OdysseyStage

Elizabeth Lane is a writer for "Smart Housekeeping" magazine, whose wildly popular column describes in detail her comfy farm life, delectable meal recipes and loving husband and baby - none of which the single, apartment-dwelling Mahattanite actually has. Her editor knows her secret - but her stickler-for-the-truth publisher hasn't a clue. When her publisher insists she host a returning war hero fan for the Christmas holidays, and invites himself along as well, Elizabeth must marshall all hands and all her wits to conjure up a Christmas miracle and save her career.

Produced by Art Jolin

The Cast
Announcer/Sink/Beecham/Sheriff – Corey Roe
Jeff – Dave McEwan
Mary (Nurse)/Reporter 2 – Emily Chiola
Elizabeth – Cassie Barasch Ford
Felix/Mr.Harper/... – John Paul Middlesworth
Yardley – Art Jolin
Gertrude/Judge/Mrs.Gerzeg/Helen – Michelle Kaiser
John – Drew Gulino
Nora – Kelly McDaniel

Three women friends go on a day-long boat trip shepherding a group of school children. A fourth female "friend" is conspicuously absent and the three find out why when a note from her discloses a shocking secret. Will their friendships survive? Will their marriages? Told in flashbacks, the stories of each marriage unfold as the isolated women agonize over "A Letter To Three Wives".

CAST

The most recent show in OdysseyStage On The Air's series of radio plays is "A Letter To Three Wives", a drama of love, marriage, betrayal and redemption. The show was directed and edited by Art Jolin with a cast including:

John Paul Middlesworth as Brad Bishop
Emily Chiola as Debby, Brad’s wife
Drew Gulino as George Phipps
Kelly McDaniel as Rita, George’s wife
Dave McEwen as Porter Hollingsway
Cassie Ford as Lora Mae, Porter’s wife
Michelle Kaiser as Addie Ross
Danielle Fenton as Sadie the cook, Mrs.Manleigh and Ma
Art Jolin as Jim the Waiter and Bookie
Faith Anklam as Kathleen (child reading the fairy story)

A UFO lands in Washington, D.C. bearing a message – and an ultimatum. Klaatu and his people have watched, with increasing alarm, Cold War-era nuclear proliferation on Earth.  A single mother and her young daughter help Klaatu understand the contradictions of this strangely virtuous yet violent planet.

Director: Art Jolin
Writer: Art Jolin

Cast:
Klaatu…………………………...............................….Art Jolin
Helen Benson…….......………………..................….Danielle Fenton
Suzie Benson………………….…………….…..........…..Emily Chiola
Tom Stevens/Prof. Barnhardt…......................JP Middlesworth
The Narrator……………........…........................….Ryan McDaniel
Newscaster/General Cutler…........................…Dave McEwen
Mrs.Crockett, Hilda (Barnhardt's aide).......…….Cassie Ford

Alison Hopkins was a suffragist whose husband, John Hopkins, had worked for Woodrow Wilson’s presidential campaign. After dinner with the President and his wife Edith, and hearing their disparaging comments about the Suffragists, Alison was motivated to join other Silent Sentinels protesting outside the White House. This led to her arrest and imprisonment, and an intense marital dispute over her actions.

Director: Annie Taft
Writer: Keith Burrage

Cast:
Alison Hopkins…………………………. Sarianna Gregg
John Hopkins……………………………. Paul Baerman
President Woodrow Wilson………. Michael Shannon
Edith Wilson…………………………………. Maria Piskor

Our newest podcast series is inspired by the golden age of radio. Classic commercials from the period and the full arsenal of music and sound effects bring each show to life.

Director/Producer: Art Jolin

Cast:

Nick Charles……………………………….Ryan McDaniel
Nora Charles…….......………………….Kelly McDaniel
Selma………………….…………………....Michelle Kaiser
Aunt Katherine/Lt. Abrams………..Danielle Fenton
Robert/Anthony/Phil………………….JP Middlesworth
David/Reporter/Butler/Slats………Dave McEwen
Dancer/Reporter/Fingers…………..Art Jolin
Polly/Drunk………………….…………….Cassie Ford

Investigative journalist Ida Tarbell was the "muckraker" whose reporting brought down John D. Rockefeller’s Standard Oil monopoly at the turn of the 20th century. Having shattered many a glass ceiling herself, she paradoxically opposed the Woman’s Suffrage movement. In this play she visits her suffragist mother at Christmas, 1916, a few months before the United States enters World War I and three years before ratification of the 19th Amendment.

Director: Annie Taft
Writer: Paul Baerman

Cast:

Ida Tarbell……………………….... Abby Overton
Ann Tarbell……………………..... Bee Holroyd

In her time Inez Milholland was as famous as AOC. Known as the Face of the Women’s Suffrage movement, she was renowned for her beauty and exceptional oratory skills. Huge crowds turned out to get a glimpse of her whenever she went.  And wherever Inez went reporters were sure to follow. They dubbed her the “New Woman” due to her progressive political beliefs and practice of free love.

Director: Annie Taft
Writer: Annie Taft

Cast:

Inez Millholland……………………….... Tracey Reynolds
Eugen Boissevain…………………….. Bruce Rosenbloom

Investigative journalist Ida B. Wells-Barnett (1862-1931) was the first reporter to expose the evil of lynchings in America. She published a book, A Red Record, about her findings. In 1913 she founded the first black woman suffrage group, the Alpha Suffrage Club. She worked tirelessly for human rights and to ensure women had equal access to the ballot.

In this episode, we follow Ida B. Wells, and her companions Virginia Brooks and Grace Trout, as they march on Washington DC.  A bill is making its way through the Illinois state senate which would give partial suffrage to women.

Director: Annie Taft
Writer: Debra Kaufman

Cast:

Ida B. Wells……………………….... Sandra Wallace-Smith
Virginia Brooks…………………….. Stephanie Turner
Grace Trout …………………………. Jennifer Greene

Susan B. Anthony was already nationally known by the time she broke the law in 1872. She led her sisters and others to cast ballots in Rochester, NY - and in this episode, the "arrest" is history.

Director: John Paul Middlesworth

Writer: John Paul Middlesworth

Cast (in order of appearance):

Susan B. Anthony...............Mary Rowland
Marshall Isaac Quimby........Charles Machalicky
Harry Selden......................JP Middlesworth
Judge Hunt.........................Michael Shannon

Excerpts from The Suffragist Project, launching March 1.

A brief introduction to OdysseyStage and our podcast channel.