open mic
#1
Theater people are EVERYWHERE We always meant for this podcast to include lots of theater guests, but just as many other cool people doing mindblowing things – like celebrity caterer Mary Giuliani and Wine Access’s Vanessa Conlin from Off-Broadway’s Sideways the Experience. Spoiler alert: they were all theater people. Or still are. Except for Joon Lee. He’s an insanely inspiring Asian-American sports journalist for ESPN. I’ll forgive him for not being a theater nerd, I guess.
PODCASTING #2 Born blabbermouth Jessica Ryan knows a thing or two about making a pod work
I
was always accused of talking too much as a kid. It’s no wonder I ended up spending my life in the theater, and even less of a wonder that I created a successful podcast. See, when you make it your job, there’s no having to write: “I will not speak unless spoken to” 100 times when all you wanted to do was make your parents UNDERSTAND the merits of Joey McIntyre vs Donnie Wahlberg … and there you go, I’ve already gone off the rails and used up 100 of my words. Which is exactly why I talk for a living. Take Me To Coffee is a mentorship podcast for the digital age. My co-host, Andrew Call (of Hamilton fame), and I have always been baffled at the lack of
mentors in the theater, particularly for actors. And we’re the kind of people who are always looking to learn from folks doing amazing things that inspire us, even though they may not play in the same sandbox. So I made it my job to have Joey McIntyre on my podcast (please, Joey McIntyre, come on our podcast) and suddenly being chatty isn’t a character flaw, someone finally listens to your opinion on JMc v DWahl, AND you learn a little something along the way. Speaking of which, in honor of our little mentorship podcast, here are the top three things I’ve learned building a podcast from scratch (in case you too feel like your stuffed animal collection isn’t really listening and you deserve a more rapt audience).
Above: Jessica with her podcast co-host Andrew Call, who has just finished his run as King George in Chicago’s Hamilton.
Consistency is key The internet is like being surrounded by a nightmare herd of chihuahuas biting the shit out of your leg instead of the dog they’re mad at. If we’ve learned anything from our social influencer guests AyseDeniz, That Viola Kid, and Ken Kubota, make a thing. And keep making it on a regular schedule. If, for example, you want to teach people How to Save the World, like our guest Meghan Offtermatt, people have to know they can depend on you.
#3
Do me OK, wait. That doesn’t sound right. Although I’m pretty sure we’re the only #explicitmentorship podcast on the market so, honestly, it’s par for the course. (All joking aside, this is our official hashtag.) But I #DoMe. You do you. Fully and with feeling, even if everyone tells you you’re “too much.” It’s the only way to truly connect with folks in a digital medium. It’s also the only way you get asked to write an article that ends up as a thinly veiled attempt to be mentored by your childhood idol and reclaim your insecurities about yakking people’s ears off.
JESSICA Jessica Ryan is a creator, and founder at the intersection of the arts and entrepreneurship. She has written for companies including Amazon and GE, directed digital content with Tituss Burgess (Kimmy Schmidt) and Kirstin Maldonado (Pentatonix), voiced spots for Starbucks and Old Navy, and once sang a jingle for an adult superstore in North Dakota (true story, Annabelle’s if you want to look it up). She’s also the founder of Broadway Unlocked, a startup creating innovation for any stage, a member of the Zuckerberg Institute, and creator of the #Giveback Concert, which has raised a quarter of a million dollars for survivors of violence. Follow her @JessicaRyanNYLA and see @tm2cpodcast for more of her podcasting adventures.
DIGITAL EDITION
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