Our newest episode, Episode 69: "Building Intentional Queer Spaces,” features Adam Odsess-Rubin, whose many roles include Founding Artistic Director of National Queer Theater (NQT). In their conversation, Adam offers a glimpse into NQT’s programs, including DREAMing Out Loud; Write it Out!; and Staging Pride Queer Youth Theater, a program that offers free acting classes for Queer and Trans youth that culminates in devising original works. At the heart of these programs, Adam notes, is Queer activism through community-engaged arts programming. The heart of this thoughtful conversation shines when Adam states, “I’m looking for community,” he says and continues by reflecting, “I’m that queer artist that needed a home.” Their conversation continues as they discuss: creating supportive spaces for Queer youth to be creative and build community; how, within current systems, administrative practices can’t always act in concert with the support systems created for meaningful community engagement; and the friction that comes with the balance of programming and finding moments for rest and grace.

Our newest episode, Episode 69: "Building Intentional Queer Spaces,” features Adam Odsess-Rubin, whose many roles include Founding Artistic Director of National Queer Theater (NQT). In their conversation, Adam offers a glimpse into NQT’s programs, including DREAMing Out Loud; Write it Out!; and Staging Pride Queer Youth Theater, a program that offers free acting classes for Queer and Trans youth that culminates in devising original works. At the heart of these programs, Adam notes, is Queer activism through community-engaged arts programming. The heart of this thoughtful conversation shines when Adam states, “I’m looking for community,” he says and continues by reflecting, “I’m that queer artist that needed a home.” Their conversation continues as they discuss: creating supportive spaces for Queer youth to be creative and build community; how, within current systems, administrative practices can’t always act in concert with the support systems created for meaningful community engagement; and the friction that comes with the balance of programming and finding moments for rest and grace.

In Act 2 of Episode 68: “Pockets of Light,” Courtney continues her conversation with multidisciplinary artist Jerron Herman. What sticks from Act 1 of this episode are the internal themes of personal and professional growth, and disability justice through disability artistry. What’s new and exciting about Act 2 is Courtney and Jerron’s deep discussions centered on art-making by and about disabled communities through a disability justice lens; Jerron’s invitation to identify one’s authentic curiosity about this work and considering ways one might enter deep conversations that explore disability justice; what solidarity means in the context of building bridges from one community to the next; and we have been indoctrinated to believe that capitalism (an oppressive presence in our lives) is the only way to exist and how, together, we can move toward a more liberated society, deeper thinking and move beautiful art-making.

Our newest episode, Episode 68: "Pockets of Light,” features multidisciplinary artist Jerron Herman. In their conversation, Courtney and her guest discuss their time together at New Victory, when Jerron was just starting out in the arts world. The episode continues by exploring Jerron’s position at the intersection(s) at which his artistry currently lives and continues to evolve. This leads Courtney and Jerron to discuss personal and professional growth and their respective trajectories into their current positions/careers—for Jerron, this is an emphasis on disability justice through disability artistry.

In Act 2 of Episode 67: “The Power of Queer Joy!,” Courtney continues her conversation with guest Lindz Amer. Their chat pivots in tone and substance from Act 1, which was focused on what it means to be a child that is free to explore and to keep that inner child alive as an adult. Act 2 focuses in on Lindz’s work as a content creator and the myriad differences between creating and distributing online content, and creating their longform, non-fiction book, “Rainbow Parenting: Your Guide to Raising Queer Kids and Their Allies.” One (of many) interesting parts of this conversation is centered around Lindz’s journey away from and back to programming for young audiences, and realizing the importance of feeling and expressing Queer joy in spaces and through content that have not traditionally held space for that joy or narrative.

You know what they say: New year, new episode! In Episode 67: “The Power of Queer Joy!” Courtney sits down with guest Lindz Amer, whose impressive list of credits spans stage performance, author, musician and educator. This discussion focuses on a number of Lindz Amer’s creative projects ranging from their award-winning web series Queer Kid Stuff, a viral TedTalk on gender and sexuality, and their recently-published book, Rainbow Parenting: Your Guide to Raising Queer Kids and Their Allies. The heart of this episode is a thoughtful exploration of what it means to be a kid with opportunities to experiment with a range of ideas and experience the wide spectrum of human emotions, and what it means to be an adult while trying to keep one’s inner child alive in a world that wants adults to just grow up. This thoughtful, introspective episode is one you won’t want to miss.

In Act 2 of Episode 66: “For Vocal Girls…,” Carmen Kelly tells of her 22-year history with Creative Arts Team (CAT) and her 40-year career as a teaching artist! This inspiring conclusion to our four-episode arc discussion delves into Carmen’s work with high school-aged kids and what it was like developing strategies for talking to them about HIV/AIDS at a time when nobody else had the courage to do so. Carmen also takes time to speak about what it was like to be present within the evolution of teaching artistry. And, in a thoughtfully candid moment, she takes time to highlight the transferable skill sets that made her transition from teaching artistry to a more programmatic leadership role.

In Episode 66: “For Vocal Girls…,” Courtney continues her conversation with guest Carmen Kelly. This thoughtful discussion focuses on Carmen’s journey from artist, to office temp, to teaching artist, and everything in between! As Courtney and Carmen weave through their chat, Carmen offers intriguing stories about her stint in the national tour of For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide / When the Rainbow is Enuf, the many “under fives” she played on soap operas, how camping out in the Drama Book Shop led to her first commercial spot, and how grad school helped her connect theory to practice.

Courtney continues her conversation with Carmen Kelly, an inspiring human with a rich history in arts education and current Program Director of the Brooklyn-based NIA Community Services Network's after-school program. The first portion of Act 2 acts as a kind of “rewind” moment that offers context for Kelly’s journey from childhood to school, to her career trajectory. It holds simplicity and complexity as it focuses primarily on two things: the importance of play and finding community at a young age. As the episode moves forward, Kelly really talks about her journey into the arts and to New York City. We don’t want to spoil too much about this rich second act. What we do want to highlight here is that our guest, the joyous Carmen Kelly, really digs into her past to bring us back to her present. In between those two points in her life (thus far), there are so many touchstones and flashpoints that truly highlight what so many of us already know and understand on the deepest of levels—if we’ve found ourselves in the arts, in any way, shape or form, we know what it feels like to have been called to this field and to have landed in spaces that we have needed and have needed us.

In Episode 65: "A Soft Place," Courtney sits down with Carmen Kelly, an inspiring human with a rich history in arts education. Currently, Kelly is a Program Director at the Brooklyn-based NIA Community Services Network's after-school program, which aims to engage kids in the arts to create positive pathways in their lives. As Courtney takes us deeper into her work, we learn that Kelly aims to encourage primarily Black and brown youth to examine themselves and work to find and name what is intrinsically good about who and what they are. Kelly notes that this work is all about fostering difficult and deep conversations, and intentionally setting up systems that center young people. At the core of this, Kelly tells us, is creating a soft place for kids to turn to, especially in our increasingly chaotic world. Questions that are addressed in this episode are: How can we create opportunities to let young people know that adults care about them and what they have to say? How can young people feel successful in this world without conforming or denying aspects of themselves? There is so much more to glean from this episode. You won't want to miss Courtney and Carmen's thoughtful discussion about care, love, expression, and healing. Listen or download now wherever you listen to podcasts!

Hi, PODience! We’re back with Act 2 of our fascinating chat with Yazmany Arboleda titled, “Mobilizing Interdependence.” In their discussion, Courtney and Yazmany continue to tackle a range of deeply meaningful topics. One major theme that really stands out in this episode is how the process of making art in community with others helps us to understand one another, to learn new skills and to evolve into something new. In Act 2 of Arboleda’s fast-paced, joyful chat with Courtney, they also discuss Yazmany’s work with the Little Amal, the problematic aspects of land acknowledgments, land ownership v. land stewardship in western cultures, and how our lived experience affects how we approach how we move through the world and how we create our art.