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This week's show is theatre, theatre, theatre and then more theatre. Show host, Diana Moxon, chats with director, Chris Bowling, and actor, Ada Chapman about monsters, a succubus and an ogre all of which make an appearance in Maplewood Barn Theatre's production of the Que Nguyen play 'She Kills Monsters'; there's a rabbit hole dive into MU Theatre Department's 'The Cat in the Hat' with its director Kasey Lynch; a trek to a remote Alaskan cabin with director Ed Hanson and actors Adam Brietzke and Natalie Botkin, whose production of the Cindy Lou Johnson play, 'Brilliant Traces', opens at Talking Horse Productions next week; and a veritable gallop through the Arrow Rock Lyceum Theatre's summer season with its Producing Artistic Director, Quin Gresham. Opening and closing musical credits with thanks to guitarist Yasmin Williams (www.yasminwilliamsmusic.com)

In 2021 Diana Moxon dedicated one show each month to chatting with the Missouri Arts Council's featured artists. On this week's show she revisits four of the chats she had with the music makers on the 2021 roster: classic guitarist Patrick Rafferty, the Queen of Avant Soul Candice Ivory, bluegrass singer songwriter Ray Cardwell, and jazz songstress Denise Thimes. Opening and closing music credits with thanks to guitarist Yasmin Williams (www.yasmimwilliamsmusic.com)

As we head into the new year, Diana Moxon invites Unbound Book Festival Executive Director and Skylark Bookshop owner, Alex George to share his Skylarky commendations for the past 12 months of book releases, including most obscure title and the book that he loved so much he started reading it over as soon as he had finished it. And in Act Two of the show, Ragtag Film Society's Barbie Banks looks back over the year in film and shares her favorites including best doc, best actor/tress, the movie that you should only watch on a huge screen, and the film most likely to make you laugh so hard you had to pee. Opening and closing musical credits with thanks to guitarist Yasmin Williams (www.yasminwilliamsmusic.com)

Each month the Missouri Arts Council features four artists on its website from a variety of arts genres, and on this week's show Diana Moxon checks in with the November four: St Louis-based musician, singer-songwriter Candice Ivory aka the Queen of Avant Soul; conceptual artist Marco Rosichelli from Kansas City whose work scrutinizes and sometimes satirizes the nuances of the institutional nature of the art world; plein air and studio painter Janey Seamans Hale from West Plains; and watercolor artist Dana Forrester from Independence whose ouevre of brick wall ghost signs and corvettes has made him a unique voice in the art world. You can see and hear the works of this week's artists on their websites: https://candiceivory.com/; https://www.rosichelli.com/; https://www.janeyseamanshale.com/; https://danaforresterart.com/.Thanks, as always, to guitarist Yasmin Williams (http://www.yasminwilliamsmusic.com/) for the show's opening and closing music, 'Restless Heart'.

On this week's show a lusciously written new book about the food history of India; the life of a touring Broadway actor during a pandemic; and New York circa 1989 and a production that ties that world with 2021. Host Diana Moxon chats with award-winning food writer, Nina Mukerjee Furstenau about her new book 'Green Chili and other Imposters' which mixes memoir, a lot of food history sleuthing, with pages of delicious Bengali recipes; actor John Hemphill looks back on 18 months of no theatre and his imminent return to the touring production of Dear Evan Hansen; and MU Theatre Department's director Joy Powell talks about their new production of RENT and what a powerful connection it offers to today's young actors with the struggles of their contemporaries a quarter of a century ago. Opening and closing musical credits with thanks to Yasmin Williams (www.yasminwilliamsmusic.com)

Each month the Missouri Arts Council features four artists on its website from a variety of arts genres, and on this week's show Diana Moxon checks in with the August four: Watercolor artist and professor at Truman State in Kirksville, Rusty Nelson; St Louis-based fantasy surrealism painter, Mollie Chounard, whose personal philosophy is to put joy out into the world through her art, and who spent lockdown using her art to save the US postal service; Glyneisha Johnson, a poly-disciplinary collage/graphite/installation artist working in Kansas City, whose work explores the refuge of black interior spaces in a world that privileges whiteness; and Columbia ceramic artist Eric Ordway, who describes working with his hands as a sacred experience. You can see the works of this week's artists on their websites: https://nelsonartkvmo.com/; https://www.molliechounard.com/; https://glyneishajohnson.com/; https://ericordway.com/. Thanks, as always, to guitarist Yasmin Williams (http://www.yasminwilliamsmusic.com/) for the show's opening and closing music, 'Restless Heart'.

How do you do it? is the question that runs through this week's Speaking of the Arts. How do you perform an outdoor musical in the Missouri summer heat for a production where traditionally the actors are all wearing big furry animal costumes? How do you put together an art exhibit in just one gallery that represents 200 years of history? How do you wrap 2-sides of a 2-storey building in a mural that celebrates an icon? How do you play composer Fred Onovwerosuoke's Sonata No3 for two pianos? It's all answered in just one hour when host Diana Moxon chats with the University of Missouri Theatre Department's Joy Powell, curator Audrey Florey from the Boone History and Culture Center's Montminy Gallery, artist David Spear, Odyssey Chamber Music Series Director and pianist, Ayako Tsuruta, and Ghanaian-Nigerian-American contemporary composer, Fred Onovwerosuoke. Opening and closing music credits with thanks to Yasmin Williams (www.yasminwilliamsmusic.com) (Pic courtesy of Mat Powers Matlock of David Spear original mural artwork)

Each month the Missouri Arts Council features four artists on its website from a variety of arts genres, and on this week's show Diana Moxon checks in with the June four: Springfield-based dancer, choreographer and educator, Azaria Rianne Hogans, who explores gender and racial equality through dance; wildlife photographer, Greg Holden, in Eureka; Pleasant Hills-located fused glass artist, Barb Byrnes, whose specialty is memorial glass; And professional classical guitarist, Patrick Rafferty, in Affton. You can see - and hear - the works of this week's artists on their websites: https://www.azariariannehogans.com/; https://www.gjholden.com/; https://barbbyrneglass.com/; http://www.patrickraffertyguitar.com/. Thanks, as always, to guitarist Yasmin Williams (http://www.yasminwilliamsmusic.com/) for the show's opening and closing music, 'Restless Heart'.

Each month the Missouri Arts Council features four artists on its website from a variety of arts genres, and on this week's show Diana Moxon checks in with the April four: photographer Jen Everett from St Louis, who uses photography and sculpture to document nuances of Blackness in America; artist Grant Kniffen from Dardenne Prairie, who explores the stories of the Midwest and West; multi-media artist Laura Bigger, Assistant Professor of Art at Truman Stat University, who uses her art to explore the relationships that exist among humans, animals, and ecosystems; and Springfield-based tuba player Ralph Hepola, who released his first tuba album - concisely titled 'Tuba' - last year. You can read more about the artists at https://www.missouriartscouncil.org/featured-artists/ as well as on their own websites: https://jeneverettart.com/home.html; https://kniffenart.com/; https://www.laurabigger.com/; https://ralphhepola.com/. Thanks, as always, to guitarist Yasmin Williams (http://www.yasminwilliamsmusic.com/) for the show's opening and closing music, 'Restless Heart'.

Theatre, cabaret, cinema, art exhibits - they are all going on whether we are there in person or watching from afar. On this week's show host Diana Moxon chats Academy Awards and the world of Ragtag Cinema with its Co-Executive Director, Barbie Banks; explores local artists' interpretation of Dante's Divine Comedy with the Columbia Art League's Kelsey Hammond; and goes behind the scenes with Audra Sergel, Rochara Knight and Enola White to find out more about this weekend's Cabaret for a Cause: Lovers, Losers and Loners.

On this week's Speaking of the Arts, host Diana Moxon stays close to home with two conversations with the station's new General Manager, Miquel Calçada, and its former General Manager -and person who wrangled KOPN through a pandemic - musician, composer and sound designer, Tim Pilcher. Why is Miquel known as Miki Moto in his home country of Catalonia? And exactly why is a formerly Barcelona-based TV host and radio entrepreneur now living in Columbia, MO? And why is community radio such a precious jewel on our radio dial? All the answers on this week's show. Opening and closing musical credits with thanks to Yasmin Williams (www.yasminwilliamsmusic.com).

In a week when the world descended to a new level of crazy, actor and ardent arts supporter, Monica Senecal Palmer, joins host Diana Moxon for an hour of arts escapism to talk about some of her art journeys in 2020 and share thoughts on the state of the arts in general, plus there's music from two Columbia-based singer songwriters, Audra Sergel and Meredith Musgrove Shaw, and Diana tests Monica's knowledge of Shakespeare, Dumbledore and Yoda quotes, and gives her a Hindsight is 2020 quiz looking back over the past year of arts events in Columbia. Opening and closing musical credits thanks to guitarist Yasmin Williams (www.yasminwilliams.music.com)

Despite lockdowns, ghost lights, reductions and limitations, Speaking of the Arts has gone out every week this year thanks to the extraordinary group of arts leaders we have in Columbia Missouri. And one of the silver linings of this recording-from-home year has been the opportunity to reach out to people that are doing amazing work in other parts of the country - or world. On this week's show, host Diana Moxon, delves into the archives from the past 12 months and revisits some of the chats with people from beyond the local community: guitarist Yasmin Williams; film-maker David France and his documentary subject, Maxim, who came to town for the True/False film fest with their doc 'Welcome to Chechnya'; Tupperware lady supreme, Dixie Longate; French horn player Amanda Collins; Nigerian-Ghanaian-American composer, FredO; conductor Marlon Daniel; and American-living-in-Berlin comedian, Corey Ott. Opening and closing music with thanks to Yasmin Williams (www.yasminwilliamsmusic.com)

This week was Giving Tuesday and also the launch of the month-long COMO Gives campaign, so what better time to feature 6 local arts organizations who are making mid-Missouri a great place to live. This week host Diana Moxon chats with Orr Street Studios director Mallory Donohue about their new artist-in-residence programs and turning tagging into a statement to live by; Boone History and Culture Center's Executive Director Chris Campbell talks about the intimidating task of documenting this time for future generations; TRYPS children's theatre maker of dreams, Jill Womack, talks about the gifts of the stage and advent concerts; Ayako Tsuruta, Executive and Artistic Director of the Oydssey Chamber Music Series chats about the role of streaming in the slow return to concert gatherings; Music Director and Principal Conductor of the Columbia Civic Orchestra talks remote recording and bringing more diverse voices to the fore; and actor, musician and soon-to-be Interim Executive Director of the Columbia Entertainment Company, Enola White, chats about the highlights and opportunities of a dark year. Opening and closing music courtesy of Yasmin Williams www.yasminwilliamsmusic.com

For the past 6 years, Talking Horse Productions has hosted the Starting Gate New Play Festival with 6 brand new plays by 3 playwrights and, despite the pandemic, the show is still going on - but this year it's digital instead. Actor and director, Monica Palmer, and playwright Melle Richardson chat playwriting with host Diana Moxon on this week's show, along with Skylark Bookshop's Alex George talking about their Jólabókaflóð, and the Missouri Symphony Orchestra's Julie Middleton and Trent Rash taking us behind the scenes of this year's Holiday Home Tour. Opening and closing music credits with thanks to guitarist Yasmin Williams (www.yasminwilliamsmusic.com)

This week's Speaking of the Arts is a theatre-film-theatre sandwich, with host Diana Moxon taking on the role of butter. Greenhouse Theatre Project's founder and director Elizabeth Braaten Palmieri and playwright Rigel Oliveri talk about their new Living Room One Acts: Pandemic Edition production, 'Travel Plans'. In Act Two of the show, Diana chats with Ragtag Film Society's Co-Director Barbie Banks about how their plans are shaping up for the 2021 True False Film Fest; and in Act Three, it's back to the stage with Columbia Entertainment Company's Christopher Gould (director) and Audrey Abeyta (actor) who discuss their new production of the George Brant one-woman play, 'Grounded'. Opening and closing music credits to Yasmin Williams (www.yasminwilliamsmusic.com) for her song 'Restless Heart'.

This week's show is a MUST for all arts administrators - and non-profit leaders, staff or volunteers - as arts consultant Sara Leonard returns to the show to continue her chat with Diana Moxon about the conversations that we should all be having within our organizations about being better guardians of inclusion, diversity and equity within the arts. Even for those who don't work in the arts, Sara has fascinating insights about the challenges facing the arts during this time and what some of the research is telling us about what people need from their arts organizations. You can find out more about Sara's work at http://www.saraleonardconsulting.com/. The theme music for the show is 'Restless Heart' by Yasmin Williams, and the work played in the show is 'Juvenescence' from Yasmin's forthcoming album, 'Urban Driftwood'. Find out more about Yasmin's music at www.yasminwilliamsmusic.com.

Imagine being a teenage dancer, you've been thrust into the spotlight, you're on tour for the first time, and your mentor tells you: 'You do not have friends, and you will be going through your career alone.' For Darren Gibson, this was the start of his journey as a principal ballet dancer. Today he is the ballet master at Stephens College, and on this week's show he talks about the lonely journey of being a black, male dancer and how critical it is for today's young black and brown ballet dancers to have teachers who look like them. And in the Second Act of the show Diana talks with the Columbia Art League's Executive Director, Kelsey Hammond, about a different kind of color loneliness in CAL's new show, Monochrome, and its ROYGBIV variations.

We hover, somewhat precariously, between being back in the real world, and staying safe at home. And the arts are in that same in between space. On this week's Speaking of the Arts we check out some actual IRL arts events and some that we can enjoy from home. Greenhouse Theatre Project's Elizabeth Braaten Palmieri and Claire Syler talk about their virtual production of the Lauren Gunderson play 'Natural Shocks', Maplewood Barn theatre's Morgan Dennehy and Christopher Gould chat about their IRL production of Shakespeare's Love's Labor's Lost, Skylark Bookshop's Alex George recommends three books for Father's Day gifts, Ragtag Cinema's Barbie Banks talks about how it feels to be back in the real world, and artist Elise Rugolo talks about a real life exhibit that opens at the Boone History and Culture Center's Montminy Gallery this weekend.

It's an exciting week in the Columbia literary world, with the latest novel by Skylark Bookshop owner, Alex George, getting its official launch, and so this week Alex chats to Diana about 'The Paris Hours', about weaving real people into fictional tales, and explains how the ending got its clever twist. Plus Ragtag Cinema's Barbie Banks talks about the work of directors Ivete Lucas and Patrick Bresnan, and looks at the new documentary 'Capital in the 21st Century'. At Sager Braudis Gallery Hannah Reeves discusses the new May exhibit, and for the last stop on the arts tour Talking Horse Producion's Adam Brietzke and The Stable Boys' Kathleen Johnson teach Diana a short form game called 'Questions Only' and it's clear Diana needs some practice.