The Roundtable with Robert Bannon

Before Margaritaville became an empire, before Parrot Heads became a culture, and before Jimmy Buffett became one of music’s most beloved icons, there was a group of musicians helping create a sound — and a lifestyle — unlike anything else. On this episode of The Roundtable with Robert Bannon, filmmaker John H. Cunningham joins Robert to talk about his new feature documentary, Occupational Hazard:...

Broadway powerhouse Julia Murney is back at the Cape Playhouse — and this time, she’s ringing the bell at one of musical theatre’s funniest competitions! On this episode of The Roundtable with Robert Bannon, Julia joins Robert to talk about starring as Rona Lisa Peretti in The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, now playing at the historic Cape Playhouse in Dennis, Massachusetts through Septem...

What happens when three strangers head into the woods looking for an escape—and find connection, loneliness, laughter, and a little Britney Spears instead? Canadian-born, Brooklyn-based playwright Stephen Sheffer joins Robert Bannon on The Roundtable to talk about his new play, Lean-To, making its world premiere Off-Broadway at 59E59 Theaters in New York City. Presented by New Light Theater Projec...

Few groups captured the sound, style, and energy of late-’80s and early-’90s pop quite like Exposé. With Jeanette Jurado, Gioia Bruno, and Ann Curless, the groundbreaking trio became one of the defining female groups of the era, blending pop, dance, freestyle, and powerhouse vocals into a sound that helped shape a generation. Their debut album, Exposure, became a massive success and made Billboard...

Robert was back to school for his first day, so Adrienne Garzillo jumped into the host seat for a very special Roundtable! Broadway favorite Jelani Remy is here to talk about the 5th annual NextGen Spotlight, the one-night-only Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS benefit he is directing and hosting at The Green Room 42 on September 17. Jelani shares what it means to help shine a light on Broadway’s...

Myles Erlick has spent his career doing a little bit of everything — Broadway, television, film, dance, and now country music! After starring in Billy Elliot the Musical, The Next Step, and Steven Spielberg’s West Side Story, Myles is stepping into the spotlight as a singer-songwriter with his new album, HANDCRAFTED. Myles joins Robert on The Roundtable to talk about the new record, finding his so...

What a life. What a career. And OH, does he have stories! Two-time Tony Award nominee Bill Russell — the brilliant writer behind Side Show, Pageant, Elegies for Angels, Punks and Raging Queens and so much more — joins The Roundtable to talk about his brand-new memoir, Still, Bill: Gay Adventures From Cowboyland to Broadway. From growing up an effeminate gay kid in the Black Hills of South Dakota s...

What happens when Broadway gets louder, heavier, and a whole lot more punk? Matt Copley is about to show us! The Michigan-based recording artist, theatrical producer, and creator behind the viral Broadway Does Punk series is taking the phenomenon from your screen to the stage for the first time ever! Copley has built a massive following by taking songs from shows like Wicked, The Phantom of the Op...

What the world needs now… is a little more Burt Bacharach! On this episode of The Roundtable with Robert Bannon, we are celebrating one of the greatest songbooks in American music with John Pagano and Adrian Galante from the acclaimed musical revue Going Bacharach: The Songs of an Icon. John Pagano has a connection to this music that very few people can claim. For 26 years, he was the featured mal...

You have definitely seen him on your feed — and now Daniel Coffman is at The Roundtable! Daniel Coffman has become a social media sensation thanks to his wildly entertaining “Bathroom Broadway” videos, transforming a simple three-panel bathroom mirror into his own personal stage. His singing, dancing, comedy, and unapologetic joy have connected with a massive online audience, with his Instagram fo...

Yuriy Sardarov, Laura Lapidus, and Tedra Millan join The Roundtable with Robert Bannon to talk all about To Have & To Hold! The trio takes us inside the project, what first drew them to the story, and the chemistry that makes it all work. They talk about finding the humor and humanity in the material, building relationships between their characters, and what audiences can expect. Yuriy also talks...

Ruby Garnet is doing it ALL! The actress, writer, producer, director, and Marine veteran joins Robert on The Roundtable to talk about her new Western, Dogwood! Ruby stars as Harriet Beckwith, a widowed mother fighting to protect her family and her future in the aftermath of the Civil War. The film also stars Eric Roberts and James Storm. Ruby talks about creating the film, stepping both in front o...

What happens when some of the world’s most celebrated playwrights are asked to put American democracy onstage? Jay Wahl, Executive Director of Vermont’s historic Flynn Center for the Performing Arts, joins Robert Bannon on The Roundtable to talk about Women+ on the Edge of Democracy, an ambitious new playwright commission bringing together 36 female-identifying writers from around the world — from...

What happens when the political world you built your life around suddenly changes—and you’re forced to figure out who you are without it? Playwright John Harney joins Robert Bannon on The Roundtable to talk about his timely new play, Somewhere, Virginia, making its world premiere September 8–12 as part of Theater for the New City’s 14th Dream Up Festival. The drama follows Clare, an ambitious cong...

You can’t stop the beat — and Amy Rodriguez is ready to bring Tracy Turnblad back to life! Amy Rodriguez joins The Roundtable to talk about starring as Tracy in OFC Creations’ upcoming production of Hairspray. After previously taking on the iconic role on the national tour, Amy is stepping back into Tracy’s dancing shoes for a brand-new production in Rochester, New York. We talk about returning to...

It’s morphin’ time… but this time, there’s a mystery to solve! Sean C.W. Johnson, beloved by fans as Carter Grayson, the Red Lightspeed Ranger on Power Rangers Lightspeed Rescue, joins us at The Roundtable as he gets ready to hit the New York stage with Cristi’s Case Crackers. Sean has built a career that goes far beyond the Ranger suit, with credits including My Little Eye, CSI: Miami, JAG, 7th H...

For years, one question followed one of Saturday Night Live’s most recognizable characters: “Is Pat a man or a woman?” More than 30 years later, We Are Pat is asking a much bigger question. Julia Sweeney, who created and played Pat on SNL, and director Rowan Haber join Robert on The Roundtable to talk about the documentary and the complicated legacy of a character that became a pop-culture phenome...

You know Dyllón Burnside from his unforgettable work as Ricky on the groundbreaking series Pose — but this time, Dyllón is telling his own story. Dyllón joins Robert on The Roundtable for a candid conversation about his debut album, Genesis, and the deeply personal journey behind the music. At the center of the conversation is “Garden,” the album’s bold lead single. Written from Eve’s perspective...

Sometimes an interview becomes something more than an interview. Tony Award winner Laura Benanti joins Robert Bannon on The Roundtable for a chat that is equal parts hilarious, vulnerable, thoughtful, and wonderfully unfiltered. Benanti is bringing her acclaimed one-woman comedy show, Laura Benanti: Nobody Cares, to George Street Playhouse for a limited engagement August 26–30 at the Elizabeth Ros...

For five seasons, Outer Banks has taken viewers on one wild ride — treasure hunts, family drama, romance, danger, and enough twists to keep fans guessing until the very end. Now, as the Netflix hit wraps its run, Julia Antonelli joins Robert on The Roundtable to celebrate the show that became a global phenomenon. The fifth and final season arrived August 20, bringing the adventure to a close after...

Half Sephardic, half Ashkenazi, a third-generation Holocaust survivor, and raised Modern Orthodox on Manhattan’s West Side, Daniella Rabbani has built a career where Jewish tradition meets a thoroughly modern artistic life. From studying at the Stella Adler Studio and being encouraged by Adler’s grandson Tom Oppenheim to carry forward the legacy of Yiddish theater, to appearances in The Marvelous...

Someone once told Jeff Ryan he was going to fail in life because he was a “mooch.” So naturally... he made a movie about it. Jeff Ryan joins Robert Bannon at The Roundtable to talk about Mooch, the new New Jersey-set crime comedy he wrote, directed and stars in — and yes, the title comes from a very real insult that somehow stuck with him long enough to inspire an entire film! Jeff plays Shane, a...

For more than 50 years, HIROSHIMA has created a sound unlike anyone else—blending jazz, R&B, pop, soul and traditional Japanese instrumentation into music that has reached audiences around the world. On The Roundtable with Robert Bannon, we sit down with HIROSHIMA co-founder Dan Kuramoto for a conversation about the band’s incredible journey, creating a sound and identity all their own, the influe...

Filmmaker Meriem Sakrouhi joins Robert Bannon on The Roundtable to talk about her deeply personal new short documentary, Mon Taxi, which made its world premiere at the 2026 Tribeca Festival. Inspired by Meriem’s relationship with her late father, Mon Taxi turns an everyday ritual — a phone call home — into a moving exploration of grief, memory, family, migration, and the ways we continue talking t...

Jonathan Judge-Russo is doing a little bit of everything — and doing it all with a whole lot of heart. He joins Robert on The Roundtable to talk about starring as Drew in the acclaimed Off-Broadway musical Music City, now playing at St. Luke’s Theatre. Set inside the world of an East Nashville honky-tonk, the show mixes a gritty story of brothers chasing a music career with songs from multi-platin...