Tampa Bay Arts Passport Podcast

In this high-energy episode of the Arts Passport podcast , we are taking you straight into the rehearsal room of Jobsite Theater’s upcoming production of Green Day’s American Idiot! We sit down with cast members Cody Farkas and Matthew Morris to talk about the raw energy of putting together a punk rock musical. The duo opens up about weaving together the iconic tracks of the American Idiot and 21s...

In this episode of the Tampa Bay Arts Passport Podcast, Avery Anderson welcomes back Lil Trini Kid to talk about Out of This F**ing World: The Mixtape Vol. 1*, his biggest project to date. The conversation dives into why he chose to create a full mixtape instead of focusing on singles, the collaborations that helped shape the project, and how he's developing his sound as an independent artist. Lil...

What does a public art ninja do after stepping down from leading one of the region's biggest mural festivals? In this episode of the Tampa Bay Arts Passport Podcast, host Avery Anderson sits down with Jenée, founder of No Good Deed Arts and former Executive Director of the SHINE Mural Festival. Jenée gets real about the crucial need for life boundaries, the transition to running her own creative p...

In this episode of the Tampa Bay Arts Passport Podcast, Avery Anderson talks with Hilary Van Dyke and Joshua Bean, founders of Green Book Tampa Bay, about the organization’s evolution from a Black-owned business directory into a growing arts movement supporting Black artists across Tampa Bay. The conversation explores the origins of Green Book Tampa Bay, the inspiration behind its name, and how co...

What is aphasia, and how can community support change lives after stroke or brain injury? In this special episode of the Tampa Bay Arts Passport Podcast, Avery Anderson sits down with Debbie Yonis from Voices of Hope for Aphasia to talk about aphasia awareness, recovery, and the organization’s incredible work across the Tampa Bay area. You’ll also hear all about Wordplay Tampa Bay — the award-winn...

How do you go from producing music in high school to becoming the "King of Content" in Tampa Bay?   In this episode of the Tampa Bay Arts Passport Podcast, Avery Anderson sits down with the multi-talented Tyrese Pope—a sound designer, theater maker, and digital entertainer with over a million followers. Tyrese pulls back the curtain on his unconventional journey, from his early days making comedy...

"A city becomes a city when you have a theatre."   Host Avery Anderson welcomes Elizabeth Brinklow, a veteran arts administrator and the Vice President of the Dunedin Public Theater, to discuss the ambitious project of bringing a fully equipped performing arts facility to North Pinellas.   Elizabeth recounts her incredible career—from studying mime in Paris with Étienne Decroux to overseeing Cultu...

What happens when the world stops, but your job expects you to keep running at 90mph—even if it might kill you? This week, Avery sits down with performer and coach Janice Creneti to talk about her autobiographical solo show, My Year of Saying No. It’s a "homecoming" performance at St. Pete’s Off Central Players that explores the characters we all have in our heads: Guilt, Perfection, and the ever-...

What happens when a "Book Club Wrangler" and a sourdough scientist sits down to talk about more than just yeast and plot twists? In this episode, Avery sits down with Serena Utz—the force behind Tombolo Books’ legendary book clubs and the founder of Trust Your Gut sourdough. We dive into the "altar of baked goods," the heavy emotional weight that community spaces carry during life’s hardest moment...

Forget everything you remember from high school English class. This week on the Arts Passport podcast, we’re joined by the legendary Roxanne Fay—dramaturg, actor, and resident Shakespearean expert—to talk about her latest reimagining of Julius Caesar at The Studio@620. Fay breaks down why Shakespeare’s Roman epic is actually the ultimate action movie, full of "action-consequence" and "thoughtful e...

In an era where major news outlets are scaling back, how do two people put out a weekly physical newspaper? Ray Roa, Editor-in-Chief of Creative Loafing, joins Avery Anderson to pull back the curtain on the "nuts and bolts" of independent media in Tampa Bay. In this episode, we discuss: The Survival Mindset: How Creative Loafing navigated laying off 67% of its staff during the pandemic to remain a...

Before she was directing, producing, and shaping seasons at The Studio@620, Alexa Perez was spiraling over auditions, freelancing social media gigs, and wondering if she fit the mold. In this episode of the Tampa Bay Arts Passport podcast, Alexa talks about the pivot from musical theater grad with anxiety to Associate Artistic Producer — and why the real turning point wasn’t landing the “perfect”...

What happens when an athlete becomes a dancer — and then builds a company where disabled and non-disabled artists create work side by side? In this episode of the Tampa Bay Arts Passport podcast, Avery Anderson sits down with "D", the artistic director of Revolution Dance Company, to talk about inclusive dance, leadership, and what it really means to build community through art. "D" shares his jou...

What if MLK Day wasn’t just one morning — but a season? In this midweek conversation, Avery Anderson speaks with Samantha Harris, executive director of the Tampa Bay Collard Green Festival, about the city’s inaugural 45 Days of Excellence — a new framework connecting the MLK Day Parade, community health initiatives, youth entrepreneurship, and the annual Collard Green Festival. Harris reflects on...

What happens when love doesn’t arrive fully formed — but shows up anyway? In this episode of Tampa Bay Arts Passport, Avery Anderson sits down with actor and arts advocate Samantha Marti Parisi to talk about The Pink Unicorn, a one-woman play being performed not on a stage — but in living rooms, backyards, and community spaces across Tampa Bay. Parisi plays Tricia Lee, a conservative Texas mother...

As Powerstories closes its 25th anniversary season, Artistic Director Clareann Despain  returns to the Tampa Bay Arts Passport podcast for a rare, reflective conversation about where the work has been—and where it’s headed next. In this episode, Clareann and Avery talk about why women’s stories still need defending, how theatre can offer light in dark times, and what it means to make art for the g...

Arts communities don’t sustain themselves. People do. In this episode of The Arts Passport Podcast, Michele Smith—Executive Director of the Tampa Arts Alliance—joins us for a wide-ranging conversation about leadership, infrastructure, and the often invisible work that keeps creative ecosystems alive. Michele reflects on her unconventional journey into arts administration, from international trade...

John Perez, the new Director of Education at American Stage, joins Avery for a candid conversation about how arts education actually moves in Tampa Bay—beyond the stage lights and into classrooms. We cover: John’s full-circle path from apprentice to Director of Education What American Stage Education offers (adult + youth classes, outreach, matinees) Write On, the playwriting program inside Pinell...

When dancer, educator, and arts advocate Helen French stepped into the role of Executive Director of the St. Pete Arts Alliance on August 1, she didn’t just inherit 16 programs, a citywide mural festival, and a three-person staff — she inherited a community in flux. In this candid conversation, French pulls back the curtain on her first 70 days on the job — from the stress and gratitude (“I have m...

Tampa Bay’s chalk art and mural scene isn’t just vibrant — it’s a full-blown creative ecosystem. And artist Hilary Frambes sits right at the center of it. In this episode of the Tampa Bay Arts Passport Podcast, Hilary shares what it really means to make art in public: the planning, the pressure, the weather apps, and the pure joy of creating something while strangers watch it come to life. From ch...

What does it look like to build a music career from the ground up in the middle of Tampa’s nightlife? In this episode of the Arts Passport Podcast, underground artist and entertainer Lil Trini Kid breaks down the real grind behind his rising music career — from dropping freestyles that caught fire online to navigating late-night club shifts, digital rollouts, and the art of “having the sauce.” We...

This episode is about the moment you stop asking permission to be an artist. Playwright, actor, and voice actor Jenna Jane talks about walking away from full-time journalism, surviving in Florida as a working artist, and refusing to play roles that sexualize or stereotype young women. “I made a commitment to myself… I was no longer going to play any roles that perpetuate stereotypes or involve my...

When state arts funding collapses and women’s stories keep getting erased, what do artists do? They make more art. In this episode, Erica Sutherlin (The Studio@620) and Clareann Despain (Powerstories Theatre) join host Avery Anderson to talk about their co-production of Cadillac Crew, the power of small organizations, and why artists will always show up—no matter what Florida politics throws at th...

Nonprofit theater isn’t a vibes-only economy. Aoslo Rep managing director Ross Egan joins Avery for a candid dive into money, models, and why “the mission is the heart, but the model is the engine.” From Chicago storefronts to Sarasota’s mainstage, this episode unpacks sustainability, salaries, and why a $5 gift from every audience member could change the game.

Actress Susana Cordón joins Avery to talk about starring as Lucy in the Straz Center’s Dracula: A Comedy of Terror—why rooting comedy in truth makes it funnier, what “belonging” in the arts actually feels like, and yes, a healthy amount of Audra McDonald worship. Plus: first impressions of Tampa Bay’s arts scene, from murals to humidity.