The Culture Show Podcast

Award winning writer and poet Kwame Alexander joins The Culture Show to talk about the PBS Kids debut of “Acoustic Rooster.” Based on Alexander’s beloved children’s book “Acoustic Rooster and His Barnyard Band,” the “Acoustic Rooster” universe is now on  PBS KIDS. To learn more, go here . From there the Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist Elizabeth Strout joins The Culture Show to talk about her lates...

Jared Bowen, Edgar B. Herwick III, and Joyce Kulhawik co-host this week’s arts and Culture week-in-review. Joyce Kulhawik is a Culture Show contributor, Emmy-award winning arts and entertainment reporter and president of the Boston Theatre Critics Association. You can find her reviews at Joyce’s Choices. First up, a recap of the Elliot Norton Awards,  from there a preview of the Tonys, which inclu...

Dr. Greg Skomal joins The Culture Show to talk about preparing for white shark season and how the movie “Jaws,” which is nearing its 50th anniversary, inspired him to become a marine biologist. Greg Skomal is an underwater explorer, photographer, and author. He is a  fisheries scientist with the Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries and heads the Massachusetts Shark Research Program.  From th...

Nemr is a Lebanese-American stand-up comedian who is credited with pioneering the stand-up comedy scene throughout the Middle East. On June 13th he’s bringing his “Extremely Unextremist” show to The Wilbur . He joins The Culture Show for a preview.  From there we continue our countdown to 2026 with a look at the role Somerville played in the American Revolution, it’s the focus of  the Somerville M...

Don Gillis and Ray Flynn join The Culture Show to discuss Gillis’ new book “ The Battle for Boston: How Mayor Ray Flynn and Community Organizers Fought Racism and Downtown Power Brokers .” On June 5th at 6:00 Don Gillis will be at a book event at the Roslindale Public Library. To learn more go here. From there comedian and actress Lane Moore joins The Culture Show to  talk about turning online dat...

Andy Husbands, chef and owner of The Smoke Shop BBQ , has co-authored the “Quick and Easy Burger Cookbook,” which will bump your burger game with creative recipes. He joins The Culture Show to talk about how we can turn our nothing burger into a something burger. On June 16th Husbands will be at a book signing event at WBUR’s City Space. To learn more go here . From there Boston-based artist Massi...

Today Jared Bowen, Callie Crossley and Edgar B. Herwick III co-host our arts and culture week-in-review starting with a reflection on the groundbreaking ceremony for the new Holocaust museum in Boston’s Downtown Crossing. From there they discuss Harvard University, which  will give up ownership of historic photos of enslaved people, following a legal fight with Tamara Lanier, a descendent of one o...

Vincent Valdez is an American artist who explores identity, social justice, and American history. Not to mention our particular capacity, as a society, to forget our episodes of violence.  Just a Dream … is the artist’s first major museum survey including work from over twenty years across all media. He joins The Culture Show to talk about his process, vision and this exhibition, which is on view...

Ron Chernow―prizewinning author of seven books, including the National Book Award winner “The House of Morgan,” the Pulitzer Prize winner “Washington: A Life,” and the George Washington Book Prize winner “Alexander Hamilton ” ―joins The Culture Show to talk about his new biography “Mark Twain . ”     On June 2nd he’ll be at the First Parish Church at a book event presented by Harvard Book Store. T...

Arrival - a new biannual art fair. The inaugural edition features exhibitors from across the country. It kicks off on June 12th and runs through June 15th and is situated in North Adams at the TOURSITS hotel. Two of the founders join The Culture Show for an overview. Yng-Ru Chen is owner of the Boston-based Praise Shadows Art Gallery and Crystalle Lacouture is an artist based in Boston and North A...

Actor and author Marianne Leone joins The Culture Show to talk about her latest book, “Five-Dog Epiphany: How a Quintet of Badass Bichons Retrieved Our Joy,”   From there New Bedford poet Erik Andrade joins The Culture Show to talk about poetry as activism. Erik Andrade  is an award winning spoken word poet. Recently his work was included in “Black Fire This Time Vol. 2,”  a groundbreaking antholo...

Edgar B. Herwick III, Callie Crossley and James Bennett II co-host our arts and culture week in review.  First up, reconstructing the Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese feud timeline, focusing  on how the media are fanning the flames and  how outside commentary about race is making this an ugly rivalry. From there it’s an analysis of another feud,  Bruce Springsteen versus President Trump. Springsteen...

Actor and activist George Takei joins The Culture Show to talk about his debut with the Boston Pops. He’s narrating a multimedia program that explores the intersection of music, space, and science fiction. This program was developed in partnership with the Museum of Science, Boston and its Center for Space Sciences. This concert also offers a post-performance meet and greet with Astronaut Sunita W...

Sebastian Smee is a Pulitzer Prize-winning art critic at The Washington Post. He joins The Culture Show to talk about his recent piece , which breaks down Bob Dylan’s “Ballad of a Thin Man.” Sebastian Smee’s latest book is “Paris in Ruins: Love, War and the Birth of Impressionism.” From there Dr. Greg Skomal joins The Culture Show to talk about preparing for white shark season and how the movie “J...

Marc Sheehan, Executive Chef and Owner of Northern Spy in Canton and Will Gilson, Chef and Partner of Cambridge Street Hospitality Group ,  join The Culture Show to talk about the Michelin Guide coming to Boston and what it will take for local restaurants that are contenders to prepare. From there playwright Jocelyn Bioh joins The Culture Show to talk about her Tony Award nominated play  “JaJa’s A...

The Sandwich Glass Museum is featuring the artistry of Josh Simpson in the exhibition “50 Years of Visionary Glass.”   Josh and his wife, retired NASA astronaut Cady Coleman, will be signing books and giving a joint presentation on May 31st. Cady Coleman’s new book is “Sharing Space: An Astronaut’s Guide to Mission, Wonder and Making Change.” Josh Simpson’s new book is “Josh Simpson: 50 Years of V...

Today Jared Bowen, Edgar B. Herwick III and Culture Show contributor Lisa Simmons –  artistic and executive director of the Roxbury International Film Festival and program manager at Mass Cultural Council– go over the latest headlines on our arts and culture week in review. First up, the Michelin guide will officially debut in Boston. From there Waymo, the driverless car company, has plans to come...

“ New York Times” bestselling author Alison Bechdel joins The Culture Show to talk about her new comic novel “ Spent.” Bechdel will be at The Brattle Theatre on May 22nd at an event sponsored by Harvard Book Store. Tickets to this event are sold out but there will be a stand-by line at the Brattle Theatre. To learn more go here . From there it’s a celebration of landmark women composers. Betsy Hin...

Every year snowy owls fly from the Arctic to Boston's Logan Airport to find food. Norman Smith catches them and releases them far away to keep the owls and passengers safe. While he is the only owl catcher at Logan Airport, other airports are following his lead. Norman Smith is a raptor specialist who has worked at Mass Audubon for nearly 60 years and rescued more than 900 Snowy Owls since 1981. P...

David Leonard, President of the Boston Public Library, joins The Culture Show to talk about how public libraries are under siege, from book bans to funding cuts. He wrote about this, and the need to defend these institutions, in a recent piece for the Boston Globe. To keep abreast of all of the programming and resources the Boston Public Library has to offer go here . From there it’s politics and...

Ryan Miller, co-lead singer of Guster and Guster’s drummer Brian Rosenworcel join The Culture Show to talk about their recent performances at The Kennedy Center, which Miller wrote about for The Atlantic . They also previewed two shows in the region; one  in North Adams at MASS MoCA on July 26th and Guster’s On the Ocean music festival, August 8-August 10 in Portland, ME. To learn more go here . F...

Today Culture Show co-hosts Callie Crossley, Jared Bowen and Edgar B. Herwick III go over the latest headlines on our arts and culture week-in-review. First up, Pope Leo XIV is the first American Pope. What are the cultural implications and did pop culture anticipate this moment? From there it’s a review of the MET Gala, which celebrated dandyism, Black excellence and menswear. Then it’s a look at...

Alex Alvear is an Ecuadorian composer, bassist, and vocalist who has three shows at Long Live Roxbury, which is a weekly music series bringing top-notch acts to the Long Live Beerworks taproom. The performances are free and the programming is the brainchild of Michael Feldman, the CEO of Feldman Geospatial. Alex Alvear and Michael Feldman join The Culture Show to talk about upcoming shows and how...

James Parker joins The Culture Show to talk about his latest book “Get Me Through the Next Five Minutes: Odes to Being Alive.”  He’s  a staff writer at “The Atlantic.”  Since 2011 he has been running the Black Seed Writers Group—a weekly writing workshop for homeless, transitional, and recently housed writers–and editing “The Pilgrim,” a literary magazine from the homeless community of downtown Bo...

Boston Pops conductor Keith Lockhart joins The Culture Show to reflect on his 30th anniversary with the Boston Pops. He also gives an overview of the Boston Pops spring season, which includes an opening night concert with Cynthia Erivo, JAWS in Concert, and the musician, composer, and  singer-songwriter Cody Fry. To learn about all of their programming go here .  From there, Imari Paris Jeffries,...