The Dramatists Guild Presents: TALKBACK, sponsored by the Dramatists Guild Foundation
Talkback is a podcast for every playwright, composer, lyricist, librettist, or theatre fan who wants to pull back the curtain to discover the highs and lows of what it means to create theatre and foster community in the complex landscape of American storytelling.
All Episodes
S6 Ep7: "Why We're Not a Union"/ Ralph Sevush
Welcome to our final episode of Season 6. We’ve had so many conversations this season about how writers get paid – or not. So in this episode, Christine talks to the Guild’s Executive Director of Business Affairs, Ralph Sevush, to clarify some questions that have come up and to give us his expert perspective.
S6 Ep6: "Saying No" or "It's Time to Talk About Money - part 2"/Amanda Green and Branden Jacobs-Jenkins
In part 2 of Christine's conversation with Amanda Green and Branden Jacobs-Jenkins, they continue to dish the dish on demystifying compensation, holding on to inspiration, and more. Amanda Green is a 2-time Tony nominated, Grammy nominated lyricist and composer, and the first female President of the Dramatists Guild.
S6 Ep 5: "Not Just Paying it Backwards"/David Henry Hwang
Christine talks to another fellow Guild Council member and pioneer, David Henry Hwang. In this episode they discuss how naming some of his characters after himself changed David's perspective on telling his own story, breaking the cycle of Asian Americans portrayed as “perpetual foreigners” on Broadway, writing for ourselves, and how the Guild is fighting for us.
S6 Ep 4: "The Work Never Disappears"/Kristoffer Diaz
In this episode, Christine sits down with another one of her fellow Guild officers, Kristoffer Diaz, to talk about what it takes for a theatre writer to make a living, some of the nitty gritty on how writers get paid on Broadway, and keeping grounded in spite of the unpredictable nature of the theatre.
S6 Ep3: "I'm Not Stopping!"/ Gretchen Cryer
In this episode, Christine talks with ground-breaking pioneer and fellow Dramatists Guild Council member Gretchen Cryer about longevity in the field, how development of new musicals has changed over her decades long career, and how she keeps going!
S6 Ep2: "This is the Time to Build" / Lloyd Suh
In this episode, host Christine Toy Johnson talks to award-winning playwright Lloyd Suh about his “speculative future” plays, uplifting other writers through service, and the shift in new play development.
S6 Ep 1: "It's Time to Talk About Money - part 1" / Amanda Green and Branden Jacobs-Jenkins
We're back! This season is all about "Reinvention". With so much change going on in our industry and our country, host Christine Toy Johnson wanted to sit down with some of her fellow writers who also serve on the Dramatists Guild Council, and ask them about the many ways they are thriving and writing in and about this moment we’re in.
Special Episode! Danny Burstein at BroadwayCon
We're giving you a special gift for the holidays. A never before released live episode that we did at BroadwayCon in New York City in July of 2023. I had the great joy of sitting down with my longtime pal and colleague, Danny Burstein.
S5 E6: “That insatiable desire to be seen and be heard.” The Future of our Canon
This season's final episode features a conversation with two of the most produced playwrights in America: Lauren Gunderson and Lynn Nottage. The two women writers speak with host (and fellow woman writer) Christine Toy Johnson about how they were motivated to start telling stories in order to create roles that were missing from the narrative.
S5 E5: “Why is the Most Dangerous Question in the World” - Redefining Power in the Canon
This week, playwright and activist Roger Q. Mason speaks with podcast host Christine Toy Johnson about how power influences the canon. Roger shares how spirituality plays a key role in their writing process and also discusses the importance of thinking critically -- especially when facing both canonical and new theatrical works.
S5 E4: “Theatre Is Not a Museum Piece" - The Modern Canon with Joseph Haj
Discover why the American theatre canon is not a static entity. In this episode, Guthrie Artistic Director Joseph Haj speaks with Talkback host Christine Toy Johnson about how his theatre seeks to include both traditional classics and new works to diversify and educate the audience in each theatre season.
S5 E3: “If I Look at Roses, I Hear Bells” - Neurodiversity in the Canon with Harmon dot aut
How does theatre help a neurodivergent artist navigate the challenges of being on the spectrum? In this episode, playwright Harmon dot aut speaks with Talkback host Christine Toy Johnson about their writing process and their experience at Spectrum Theater Ensemble, where Harmon is a playwright in residence.
S5 E2: "English Canon vs. Global Canon” - The Canon and Global Language with Diana Burbano and Jason Ma
Playwrights Diana Burbano and Jason Ma speak with Talkback host Christine Toy Johnson about the interaction between language and the expanding definition of the American theatre canon.
S5 E1: "The Spark" - The Canon in Education with Julianne Wick Davis and Stephen Kaplan
The first episode of The Dramatists Guild Presents: Talkback Season 5 features a conversation with theatre artists and educators Stephen Kaplan and Julianne Wick Davis.
S4 E6 We are the Uber Drivers of the Theatre Industry: A conversation with Amanda Green
Amanda Green made headlines last year when she became the first female president of the Dramatists Guild of America in its over 100-year history. In this episode, Amanda talks about what DG means to her, telling podcast host Christine Toy Johnson about how the Guild uplifted her during an uncertain time in her life and career.
S4 E5 Writing as a Way For Me to Make Sense Out of Certain Things: A conversation with Rona Siddiqui and Michael R. Jackson
In this episode, hosted by Christine Toy Johnson, Michael R. Jackson and Rona Siddiqui share their creative inspirations, discuss their collaboration on the upcoming musical White Girl in Danger, and reflect upon their respective journeys with the Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award winning musical A Strange Loop, which was recently nominated for a 2023 Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album.
S4 E4 Talking is Easy, Writing is Hard: A conversation with Lisa Kron and John Weidman
In this episode, Christine interviews longtime friends and colleagues, Lisa Kron and John Weidman. Both John and Lisa have served as officers on the Dramatists Guild Council; under their purview, the Guild grew to become a national organization that seeks to serve writers of all backgrounds.
S4 E3 There is No Such Thing as Failure Unless You Don’t Get in the Game: A conversation with Charlayne Woodard
We're excited to welcome back actress and writer Charlayne Woodard. In Season 1, Charlayne spoke with Christine Toy Johnson about her experiences marketing her work. In this episode, Charlayne takes us to the beginning of her career, sharing about how her early experience in the oral tradition inspired her to start creating theatre.
S4 E2 I Love Being in this Lousy Hotel Room with You Creating Something of Beauty: A conversation with Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty
Talkback host Christine Toy Johnson interviews Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty, a dynamic musical theatre songwriting duo who have been collaborating together for almost forty years. Even at the height of the pandemic, their writing never stopped.
S4 E1 “You Should Feel Weird If They Love What You Do”: A Conversation with Branden Jacobs-Jenkins
DG Council Vice President Branden Jacobs-Jenkins has made his career by building community with other writers - even if that community started as three blogs in the early aughts.
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