Outtakes: Podcast Rec. Room (BIPOC Edition)

Anyone who knows me even a little knows that I love podcasts. I’ve definitely reached D.A.B.L.E. (Download Acquisition Beyond Life Expectancy) status in terms of how many podcasts I’m subscribed to. I find that I really want to share out a few, especially lately. So, welcome to the Recommendation Room (Rec. Room for short)! This post, I’m excited to talk about three podcasts that amplify the voices and stories of the BIPOC community. Obviously this is a very limited sample and I highly encourage you to explore the wide and beautiful world of these story tellers who are using the airwaves to bring life and color that’s so desperately needed to our planet.

First up we have the Minority Korner! I have only just started listening to this, and while I’m kind of sad it took me this long to “discover” it for my own airwaves, the good news is I have lots and lots and lots (like over 200 episodes, no joke) to enjoy! This podcast is hosted by James who describes himself as “ a queer, political, comedian, self proclaimed, sexy blerd (that’s Black Nerd)” and he discusses a whole host of topics that are immediately and historically pertinent to society. I feel so humbled and grateful that I have stumbled on such a substantial, hilarious, brutal, and brave podcast. I can’t wait to keep listening and I highly encourage you to do so as well.

Next up we have we have the Red Nation Podcast. It’s a podcast that amplifies the voices of a well established community that kicks serious ass. I stumbled on this one purely by accident. I’d just watched the MetHD stream of Dr Atomic and I was curious what indigenous communities had to say about the portrayal of Native Americans in that opera. Searching for articles, I found an excellent piece on the Red Nation Website that confirmed my own discomfort and dissatisfaction with the way indigenous peoples were represented in the opera (full disclosure: the article, which you can read here, was about a performance of the opera at a venue in New Mexico, not the Met performance I watched. However, the points made definitely transfer). I was beyond delighted to discover they also had a podcast. The episodes are meaty and I like to listen with full attention and no distraction. I have learned so much, had my world rocked and broken, and I can’t wait to keep having that happen as I continue to listen.

Let me start by disclosing that this podcast is hosted by two white women. However, the stories and topics covered on this podcast (which you can listen to here) span so much history that illuminates the BIPOC community with respect, dignity, and power. At least for my small perception, this is one of the podcasts that really began to expand my mind and worldview on just how little I knew about the history and the world beyond my narrow white-middle class-Euro-centric viewshort. There are literally hundreds of episodes to choose from, some of my own favorites being about: Robert Smalls, John Brown’s Raid on Harper’s Ferry, Harriet Tubman, Jamaica’s Maroon Wars, Freedom Riders, Ethiopia’s Rock-hewn Churches of Lalibela, Tulsa Riots and Black Wall Street, The Occupation of Alcatraz, Sojourner Truth, Hernandez v. Texas, Shirley Chisholm, Phillis Wheatley, Fort Shaw Indian School Basketball champions, Molly Spotted Elk, Great Zimbabwe, Bayard Rustin….I mean, that’s not even a fraction of the episodes available. This one has been a staple in my diet for years and I could not recommend it more highly.

My view is still far too small. I still have so much to learn and so many actions to take. My Lord calls me to a Love and Life that doesn’t have any room for complacency when it comes to facing down Hate in whatever insidious forms it takes. I am still striving, and these podcasts help keep me awake and alert. May I never fall asleep when He asks me to watch the hour with Him. May I keep listening, may keep doing.

Episode 3 (Part 2): My Own Research for Little Shop

My personal research process in 2020 (obviously I started this project in 2019, but semantics) usually starts with a Pinterest dive. Please don’t cringe! (that’s mostly for my mentor if he ever reads this, please give me a chance). Pinterest is a deep abyss of image overload and I find it useful for the initial “falling” as I like to call it. I just wind my way down, through, around, and I don’t sensor my impulses for a couple hours. I use it to generate hundreds of “sparks” or potential “paths.” I am not looking for a particular “door” at present, I am just running through as many as I can to see which will offer a working world.

After that first dive, I select things that sing together, that all appear to cohesively look like they belong together. Then, I try and source those images; is this from a certain artist? Can I search more of their work specifically? Did this one come from a book? Can I find that book in one of the many libraries I’m apart of? etc.

On the hunt for images, books are worth their weight in opals. Books are already collections of related things gathered together in a single place so you don’t have to go to the trouble of building from scratch (and funnily enough, a lot easier to make a citation for later in an MFA Project). Still, it can sometimes be tricky to find that perfect book. Even spending hours perusing our art section in the school library isn’t always fruitful; hence why something like the internet or Pinterest, which will sometimes list that book title or artist name to start can be magical.

But, I don’t just use images. I really love to understand the worlds we are trying to build. What is it about the 80’s in American cities that’s special? What actually is Skid Row? What did life look like for people like Audrey and Seymour in a city in that time? For myself, I read a number of articles, but I also respond to audio research. Specifically for this production, I listened to the podcast 99% Invisible’s episode titled Containment Plan. This episode was about the original Skid Row out in LA, and how the city and a group of activists came to an agreement that the Skid Row area (its residents and services) would be kept to a certain few blocks and not spill into the surrounding neighborhoods. This particular piece fascinated me because, while we were definitely going with a more East Coast NYC styled place, the whole idea of people being “contained” within this small piece of the city informed so much of how I wanted our Skid Row to feel.

I wandered the highways and byways of the internet, paged through articles about hostile architecture, listened to podcasts and ultimately, pictures began to emerge. If I were to show you the whole lot of images I initially flagged….well I’m not so no worries. Below, I have curated some of the best and the brightest, the ones that I kept coming back to over and over as the design progressed. They are divided into categories of Skid Row, the Shop, and the Dentist’s office.

Skid Row Research Collage 1

Skid Row Research Collage 2

Shop Research Collage

Dentist Office Collage

I think it fair to disclose that I made these collages recently. They are compiled from images that I found initially in the first research pass, as well as those I collected along the way as various adjustments were made through collaboration. In case it didn’t read clearly throughout these posts, I love this phase. It’s a joy to go on the hunt for the exact visuals that give you the information you need to build the show. Especially in this present time where I am blessed beyond all measure with a wealth of information and resources that I have the privilege to access and utilize to further my art. Truly, what a wild time to be alive.