Kicking the Bucket

Andee Kinzy•redcircle.com

Fiction

Drama

✨ Growing old together was the plan. Dying together? That part’s improvised.

KICKING THE BUCKET is an immersive fiction dramedy about love, aging, and winging it at the end of life.

Dolores and Howard have decided to die with dignity. But they’re not exactly sure how. This darkly funny multicast serial podcast explores elder care, autonomy, caregiving, and all the awkward, tender moments in between.

Created by award-winning artist Andee Kinzy, KTB turns taboo topics into conversation. Each 20-minute episode blends humor and heartbreak, building to a bold, choose-your-own-ending finale.

⚠️ CONTENT WARNING: Alzheimer’s, cancer, and end-of-life decision-making.

🌐 MORE INFO: https://improvedarts.org/kickingthebucketpodcast

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🎙️ CAST

Mimi Strum & Richard Gartner as Dolores & Howard

Also featuring: Kendra L. Franklin, Mical Trejo, Kelli Bland, Chiara McCarty, Ivy Le, Dana Wing Lau, Vivian Glazier, Cynthia Preston & Shaun Conde

🎬 CREDITS

Written/Produced/Directed: Andee Kinzy

Producer & Casting: Dana Wing Lau

Sound Design, Mixing, Mastering: Hemlock Creek Productions (Marisa Ewing & Melissa Pons)

Dialogue Editing: Hemlock Creek Productions

Marketing: Chiara McCarty

Podcast Club Producer: Chloé Carcamo

Studio Recording: Northshore Media Productions (Austin, TX) | Engineer: Kevin Chin

🔹 This project is supported in part by the City of Austin Economic Development Department. ImprovEd Arts is a sponsored project of Austin Creative Alliance.

#AudioDrama #FictionPodcast #Aging #Caregiving #Caregivers #EndOfLife #ElderCare

Last refreshed: May 4th, 2026 at 6:53 PM ⓘ

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Episodes

EP 8B - Brave New World

NOTE: **Both endings begin the same and diverge about halfway through.** And now, dear listener, we come to a crossroads. For our final episode, we invite you to choose your own ending. If you are rooting for Dolores and Howard to go out on their terms - needing no permission, making no apologies - go to Tape 8, Side A, or Episode 8A, “Rounded with a Sleep.” But if you’re hoping Dolores and Howard will find a way to share their truth - to open up, speak their hearts, and invite their children to...

Aug 20, 2025•32 min•Season 1Ep. 9

EP 8A - Rounded with a Sleep

NOTE: **Both endings begin the same and diverge about halfway through.** And now, dear listener, we come to a crossroads. For our final episode, we invite you to choose your own ending. If you are rooting for Dolores and Howard to go out on their terms - needing no permission, making no apologies - stay here on Tape 8, Side A, or Episode 8A, “Rounded with a Sleep.” But if you’re hoping Dolores and Howard will find a way to share their truth - to open up, speak their hearts, and invite their chil...

Aug 20, 2025•25 min•Season 1Ep. 8

EP 7 - What’s Done is Done

✨ Finally. It’s time. And not a minute too late. Or maybe it is? Will Dolores and Howard be foiled again? Still, the kids need an answer about a nursing home, so our persistent protagonists make a break for it. In a minivan. ⚠️ CONTENT WARNING: Alzheimer’s, cancer, and end-of-life decision-making. 🌐 MORE INFO: https://improvedarts.org/kickingthebucketpodcast —------- 🎙️ CAST Mimi Strum & Richard Gartner as Dolores & Howard Also featuring: Kendra L. Franklin, Mical Trejo, Kelli Bland, C...

Aug 13, 2025•20 min•Season 1Ep. 7

EP 6 - In Such a Pickle

✨ Dolores and Howard put their next plan into motion. But first, they need to get organized. Clear out the clutter and get the dog into a good, loving home. A feat that seems easy enough… ⚠️ CONTENT WARNING: Alzheimer’s, cancer, and end-of-life decision-making. 🌐 MORE INFO: https://improvedarts.org/kickingthebucketpodcast —------- 🎙️ CAST Mimi Strum & Richard Gartner as Dolores & Howard Also featuring: Kendra L. Franklin, Mical Trejo, Kelli Bland, Chiara McCarty, Ivy Le, Dana Wing Lau,...

Aug 06, 2025•26 min•Season 1Ep. 6

EP 5 - Exit, Pursued by a Bear

✨ This is it. The hour is nigh. Dolores and Howard make their move, but an unexpected visitor threatens to derail their carefully crafted goodbye. As Tamika reveals her secret, the question remains: will anyone hear Dolores and Howard before the curtain falls? ⚠️ CONTENT WARNING: Alzheimer’s, cancer, and end-of-life decision-making. 🌐 MORE INFO: https://improvedarts.org/kickingthebucketpodcast —------- 🎙️ CAST Mimi Strum & Richard Gartner as Dolores & Howard Also featuring: Kendra L. F...

Jul 30, 2025•17 min•Season 1Ep. 5

EP 4 - Though This Be Madness

✨ Dolores and Howard realize that brainstorming ways to go out on your own terms is hard work. It also requires some imagination…and perchance, a little luck from Mother Nature. An annual family trip to a water park proves to be chaotic and isolating. ⚠️ CONTENT WARNING: Alzheimer’s, cancer, and end-of-life decision-making. 🌐 MORE INFO: https://improvedarts.org/kickingthebucketpodcast —------- 🎙️ CAST Mimi Strum & Richard Gartner as Dolores & Howard Also featuring: Kendra L. Franklin, ...

Jul 23, 2025•20 min•Season 1Ep. 4

EP 3 - To Thine Own Self Be True

✨ Another tour of a retirement home facility pushes Dolores to face the future. Howard hopes the stars will align, but after a terrifying memory lapse episode with Dolores, he admits the fault may lie closer to home. They may have also accidentally adopted a dog. ⚠️ CONTENT WARNING: Alzheimer’s, cancer, and end-of-life decision-making. 🌐 MORE INFO: https://improvedarts.org/kickingthebucketpodcast —------- 🎙️ CAST Mimi Strum & Richard Gartner as Dolores & Howard Also featuring: Kendra L...

Jul 16, 2025•16 min•Season 1Ep. 3

EP 2 - Neither Rhyme Nor Reason

✨ More talk of retirement communities and forced downsizing sets a strangely troublesome scene for Dolores and Howard. Can there be dignity in death? Tamika has a secret of her own. ⚠️ CONTENT WARNING: Alzheimer’s, cancer, and end-of-life decision-making. 🌐 MORE INFO: https://improvedarts.org/kickingthebucketpodcast —------- 🎙️ CAST Mimi Strum & Richard Gartner as Dolores & Howard Also featuring: Kendra L. Franklin, Mical Trejo, Kelli Bland, Chiara McCarty, Ivy Le, Dana Wing Lau, Vivia...

Jul 09, 2025•19 min•Season 1Ep. 2

EP 1 - All the World's a Stage

✨ Dolores and Howard set the stage for their last act after another unsatisfying tour of a “nursing home” (or retirement community, depending on who you ask) and a confirmation that Howard’s health is nearing its final curtain. ⚠️ CONTENT WARNING: Alzheimer’s, cancer, and end-of-life decision-making. 🌐 MORE INFO: https://improvedarts.org/kickingthebucketpodcast —------- 🎙️ CAST Mimi Strum & Richard Gartner as Dolores & Howard Also featuring: Kendra L. Franklin, Mical Trejo, Kelli Bland...

Jul 02, 2025•19 min•Season 1Ep. 1

Trailer: An Introduction from the Creator

✨ Creator Andee Kinzy introduces KICKING THE BUCKET, a new fiction podcast about aging, caregiving, and end-of-life autonomy. With 8 richly sound-designed episodes and a stellar cast aged 34 to 92, this audio dramedy is a TV series for your ears. You’ll laugh. You’ll cry. And you get to choose how the story ends. ⚠️ CONTENT WARNING: Alzheimer’s, cancer, and end-of-life decision-making. 🌐 MORE INFO: https://improvedarts.org/kickingthebucketpodcast —------- 🎙️ CAST Mimi Strum & Richard Gartn...

Jun 06, 2025•2 min

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