Token Theatre Friends

In this episode, Ayanna and Alexi get in their feels as they reminisce over the last in-person shows they each saw before the pandemic began 1 year ago (for most of us). They have high expectations for the first season of in-person shows and make one request: NO musicals about pandemics please! That means no theatrical adaptation of Michael Bay’s Covid-19 drama, Songbird. The Friends review Monume...

In this episode, Jose talks to Saheem Ali and Ricardo Pérez González. The director and playwright discuss their bilingual adaptation of William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. Now titled Romeo y Julieta, the audio-play transforms Verona into a sonically layered version of Latin America. The star-crossed lovers are played by Juan Castano and Academy Award winner Lupita Nyong'o. Ali talks about the...

It's been one year since theaters shut down all over the world. We're all still processing our new reality in different stages. The way to commemorate this strange anniversary couldn't be one of just sadness over what we lost or admiration at the perseverance of artists. Instead, we thought our tone should reflect what's mostly in our hearts: gratitude. This is the first episode in a series called...

In this episode, Jose talks to Tony winner André De Shields. The legendary performing activist talks about his upcoming performance as Frederick Douglass in Mine Eyes Have Seen the Glory. The piece is part of Flushing Town Hall's Black History Trilogy, a celebration of Black History Month. During the conversation, De Shields speaks about the clash of evolution and history, and his role as a messe...

In this episode, Andrew and Brittani celebrate carnival and discuss their favorite soca musicians. This leads them to imagine, and cast, a soca-driven Broadway show. Make it happen, producers! Then they review two pieces. First they talk about iN-Hale MEGA VEE's reading of All Boys Aren't Blue, by George M. Johnson. This is followed by a review of Judas and the Black Messiah, a biopic of Fred Hamp...

Kathlynn and Jose commemorate Valentine's Day. Last time they reviewed two dark romances and promised to find happy endings for V-Day. First, they talk about Malcolm and Marie on Netflix, leading Kathlynn to ask: why is this billed as a romantic drama? Following that, they talk about The Gay Divorcees, a band of real-life divorcees, who put together a visual album about how their marriages fell ap...

In this episode, Alexi and Jose go Gaga over J.Lo at the Inauguration. This leads Jose to ask: why are official ceremonies always so somber? This is followed by their review of Adrienne Kennedy's Etta and Ella on the Upper West Side. Furthermore, they talk about On Site Opera's The Beauty That Still Remains, a collection of operas delivered by mail. Jose interviews Miranda Gohh and Rashad V. Chamb...

In this episode, Kathlynn and Jose start by looking back at the attack on the Capitol by white supremacists. Furthermore, the way in which theatrical elements can be put at the service of terrorists. After that, they review two shows. First, they discuss Shotgun Players' production of Loy A. Webb's The Light. They follow this with a review of 1993, an audio drama by Finkle produced by the Keen Com...

Our last episode of 2020 is jam-packed with goodies. First up, Ayana and Jose review a new digital production of Meet Me in St. Louis, and an audio version of A Christmas Carol. Next, Jose speaks to Animals playwright Stacy Osei-Kuffour, and director Whitney White, about the process of transforming their original vision into an audio play. This is followed by Ayana and Jose unveiling their favorit...

In this special episode, Jose talks to Lynn Ahrens & Stephen Flaherty, the composers behind beloved musicals such as Ragtime, Once on This Island, and Anastasia. During the pause provoked by the pandemic, the duo went to their archives to put together a new album called Legacy: Two Song Cycles.  The double album features previously unreleased demos split into two song cycles. The first is called 1...

In this episode, Jose talks to Nicholas Rodriguez about his upcoming appearance in Sondheim Unplugged, at Feinstein's/54 Below (Dec. 26). As well as the lessons he's learned in 2020, how he's acquired new skills in order to perform online, and his realization that there exist two kinds of people in the world. The star of Tarzan and One Life to Live, reflects on a year where he learned that it was...

This week, Alicia and Jose talk to Chad Austin and Bianca Marroquín. As the artistic director of Abingdon Theatre Company, Austin conceived the #IWILL campaign, meant to remind theatre makers who can't be onstage right now, about the importance of hope. He recruited renowned artists, including Marroquín, to come up with reassuring messages that warm the heart and raise the spirit. Marroquín was th...

In this episode, Jose talks to Broadway icon Norm Lewis about his new Christmas show at Feinstein's/54 Below. Unlike years past, audience members can't gather at the famed nightclub to be serenaded by Lewis. So he's doing the next best thing by crafting an intimate evening filled with beloved holiday classics. As well as Lewis' own takes on what makes "a Christmas song." The show premieres on Dec....

In this episode, Alexi and Jose review The Wilma’s recent production of Heroes of the Fourth Turning. Which they compare to an episode of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, Alexi even matches each Heroes character to a ROBH cast member. The two also discuss their love for Clarice Lispector when reviewing the digital world built for a production of Inside the Wild Heart. The Friends also spoke w...

In this episode Jose and Kelly review Ryan Murphy's adaptation of The Prom (now in select theaters, Dec. 11on Netflix) and discuss how the Hollywood cast fares compared to the Broadway company. Kelly also discusses digital quest Thickett and The Mad Ones Engine. Jose talked to the multitalented Alexandra Silber about the cast recording of Einstein's Dreams and her novels. He also discussed the sur...

In this episode Jose and Juan Michael speak with Donja R. Love, the award-winning Afro-Queer playwright about why authentic representation is essential. In each of his plays, Love centers the lives of Black, Queer, and HIV positive lives. They show viewers what it means to love in a time of slavery (Sugar in Our Wounds), to hide in plain sight (Fireflies), to process one's grief (one-in-two), and...

On this episode Jose talks to Grace McLean, the composer and star of In the Green, a musical about medieval saint Hildegarde Von Bingen, a composer, exorcist. and doctor of the church who spent most of her childhood in a tower. The cast recording is out now, you can stream it wherever you get your music, or you can buy a CD version as well (those will be released later this year). Grace spoke abou...

In this episode, Jose talks to playwright Victor I. Cazares about their limited series Pinching Pennies with Penny Marshall: Death Rituals for Penny Marshall, in which the legendary filmmaker comes to life as a financial advisor sharing her wisdom with OnlyFans content creators via Zoom. Cazares also talks about the pop culture that formed them, and how they have created a space for themselves in...

On this week's episode, it's Jose's turn to rant about the Tony Awards and the nominators' petty snub of The Lightning Thief. The Friends also talk about American Utopia, which is the filmed version of David Byrne's Broadway show of the same name. It's currently on HBO. The Friends surprised themselves by really enjoying the show even though they're not the biggest Byrne fan. This week's guests ar...

In this episode Jose talks to Michael Breslin, Patrick Foley and Cat Rodríguez, the creative minds behind Fake Friends, a new theatre/media company where they explore their love for pop culture, theatre and politics, through genre-bending pieces that combine multimedia with "traditional" theater. Their latest project is Circle Jerk, a hilarious commentary on white gays and cancel culture, which th...

This week, Diep delivers a rant about the Tony Award nominations, and why it all feels anti-climactic. This week the Friends welcome one of their favorite people: Heidi Schreck. Schreck was a Pulitzer Prize finalist for her play What the Constitution Means to Me, which ran on Broadway in 2019. Now that play has been filmed and will be released on Amazon Prime Video on Oct. 16. Schreck drops by to...

On this week’s episode, the Friends react to the Lincoln Project’s ad that compares the president to Evita. It’s called Covita. It’s pretty terrifying. Then they review two shows-turned-movies/TV. The first is Ryan Murphy’s film version of The Boys in the Band, the 1968 play by Mart Crowley, which chronicles the lives of gay men living in New York City pre-Stonewall. It’s on Netflix. Then they tal...

This week the Friends experienced two shows. One was an immersive play for one person for Portaleza by David Israel Reynoso/Optika Moderna, presented by La Jolla Playhouse. The prompt is: Send a message to a person in your life who has died. It's supernatural and kind of sci-fi. Then they review something more high-budget but also similarly technical: Romantics Anonymous, a new musical from Emma R...

On this week's episode, the Friends talked to musician and actor Josh Groban (Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812), who is about to release a new album called Harmony in November. But before that happens, he's doing a series of live virtual concerts, where he will be performing new songs and taking requests from his back catalogue. The first of those concerts on Oct. 3 will be Broadway theme...

This week, the Friends talk about two shows. First they discuss Murder at River Crossing Book Club from Live In Theatre Company, which is an interactive murder mystery where the audience get to interrogate witnesses and try to figure out, who killed the richest woman in town? It's real-life Clue! Then the Friends discuss this year's Miscast, MCC Theater's annual gala, where actors perform songs fr...