this make an impact on the race?From there we remember the magisterial and masterful actor James Earl Jones and preview this Sunday’s Emmy awards.Finally, we look at Glenn Lowry, the director of the Museum of Modern Art. He is the latest high-profile leader to exit the museum world. What will the next generation of leaders bring to our major arts institutions and what challenges do they face?
  • Imari Paris Jeffries, President and CEO of Embrace Boston and José C. Massó III, the longtime host of WBUR’s “¡Con Salsa!,” join The Culture Show to preview The Embrace Massó "¡Con Salsa!” International Music Festival, a celebration of music, culture, and social justice. From there it’s Swampscott native Spencer Charnas. The frontman of the horror metal band Ice Nine Kills is also the curator of The Silver Scream Con. He joins us ahead of its Friday the 13th kickoff in Worcester.Finally Mary Grant, president of MassArt, joins The Culture Show for her monthly segment to talk about a range of topics, which this month includes colleges teaching AI, Governor Ron DeSantis’ severe budget cuts to the arts, and the story of a museum, an ancient broken jug, and forgiveness.
  • The Tony winning Artistic Director of the American Repertory Theater Diane Paulus.She is a master revivalist. If you thought you knew the story of “Porgy and Bess,” or “Pippin,” Paulus has given the classics a new life by giving audiences a new way of experiencing them. Now she’s reframing “Romeo and Juliet,” with an emphasis on the lovers’ love. Diane Paulus and theater legend Terrence Mann join us.From there we get a jump on Mexican Independence Day with mariachi singer Veronica Robles – a cultural force as a performer and as a leader whose cultural center offers Latin American arts and culture programming and jobs for youth.And, artist Alex Buchanan. A Coast Guard veteran and former mariner, rope is now his medium of choice. He literally weaves it and other maritime materials together to figuratively weave the threads of waste, ocean health and maritime culture.
  • Actor and Comedian Eugene Mirman was born in Moscow, raised in Lexington, and he honed his craft working the stages of Boston's comedy circuit. Today he is known as the voice of Gene Belcher on the FX animated hit “Bob’s Burgers” and for his inventive standup.. He joins The Culture Show ahead of his appearance at the Crystal Ballroom in Somerville.From there, Edgar B. Herwick III takes us to Worcester’s Hanover Theatre and Conservatory for the Performing Arts. That’s where the wondrous Wurlitzer pipe organ can still be experienced as a single instrument that wows with its mighty orchestral sound. Finally, author JM Varese joins The Culture Show to talk about his latest novel, a Victorian Gothic thriller that is rooted in the real-life Victorian scandal when arsenic was used to make decorative wallpaper. JM Varese is Director of Outreach for The Dickens Project at UC Santa Cruz.
  • Today on The Culture Show Katie Bach, acting director of the Kodály Music Institute and music teacher at the Peabody School, talks about bringing the Kodály method of teaching music into local classrooms.From there we raise a glass to Boston Rum Week, which kicks off on September 15th. Olivier Raynaut, one of the head organizers, joins us for an overview.Finally, artist Sandra Sawatzky has created a chronology of environmental degradation over millennia with a tapestry that is nearly a decade-in-the-making. Titled “The Black Gold Tapestry,” it is one of the works included in MassArt Museum’s exhibition “Displacement,” which looks at our relationship with the environment, Sandra Sawatzky and Lisa Tung, executive director of the MassArt Art Museum, join The Culture Show to talk about this exhibition.