The Shotgun Players Podcast

Shotgun Spotlight: Jon Tracy

Jon Tracy is one of the most prolific theater artists in the Bay Area. By sheer force of will and a determined, workmanlike approach, he has carved out a career that has put his prodigious skills to work in nearly every mid-sized theatre in town. Remarkably, he is also that rare breed of theater maker who spends more time listening than talking when he's in a room. He epitomizes the expression, "speak softly but carry a big stick." Or, in his case, VISION. Fortunately, I was able to squeeze some time into his busy schedule, so he could share some of his remarkable journey and what continues to motivate his relentless, tenacious creativity. This conversation was recorded at the Shotgun Studios on Tuesday morning, March 7th. As always, your feedback and suggestions are welcome at patrick@shotgunplayers.org [patrick@shotgunplayers.org]. If you're so inclined, we'd appreciate any opportunity you have to spread the word on these conversations with other local theater makers and fans who might enjoy them. https://www.marinshakespeare.org/ [https://www.marinshakespeare.org/] https://jontracyplays.com/ [https://jontracyplays.com/]

Shotgun Spotlight: Joy Carlin

Joy Carlin is the closest thing the Bay Area has to theatre royalty. She has held leadership positions in our two flagship organizations, as interim Artistic Director of Berkeley Rep and as the Associate Artistic Director at ACT. She has also acted and directed in nearly every other mid-sized to large theatre company around. Throughout this time, she's also made it a priority to attend shows and stay engaged with every level of Bay Area theatre: from the smallest back room black boxes to the biggest houses. She's the most accessible legend you'll ever have the pleasure of knowing. Joy welcomed me to her home in North Berkeley a few days before her 94th birthday so we could reminisce about her storied career and where she sees our theatre today. For those who would like to learn more, I'm also attaching a video link to a 2021 presentation she made at the Berkeley Club as part of their Arts and Culture Series. For now, I welcome you to enjoy this conversation. This episode was recorded on March 19th. Local dramaturg and educator, Philippa Kelly and her two dogs were also there. We're so grateful to our sponsors: Roses on Adeline, a wonderful restaurant and watering hole in South Berkeley. They serve delicious food and cocktails before or after any performance. Thanks also to Scott Leverette, a longtime Berkeley resident, Sotheby's realtor, and friend of the theatre who has been offering buyers and sellers quality service for over thirty years. As always, your feedback and suggestions are welcome at patrick@shotgunplayers.org [patrick@shotgunplayers.org] Arts and Culture Lectures at the Berkeley City Club, July 7th, 2021: My Life in the Theater: Spotlight on Joy Carlin [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iaAXRYDjvqo] American Theater Magazine: The Prime of Ms. Joy Carlin - https://www.americantheatre.org/2018/09/12/the-prime-of-ms-joy-carlin/ [https://www.americantheatre.org/2018/09/12/the-prime-of-ms-joy-carlin/] Philippa Kelly: Author, Dramaturg, Educator https://philippakellysite.wordpress.com/ [https://philippakellysite.wordpress.com/]

Shotgun Spotlight: Lily Janiak

After dabbling in theater for years as an artist and administrator, Lily Janiak finally found her calling: crrrritic. After a few short stints at the SF Weekly and SF Bay Times, 10 years ago this spring, she stepped onto the biggest stage for theater criticism in Northern California: the San Francisco Chronicle. In our most recent Spotlight, Lily generously pulled back the curtain on the unique pleasures and pressures of her position. She also cracked quite a few jokes. This episode was recorded in front of a live, packed audience at the Shotgun Studios on Friday, March 13th. I hope you'll enjoy hearing this conversation as much as I enjoyed having it. As always, your feedback and suggestions are welcome at patrick@shotgunplayers.org [patrick@shotgunplayers.org]

Shotgun Spotlight: Lance Gardner

Marin Theatre's Artistic Director, Lance Gardner, is a busy man. In the last couple of months, he has directed and starred in back-to-back productions. If our Bay Area theater scene is going to continue its resurgence, we'll need more visionaries like Lance in leadership positions. I'll be interviewing many interesting folks in the coming months, but I have to say it's been a real treat to interview fellow artistic directors Michael Moran and Lance Gardner in consecutive events. I was fascinated to learn from and appreciate their distinct paths to establishing their careers and finding success. This episode of Spotlight was recorded in front of a live audience at the Shotgun Studios on February 6th. As always, your feedback and suggestions are welcome at patrick@shotgunplayers.org [patrick@shotgunplayers.org] Marin Theatre: https://www.marintheatre.org/ [https://www.marintheatre.org/]

Shotgun Spotlight: Michael Moran

The motivation for this podcast is personal. While I've loved every minute of my 30+ years as Shotgun's artistic director, the all-consuming nature of the work hasn't left much time to get to know other theater makers. The best way to change that was to make meeting other theater makers part of my job! My hope with these interviews is to learn a little bit about what motivates and inspires, and to shine a light on their current or upcoming projects. This first interview is with Michael Moran, the passionate and well-spoken Founding Artistic Director of the Oakland Theater Project. He shared some great stories about the seminal experiences that sparked this love and appreciation for the craft of theater, and its potential to be a force for good in the world. We also dug into the difficulties of running a small non-profit arts organization and the unique experience of being a founder. This conversation was recorded with a live audience at the Shotgun Studios as part of our Spotlight program. I look forward to learning from each interview and improving my process along the way. Feedback and suggestions for future guests are always welcome at Patrick@shotgunplayers.org Oakland Theatre Project: https://oaklandtheaterproject.org/ [https://oaklandtheaterproject.org/] Shotgun Spotlight: https://shotgunplayers.org/show/miriam/ [https://shotgunplayers.org/show/miriam/] Produced & Edited by Sara Witsch: https://www.sarawitsch.com/ [https://www.sarawitsch.com/]