Ron Destro is an award-winning writer, actor, director, and teacher. Trained in the US and UK, his mentors have included Royal Shakespeare Company founder John Barton, Oscar-winner F Murray Abraham, TV legend Lucille Ball, painter Pierre Matisse, and teachers at the Iowa Writers Workshop. He received the Kennedy Center New American Play Award for his work, Hiroshima, for which Yoko Ono wrote the original score.             He runs the nonprofit New York and London summer-based Oxford Shakespeare Company, which trains actors and presents Shakespeare plays in historic locations, including Hamlet in Elsinore, Macbeth in Birnam Wood, and Richard III on Bosworth Field.             He’s lectured on the Shakespeare authorship question at Harvard University, Chautauqua Institution and the Edinburgh Skeptics Society.             His new book, The Starre, The Moone, The Sunne, is an Elizabethan murder mystery, the solving of which just happens to reveal the identity of the real “William Shakespeare.” I’ve read The Starre, The Moone, The Sunne and can tell you it’s uniquely entertaining, especially as Ron has written it as if he was an author living in the Elizabethan era. Funny, dramatic, raucous, and filled with an amazing theatrical energy, I highly recommend it to you.             And if you’re into the Bard of Avon, please check out Ron’s excellent book, The Shakespeare Masterclasses, featuring fantastic insights from 13 of the world’s greatest classical actors.            Among some of Ron’s more unusual achievements, he taught Christopher Reeve to smoke, was told by Groucho Marx to give somebody the finger, and nearly ran Michael York off a mountaintop in a toboggan.www.rondestro.com

The award-winning French Algerian American playwright, librettist and activist, Catherine Filloux, has been, for the past 3 decades, traveling to conflict areas writing plays that address human rights and social justice.             Catherine’s new play, “How to Eat an Orange,” will open at La MaMa Theatre in New York City, and her new musical “Welcome to the Big Dipper” (written with composer Jimmy Roberts of, “I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change” fame) will premiere Off-Broadway at the York Theatre in New York. It’s a National Alliance for Musical Theatre finalist.             Catherine’s play, “White Savior” is nominated for The Venturous Play List. Her many plays have been produced around the U.S. and internationally. I’ve read her play Lemkin’s House and can tell you it’s an intense and engaging exploration of the politics of genocide through the surreal landscape of the mind of Raphael Lemkin, the man who invented the word genocide.            Catherine’s also the librettist for four produced operas, including New Arrivals, Where Elephants Weep, and The Floating Box. Her works have been played on Cambodian national TV, on Broadway on Demand, and chosen for Opera News Critic’s Choice. And her opera, “Orlando,” is the winner of the 2022 Grawemeyer Award--the first opera by a woman composer and woman librettist in the history of the Vienna Staatsoper.             Catherine has traveled for her plays to countries including Bosnia, Cambodia, Guatemala, Haiti, Iraq, Morocco, Northern Ireland, and Sudan and South Sudan on an overseas reading tour with the University of Iowa's International Writing Program.             Catherine received her French Baccalaureate in Philosophy with Honors in Toulon, France, and is the co-founder/co-director of Theatre Without Borders.

My guest today, Dr. David Sharp is a writer, performer, and spiritual teacher. Through his business, Power for Life Now, David produces and presents workshops, retreats, videos, music and performances for personal and spiritual growth.             David is an ordained Presbyterian minister and has worked as a pastor, university lecturer, and seminary professor.             As a performer, David has sung, danced, and acted on Broadway, television, and film and has been a talk show host.             He’s written for numerous publications and is an award-winning author with four books published including: Annie Ruth’s Truths, Power for Life, I’m a Black Man, Who Are You?, and Voicemaster. I’ve read Power for Life and Annie Ruth’s Truths and highly recommend David’s excellent writing to you. His books are easy reading pleasures with positive, upbeat messages. He’s also recently finished writing a new musical and is soon to publish an illustrated book of poetry.              David and his wife, Dr. Jeannine Goode-Allen, run in-person and virtual retreats called “Live Your Dreams” and have recently completed building the Good and Sharp Studios, a campus for spirituality and the arts in Boulder, Colorado.              David’s a graduate of the University of Southern California, where he was a Drama major in the School of Performing Arts. He’s also earned a Master of Divinity degree, a Masters in Special Education, and a Doctorate in Ministry.             For the record, David and I have been friends for a very long time having met and worked together while we were both Drama students at USC.            By the way, David and Jennine have very generously offered a free gift to anyone listening to this podcast, it’s a roadmap to your creativity. To find the link to receive your free gift, please check out David’s episode here at storybeat.net. FREE GIFT: https://goodandsharpstudios.lpages.co/10-ways-to-tap-into-creativity/

The noted Connecticut artist, Amy Genser, has been creating mixed-media artwork for more than 20 years. She opened her studio after receiving her MFA in Graphic Design from the Rhode Island School of Design, where one class in paper making changed the arc of her career.             Amy uses paper, paint and other materials to explore her fascination and obsession with texture, pattern, and color. The natural world is a clear source for Amy’s work. She’s fascinated by the flow of water, the shape of beehives, and the organic irregularity of plants, flowers, rock formations, barnacles, moss, and seaweed. Her pieces bring to mind aerial landscape views, satellite imagery, and biological cellular processes.             Amy’s work can be found in hospitals, corporate offices, private collections and museums worldwide. Her latest project was developing a site-specific installation for the Fuller Craft Museum in Brockton, Massachusetts. She had a vision of her work coming to life beyond the walls and becoming sculptural. Her multiple award winning installation, “Shifting,” is a result of her exploration.             Amy’s work is astonishing to look at, brimming with a vibrant kinetic energy, and always breathtakingly beautiful.

Peter Brosius has served as the Artistic Director of Minneapolis’s Children’s Theatre Company since 1997, where he’s directed the world premieres of Dr. Seuss’s The Sneetches The Musical; The Last Firefly; Seedfolks; Animal Dance; and many others, all of which were commissioned and workshopped by Children’s Theatre Company. Previously, Peter was the Artistic Director of the Honolulu Theatre for Youth and the Improvisational Theatre Project at the Mark Taper Forum.             During Peter’s tenure at CTC he’s produced more than 187 shows, brought to life more than 70 new works from commission to fully developed stage productions, served more than 5 million children and community members, founded innovative educational programming, and championed equity, diversity and inclusion efforts to eliminate barriers to participation for those underrepresented in theatre. Peter’s passion has been at the core of CTC's mission to educate, challenge, and inspire young people and their communities through extraordinary theatre experiences.            Peter and the CTC have worked with more than 100 writers including: Cheryl West, Nilo Cruz, Naomi Iizuka, Larissa FastHorse, Itamar Moses, Jerome Hairston, Barry Kornhauser, Lloyd Suh, Will Power, Liz Duffy Adams, Carlos Murillo, Kia Corthron, Philip Dawkins, and Greg Banks.             A major new initiative, Generation Now, is a partnership between CTC and Penumbra, Latino Theatre Company, Mai Yi, and Native Voices at the Autry to commission and develop 16 new plays and musicals by Black, Indigenous, AAPI and Latinx writers for a multigenerational audience. These new works will have a life for years to come.             Peter also introduced preschool programming to CTC, commissioning original works and bringing in extraordinary preschool productions from across the globe. CTC has also become a major presenter of acclaimed international productions from Europe, Africa, and Asia.

Actor-Writer-Director-Producer, Skip Lackey started his career as a Ringling Brothers, Barnum & Bailey Circus Clown after graduating from clown college. Skip’s acting credits include: Big River on Broadway, National Tours of The Secret Garden, Barnum, Big River, lots of Regional Theater, and numerous Off and Off-Off Broadway developmental musicals.             He also had the distinct honor of spending 2-years with Sanford Meisner in a professional hand-picked acting class.            On camera, Skip co-starred in Jim Carrey’s first film Once Bitten. TV credits include: The Guiding Light, the mini-series, The Blue and the Grey, and host for Nickelodeon’s Ace-Award winning Think Fast. He’s also been seen in over 100 national network commercials, and he’s recorded over 1000 voice-overs. Skip even spent 3-seasons working as Santa Claus alongside the Rockettes in the Radio City Christmas Spectacular in Chicago.            A graduate of the Vancouver Film School, Skip co-wrote, directed and produced the low budget feature film, Love at Second Sight. He then became Executive Producer for Kewazinga, a vision technology company that developed an interactive 36+ camera system for network broadcast and early internet applications. He’s worked with Sun Microsystems, NBC, ABC, ESPN, the X-Games, the NY Mets, the Golf Channel, the USGA, the NHL All-Star Game, Nike, the US Navy and more.              He then shifted his focus to giving Personal Growth and Leadership Development seminars. Skip has worked directly with over 25,000 clients, taught over 1000 workshops, and made 1000 personal appearances. Clients include the IMDB, World Bank for Latin America, and a 2-Year Leadership Development immersion for the Canadian Department of Justice.

Lisa Barnes has spent two tours of duty as an actress in New York. First, after graduating from the University of Southern California’s theatre department, she spent a number of years in the Big Apple. She acted in plays Off-Broadway and in regional theaters while studying with the legendary Stella Adler. As well, along with a favorite StoryBeat guest, Casey Childs, Lisa co-founded the renowned off-Broadway theatre company, Primary Stages.            She subsequently headed to Los Angeles where she performed in television and theatre, winning numerous acting awards, including two Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Awards. But in time, a stage show she did in L.A., directed by the late, great Orson Bean, moved Off-Broadway, and Lisa then spent more than a decade in Gotham once again.             Occasionally, when in New York, Lisa performs “All of Us,” a piece that she co-wrote via Zoom with 6 other New York actress-writers during the two-year Covid lockdown.

Stuart Ross wrote and directed the long running musical Forever Plaid, and its various offsprings: Plaid Tidings, The Sound of Plaid, and Forever Plaid: The Movie.             Other New York Credits include: Radiant Baby, Enter Laughing, The Musical, Standing on Ceremony, The Gondoliers, and Fun with Dick and Jane.            Stuart co-wrote with Jack Viertel The Secret Life of the American Musical and directed it. He also he directed Golden Rainbow in its workshop.             For the York he adapted and directed Subways Are for Sleeping, It’s a Bird, It’s a Plane, It’s Superman, Minnie’s Boys, Silk Stockings, and Bajour.             On Broadway, Stuart co-wrote the book to Starmites, which received 6 Tony Nominations, and The Radio City Music Hall Easter Show.              For TV, he’s directed sitcoms like Frasier and Veronica’s Closet. He also created special material for PBS’s Great Performances, An Evening at the Pops starring Jason Alexander, and Diahann Carroll: Both Sides Now!            For ten seasons Stuart has worked as a Director/Dramaturg and/or writer at the Eugene O’Neill Theatre Center-National Music Theatre Center Conference. And for nine years he’s been a panelist for the ASCAP/Disney Musical Theatre Workshop.            Current Projects include: Industrial Strength, The Alice B. Toklas Cookbook, The Bay Street Theatre-Youth Workshops: Creating Theatre Magic, and Second Time Around workshops.

Amy Powers is a Harvard-trained lawyer, Columbia University MBA, best-selling author, Emmy nominated songwriter, theater and film producer, online business owner, coach, and connector.            After discovering that being a lawyer fed her bank account but starved her soul, she ditched that life to begin writing lyrics, finding multi-platinum success with artists from Barbie to Barbara Streisand.            Freelance life brought its own challenges: unpredictable income, uncontrollable marketplace changes, and too few hours spent with her husband and sons.  She yearned to increase her revenue, decrease her stress, and have more flexibility.  That’s when she discovered Network Marketing, through a company that aligned with her core values of healthy living inside and out.  After following her company’s blueprint to create an extra six figure revenue stream and seven figure asset, Amy felt called to reach a wider audience and assist others looking for solutions.              Amy’s book No Degree Required: Network Marketing The Ivy League Way is a #1 Amazon best seller.  I’ve read No Degree Required and can tell you it’s a fast-paced and entertaining look at Network Marketing. I highly recommend No Degree Required to anyone interested in the world of Network Marketing or looking for inspiration in it.            Additionally, Amy and her husband, J. Todd Harris, co-produce in both theater and film. On stage, they’ve co-produced Heathers, The Musical; Phenomenal Woman – The Maya Angelou Story, the Broadway bound Hippest Trip: The Soul Train Musical and a revival of her own Broadway musical, Dr. Zhivago. Their work in film includes On Fire, the acclaimed autobiography of world-renowned inspirational speaker John O’Leary.                       Amy’s newest venture, AmySentMe, a health and happiness concierge service, helps people up level their lives and businesses with hand-picked, pre-vetted services from psychic mediums to sober coaches, book writing to boudoir photography, and health reboots to healing retreats.            Please be sure to stick around at the end of the show because Amy has generously lent us one of her songs, Sands of Time, for you to enjoy.

Steve Maher is a musician, and singer-songwriter out of Denver, Colorado. He combines vocals, lyrics, and piano into one cohesive pop-soul sound-style that doesn’t take itself too seriously while also touching upon life experience.             Steve’s first solo album, Pathways, was recorded in Chicago in 2020 during the pandemic and released in July of 2021.             His current project Night Routine is a funk-pop-soul group that has performed throughout Colorado and the Midwest. Steve sings lead vocals and plays keyboards along with co-founder Tomas Houser on guitar, Marc Hudson on bass, and drummer Josh Neitzel.            Please stick around at the end of the show for a real treat – one of Night Routine’s songs, Springtime Shine, for you to enjoy.

Wayne Byrne is an acclaimed author and film historian from Ireland. He started his career working for local County Kildare newspapers before being invited to write for the iconic Irish pop culture bible Hot Press Magazine as a music, book, and restaurant critic.             His debut book, The Cinema of Tom DiCillo: Include Me Out, was released in 2018.  Wayne followed it with well-received works on subjects like Burt Reynolds, cinematographer Nick McLean, the Nightmare on Elm Street franchise, and legendary Hollywood filmmaker Walter Hill. I’ve read both Welcome to Elm Street and Walter Hill: The Cinema of a Hollywood Maverick and can tell you that they’re both deeply researched, entertainingly detailed looks at how influential filmmakers create the dreams the world loves to watch. I highly recommend Wayne’s work to you.            Look for the release of Wayne’s latest book, Hired Guns: Portraits of Women in Alternative Music, co-written with his best friend, acclaimed musician Amanda Kramer, who’s been the keyboardist/vocalist of The Psychedelic Furs, 10,000 Maniacs, Siouxsie Sioux, The Golden Palominos, and Information Society.             He’s also busy writing three upcoming books, including another collaboration with Amanda Kramer, which is a study of the evolution of film soundtracks in the revolutionary New Hollywood era.             Wayne’s also working with cinematographer Roy Wagner on a biography documenting Wagner’s acclaimed career, called Beyond the Shadows, as well as a critical/cultural overview of the Halloween movies entitled, The Ongoing Halloween Franchise: 13 Films and Counting.

Jeff Harnar is an award-winning cabaret, concert and recording artist. His Carnegie Hall appearances include both the Cole Porter and Noël Coward Centennial Galas. Jeff’s televised PBS concerts include: The 1959 Broadway Songbook with music director Alex Rybeck, as well as American Songbook: Stephen Sondheim co-starring KT Sullivan, and Michael Feinstein’s Live at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center. Jeff also toured with Broadway’s Shauna Hicks in their Symphony Pops Concert I Got Rhythm: Mickey & Judy’s Hollywood. For his exceptional live performances, and for directing the shows of other outstanding performers, Jeff has won multiple MAC, Bistro, and BroadwayWorld Cabaret Awards and The Noël Coward Foundation Cabaret Award. He’s released four solo albums, including Dancing in the Dark, and most recently I Know Things Now: My Life in Sondheim’s Words. Jeff can also be seen performing in the movie Joshua Tree, 1951: A Portrait of James Dean.

Producer-Director Casey Childs founded Primary Stages, a leading New York City Off-Broadway theater, in 1984. Primary Stages has produced over 175 new plays, giving playwrights the opportunities to see their new works staged, including: Christopher Durang, Tina Howe, John Patrick Shanley, Lee Blessing, David Ives, Donald Margulies, Theresa Rebeck, and A.R. Gurney among many others. Casey directed many of those productions for the company, as well as helming new plays at other Off-Broadway theaters.            He served as the Artistic Program Director for the New Dramatists from 1982-1985 where he worked with numerous leading American playwrights in their early years.Casey’s the recipient of the Carnegie Mellon University Commitment to New Playwrights Award, as well as the winner of two Emmy Awards and many nominations for his extensive work in television.               He’s a past Vice President of the Directors Guild of America and a past trustee of the National Association of Television Arts and Sciences.              At Primary Stages Casey launched the Einhorn School of Performing Arts, the Fordham/Primary Stages MFA in Playwriting program, and the Primary Stages Off-Broadway Oral History Project, which has documented over 190 interviews with the leaders of the Off-Broadway movement.             Casey’s taught at many universities including Duke, Columbia and NYU, and he’s currently an Associate Fellow at Grace Hopper College at Yale University.

The novelist Monte Schulz released his first novel, Down by the River, in 1990. He then spent more than twelve years writing the Jazz Age-based novel, Crossing Eden, for his father, the late, extraordinarily influential cartoonist, the creator of Peanuts, Charles M. Schulz. The book was initially released in three smaller volumes called This Side of Jordan, The Last Rose of Summer, and The Big Town.            Monte’s latest novel, Metropolis, is a grand dystopian tale in a time of war, with a blossoming romance throughout. I’ve read Metropolis and can tell you it’s a powerful and intense journey through a world into which I hope we never find ourselves. If you enjoy marvelously epic storytelling, I highly recommend you read Metropolis.            Since 2010, Monte has been the owner of the Santa Barbara Writers Conference and has taught a class in voice and style both there and at UC Santa Barbara.            He’s also a composer/songwriter with an album out worldwide: “Seraphonium – After Many a Summer.”

Donna Loughlin is the Founder of LMGPR and known for her work with futurists and innovators. Since forming her agency in 2002, she’s launched more than 500 companies, taking them from stealth to market leaders.            Donna excels in the realm of storytelling and uses those skills to propel new companies into the mainstream.             She is also the host of BeforeItHappened, a leading narrative podcast featuring visionaries and the moments, events, and realizations that inspired those visionaries to change our lives for the better.

Callum Woodhouse is a brilliant stage and screen actor originally from Durham, England. You may recognize Callum from playing Leslie Durrell in ITV’s much-loved series The Durrells. He’s also starred as Tristan Farnon in the Masterpiece TV adaptation of All Creatures Great and Small, and as James Marsden in series 6 and 8 of ITV’s beloved British comedy-drama Cold Feet, starring alongside James Nesbitt, Fay Ripley, Robert Bathurst, Hermione Norris and John Thomson.              He also played Will Taylor in Christopher Hatton’s excellent Edgar Allen Poe feature, Raven’s Hollow. Christopher Hatton has been a guest on this podcast, as has Callum’s exceptional co-star, Melanie Zanetti.            Callum trained at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art. On stage, he has appeared at the Hampstead Theatre in Ryan Craig’s Filthy Business, which was directed by Edward Hall. The play also starred Sara Kestelman, Ashley Martin-Davis, Louis Hilyer, Dorian Lough and Callie Cooke. Filthy Business opened to rave reviews with Callum’s performance being critically highlighted as ‘sharply defined’ in The Guardian, ‘glinting promise’ in The Telegraph and ‘a fine performance’ in The Financial Times.

The actor, director, teacher, and author, John Shepard, began his professional career at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival where he was a company member for 4 seasons. Subsequently moving to New York, he worked in regional theatres like The Long Wharf, Yale Rep, Barter Theatre, Actors Theatre of Louisville, and many others. Off Broadway, he performed at The Manhattan Theatre Club, Soho Rep, The Public Theatre, Lamb’s Theatre, and others. On Broadway, he worked in American Buffalo with Al Pacino, in which he also toured the U.S. and played on London’s West End, and John also appeared in A View from the Bridge.             Career highlights include the stage version of George Orwell’s 1984, in which John played Winston Smith, at the Wilma Theatre, Kennedy Center and Joyce Theatre, and the world premiere of Eduardo Machado’s Fabiola at the Theatre for a New City.            John spent time in L.A. pursuing TV and Film work, appearing in many episodic TV series including L.A. Law, Spenser: For Hire, Dallas, Quantum Leap and others. John’s feature film credits include Sneakers and Patriot Games.             After receiving an MFA in Acting from Cal State University, Long Beach, John became a faculty member at the University of Wisconsin, Stevens Point, the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, and finally at Point Park University, where he taught for over 20 years and was the Theatre Department Chair for 10 years. John’s book “Auditioning and Acting for the Camera” is used throughout the country. Backstage Magazine named it one of “11 Amazing Books for the On-Camera Actor.”            John remains active in the Pittsburgh theater and film community, appearing in many plays for The REP, City Theatre, Quantum, PICT and the Pittsburgh Public Theatre. Highlights include playing Willy Loman in Death of a Salesman for the REP, (for which the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette named him Performer of the Year), and Ralph in A Christmas Story at the Pittsburgh Public Theatre.             John has also directed numerous productions, including August Osage County for Point Park’s professional theatre company, The REP, and Tamara for Quantum; both were named best productions in their respective years by the Post-Gazette.            While in Pittsburgh, he’s appeared in TV shows like: A League of Their Own and The Chair, and in Films like The Race, Fathers and Daughters, Homemakers, and The Deliverance directed by Lee Daniels.

Melanie Zanetti, is an award-winning Australian actress of both stage and screen, who divides her time between Australia and the United States.         Melanie voices the role of Chilli, in the popular, internationally renowned, Emmy Award winning animation series, Bluey. Her most recent feature films include Raven’s Hollow, which was written and directed by Christopher Hatton, who has been a guest on StoryBeat, Gabriel’s Rapture, Love and Monsters, and Head Count, which is set to be released in 2024. Aside from Bluey, Melanie’s other TV credits include Young Rock, The End, The Bureau Of Magical Things, and The Leisure Class, which was produced by Matt Damon and Ben Affleck.Melanie began her career in theatre and has played many iconic roles such as Juliet in Romeo and Juliet, Eliza Doolittle in Pygmalion, Cathy in Wuthering Heights and numerous others since graduating from The University of Southern Queensland in 2007.

Robert Crane is the co-author of eleven books including Crane: Sex, Celebrity, and My Father's Unsolved Murder, My Life as a Mankiewicz, Bruce Dern: A Memoir, and Jack Nicholson: The Early Years. He contributed a short story called Wingding to the recently published story collection, Beyond Where the Buses Run: Stories. Robert is also the co-writer of Hostage for a Day, a Fox Television film directed by John Candy. And he wrote for Playboy for twenty years, including numerous celebrity interviews. Robert also happens to be the son of the late TV icon, Bob Crane, who was best known for playing Colonel Robert Hogan in Hogan’s Heroes during its six-season run.

Michael Elias is an award-winning writer, actor and director who’s written film, television, theatre and fiction.            His new novel, You Can Go Home Now, is a timely and thoroughly entertaining psychological thriller featuring a female cop on the hunt for a killer while battling violent secrets of her own.  I’ve read You Can Go Home Now and can tell you it’s a deeply engaging mystery with a lot of heart. Michael is also the author of the novel, The Last Conquistador.            Born and raised in upstate New York, Michael moved to New York City after graduating from St. John’s College in Annapolis to pursue a career in acting. He was a member of the Living Theatre and acted at The Judson Poets Theatre, La MaMa, and Caffé Chino. Michael then transitioned to Hollywood and with Frank Shaw wrote the screenplay for The Frisco Kid starring Gene Wilder and Harrison Ford. With Eve Babitz he wrote Envoyez les Violons.  And then he began a long writing partnership with Rich Eustis. Together, they wrote the screenplays for Serial, Young Doctors in Love and they created the popular sitcom, Head of the Class for ABC, which was partially based on Michael’s experience as a high school teacher in New York City.             Michael also worked with Steve Martin, a collaboration that included material for Steve’s comedy albums, network TV specials, and the screenplay for The Jerk.            Michael wrote and directed Showtime’s Lush Life with Forrest Whitaker and Jeff Goldblum, leading to a nomination for Best Director at The Cable Ace Awards . His semi-autobiographical play, The Catskill Sonata, about a small hotel in upstate New York, was directed by the legendary filmmaker, Paul Mazursky.