The New Maturity

Episode Description: Rafe Totengco has been designing bags for almost thirty years. He started in Manila at eighteen — no formal training, just ambition and a tailor who could execute his sketches. He came to New York in 1989, worked days, studied at FIT at night, and in 1997 debuted his first collection at Bergdorf Goodman. He's been building Rafe New York ever since. He's turned down eve...

Episode Description: Liz Glazer did everything right. Penn. Chicago Law. Law review. Big firm. Tenure. Every box her immigrant parents hoped she'd check — checked. And then she took a buyout and walked away to do stand-up comedy. This isn't a story about running away from something. It's about a psychological contract Liz made with herself: she had to prove she could succeed at the exp...

Guy Branum was eight years old, curled up on his family's farm in Yuba City reading about Greek goddesses while other boys played outside. A gay Jewish kid in rural California drawn to stories about divine beings who didn't quite fit the mold either. Today he's an Emmy-winning writer and producer for Hacks , a co-star in Bros , and one of the sharpest voices in queer comedy. In this co...

Justin Chapple's grandmother Barbara made meals out of practically nothing—doctoring instant ramen, turning eggs into something magical. She didn't give her recipes fancy names. She just cooked with what she had, and her family ate well. Years later, Justin would go to culinary school, work the line at fancy restaurants, and land a pinch-me job at Food & Wine magazine as culinary direc...

The man who runs American fashion didn't set out to work in fashion at all. Steven Kolb is CEO of the Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA), the force behind New York Fashion Week. Before he was front row at runway shows, he was on the front lines of the HIV/AIDS crisis, raising millions for DIFFA when the West Village was ground zero. Twenty years later, at sixty-four, he's thriv...

David Roussève has been HIV positive since 1992, nursed back from the brink of death by his husband Connor, and survived losing that same husband to suicide in 2021 after twenty-six years together. At sixty-five, he's creating his first full-length solo performance in over twenty years, navigating Grindr and OkCupid for the first time, and asking the hardest questions about what it means to fu...

William Norwich went from washing dishes to working alongside Anna Wintour at Vogue . He was one of the first journalists publicly outed in America, survived the shame spirals of gay life in the 1970s, and learned the hard way that your job isn't your identity when the New York Daily News went on strike and his phone stopped ringing. In this conversation, William shares stories from Studio 54 to t...

Fashion designer Peter Som went from dressing celebrities on red carpets to roasting carrots alone after the Met Gala. When his runway business closed in 2015, he found himself in a Chelsea movie theater at 10am on a Wednesday, wondering how he got there. The answer came in the form of noodles, his grandmother's secret recipe notebook, and a complete reimagining of what success could mean. In...

Episode Description: There's a generation of queer people out here thriving — and nobody's talking about it. Until now. The New Maturity is back for Season 4. Real conversations about what it means to thrive, find purpose, and own every chapter of your life — out, proud, and on your own terms. This is what aging with pride sounds like. New episodes start dropping Wednesday, April 1st. Follow where...

Michelle Maccarone is a 41-year-old New York City playwright, performer, and podcast host who found her creative voice by celebrating the wit and wisdom of mid-century women. Her latest play, "The Leopard and the Lynx," premiered at the New York Theatre Festival in January 2025. How her obsession with "Auntie Mame" led to discovering Pat Tanner's real-life story of bisexual...

This week we welcome Dr. Joe Eviatar, who spent 30 years as a highly respected oculofacial plastic surgeon before experiencing a profound pandemic awakening. At 63, he traded his medical practice for life coaching, launching Best Face Forward Coaching to help clients—particularly gay men—embrace aging with radical self-acceptance. Episode Highlights: Joe's groundbreaking work with AIDS patient...

Revolutionary artist Miss Peria joins host Heath Brockwell to discuss founding Roblox Music as a genre and creating space for authentic queer expression in digital realms. Since her debut in June 2020, Miss Peria has transformed the gaming platform through her distinctive fusion of hip-hop, disco, and pop. In this episode, Miss Peria shares: The influence of London's creative community on her...

This week we journey into the sensory world of fashion publishing with Dennis Golonka, who witnessed Harper's Bazaar 's spectacular rebirth under Liz Tilberis in 1992—a transformation that redefined the industry forever. Dennis unveils fashion's Camelot with revelations kept quiet for three decades, from Tilberis's "angel in Chanel" leadership style to her strategic rival...

This week we explore how getting older might actually mean getting better with Richard Faraino, whose life chronicles New York's most pivotal moments. From fighting on the frontlines of the AIDS crisis as both a medical librarian and ACT UP activist to his stunning midlife career pivot into horticulture, Richard now creates spaces of beauty in Battery Park's gardens for 12 million annual v...

This week we explore a radical alternative to traditional living with filmmakers Michael Bullock and Michael Cukr, creators of the groundbreaking documentary "Dream Homes." Currently exhibiting at the Cooper Hewitt Smithsonian Design Triennial, their film takes us inside three LGBTQIA+ intentional communities reimagining what "home" can mean in America today—not as utopian expe...

This week we're joined by Susan Aberth, renowned author of "The Tarot of Leonora Carrington" and Bard College's preeminent scholar of occult art history. In our most downloaded episode of 2025 so far, Aberth delivers an intellectual rollercoaster—seamlessly connecting practical queer survival wisdom with revelations about the mystical underpinnings of American culture that will f...

This week we welcome Douglas Friedman, the renowned photographer capturing America's most breathtaking interiors for Architectural Digest and Vogue. At 52, Friedman embodies creative reinvention—thriving in Manhattan's art world, Marfa's desert expanses, and amid his 150-year-old Long Island restoration project. Episode Highlights: Douglas's radical career pivot at 27—leaving David...

Kicking off Season 3 to celebrate Pride 2025 with Jeff Hiller, the breakout star from HBO's "Somebody Somewhere." Jeff discusses his memoir "Actress of a Certain Age: My 20-Year Trail to Overnight Success," chronicling his journey from theme restaurant performer to Hollywood success story. Jeff shares his Texas-to-Hollywood path, the infamous $15,000 toupee incident, breaki...

An accomplished editor steps into the director's chair, weaving parenthood and filmmaking into an intimate exploration of family complexity in her groundbreaking debut. Ready to revolutionize how you grow older? The New Maturity is your vibrant community where queerness meets wisdom, and every year brings exciting new possibilities. Our stories celebrate aging authentically, challenge stereotypes,...

Losing his sight at 25 led this master potter to profound artistic revelation, offering powerful lessons in resilience and the unexpected gifts of transformation. Ready to revolutionize how you grow older? The New Maturity is your vibrant community where queerness meets wisdom, and every year brings exciting new possibilities. Our stories celebrate aging authentically, challenge stereotypes, and e...

A veteran of New York's electric underground serves delicious tales of guerrilla television, disco rebellion, and the art of growing older with outrageous grace. Ready to revolutionize how you grow older? The New Maturity is your vibrant community where queerness meets wisdom, and every year brings exciting new possibilities. Our stories celebrate aging authentically, challenge stereotypes, and em...

What if you could see all possible outcomes before making a choice? Heath explores the lasting impact of Choose Your Own Adventure books and how they shaped his approach to life's biggest decisions. Then, a revealing conversation with someone who chose to build a community-centered life despite the risks. Your next great adventure starts with understanding the choices that brought you here.

When marriage conventions crumbled, this British bear found unexpected belonging in a 12-person intentional community, challenging traditional narratives of aging, love, and chosen family. Ready to revolutionize how you grow older? The New Maturity is your vibrant community where queerness meets wisdom, and every year brings exciting new possibilities. Our stories celebrate aging authentically, ch...

Heath makes his case for why magazines represent the ultimate act of rebellion in 2025—choosing depth over breadth, curation over algorithms, and patience over instant gratification. His candid conversation with Hello Mr. founder Ryan Fitzgibbon reveals the surprising cultural shift bringing younger audiences back to print. This bonus episode might just change your relationship with media forever.

An indie publishing maverick reimagines life in middle America, transforming an HIV diagnosis into a catalyst for innovation and proving creativity thrives far beyond coastal horizons. Ready to revolutionize how you grow older? The New Maturity is your vibrant community where queerness meets wisdom, and every year brings exciting new possibilities. Our stories celebrate aging authentically, challe...