Shakespeare

Ep. 39: I’m Just a Teenage Dick, Baby (Ft. Mike Lew & Gregg Mozgala)

Podcast
Credit: Teresa Castracane

Every week, the culture critics at Token Theatre Friends bring their fresh perspectives to the performing arts on their podcast and video series. You can find the podcast on Spotify, iTunes, and Stitcher (look for the all-red logo). The video series is available on YouTube. The TTF theme song is by Sean Mason (with vocals by Angela Ramos). The video animation is by Brad Ogden, with logos by Jason Simon.

In this episode, Jose speaks to playwright Mike Lew and actor Gregg Mozgala about Teenage Dick. The high-school-set play is a hilarious adaptation of Richard III in which Mozgala plays the title Dick, a young man who exacts revenge on those who have bullied and mocked him for his cerebral palsy.

Lew and Mozgala talk about returning to the stage, how they found humor in one of the Bard’s darkest plays, and what it means to be a working parent in theater.

This production of Teenage Dick is a co-production between Woolly Mammoth Theatre Co., Huntington Theatre Co., and The Pasadena Playhouse (where it will be streaming from Feb. 1 – 17)

https://youtu.be/HWRuPPul4VM

References

 

Ep. 38: Reopening Shakespeare in the Park (Ft. Jocelyn Bioh & Saheem Ali)

Podcast
Courtesy of HBO

Every week, the culture critics at Token Theatre Friends bring their fresh perspectives to the performing arts on their podcast and video series. You can find the podcast on Spotify, iTunes, and Stitcher (look for the all-red logo). The video series is available on YouTube. The TTF theme song is by Sean Mason (with vocals by Angela Ramos). The video animation is by Brad Ogden, with logos by Jason Simon.

In this episode Jose speaks to playwright Jocelyn Bioh and director Saheem Ali, who star in the documentary Reopening Night (available on HBOMax from Dec. 20). The film by Rudy Valdez follows the talented troupe led by Bioh and Ali who brought back Shakespeare in the Park following the Covid-19 theater shutdown.

Bioh and Ali look back at their thrilling summer and reflect on how their artistry has been informed by the pandemic and share their wishes for theater in 2022.

References