Arts & Culture

Tolstoy in Juvie/NYC Subway Girl

05/25/2013

“Books Behind Bars” is program which pairs undergraduates from the University of Virginia with inmates at the Beaumont Juvenile Correctional Center to read classic Russian literature. Prison staff notice a marked change in behavior among inmates who take the class, and researchers have documented similar improvements in decision-making, social skill, and civic engagement among prisoners and undergrads who participate in the class.

Our guest is Andy Kaufman, fellow in the Department of Slavic Languages and Literatures and a Research Affiliate in the Curry School of Education, and creator of

Author Elizabeth Strout/Healing With A Horse

05/25/2013

Shirley Falls, Maine is one of those New England towns with a strong memory of the way things used to be…before the mills closed, before the mall went up across the river…before so many residents moved away. It’s the fictional town left behind by a pair of brothers in The Burgess Boys, a new novel by Elizabeth Strout, who won the Pulitzer prize for fiction for Olive Kitteridge. The story centers on Jim and Bob Burgess, brothers whose lives are imprinted by a childhood tragedy in very different ways.

Traumatic Brain Injury On Stage

05/23/2013
Sally Nutt & C.R. Marchi, US Army SGT (ret) rehearse a scene from "Make Sure It's Me."

The novelist and former television producer Kate Wenner is the writer behind “Make Sure It’s Me,” a play about five Iraq War veterans with Traumatic Brain Injury and the doctor devoted to helping them. The play is premiering in New Hampshire on June 1st at Portsmouth’s West End Studio Theatre. Leslie Pasternack is the show’s director – she’s also associate director of “Act One”. 

Three of the ten actors in the production are former military, including our second guest, retired U.S. Army Sargeant C.R. Marchi.

Jane Austen, Game Theorist?/Surprising Canes

05/18/2013

This year marks the 200th anniversary of Jane Austen’s most celebrated novel, in which Ms. Bennet discovers her true love in a man she first sees as an adversary. Pride and Prejudice has spurred countless adaptations, films, and even a zombie parody…but now Austen is getting new attention not for her romantic prose, but for her strategic thinking. Joining us is Jennifer Schuessler with the New York Times, who recently covered the publication of the book, Jane Austen, Game Theorist, written by UCLA political scientist Michael Chwe.

and

We may associate canes with old age and physical

Edge Of America/Data Hollywood/N.H.'s World Cup

05/18/2013

A new show from the Travel Channel explores America’s recreational fringe. “The Edge of America” is an experiential survey of some of the bizarre, dangerous, and hilarious things people do to have fun all over the country. Geoff Edgers is the host and writer for the program. When he’s not jousting bicycles or eating who-knows-what, he’s also an arts and culture reporter for the Boston Globe.

and

Nate Silver opened the public’s eyes to the power of predictive statistics… now, having already conquered politics, marketing, and social media, data-crunchers are taking on their next big

Live From Studio D: Lady Lamb The Beekeeper

05/18/2013

The moniker Lady Lamb the Beekeeper came to Mainer Aly Spaltro in a dream, and has been popping up on marquees up and down the East coast ever since. Not to mention online, where we read reviews of her captivating – almost spellbinding --  live performances and steady output of original, idiosyncratic music that we’re calling a mix between Feist and Nirvana.  Ripely Pine is her first studio album, and has already been featured by Time Magazine and NPR setting Lady Lamb well on her way to becoming a national name.

 

Check out Lady Lamb the Beekeeper performing live in NHPR's Studio D (Title

Forty Years Of Free To Be...You And Me/Feminist Bootcamp

05/11/2013

Forty years ago, the groundbreaking cultural phenomenon Free To Be…You And Me found its way into the collective subconscious of children across America. The brainchild of actress Marlo Thomas, the project included a book, a television special, and an iconic record that – if you were a girl growing up in the seventies – likely got hundreds of plays on the family record player. Joining us to talk about Free To Be...You And Me, and legacy among those of us that still remember the songs is  Laura Lovett. She’s professor of Twentieth Century U.S.

Dare Me/Book Reviewers: The Gender Imbalance

05/11/2013

"Dare Me" is a new and much buzzed about book by Megan Abbott. The cheerleaders at Sutton Grove High have more to think about than their spray tans. Their pretty, hard-driving coach holds the squad in her thrall. She has less control over her own life, which opens up a dark tale of jealousy, physical and psychological abuse, and a mysterious death.

And

VIDA, an organization for women in the literary arts, recently released a series of charts illustrating the results of “VIDA Count 2012”…that’s a tally of male and female book reviewers at major publications --  including The Atlantic,

Wonder Women!

05/11/2013

“Wonder Women! The Untold Story of American Superheroines” is a documentary that follows the character from her Amazonian origins to that campy TV show in the 70s to her following among punk rockers, suburban girls, and even Gloria Steinem. Kristy Guevera-Flanagan directed the film and joins Word of Mouth to talk about it.

The Gamer As Athlete/Video Games As Art/Holocaust Memorial Uses Holograms

05/4/2013

For the industry that makes and sells them, video games are an over twenty-five billion dollar business.  For the millions of consumers they sell them to, they’re an every day part of home life.  And for a select few, playing video games is even a competitive and potentially lucrative career path.  The BBC's Matt Danzico recently attended an event held by the MLG – or major league gaming – where international gaming champions square off for big money in front of big crowds.  The event prompted Matt to ask the question, “are pro-gamers our 21st century athletes?”

And

 

The Museum of Modern

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