Podcast: Screams, clowns, Wit and a roving curatorial practice on this week’s ATL Arts Collective

Gulch magazine’s Jasmine Hentchel and EC Flamming are the co-hosts, as we hear about Atlanta variety shows, Actor’s Express’s production of Wit, our weekly best bets and more.

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This Week On The Show

GULCH magazine’s Jasmine Hentschel and EC Flamming join as guest co-hosts today! We dive deep into the origin story of Gulch magazine, Atlanta’s premier print and digital visual art publication. The co-founders discuss their individual professional backgrounds, transitioning from tech startups and historic regional institutions like Art Papers to documenting the contemporary local art scene. They pull back the curtain on how they meticulously curate their comprehensive weekly art calendar on Instagram, and we learn about their massive new data-driven community research survey, which aims to analyze the behaviors, mental models and needs of regional creators to spark actionable strategy ahead of the highly anticipated Atlanta Art Fair this October.

Atlanta’s Live Variety Revue Boom

Ever since the pandemic shutdown, a unique breed of live variety entertainment has taken over the Atlanta theater scene. These recurring productions feature a wild mix of local performers aiming to lift the gloom with pure entertainment, community connection and plenty of laughter. ArtsATL Editor-at-Large Benjamin Carr catches up with the creative minds behind these recurring shows to find out exactly what makes them tick. Gina Rickicki, an acclaimed Atlanta actress and improviser, shares the inspiration behind her hit monthly show, Joy Deficit, at Red Light Cafe in Midtown Atlanta. Discover why every performance kicks off with a therapeutic 13-second primal scream and how audience participation helps conquer isolation. Plus, puppet designer and clown Scottie Rowell discusses Down to Clown, a vintage game-show-inspired collaboration with Karie Vieira, and Nick Lynn-Rulon details the weekly open mic performance, NoShame.

Pulitzer Prize-Winning Drama ‘Wit’ at Actor’s Express

Atlanta radio legend Lois Reitzes returns to the microphone for a deeply nuanced conversation with Freddie Ashley, the artistic director at Actor’s Express. They explore the profound thematic layers of Margaret Edson’s Pulitzer Prize-winning masterpiece, Wit, which is at Actor’s Express theater in the King Plow Arts Center through June 28. Freddie breaks down the tragic journey of Professor Vivian Bearing, a demanding scholar of 17th-century literature and the holy sonnets of John Donne who must learn to shed her intellectual armor while battling stage four ovarian cancer. The discussion highlights the play’s dual portrayal of healthcare through an ambitious young fellow and a nurturing nurse, its enduring legacy as an educational tool for teaching hospitals and medical schools and Edson’s enduring 30-year connection to local education as a teacher at Midtown High School. Freddie and Lois reflect on an emotional quote from Edson, sharing her ultimate desire for the production — that the audience leaves feeling fundamentally closer to the people they love.

Nomadic curating and Tomorrow Mourning at the Hambidge Hive

GULCH’s Jasmine Hentschel and EC Flamming highlight the fascinating world of elsewhere, a roving, nomadic curatorial practice led by Anna Akpele. Operating outside the constraints of traditional “white wall” galleries, elsewhere activates alternative spaces like houses, apartments and backyards. The duo reviews elsewhere’s latest exhibition, Tomorrow Mourning, on view at the Hambidge Hive, a massive 30,000-square-foot industrial project space on the 15th floor of Uptown Atlanta in Lindbergh. Featuring artists Makita Lewis-Kanuthia, Scott Keightley, Ezekiel Robinson and Stemlines, the exhibition explores heavy, intimate themes of impermanence, grief, loss and the fluid space between denial and acceptance. 

ArtsATL’s Best Bets for the Week

ArtsATL Executive Editor Shane Harrison joins the show to share his top cultural recommendations for the week. This week, his mix includes Juneteenth celebrations, the Georgia Shorts Film Festival and a performance by Georgia’s own Empress of Soul, Gladys Knight.

Atlanta Arts News Brief with Isadora Pennington

ArtsATL Senior Editor Isadora Pennington stops by with a celebratory look at the individuals and organizations shaping the local cultural footprint. Highlights include: The 21st Annual David C. Driskell Prize, awarded by the High Museum of Art to Spelman University professor Dr. Cheryl Finley. South Arts Grants celebrates writers Ashlee Haze and Kelundra Smith, the Goat Farm’s LOOP and more.

Special thanks to today’s sponsors:

Motherlode

Mainline magazine

It’s UATL

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