Dear Multi-hyphenate

#67 - Jared Grimes: My Gifts Are Not A Distraction

“Being a multi-hyphenate is not a disability – it’s an ability. It’s an advantage.”
Jared Grimes is a Tony Nominated actor currently starring in Funny Girl on Broadway. His effervescent energy lights up the stage every night at The August Wilson Theatre. In this episode, his energy continues into our conversation as we discuss what being a “bag of tricks” in this industry actually means. 
In this episode, we discover Grimes’ road to Broadway, how he turned his ADD diagnosis into multi-hyphenation, inspirations, getting people in power to understand the multi-hyphenate, and we chat about how tap opened up his eyes to the art of multi-hyphenating. 
“At an early age I began to latch on to the idea that if you’re a tap dancer, that means you can be many things. It doesn’t mean that you just use your feet to connect with people or share with people. I’m looking at all my heroes and they are singing, they are acting, they are comedians, they’re lindyhoppers, they’re writers, they’re choreographers, they do camerawork – they are behind the camera, in front of the camera – all those guys did that and I was just like wow so that’s what it is to be a tap dancer. My earliest idea of what a tap dancer was, was a multi-hyphenate.” 
Jared Grimes is a quadruple threat in the world of the arts where he is heavily making his mark in singing, dancing, acting, and choreographing. He received a Tony Nomination for his performance in Funny Girl on Broadway, which he is currently starring in. On numerous occasions, he has danced alongside legends such as Wynton Marsalis, Gregory Hines, Ben Vereen, Jerry Lewis and Fayard Nicholas. and also performed for Barack Obama and Ted Kennedy at the Kennedy Center. Most recently on Broadway, Jared could be seen in the Tony Award-winning production of A Soldier’s Play.
Grimes has toured with Musical legend, Mariah Carey, under the choreography of Marty Kudelka, and danced for artists such as Common, Salt-n-Pepa, Envogue, Busta Rhymes and the Roots. Jared’s theater credits include, After Midnight on Broadway directed by Warren Carlyle, Twist directed by Debbie Allen, Babes in Arms at the Goodspeed Opera House choreographed by Randy Skinner, Gentlemen Prefer Blondes directed by John Rando at Encores and Broadway Underground directed by himself.
In the world of acting, Jared is known for his recurring role of ‘Adrian’ on NBC’s hit show “Manifest.” He performed the lead role of ‘Jackson’ in the Annapurna feature film Swing Kids and Sammy Davis Jr.’s “Birth of the Blues” on Michael Feinstein’s American Songbook for PBS. Other film credits include Paramount’s, The Marc Pease Experience starring Ben Stiller, New Line Cinema’s Little Manhattan and Elevation Filmwork’s’ First Born starring Elizabeth Shue. Grimes has appeared in commercials for Coca-Cola, Subway, MTV and television shows such as CBS’ “Star Search,” “Showtime at the Apollo,” ABC Family’s “Dance Fever” and “The Jerry Lewis Telethon.”
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#66 - Moisés Kaufman: Building Theatre from the Ground Up

“Visibility equals donors. The more work you do, the more you’re out there, the more people come to see the shows, the more you continue to maintain your lists of who is coming to see the work – the more easy fundraising becomes.”What is the future of theater making? How has creating theater in rehearsal rooms helped cultivate the multi-hyphenate, an economically friendly hiring option for producers? From the point of view from one of the most sought after directors and cultivators, Moisés Kaufman has incredible insight for anyone who wants to found their own company. What are the first steps? What should they be aware of? How do you raise money? Make your company official? Money can scare people – but it’s imperative to understand it when creating theatre. On this episode we discuss being pushed into boxes and how that affected his journey of bringing the Tony Nominated musical Paradise Square to Broadway. Plus, there is a ticket giveaway where you and a guest can see the show! All you have to do are these two is:
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Write a review – as long as you write a review from June 1st to June 13th, that review will be considered an entry! Mention how much you loved this episode with Moisés Kaufman! The winner will be announced on the next episode of Dear Multi-Hyphenate released on June 13th. 
Moisés Kaufman is the founder and artistic director of Tectonic Theater Project, a Tony- and Emmy-nominated director and playwright, and a 2015 recipient of the National Medal of Arts. Mr. Kaufman’s Broadway directing credits include the revival of Harvey Fierstein’s Torch Song, the revival of The Heiress with Jessica Chastain, 33 Variations (which he also wrote) starring Jane Fonda (Five Tony nominations); Rajiv Joseph’s Pulitzer Prize finalist Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo with Robin Williams; and Doug Wright’s Pulitzer and Tony Award-winning play I Am My Own Wife with Jefferson Mays. His play The Laramie Project (which he wrote with the Tectonic Theater Project company) is among the most performed plays in America. Kaufman also co-wrote and directed the HBO film adaptation of “The Laramie Project,” which received two Emmy Award nominations for Best Director and Best Writer. He is an Obie Award winner and a Guggenheim Fellow in Playwriting. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

#65 - Melissa Rose Hirsch: We Are All the Same, Afterall

“Birth is art. Birth is theatrical. Birth is a nothing to a something. Birth is a ceremony. Birth is a transformation. So, my art – my writing, my blog writing, my performing, my acting – has gotten so much wider ever since I’ve witnessed birth. Because, isn’t that what we do as actors? We breathe life into people. Isn’t that what we do as writers? We breathe life into characters that never existed before.” - Melissa Rose Hirsch on adding Doula as one of her hyphens. Multi-hyphenating is an art form – and how you identify as one is up to you. By looking at it on paper, one might not think being a Doula would belong in a theatre multi-hyphenate persona – yet, Melissa Rose Hirsch does it. On top of being a performer, song writer, and blog writer, Hirsch beautifully interweaves the artistry of being a Doula into the rest of her multi-hyphenate artistry. In this episode, we talk about how heartbreak and the industry viewing us a certain way forced us to look inward and create artistry that feels more personal and reflective of who we are. “If I am going to be a vessel for art, I would like to be a vessel for my own art.” Melissa Rose Hirsch is a singer, actor, writer, and birth doula. As a theatre performer, she has acted Off Broadway and found most passion in the development of new musical theatre works. Her musical, Bradical and the Pink Socks, co written with Christopher Hlinka and music by Preston Max Allen, has an upcoming performance this fall! Melissa not only writes her own music, available on all streaming platforms, but she most notably sang back up for PHISH at Madison Square Garden. She runs the blog Charged Thoughts on instagram, where she explores the human experience as romantically as possible and reminds her readers through love, loss, healing, and feeling, that “we are all the same, after all.” As a new birth doula and a person who is deeply passionate about the bodies of birthing people, Melissa finds fascination in all things birth, whether that be breathing life into new characters, new songs, or even new tiny humans. Follow along Melissa’s ride as a multi hyphenate @melissarosehirsch and @chargedthoughts! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

#64 - Roman Molino Dunn: It’s Not About You

“When I was younger I tended to think that I was an artist, and now I tend to think I’m more of an artistic collaborator… at least in my job. I’m certainly and artist at heart but when it’s for work, it’s not about me.”Calling all artists who are collaborators! Roman Molino Dunn is one of the leading music producers and film scorers in our industry. Not only is a multi-hyphenate himself, he works with multi-hyphenates in our industry. His approach is different from many who collaborate – and gives himself over completely to the artist who is hiring him. In this episode, you can listen to how a collaboration with a leading music producer would go. Roman also has some great stories about working with some of our favorite RuPaul’s Drag Race queens like Peppermint and Pandora Boxx. This podcast episode is all about expectations in collaboration and keeping our Ego in check – and Dunn certainly has that down to a science. “It’s not yours,” says Dunn. “And you should be okay to essentially scrap something and not being offended. What I mean is, you need to write music that you love so much that you’re willing to submit it but not love it so much that you’re not willing to change it.” Roman Molino Dunn is an award-winning composer, Billboard-charting music producer (a.k.a Electro- point), and co-owner of Mirrortone Studios. His film and TV composing work includes Huracán on HBO Max, Snakehead (Samuel Goldwyn Films), Laser Candy (Netflix), Ru Paul’s Drag Race All Stars (Para- mount+), Red Rocket (A24), Kid Correspondent (Participant) a Youtube Original, and the cult classic LGBTQIA feature film Bear City 3. Known for producing and mixing his own scores, in addition to a com- poser, as a film music producer and recording engineer he has most recently worked on The Card Counter (Schrader / Scorsese) and Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom (Netflix). In 2021 he has worked on films that screened at three of the “Big Five” festivals: Cannes, Venice, and Toronto. TV networks that have used his work include HBO, E!TV, A&E, MTV, Oxygen, BET, Bravo, Netflix, Paramount+, VH1, Discovery, TLC, NBC, and NASCAR. Brands who have used his music include Burger King, PayPal, Marriott, Michael Kors, NBC, The Ad Council, Clinique, Snapple, Globe and Mail, Honeywell, Maserati, Tom Ford, Kopari, and many more. In addition to corporate and film music composition, as a music producer, he has worked with major and indie labels and Grammy-winning artists, including GLAAD-nominated al- bums, particularly with reality TV stars (Love & Hip Hop, Dr. Miami, Ru Paul’s Drag Race, Real House- wives of New Jersey, Howard Stern, Bad Girls Club), and his productions and soundtracks have climbed both the Billboard and iTunes top 20 charts. “Anytime I’m working on music, I should treat it as such… as art.” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

#63 - Dani Stoller: Jewish Representation & Washington D.C. Multi-Hyphenation

“For myself, I think for a long time I was worried that if I got my mental health and spiritual health in check… then I would lose the things that made me a really good artist.”Dani Stoller is unapologetic. An actor who takes risks, it bleeds into her other hyphens of being a writer and producer. She approaches her art by forming her own figurative rep companies – and while based in the “DMV” area (D.C., Maryland, and Virginia) she has found that those communities create their own community, much like a rep company. Following Dani on social media also reflects her unapologetic-ness… especially when it comes to Jewish advocacy. We dive deep into Jewish representation in the media – including non-Jews playing Jews, what we think Jews are ‘supposed’ to look like, and where they’re ‘supposed’ to be from. “Throughout all conversations about Jewishness,” says Stoller, “Jews of color get written out of the conversation so quickly in terms of what does a Jew look like? Where is a Jew from? What is a Jew’s connection to anything – and so there’s this write out of that. What’s exciting is to see plays being written by Jews of color which shines a light on the incredible expanse of Jewish people. People think of Jews and they think of White, Ashkenazi Jew… they don’t think of Sefardi or Mizrahi or Swana or Beta Israel, or Igbo. We don’t think of it that way. Those stories are just as important.” And speaking of these stories, Stoller explores how her next play, The Joy That Carries You, co-written with Awa Sal Secka, came to fruition and will have it’s debut at The Olney Theatre Center for the Arts. And how is this experience a reflection on socially responsible artistry? “The thing I really admire about certain theatres in the ‘DMV’”, continues Stoller, “is their commitment to bringing in local talent. I think that we have a beautiful group of people there. Of course sometimes you have to bring in people from out of town. But I really do admire theatres who make a really diligent effort to utilize the people of that area to tell the stories of that area.”While this podcast has lessons applicable to all artists in all locations, Dani shares her stories which have happened in the Washington D.C. theatre scene. Multi-hyphenating happens everywhere – and even if you’re in NYC, LA, or London – this episode is applicable to YOU! Other topics found in this episode are becoming a good apologizer, casting director relationships, and using the things that make us unique to tell our stories. Dani Stoller is an actor, playwright, podcaster & Jewish advocate in Maryland by way of Brooklyn, New York. She has performed all across the DMV from the Folger Shakespeare Theater to the Kennedy Center. Her play, Easy Women Smoking Loose Cigarettes, had its premiere at the Tony Award winning Signature Theater in Shirlington, VA, and was featured in the New York Times at the beginning of the pandemic. Her upcoming play, The Joy That Carries You, co-written with Awa Sal Secka is opening this May at the Olney Theatre Center. When she’s not writing she hosts the podcast Zen & Sugar, which is centered on intuitive eating, balance, and healing disordered food and body relationships. Follow her on instagram @danidangerstoller or her website www.Danistoller.com  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

#62 - David Loud: Sometimes You Have to Learn the Hard Way

“To see your heroes fail,” continues Loud, “is to learn something really important at the beginning of someone’s career. Anybody can have a bomb. Anybody can flop. And to start out your career with a monumental flop, the way I did, boy do I appreciate a show that goes well and hits now!”We’re speaking with a multi-hyphenate legend, here. “That need to be in the theatre, that yearning to be in a musical or to work on a musical and have that be your life is so powerful,” says Loud. “And it bites us at different times in our lives. I knew for six years old what I wanted to do with my life and I never waivered.”While Mr. Loud knew what he wanted, he still had to figure out how and where he belonged in the industry – which took him a few tried to make sure he was going down the right road. After his first Broadway musical, the legendary Merrily We Roll Along, flopped – he had to pivot. And now, in 2022, Mr. Loud continues to work with Parkinson's disease, still figuring out ways to pivot and continue to tell his stories. David Loud, famed Broadway music director, arranger, performer, and teacher continues the multi-hyphenate theatre artist legacy by adding author to his hyphens. His new book, Facing the Music, is now available for purchase. “I have always been a multi-hyphenate, I think,” says Loud. “I always found this niche for myself of the pianist who can say a few lines on stage. I’ve never quite fit into only one category. I love doing lots of different things in the theatre. I’ve always wanted to do everything in the theatre.”And now, theatre lovers everywhere can read about Mr. Loud’s fantastic journey in show business. One can begin to understand what a multi-hyphenate’s life was life before the word multi-hyphenate grew in popularity. “When we moved to New York to go into showbusiness – we were not graduates of musical theatre academies,” continues Loud. “We learned by doing and we learned from our friends and we learned by imitating and we went to auditions and we figured out what worked and what didn’t work. We had to be self-starters in that way.”In this episode, we speak about our love for musical theatre, what it was really like to work with Stephen Sondheim, how multi-hyphenating stems out of need to be a part of any aspect of the theatre, his experience working on Merrily We Roll Along, casting choices that have excited us throughout the years, and the importance of failure. David Loud occupies a unique place in Broadway history. In addition to his distinguished career as one of Broadway’s most respected music directors and arrangers, he originated three Broadway roles as an actor, including his appearance in the original cast of Stephen Sondheim’s legendary failure (and cult classic) Merrily We Roll Along, directed by Harold Prince. In a career spanning several decades, he served as music director for the original Broadway productions of Ragtime, Curtains, Sondheim on Sondheim, The Visit, The Scottsboro Boys, A Class Act, The Look of Love, and Steel Pier, as well as revivals of She Loves Me, Company, and Sweeney Todd. He also appeared alongside Zoe Caldwell and Audra McDonald in Terrence McNally’s Tony-winning play, Master Class.About Facing the Music – Musical Director and arranger David Loud, a legendary Broadway talent, recounts his wildly entertaining and deeply poignant trek through the wilderness of his childhood and the edge-of-your-seat drama of a career on, in, under, and around Broadway for decades. He reveals his struggle against the ravages of Parkinson's and triumphs repeatedly. This memoir is also a remarkable love letter to music. Loud is the 'Ted Lasso' of the theater business, ever the optimist. An inspiration to all! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

#61 - Rye Myers: Hey Listen! Marketing, Producing, and Sponsorships in the Theatre

“I think with mistakes and failure, you really learn who the other person is. Sometimes failure and mistakes are more informative to who your people are because then you really see who you’re working with – the real people – and how they handle high stakes, handle drama, and handle problem solving.”Ry Myers is a brilliant, accessible and adorable host and producer who somehow appears to be in more than one place in the industry at once. His brain moves a mile a minute, as do his words, and his effervescent energy is enough to lasso you in. This episode is all about opportunities and creating your own path, which is the basis of multi-hyphenating. Plus, get sneak peak insight of the new musical Paradise Square, coming to Broadway starting March 15th. Myers is a graduate of Multi-Hype, Michael’s Multi-Hyphenate workshop (also created and led by Ashley Kate Adams and Kimberly Faye Greenberg) which he attributes to opening up his mind to anything being possible in this industry. He has a very optimistic outlook about this industry, which is needed – and his point of view regarding mistakes is also positive. Could the industry benefit from more forgiveness? Possibly so. Mistakes can be made, and they are informative – acknowledgement and moving forward is key to growth in this industry. Myers has his own show in Manhattan called Live with Rye & Friends on Broadway. Many fans and listeners of Dear Multi-Hyphenate often ask HOW do you start something? In this episode, Rye is chock full of knowledge on HOW to start a project. We cover finances, marketing, sponsorship, audience sizes, negative voices in our heads, and of course WHY he is producing and hosting this show. “How I’ve set it up – I say the internet is a beautiful thing – I wanted shows to sponsor me,” says Myers. “I asked who works on X Broadway show and what is the marketing or advertising person for this show? And then it was just an email.”Rye Myers is a talk show Host, Producer, and “Your Broadway & Entertainment BFF!”. He is the Founder of Rye Entertainment, LLC and RyeTheNewsGuy.com, the latter of which he has run for over six years. Rye’s infectious, energetic, and compassionate style to connect with people has landed him interviews with OSCAR, GRAMMY, EMMY, and TONY Award winners and big names in the industry, including Nathan Lane, Billy Porter, Susan Stroman, George Takei, David Hyde Pierce, Laura Benanti, Matthew Broderick, and many others! Rye has produced and hosted numerous video interviews, behind-the-scenes segments, award show round-ups, red carpet coverage, live events, and cabarets. Rye also works with other creatives in helping them interview celebrities, produce their dream projects, discover their passions, build their networks, and more. He is also the Host and Exec Producer of Live with Rye & Friends on Broadway; the popular FREE Broadway-themed variety talk show at BAR 9 on Thursdays at 7:30 pm. The new talk show has taken the theater district by storm and is THE place to be on Thursday nights! Rye also Hosts and Producers “Live with Rye!” his digital streaming talk show series on YouTube that premieres new episodes every Tuesday at 6 pm. You can see all of his Hosting and Producing endeavors at www.RyeTheNewsGuy.com and www.RyeEntertainment.com. He also has an active social media presence so be sure to follow @rye_myers on Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok and LIKE /OfficialRyeMyers on Facebook. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

#60 - Sarah Hamaty: Everything and Nothing

“Art and business… we’ve tried to blend it but it’s very difficult because art lacks boundaries sometimes.” - Sarah HamatyBuckle your seatbelts because Sarah Hamaty is a rollercoaster of emotion, insight, and spirit. She revitalizes any room she walks into and invites a heady, complicated conversation about life! To be a multi-hyphenate during a pandemic and a reshaping of the industry is everything and nothing. It begs the question, “is anyone okay?”In this funny and vibrant episode, we talk about everything and nothing – weaponizing the multi-hyphenate, deconstructing the way the industry has conditioned us, professional redos, beginning things for the first time, and the enjoyment of failure.“I enjoy failing,” says Hamaty. “Maybe this goes back to the Libra everything and nothing. It doesn’t mean anything AND it means something. It tells you what you’re good at, what you’re not good at obviously – it tells you how to be better or what you can change. But being a multi-hyphenate – just the act of trying new things makes you better at trying new things.”Sarah is also one of my make-up artists in my photoshoot studio and I often defer to her to support or challenge the choices I make in a photo – is it the right outfit? Is it the right lighting? Is it the right background color? Sarah ties it into psychology and the joy of getting to know people.“Expressing myself externally was so important,” Hamaty continues. “My mom was like you’re really good at this – let’s now apply practice and expertise. And so I just did that – and what I love about it is the same reason I love acting, the same reason I love singing, the same reason I love connecting with people, the same reason I love psychology, and the same reason I love spirituality. It is all the same to me and it is all getting to know someone, sharing, receiving, and growing. All of those things – make up is just the tool along the way.” Why is hair and make up extremely important and specific to the headshot session? This episode is chock full of information on how to prepare for a headshot session, especially when it comes to styling choices like hair, make up, and clothing. If you’re prepping for a headshot session – this episode has all the information for you!“I always find myself using visual metaphors,” continues Hamaty. “And it makes me think about cooking. The ingredients have to be fresh and then of course you have a chef, and you won’t catch a chef without a sous chef.” Sarah Hamaty is a born and bred Jersey girl who made her way to NYC to get a BFA in theater and pursue her Acting career. A proud multi-hyphenate, Sarah has been an MUA since the age of 15. Artistic expression with makeup has always been a way she has loved connecting with people, while building confidence and joy. She looks forward to seeing you in the studio! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

#59 - Brian Jordan Jr.: People See Me As Revolutionary

“I think collaboration is the birthplace for brilliance.” - Brian Jordan Jr. 
Isn’t it amazing how in our industry you can move to one place just to get relocated in a new town? Brian Jordan Jr., had that exact experience. He moved from Atlanta to LA… only to go back to Atlanta. 
“Atlanta is a place where the cost of living is significantly cheaper than LA or New York,” says Jordan Jr., “I think when you are at the beginning of your career and trying to figure out things: where you belong and how to market yourself and where you fit and learning the people and learning the casting offices – especially in this time of virtual everything – I think that Atlanta is the place to be… because it’s still growing which means you won’t spend all your money – but it is growing rapidly, which means that there is opportunity.” 
We also discuss the importance and the stigma of quitting. Brian and Michael have both had experience having to quit an experience. What does that do to someone? How does one control the narrative? Let’s face it – people talk, but if your self worth and self care is at stake – why force it to make it work… no matter what people say. 
“People see me as revolutionary because I am the one who is going to stand up and say things,” continues Jordan Jr. “I am the one who is like, “No!” Like I am that guy. I think that in the beginning of my career – it looked, in the short form, that it would affect me.”
You know what’s a recipe for disaster? Trying to get everyone to be pleased with what you do. That being said, self care is probably the most important thing one can do for themselves in this industry. 
In this episode – we talk about control, collaboration, ego, and the deficit of Black stories… which is a huge impetus to Jordan Jr. writing his own projects. 
“We’re seeing more shows with Black subject matter, but the care that is taken isn’t at the place where it needs to be,” continues Jordan Jr. “We see them but they’re closing in six weeks. Or it’s a limited engagement to start because they know that people aren’t going to see it. My goal is for people to really understand that the same marketing that you use for Broadway, with the audiences that have been welcomed to Broadway forever – white audiences – you cannot use. When it comes to cultivating the Black audience to a place where it has felt elitist to us and there was nothing to see for so long – you can’t just say, “Oh we have a Black show, and we know it’s the pandemic, but come and see it because Black Lives Matter just happened and we want to make money. That’ll never happen – it’s not going to work. And so what needs to happen on Broadway is the right people who understand the insides of the Black community to come and bring the shows there. I believe I have been blessed and privileged with an opportunity to be on both sides. If you really want the people to come to the shows, you have to give them the show that they feel represented and they feel welcomed to see. My leadership, my control, my creation literally comes from necessity.”
Take a listen to this incredible episode and learn more about the projects Brian Jordan Jr. has created such as the film Georgia Sky and the musical Riley.
Brian Jordan Jr. is a classically trained actor, singer, and dancer who studied at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts and The Debbie Allen Dance Academy, he has performed in Broadway national tours, Off-Broadway, and in many of the country’s most prestigious regional theaters before turning to television and film. He recently released a new, upbeat, motivational R&B track that encourages listeners to believe in themselves.
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#58 - Christine Pedi: Drop Your Pants And Go

“I just love the warmth of being in a cabaret. It’s my favorite place to be next to a Broadway theatre. Maybe more so because you get food.”Multi-hyphenates don’t always start as actors. Theatre multi-hyphenates find their way through multiple avenues and for Christine Pedi, The Lady of 1000 Voices, it started when she stumbled upon the radio station when she attended Fordham University studying communications. After focusing on a radio career, she started in community theatre, eventually landing her turn at Forbidden Broadway. Then through a connection from Fordham, she was asked to interview at SiriusXM Radio. And now – Pedi is one of the pillars of our community connecting listeners of the radio to the insight of Broadway.Post pandemic, Pedi is also continuing her in person cabaret acts, with a massively funny new show at The Green Room 42, called The Pedi Party, which had a wonderfully successful first show on January. She will be appearing at TGR42 on February 20th and March 31st both at 9:30pm. In this amazing episode, Pedi lets us in to great stories regarding Howard Stern, Joan Rivers, while dissecting the changes and fads of cabaret and sketch comedy, such as how it’s moved from live performance to YouTube, and what forms a successful cabaret – or the “Drop Your Pants and Go” mentality. Pedi is also open about losing her eyesight over the years and shares what that means regarding performance and work opportunities. We also discuss the importance of taking care of yourself, a sense of belonging, and hustle. “A lot of people your age don’t think about taking care of themselves until they are my age and then you got a lot of catching up to do. But to be forced to really address things now will probably serve you better and probably save you aggravation on other fronts.” Christine the “Lady of 1000 Voices" first discovered her talent for multiple personalities (Merman, Angela Lansbury, Bernadette Peters etc) through her long association with the legendary off Broadway revue FORBIDDEN BROADWAY. She received a Drama Desk nomination for her work in FORBIDDEN HOLLYWOOD (Liza, Rosie Perez, Judi Dench, Sharon Stone etc) as well as an LA Ovation & NAACP Award.She also brought her collection of Divas to off B'ways long running NEWSICAL the Musical and recently starred in and co-produced SPAMILTON: An American Parody written by Forbidden Broadway's creator Gerard Allessandrini. Broadway: Mama Morton (yes just one character...all night) in the 2nd longest running musical of all time CHICAGO, LITTLE ME with Martin Short & Faith Prince, directed by Rob Marshall, and opposite Liev Schreiber in Eric Bogosians TALK RADIO directed by Robert Falls.SIRIUS XM RADIO On Broadway host. On Saturday she and the "aMAHzing" Seth Rudetsky co-host the DUELING DIVAS. Her cabaret show GREAT DAMES has won the New York Bistro & Nitelife Awards and has played NYC, Los Angeles, London, South Africa & beyond. THERE’S NO BIZNESS LIKE SNOW BIZNESS her holiday show has been a seasonal staple in NYC since 2008. She’s performed in that “cutie patootie” John McD’s Cabaret Corner on the Rosie O’Donnell Show and sung in many major NYC venues & cruiseships including Birdland, Feinsteins/54 Below, The Iridium, The Metropolitan Room, The Algonquin, The Laurie Beechman, Avery Fisher Hall, Don’t Tell Mamas...and the QE2...AND she's performed for President & Mrs Clinton (playing a singing HIllary!). Fans of THE SOPRANOS may recognize her as Mrs Bobby Baccala. Other TV: DR DEATH on NBC PEACOCK. She has many popular comic videos on Youtube including many SHIT LIZA SAYS videos including LIZA :At This Performance and LIZA: HELLO DOLLY AUDITIONS. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices