A skilled variety artist in the Los Angeles art scene who made history being the only non-magician ever to be nominated for the Magic Castle Awards. Lindsay mixes classic vaudeville tricks with a theatrical, seductive spin that gives her audience a uniquely memorable experience, like the greats of a bygone era. She started out as an actor, training heavily in the very physical Suzuki acting technique before moving to LA in 2007. She honed her skills as a street performer in San Francisco and at ...
Mar 16, 2023•49 min•Season 4Ep. 20
The Executive Director of New York Gilbert & Sullivan Players and the veteran principal bass in the comic operas H.M.S. Pinafore, The Pirates of Penzance and The Mikado . David produced the all-new critically-acclaimed production of The Mikado , and co-produced I’ve Got a Little Twist , NYGASP’s original cabaret. His other roles for NYGASP include fundraising, marketing, board development and strategic planning. David is a past president of North American Performing Arts Managers and Agents,...
Mar 09, 2023•45 min•Season 4Ep. 19
Tracy Brigden is the Senior Artistic Producer at the Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis. She has over 20 years of experience in off-Broadway and regional theater as a dynamic artistic leader with an extensive knowledge of the new play development and production process, as well as strong, long term relationships with major American and international playwrights, composers, actors, directors, designers and other theatre artists. As a director she has a demonstrated history of creating world-class, ac...
Mar 02, 2023•51 min•Season 4Ep. 18
Adam Savage has spent his life gathering skills that allow him to take what's in his brain and make it real, working with every material and in every medium he could fathom — metal, paper, glass, plastic, rubber, foam, plaster, pneumatics, hydraulics, animatronics, neon, glassblowing, mold-making and injection molding to name just a few. In 1993, Adam began concentrating his career on the special-effects industry, honing his skills through more than 100 television commercials and a dozen feature...
Feb 23, 2023•53 min•Season 4Ep. 17
Gael Chandler began her career at a drive-in theatre in Santa Rosa, CA as a cashier at the Star-Vue Motor Movies, where she became interested in the projection booth. There she learned base and emulsion, cement and tape splicing and other 35mm basics. Eventually, her union brothers and the town's theatre managers were persuaded to let her in the booth and the union. This meant she got to run Rocky, Star Wars and Saturday Night Fever for months, and take location assignments doing grip, electrica...
Feb 16, 2023•48 min•Season 4Ep. 16
A self-taught filmmaker who has directed four feature films, three documentaries and over 1300 national & regional commercials, as well as Maria Bamford’s acclaimed Netflix Comedy Special. Jordan directs advertising campaigns for brands and agencies from all over the world. He has directed comedy giants Will Ferrell, Kevin Hart, Keegan-Michael Key, Rory Scovel and other notable celebrities like Arnold Schwarzenegger and Brad Paisley. Equally nimble with visual effects, he’s shot over 50 slei...
Feb 09, 2023•59 min•Season 4Ep. 15
Maria Brito is an award-winning New York-based contemporary art advisor, entrepreneur, author and curator. Her bestselling book How Creativity Rules The World was released in March of 2022. In 2015 Brito was selected by Complex magazine as one of the 20 Power Players in the Art World and in 2020 she was named by ARTnews as one of the visionaries who gets to shape the art world. A Harvard graduate, originally from Venezuela, her first monograph Out There was the recipient of UA Best Book Awards i...
Feb 02, 2023•55 min•Season 4Ep. 14
Matt Goldman is a New York Times bestselling author and Emmy Award-winning television writer and producer. He has been nominated for a Writer’s Guild Award, the Shamus Award and the Nero Award. Matt's television writing credits include Seinfeld, Ellen, Love & War, Working, Three Sisters, Level Up, Just Add Magic, The New Adventures of Old Christine and Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency. He served as a consulting producer on Fox’s Luis , Disney’s Wizards of Waverly Place , CBS’s Gary Un...
Jan 26, 2023•1 hr 1 min•Season 4Ep. 13
The Tony Award winning writing team of the musicals: Ragtime , Anastasia , Seussical , Once on This Island , My Favorite Year , Rocky , Chita Rivera: The Dancer’s Life , Lucky Stiff , Dessa Rose , The Glorious Ones , A Man of No Importance , Knoxville and Little Dancer . These renowned collaborators have received theater, film and music’s highest honors – the Tony, Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle and Olivier Awards, as well as nominations for two Academy Awards, two Golden Globes and four Gramm...
Jan 19, 2023•1 hr 3 min•Season 4Ep. 12
Asi Wind is a recipient of the Close-up Magician of the Year Award from the prestigious Academy of Magical Arts at Los Angeles’s Magic Castle. For the last decade, Wind has served as the chief consultant to magician David Blaine, working on Blaine’s ABC television specials and his first live tour. Asi’s off-Broadway show, Concert of the Mind , received rave reviews, sold out and extended its run. His appearance on Penn & Teller: Fool Us has over 14 million views on YouTube, making it one of ...
Jan 12, 2023•53 min•Season 4Ep. 11
A multi-talented comedic composer, vocalist, actor and the creator of the irrepressible Broadway Barbara, whose showbiz tales and classic show tunes have made her a social media sensation. Leah is an alumni of the renowned Groundling’s Sunday Company and a founding member of the Transcendence Theatre Company, which earned her a Broadway World “Person to Watch” nomination and the opportunity to open for Rita Moreno and Ben Vereen in concert. She also sang alto in the premiere top 40 vintage trio ...
Jan 05, 2023•56 min•Season 4Ep. 10
Executive producer / magic consultant for David Copperfield for over 30 years from the live Vegas show at the MGM casino to worldwide touring and television events. In 2017 Chris was awarded a Creative Fellowship from the Academy of Magical Arts for his mastery of both the art and business of magic. He is one of those rare individuals who was not only proficient, but highly influential in card magic and coin magic. He is the author of the books Totally Out of Control and The Right Stuff which fe...
Dec 29, 2022•54 min•Season 4Ep. 9
The 1st Annual Christmas Cluster is a holiday salute to creativity with many special guest showcasing some seasonal treats. Music, poetry and comedy are on tap to make spirits bright for the week of Christmas. Enjoy music from the Jo Ann Daugherty Trio, Maia Sharp, Tony Haselden, Broadway Barbara, Catherine Porter & Seth Barrish, a poem from Alandra Markman, seasonal stand up comedy from your host Pat Hazell and a visit with Earlene Hoople from The Early Bird Morning Show . Grab a mug of hol...
Dec 22, 2022•36 min•Season 4Ep. 8
Peoria native Liv Warfield takes cues from musical influences like Nina Simone, Etta James, Mavis Staples, Sade, Tina Turner and Mary J. Blige, but has carved out a style all her own, which can best be described as “alternative soul with a lil bit of Rock ‘n’ Roll.” In 2006, she self-released her debut album Embrace Me . By 2009, she caught the eye of music icon Prince and ultimately joined his group the New Power Generation . After touring for several years and soaking up as much knowledge as s...
Dec 15, 2022•44 min•Season 4Ep. 7
An Emmy Award-winning producer, comedian, actor, author, writer, comedy historian and musician. Wayne is noted for numerous stand-up comedy appearances in clubs, theaters, and on television; his book on The History of Stand-Up ; and supporting comedic acting roles in The X-Files , The Larry Sanders Show , Curb Your Enthusiasm , Crashing , Silicon Valley , Legally Blonde , 50 First Dates , The 40-Year-Old Virgin , and Step Brothers . He was the head monologue writer for NBC's Late Night with Jimm...
Dec 08, 2022•59 min•Season 4Ep. 6
An award-winning solo show artist and nationally recognized writing coach who is making a big impact everywhere from off-Broadway to The Edinburgh Fringe Festival. Ann’s show Loveland , played for two years in San Francisco where it won the SF Weekly Award for Best Solo Show and garnered the SF Bay Critic’s Award for Best Original Script. In LA it won the LA Weekly award for Best Solo Show. Her solo show, Squeeze Box , was produced by Mel Brooks and Anne Bancroft and enjoyed a successful off-Bro...
Dec 01, 2022•51 min•Season 4Ep. 5
An award-winning musician and published author who is active in the Austin music scene on vocals, cello, acoustic and electric guitar, keyboards, electric bass, banjo, dobro, human beatbox and drums. John has produced, performed and recorded with Ozomatli, BoomBoxATX, Schrödinger's Cat, Woodwork, Trio Los Vigilantes, The House Jacks, The Swingle Singers and Sixpence None the Richer. He has eleven Austin Music Awards including “Best Acoustic Guitar” and “Best Miscellaneous Instrument – Human Beat...
Nov 24, 2022•48 min•Season 4Ep. 4
The author of Immersive Storytelling for Real and Imagined Worlds: A Writer’s Guide . Margaret was born in Indonesia and raised in Singapore and received her Master of Fine Arts degree in Screenwriting from USC School of Cinematic Arts. Her career spans television, film, digital media, games, brand storytelling, location-based entertainment and immersive experiences. Margaret has served as a story lead, story consultant and writer for multiple projects around the world, including Star Wars: Gala...
Nov 17, 2022•50 min•Season 4Ep. 3
Steven Banks is a multi-disciplinary artist — a writer, musician, comedian and actor. He was head writer on SpongeBob SquarePants and also wrote on CatDog and Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius . He is the New York Times bestselling author of the middle grade series Middle School Bites . He wrote and starred in the cult classic Home Entertainment Center on Amazon, and co-created Shadowland with the dance/theater company Pilobolus, which has been performed in 40 countries. Steven’s second identity is the ...
Nov 10, 2022•1 hr 2 min•Season 4Ep. 2
A Grammy Award-winning singer songwriter, touring musician and philanthropist who started her career with the platinum-selling hit song Stay (I Missed You) from the film Reality Bites . A trailblazing independent artist, Lisa was the first pop musician to have a Number 1 single while not signed to a recording contract. She followed that remarkable feat with several hit singles and six albums, two of which were certified gold. Lisa is well known to parents and kids for her five children’s albums ...
Nov 03, 2022•47 min•Season 4Ep. 1
An Emmy Award-winning writer, producer, actor and comedian currently serving as the announcer of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon and a writer/producer of Saturday Night Live . Prior to The Tonight Show , Higgins was the announcer for Late Night with Jimmy Fallon from 2009 to 2014. Early in his career, he was part of the sketch comedy trio The Higgins Boys and Gruber , who had their own eponymous sketch series on Comedy Central from 1989 to 1991. Steve voiced the character Chadwick The Edi...
Oct 27, 2022•54 min•Season 3Ep. 25
An Emmy-nominated television writer and executive producer who is a native of Des Moines, Iowa, currently living in Los Angeles. Prior to co-creating Bob Hearts Abishola , Al Higgins was best known for writing and producing the acclaimed series Malcolm in the Middle, for which he was nominated for both an Emmy and Producers Guild Award with his close associate Chuck Lorre; taking on the role of showrunner for Mike & Molly for the last three seasons; and executive producing, with Lorre and Mi...
Oct 20, 2022•45 min•Season 3Ep. 24
A maker of things, a creative entrepreneur and a photographer who was born and raised in Northwest Indiana. She uses her whole toolkit to create custom art, jewelry, leather, metal and retro pinup photography. Aubrey learned the traditional Native American and Mountain Man leather making techniques from her family, and she makes everything in her workshop by hand from handpicked materials. She was professionally trained in television, film, make-up and hair, and has worked on many commercials, m...
Oct 13, 2022•44 min•Season 3Ep. 23
A five-time Emmy Award winning actor, writer and host of a weekly PBS series. John spent nine seasons hosting Around the Corner with John McGivern . His new show John McGivern’s Main Streets will air on PBS stations in Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, Minnesota, Michigan and Iowa beginning in January of 2023. He has written articles for The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and Milwaukee Magazine about his travels around the state of Wisconsin. John’s one man shows, The Early Stories of John McGivern, Mid...
Oct 06, 2022•45 min•Season 3Ep. 22
An executive creative director, UX practitioner, brand strategist and visual designer who designs for the tech world but encourages everyone to always be designing their life. Lisa started her design life as a self-proclaimed creative through painting and photography, then regrettably sold all her work at a garage sale during a confidence crisis in her early 20s. She switched to graphic design and founded a web design studio where she was discovered online by Ernst & Young Consulting who wer...
Sep 29, 2022•43 min•Season 3Ep. 21
For almost two decades Jacob Rajan and Justin Lewis, the founders of Indian Ink Theatre Company, have pursued their idea of the ‘Serious Laugh’- opening mouths with laughter in order to slip something serious in along with a love of mask and story. The company blends western theatrical traditions with eastern flavors and has been critically acclaimed for their use of live music, heightened theatricality, humor, pathos and great storytelling. Together with a team of long-term collaborators Jacob ...
Sep 22, 2022•55 min•Season 3Ep. 20
A Canadian figure skater and choreographer who has won two Emmy Awards for Scott Hamilton: Upside Down and for choreographing the opening and closing of the 2002 Winter Olympics. Kawahara joined the Ice Capades at age 17 and skated with them for seven years. In 1997, she became the first skater to win the Best Choreography Emmy Award. Sarah has choreographed for numerous competitive skaters, including Michelle Kwan, Kristi Yamaguchi, Dorothy Hamill, Peggy Fleming, Kurt Browning, Nancy Kerrigan, ...
Sep 15, 2022•43 min•Season 3Ep. 19
The founder of Accidental Creative, a company that helps creative people and teams be prolific, brilliant and healthy. Todd speaks, consults and advises regularly with companies about how to develop best practices that lead to everyday brilliance. He is the author of six books including Daily Creative, Herding Tigers, Die Empty, The Accidental Creative, Louder Than Words and The Motivation Code, which have been translated into more than a dozen languages. His podcast, The Accidental Creative, ha...
Sep 08, 2022•50 min•Season 3Ep. 18
A former network executive who oversaw emerging artists for HBO, HBO Max and Turner. Kelly transformed herself into a full-time author, writer and producer under her Edwardian Pictures banner. In her executive role, the pilots she produced through the HBOAccess Writing and Directing Fellowships have screened at major festivals including Tribeca and SXSW garnering multiple awards. Prior to HBO, Edwards was a key corporate diversity executive at Comcast/NBCUniversal for over five years where she o...
Sep 01, 2022•58 min•Season 3Ep. 17
Rosston Meyer is a designer, paper engineer and publisher who creates pop-up books, cards and prints with contemporary visual artists through his company Poposition Press. He’s gained a reputation among collectors for projects like Pop-Up Funk and The Pop-Up Art Book. Creating pop ups out of existing or new works, Rosston has released books from artists ranging from Andy Warhol, Junko Mizuno, Jim Mahfood, Kristen Liu-Wong, Mike Giant, Skinner, Dalek and Sandra Chevrier. On this episode, he expla...
Aug 25, 2022•52 min•Season 3Ep. 16
