Podcasts

Founder and Artistic Director of Forklift Danceworks Allison Orr talks about the community-based dance company and its many collaborations.

Composer, conductor, and commentator Rob Kapilow takes us on a musical journey through Leonard Bernstein’s Broadway career.

Signature Theatre’s Artistic Director Matthew Gardiner talks about making musical theater magic in Northern Virginia with Stephen Sondheim's "Into the Woods."

What goes into writing for young adults? Prize-winning author and educator Renée Watson has few ideas!

Navajo/Diné Textile Artist and Weaver and 2022 National Heritage Fellow TahNibaa Naataanii talks about the practice of Navajo/Diné weaving--an art that is a way of life.

Kelli Jo Ford (Cherokee) discusses her novel Crooked Hallelujah which gives us the stories of four generations of Cherokee women and the love, support, and conflict they share as they navigate their lives in and out of the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma...

We are celebrating Native American Heritage Month and National Heritage Award by revisiting Penobscot Nation Ash/Sweetgrass Basketmaker and 2016 National Heritage Fellow Theresa Secord who discusses bringing an ancient art into the 21st century.

Step Artist and producer and 2022 National Heritage Fellow C. Brian Williams discusses the rich cultural history of stepping and his work bringing the art form from Black fraternities and sororities to audiences in more than 60 countries and 49 state...

The late Kevin Locke talks about learning, performing, and teaching Lakota culture and traditions around the world.

Director of Communications for the Mount Zion Baptist Church Preservation Society in Athens, Ohio. Dr. Tee Ford-Ahmed talks about repurposing a vacant but historically significant Black church into a cultural center—with an assist from the Citizens’ ...

Bluegrass Fiddler and 2022 NEA National Heritage Fellow Michael Cleveland talks about his life immersed in music.

Marisel Vera talks about unpacking the history of late 19th century Puerto Rico for her novel “The Taste of Sugar.”

Performance poet and theater arts director Amalia Ortiz discusses her work at SAY Sí, her own award-winning art, and the intersection between the two.

Filmmaker Loira Limbal talks about her 2020 documentary Through the Night which examines a home-based 24-hour day-care center and the personal cost to the mothers who need it and the woman that runs it.

Flamenco Artist and 2022 National Heritage Fellow Eva Enciñias has spent her life to elevating flamenco while weaving it into the fabric of community-life, teaching generations not just the dance steps, but the history and significance of flamenco it...

David Serkin Ludwig talks about his life in music both as a composer and as an educator dedicated to new music and expanding the music community

Carlton Turner talks about the work of Sipp Culture, which uses story to uncover and support cultural and economic development in Utica, Mississippi.

Author Vanessa Hua discusses her fiction and her determination to shine a light on the multiplicity of voices within the Chinese-American diaspora

We’re revisiting this 2021 interview with filmmaker CJ Hunt who discusses his Emmy Award nominated documentary "The Neutral Ground" which explores the struggle to remove four Confederate monuments in New Orleans and the broader mythology around the ...

Jenny Mendez discusses the Mattie Rhodes Art & Cultural Center’s work in arts education and community programming.

Actor Jacob Ming-Trent talks about his career on stage, particularly playing Shakespeare.

Almeta Ingram-Miller, leader of the powerhouse gospel group and 2022 National Heritage Fellows the Legendary Ingramettes, talks about the group's six decades-long journey.

Sarah Smarsh discusses her book Heartland: A Memoir of Working Hard and Being Broke in the Richest Country on Earth​​​​​​​, which is a 2022-2023 NEA Big Read title.

Composer, multi-instrumentalist, and 2021 NEA Jazz Master Henry Threadgill reflects on his musical life and shares his thoughts about improvised music.

Songwriter and instrumentalist Louie Pérez takes us through the 50 year journey of the legendary band and 2021 National Heritage fellows Los Lobos.