Nate Brown

Today's guest is Ashley Wool!

This has to be one of my favorite interviews so far on The Art of Not Making It. Honest and pure, Ashley and I get into what it's like when you finally reach Broadway. Once there, you are not only experiencing your Broadway debut, but originating a lead in a new, ground-breaking musical. How do you handle the pressure, excitement, and unknown?

Ashley and I met 11 years ago at an audition and instantly hit it off. We've stayed in touch and it's been so lovely to follow her career as it brings her to this moment.

After years of hard work and living authentically, Ashley is making her Broadway debut as Jessica in How To Dance In Ohio. 

Here's a bit about the show (as quoted from their website):

Based on the award-winning HBO documentary, How to Dance in Ohio is a heart-filled new musical exploring the need to connect and the courage it takes to step out into the world. At a group counseling center in Columbus, Ohio, seven autistic young adults prepare for a spring formal dance—a rite of passage that breaks open their routines and sets off hilarious and heartbreaking encounters with love, stress, excitement, and independence. How to Dance in Ohio is a story about people standing on the cusp of the next phase of their lives, facing their hopes and fears, ready to make a very big first move…and dance.

Reviews have been gushing...
...take a look:

"Groundbreaking. Thoughtful and poetic. This feel-good show is a milestone. "
-The New York Times

"Broadway’s most original new musical. It will stay with you."
-The Daily Beast

"Groundbreaking and big-hearted. A Broadway first."
-Variety

"How to Dance in Ohio makes me believe in Broadway once again."
-Theatrely

Book & Lyrics by Jacob Yandura, Music by Lily Ling, Musical Direction by Mayte Natalio, Choreography by Sammi Cannold, and Directed by Harold Prince.

In a Broadway first, seven actors on the autistic spectrum play the autistic leads. Finally.

But it doesn't just stop with the casting. You can feel the thoughtful choices made in all aspects of the show, from the team compiled (with close to 50 members involved on and off stage making their Broadway debuts), to the resources tab on their website which answers commonly asked questions and misconceptions.

This is a monumental, historical piece of Broadway history, and I'm so excited for Ashley to impact so many people with her art. 

You can catch How to Dance in Ohio at the Belasco Theater, and more details can be found on their website at:
https://howtodanceinohiomusical.com/

Here it is. The Art of Not Making It. 

Hello friends!

Today's episode is pretty special. They say don't meet your heroes. That is, unless they are Michael Rupert. Then you are in for a real treat. It was such a pleasure having Michael on, and he shares some invaluable insight on sustaining a lifelong career in this industry.

Michael John Rupert is an American actor, singer, director and composer. In 1968, he made his Broadway debut in The Happy Time as Bibi Bonnard for which he received a Tony Award nomination and the Theater World Award. He originated the role of "Marvin" in the William Finn musicals March of the Falsettos and Falsettoland. Rupert has been the nominee and recipient of several Tony and Drama Desk awards.

Theater Credits Include:

The Happy Time - Bibi Bonnar (Original Broadway Cast)
Pippin  - Pippin (replacement)
Shakespeare's Cabaret - Michael
March of the Falsettos - Marvin (Original Cast)
Sweet Charity - Oscar (revival)
Mail - Alex
City of Angels - Stine (replacement)
Falsettoland - Marvin (Original Cast)
Falsettos - Marvin (Original Cast)
Ragtime - Tateh (replacement)
Elegies: A Song Cycle - Original Performer
Legally Blonde - Professor Callahan (Original Broadway Cast)
Monarch - Kenneth Sharpe
On The Town - Judge Pitkin (revival)

Directing

• In 1997, Rupert directed an Off-Broadway production of  The Lunch Anxieties by Larry Kunofsky at the Harold Clurman Theatre. 
• He directed J. Arlington Meyrelles III's musical, The Stars In Your Eyes, in an Equity workshop production in 1998.
•  Rupert directed Thrill Me: Leopold & Loeb Story (2005) at the York Theatre.

Composing

• Rupert composed the music, with book and lyrics by Jerry Colker, to the 1985 Off-Broadway music 3 Guys Naked from the Waist Down, which won the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Book and was nominated for Outstanding Music.
• The score for Mail (1988) was also written by Rupert with Colker once again writing the book and lyrics. 
• Rupert wrote the score to Strange Vacation (1998) and collaborated with Allan Heinberg. 
• He composed the score and co-wrote the book and lyrics with Matthew Riopelle for the musical Streets of America (2007).
• On August 18, 2008 the number "Racing to the Moon" was released Footlight Label as a single featuring three different performances: one by Rupert, another by actor Sebastian Arcelus, and an instrumental version by the guitarist David Timmons. 
• His debut single, "Racing to the Moon" was released on August 18, 2008 on the Footlight label.

New episodes of The Art of Not Making It every 1st and 3rd Tuesday of the month. Subscribe so you never miss an episode.

Here it is. The Art of Not Making It. 

Today's guest is the luminous Josh Saleh!

Josh Saleh is a host, gamer, and dog dad! Josh hosts Marvel Let's Play, where he interviews, plays with and showcases Marvel talent, game developers, and fans. His Marvel hosting background includes movie premieres, Marvel gaming tournaments, numerous Comic Con panels, as well as Marvel Minute. When he's not nerding out at Marvel, you can catch him on Amazon as their tech and gaming host, and creating video game content for Adorama!

Upcoming:
Hosting Marvel's San Diego Comic Con! I'm already geeking out.
Dates: Thu, Jul 20, 2023 – Sun, Jul 23, 2023

Josh is also developing his Party Card Game - Change My Mind!
C'mon. Everyone loves a Card Game. Here are more details:

Are you the loudest in the room? The most opinionated?! Change My Mind is a party game for loud people who love to debate! Explode into ludicrous debates and absurd chaos as you try and have the last word!Rank the most absurd categories you'd never thought you'd rank! Use your voice to change the minds of players and have them second guess their rankings. With 150 cards that span across all themes, no topic is safe! Do you have what it takes to change someone's mind?

You can support Change My Mind here:
Kickstarter Link

Socials:
www.JoshSaleh.com
Instagram: JoshSaleh
Twitter/Tik Tok: JoshDSaleh

Josh is the best, and it was awesome chatting with him.
So good it almost gave me the foops.

New episodes of The Art of Not Making It every 1st and 3rd Tuesday of the month. Subscribe so you never miss an episode.

Here it is. The Art of Not Making It. 

Howdy!

Today's guest is the AMAZING Chloë Campbell.

Chloë was one of my first friends in NYC. I think I'd just moved to NYC a week prior to us meeting. Despite knowing her for 10+ years, there was so much about her personal career journey I didn't know. It was nice to finally sit down and chat.

I appreciate Chloë so much for giving me some of her time. As you can hear in the interview, she's very busy balancing her roles as a parent and dancer. Both are incredibly time consuming, but she handles it with grace.

She even has her own podcast, Mutha, where she discusses the balancing act of being on Broadway and a parent. Please give her a follow and listen- it's an incredible podcast that definitely serves an overlooked part of the entertainment industry.

Chloë's professional credits include:
Broadway: Hamilton, King Kong, and Tuck Everlasting.
Broadway Tours include In The Heights.
West End London - Mary Poppins, Desperately Seeking Susan, Shoes, and On The Town

Chloë's Podcast: Mutha
Mutha's Insta : @muthapodcast
Chloë's insta : @chloe.s.campbell

New episodes of The Art of Not Making It every 1st and 3rd Tuesday of the month. Subscribe so you never miss an episode.

Here it is. The Art of Not Making It. 

Hello hello! Tiffany here.

At the time of this episode's release, I have come down with the flu. Luckily, I have a british robot man to record the introduction.

Robots: they are the future.

It's all fun and games until AI destroys mankind.

In the meantime, we've got a great episode for you today!

STACEY WEINGARTEN is an Emmy-winning multi-hypenate specializing in writing, directing, and producing musical and puppet works, especially for kids/families. She’s worked everywhere from “Sesame Street” to “Avenue Q”, with everyone from Kermit to Julie Andrews, and develops projects that promote social awareness through entertainment. Stacey was represented Off-Broadway last year by “Rescue Rue”, a musical fairytale inspired by her rescue dog. Stacey served as a Puppet Consultant on “Blippi’s Treehouse” (Amazon), Consulting Creative Producer/Series Director/Contributing Writer for “Reading Buddies” S2 (PBS), Co-Creator/Writer of “Monica’s Mixing Bowl” (Independent) as well as “Cone of Shame” (Handmade Puppet Dreams). Other favorite Bookwriting projects include time-travelinʼ sci-fi rock opera “Ludo's Broken Bride”; chanson-infused historical-fiction “5th Republic”; 1890s gender-affirming Storyville tale “Madame” (w/L Morgan Lee). A former DG Fellow, Stacey teaches puppetry at Pace, volunteers as the Children’s Media Association's LA Chapter President, and promises not to put puppets in anything unless it's appropriate.

Stacey Weingarten is directing her play, Runaway Rue, at the Fringe Festival in LA!!! Dates are June 4, 9, 11, 17, 18. You can find more details at RueTix.com

This is a really special episode and I'm grateful to call Stacey a friend.

New episodes of The Art of Not Making It every 1st and 3rd Tuesday of the month. Subscribe so you never miss an episode.

Here it is. The Art of Not Making It. 

Today's guest is the amazing Bryan Matechen!
 
Bryan Matechen, a born and bred Pittsburgher (with a flare for style), moved to New York City in 2010 and hit the ground running. Starting as the Costume Coordinator on the hit television show Gossip Girl, where he worked for their final two seasons. Some other credits include Netflix’s: The Politician and Tales of the City, HBO’s: The Other Two, The Plot Against America, Crashing, Amazon’s Z:The Beginning of Everything, Comedy Central’s Broad City, and NBC’s Late Night with Seth Meyers. 

He’s currently working on his 8th season over at Saturday Night Live as the Film Unit Associate Costume Designer where he has over 150 episodes under his belt. 

It was such a pleasure having Bryan on. One of my first friends in NYC, it's been a joy to follow his journey and cheer him on. He deserves all the success he's achieved over the years. 

I hope you leave this episode motivated and inspired.

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New episodes with the best in entertainment the 1st and 3rd Tuesdays of every month. 

This is the art of not making it. 

Today's guest is the amazing Jenny Mollet! 

Jenny Mollet is an extremely versatile and international artist originally from Switzerland, who was raised and is currently based in New York City. She is a graduate of the BFA Musical Theater program at University of Cincinnati: College - Conservatory of Music (CCM) as well as a graduate Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts aka “The Fame School”.

Jenny has an immense love and a passion for the arts since she could remember. Starting off in sports as a child, she then added dance to the list and that’s where she found her calling. From there, one thing flowed into the next which lead her to many amazing opportunities such as joining a professional dance company at the age of six, performing on national tv, participating in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, modeling, recording music, and more.

Other exciting opportunities include such as being a part of the original Broadway production of Oprah Winfrey’s, “The Color Purple” as Young Celie/Young Olivia/Henrietta, the Associate Choreographer and a dancer in Tituss Burgess’ music video for his hit single “45,” and has recently wrapped up her time on the 50th Anniversary national tour as a Soul Singer/Ensemble u/s Mary Magdalene. She has also performed all over in theater productions, readings, and workshops.

In addition to the arts, some of the things she enjoys is traveling, making connections with people from all walks of life, spending quality time with her loved ones, and health/wellness. Jenny is certified in various fitness formats such as Zumba, Zumba Toning, and PiYo, and has been teaching classes since her college days. She is now working on her Yoga and overall Group Fitness certifications.

Instagram: @jenny.mollet
Website: www.jennymollet.com

Organizations Mentioned In This Episode:

• Broadway Ambassador for “Broadway Arts Education” aka BAE: https://www.broadwayforartsed.org/
• Part of the founding members of Womxn of Tomorrow (WOT): https://womxnoftomorrow.org/

Super excited to have Jacob Williams as the season debut guest. He's the best. 

Jacob Williams is a comedian who has performed on several popular TV shows including America’s Got Talent, The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, Adam Devine’s House Party, Roast Battle and 12 seasons of MTV’s Wild ‘N Out. Jacob’s debut one-hour stand-up comedy special and album Unemotional Roller Coaster is available on YouTube, Sirius XM and all audio-streaming platforms. He regularly tours across America and beyond, telling jokes at comedy clubs, colleges, theaters and private events. Jacob has also studied improv and sketch comedy at institutions such as Second City, UCB, iO, Magnet Theater, ComedySportz, The Peoples Improv Theater, The Playground Theater and The Annoyance Theatre. He is based in New York City where he performs often whenever he is not touring. For new jokes and show info visit him on social media at @MrJacobWilliams.

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IG/Twitter/TikTok: 

@MrJacobWilliams

JacobWilliamsComedy.com

One-hour stand-up special Unemotional Roller Coaster free on YouTube: https://youtu.be/YAda4xsGKjM

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If you liked this interview, subscribe and follow so you never miss an episode. New episodes the 1st and 3rd Tuesday of every month. 

Stay curious. Enjoy the journey. 

Hi friend. Tiffany Springle here.

So good to be back. The 1st season ended late February of 2020... and we all know how that year went. It's been a minute.

Alright, so I do need to get something off my chest.
Real talk: I recorded this episode in one take, on my bed, at midnight.

After a long week of deadlines (on other projects I'm very excited to share soon), I almost did not record this intro episode. We've all been there right? You are so focused on making it "good" or setting aside "more time," you just never get started? I realized what I was doing and said, forget it, I'd rather be honest and put something out there than nothing at all. 

With that being said, my apologies for the rambling and incessant "ums." Thank you for taking me as I am.

I justify this as embodying the essence of the show: loose, imperfect, and authentic. 

The Art of Not Making It  Season 2 is going to be pretty dang special. Interviews with the best in entertainment. How they got to where they are, and the stops they took along the way. 

New episodes will be released the 1st and 3rd Tuesdays of every month. 
Subscribe so you never miss an episode. 

So excited to have you here. It's going to be a good time. 

Today's episode is a good friend of mine: Jovon Outlaw. ⁠
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He does his own thing, and I absolutely love that he is 100% authentic in everything he does. ⁠
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Jovon Outlaw is a New York City-based, multi-disciplinary artist. A graduate of the SUNY Purchase College Film Conservatory, Jovon’s primary occupation is as a freelance Director of Photography and Director. Jovon has worked on numerous projects, notably for CollegeHumor, NBC, Marvel, Juilliard, Microsoft, Assembly.com, Josh Ruben, Micheal Almerayda, Celia-Rolwson-Hall, Kassia Miller, Chris Osborn, Mitski, Eigil Bryld, and Anu Valia.⁠
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Jovon is also an Improvisor and studied at the Upright Citizen Brigade, the former Reckless Theatre, and IO Chicago- for which he was invited to attend as a recipient of the James Conklin Memorial Scholarship. Jovon marries improvisation to his work as a DP and director as he feels it has strengthened his skills at shooting, writing, and directing by enabling him to become more flexible and adaptable to new ideas. He brings this fluidity and creative energy to all aspects of his work.⁠

This episode is going to be the last one for the Season, and "The Art of Not Making It" will be coming back better than ever in January. ⁠
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The next season will be even better, and I can't wait for you to see the changes happening. The guests already on the lineup are SO. GREAT. ⁠
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I'm always looking of ways to improve. Just like everything, the Podcast is continuing to grow and find it's voice. Send me a message or leave feedback on what you are enjoying and what you'd like to see more of! Subscribe and follow so you don't miss the 2nd Season Launch in January!⁠

Like, subscribe, and let me know what you'd like to see more of! ⁠