Culture on My Mind
The Art of Plays
March 6, 2023

This week, I’m back to the performing arts with the Theater and Musical Lovers YouTube Channel.

The channel and its associated Facebook group were established as an unofficial gathering of Dragon Con attendees who love theater, musicals, and the performing arts. Their goal is to create a community of fellow thespians and fans at the convention. This time, they assembled to talk about the non-musical – better known as stageplays – and what they love about them, why they work, their favorite playwrights, and more.

On March 4th, Gary Mitchel and Sarah Rose were joined by Kris, JJ, Mera Rose, and Matt Duron to explain exactly why the play’s the thing.

Note: This video has been updated since the initial recording. Depending on security settings, you may have to click through below to see the video directly on YouTube. You should definitely subscribe to their channel for more updates.

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The Theater and Musical Lovers Group will be hosting more of these panels. If you’re interested in participating or have some topic ideas in mind, head over to the group on Facebook and drop them a line. 

You can find Gary and Sarah on the socials: On Twitter, they are Gary_Mitchel, SarahRose_KPK, and Daisuki_Suu; on Instagram, they are Gary_Mitchel and Daisuki_Suu; and Gary’s horror-themed podcast that he hosts with Erin McGourn is A Podcask of Amontillado. Of course, the Theater & Musical Lovers channel can be found on YouTube.

Culture on My Mind is inspired by the weekly Can’t Let It Go segment on the NPR Politics Podcast where each host brings one thing to the table that they just can’t stop thinking about.

For more creativity with a critical eye, visit Creative Criticality.

Culture on My Mind
Jukebox Musicals
February 17, 2023

This week, I’m back to the performing arts with the Theater and Musical Lovers YouTube Channel.

The channel and its associated Facebook group were established as an unofficial gathering of Dragon Con attendees who love theater, musicals, and the performing arts. Their goal is to create a community of fellow thespians and fans at the convention. This time, they assembled to talk about musicals that take a different approach to storytelling by starting with a collection of songs and working backward to develop a story and link them all together. The jukebox musical – Ain’t Misbehavin’, Mama Mia, American Idiot, Rock of Ages, and the like – sometimes works, sometimes doesn’t, and sometimes is just fine.

On February 13th, Gary Mitchel and Sarah Rose were joined by Greg Houser (website), Jacqueline Cocanougher, Rob Levy (Modern Musicology Podcast), and Steven R. Denham to put in their quarters and let their dancing shoes tell the tale.

Note: This video has been updated since the initial recording. Depending on security settings, you may have to click through below to see the video directly on YouTube. You should definitely subscribe to their channel for more updates.

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The Theater and Musical Lovers Group will be hosting more of these panels. If you’re interested in participating or have some topic ideas in mind, head over to the group on Facebook and drop them a line. 

You can find Gary and Sarah on the socials: On Twitter, they are Gary_Mitchel, SarahRose_KPK, and Daisuki_Suu; on Instagram, they are Gary_Mitchel and Daisuki_Suu; and Gary’s horror-themed podcast that he hosts with Erin McGourn is A Podcask of Amontillado. Of course, the Theater & Musical Lovers channel can be found on YouTube.

Culture on My Mind is inspired by the weekly Can’t Let It Go segment on the NPR Politics Podcast where each host brings one thing to the table that they just can’t stop thinking about.

For more creativity with a critical eye, visit Creative Criticality.

Culture on My Mind
Where the Drama is Local, Act II
January 30, 2023

It’s time to talk about the performing arts again. This week, I’m back to community theater and the continuing panel discussion courtesy of the Theater and Musical Lovers YouTube Channel.

The channel and its associated Facebook group were established as an unofficial gathering of Dragon Con attendees who love theater, musicals, and the performing arts. Their goal is to create a community of fellow thespians and fans at the convention. This group came together a couple of weeks ago to talk about community theater and local productions, but they decided that they weren’t done yet.

On January 23rd, this group of passionate curtain callers staged an encore to discuss the charms and pitfalls of local theater.  Gary Mitchel and Sarah Rose were joined once again by Greg Bell, Christi Chalmers, and Ell Rhodes to chat about the creativity, passion, and drama that you can find in your own hometown.

Note: This video has been updated since the initial recording. Depending on security settings, you may have to click through below to see the video directly on YouTube. You should definitely subscribe to their channel for more updates.

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The Theater and Musical Lovers Group will be hosting more of these panels. If you’re interested in participating or have some topic ideas in mind, head over to the group on Facebook and drop them a line. 

You can find Gary and Sarah on the socials: On Twitter, they are Gary_Mitchel, SarahRose_KPK, and Daisuki_Suu; on Instagram, they are Gary_Mitchel and Daisuki_Suu; and Gary’s horror-themed podcast that he hosts with Erin McGourn is A Podcask of Amontillado. Of course, the Theater & Musical Lovers channel can be found on YouTube.

Culture on My Mind is inspired by the weekly Can’t Let It Go segment on the NPR Politics Podcast where each host brings one thing to the table that they just can’t stop thinking about.

For more creativity with a critical eye, visit Creative Criticality.

Culture on My Mind
Where the Drama is Local
January 9, 2023

It’s time to talk about the performing arts again. This week, I’m thinking about community theater and a panel discussion courtesy of the Theater and Musical Lovers YouTube Channel.

The channel and its associated Facebook group were established as an unofficial gathering of Dragon Con attendees who love theater, musicals, and the performing arts. Their goal is to create a community of fellow thespians and fans at the convention. This group came together last weekend to talk about community theater and local productions. I mean, sure, Broadway is where everyone wants to end up, but some of the best experiences are homegrown.

When I was in the Navy, I volunteered a couple of times at Playhouse 51 in Millington, TN. That community theater is a non-profit run by volunteers. The theater is housed in the Millington Civic Center, which was once a Baptist church that ended up in the city’s hands. The city offered the space to Playhouse 51 for a $1 annual lease, effectively endorsing it so long as the volunteer force can keep the doors open.

That’s the kind of community that local theater creates.

On January 7th, a group of passionate curtain callers discussed the charms and pitfalls of local theater, along with how to find, join, support, or found your own local theater troupe, and why you should see that show they’re putting on in their uncle’s barn!  Gary Mitchel and Sarah Rose were joined by Greg Bell, Christi Chalmers, and Ell Rhodes to chat about the creativity, passion, and drama that you can find in your own hometown.

Note: This video has been updated since the initial recording. Depending on security settings, you may have to click through below to see the video directly on YouTube. You should definitely subscribe to their channel for more updates.

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The Theater and Musical Lovers Group will be hosting more of these panels. If you’re interested in participating or have some topic ideas in mind, head over to the group on Facebook and drop them a line. 

You can find Gary and Sarah on the socials: On Twitter, they are Gary_Mitchel, SarahRose_KPK, and Daisuki_Suu; on Instagram, they are Gary_Mitchel and Daisuki_Suu; and Gary’s horror-themed podcast that he hosts with Erin McGourn is A Podcask of Amontillado. Of course, the Theater & Musical Lovers channel can be found on YouTube.

Culture on My Mind is inspired by the weekly Can’t Let It Go segment on the NPR Politics Podcast where each host brings one thing to the table that they just can’t stop thinking about.

For more creativity with a critical eye, visit Creative Criticality.

Culture on My Mind
Theater Nerds
November 21, 2022

Now, for something completely different, let’s talk about the performing arts. This week, I’m thinking about the Venn diagram between theater and pop culture, courtesy of the Theater and Musical Lovers YouTube Channel.

The channel and its associated Facebook group were established as an unofficial gathering of Dragon Con attendees who love theater, musicals, and the performing arts. Their goal is to create a community of fellow thespians and fans at the convention.

On November 18th, the community’s leaders Gary Mitchel and Sarah Rose were joined by Sue Kisenwether (@spaltor on Twitter, Women at Warp), Kelly (@broadwaykelly on Twitter), and Courtney Bliss (website) to chat about why theater is definitely a part of nerd and pop culture.

Note: Depending on security settings, you may have to click through below to see the video directly on YouTube. You should definitely subscribe to their channel for more updates.

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The Theater and Musical Lovers Group will be hosting more of these panels. If you’re interested in participating or have some topic ideas in mind, head over to the group on Facebook and drop them a line. 

You can find Gary and Sarah on the socials: On Twitter, they are Gary_Mitchel, SarahRose_KPK, and Daisuki_Suu; on Instagram, they are Gary_Mitchel and Daisuki_Suu; and Gary’s horror-themed podcast that he hosts with Erin McGourn is A Podcask of Amontillado. Of course, the Theater & Musical Lovers channel can be found on YouTube.

Culture on My Mind is inspired by the weekly Can’t Let It Go segment on the NPR Politics Podcast where each host brings one thing to the table that they just can’t stop thinking about.

For more creativity with a critical eye, visit Creative Criticality.