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If you thought Steve and Jerry Rosen was the name of name of a borscht belt comedy duo… you would be close to correct. Steve Rosen is “that guy” in a lot of TV shows and Broadway musicals including Sir Belvedere in Spamalot and Benny Southstreet in Guys & Dolls. He’s also a successful writer - The Griswolds’ Broadway Vacation is coming this year! But he’d be nothing without his dad, retired pediatric dentist and octogenarian stand-up comic Jerry. This episode? 10/10 no notes!

Get ready to have your socks knocked off by the son and daughters of Baltimore! Jonathan Burke, Current Mungojerrie in Broadway’s Cats the Jellicle Ball, shares the mic with his bestie Adena Varner, Director of Arts Engagement for the Old Globe Theatre in San Diego. Together, they celebrate the genius of their childhood mentor Kenyatta Hardison who took them both from awkward middle schoolers to superstars.

Tony’s recap alert! On this episode, Erica is joined by Nicole Hudson, Broadway Producer (The Wiz, Appropriate) and regional theatre genius, as they answer the question, “Why are theatre kids so into mentorship and arts education?” The discussion spans the magic of live performance, a focus on mentors within the awards show itself, and a deep dive into joy as resistance. To learn more about Nicole and her work, visit: https://www.thehudsonmannbridge.com/

This one's for all you poetry stans out there! On this episode, Erica sits down with two very singular gentlemen of letters, each of whom both teach and write poetry for a living. They discuss what poems are, what people are, and how to connect with students today in such a niche literary field. Jason Morphew is the author of the collections Eject City (Poets Wear Prada, 2024) and dead boy (Spuyten Duyvil, 2018) and the chapbooks What to deflect when you’re deflecting (Poets Wear Prada, 2017) and In Order to Commit Suicide (Floating Wolf Quarterly, 2012). His poems have been published in Seneca Review, Lana Turner, Bellevue Literary Review, and Smartish Pace, among other journals.  Joe Wenderoth is an American writer, performer, teacher, and film-maker. He has published seven books: five books of poetry, an epistolary novel (Letters to Wendy's), and a book of essays. His work is widely  anthologized, and has been published in collections and periodicals such as Harpers, The Nation, The Anchor Book of New American Short Stories, Best American Poetry 2007, Best American Essays 2008, Poetry 180, The Next American Essay, The Best American Poems: From Poe to Present, The Body Electric, The New American Poets: A Bread Loaf Anthology, and American Poetry: Next Generation. He and his work has a notable mention in The Best American Essays 2011.

In this live podcast, Arts Educators Save the World podcast hosts Dr. Erica Halverson and Alek Lev will interview the actor Anjali Bhimani (Ms. Marvel, The Legend of Vox Machina, Overwatch, Apex Legends) in conversation with her mentee Owyn P Taylor about the role of arts learning in her success as a multi-hyphenate actor . Using stories from Bhimani’s career and her role in Owyn's development, this conversation will highlight how Bhimani draws upon her training as an actor to adapt her work across multiple forms of media, including television, film, Broadway, and gaming – and how her connection with Owyn inspired his unlikely but undeniable creative emergence.

In this live podcast, Arts Educators Save the World podcast hosts Dr. Erica Halverson and Alek Lev will interview Emmy Award–winning writer Joshua Pruett (Phineas and Ferb, Mystery Science Theater 3000, Doctor Who, The Last Comics on Earth) alongside his mentor, Emmy Award–winning head writer and co-producer Scott Peterson (Phineas and Ferb, The Last Kids on Earth) about the role of learning as an ingredient of artistic success. Using real stories, this conversation will showcase the invaluable impact of mentorship and continuous learning on creating and sustaining successful creative careers.

No “Bones” about it, this episode features the great Emily Deschanel, waxing nostalgic with high school pal and Arts Educators Save the World Executive Producer Jamie Salka and their high school drama teacher, the great Scott Weintraub! Scott is a true polymath, professional actor, teacher and director of students k-12, and responsible for mentoring Emily and many other household names to television and film success.

Revisiting another Oldie-But-Goodie this week while we're recording new episodes at the Comic Con Museum in San Diego!! More to come soon!! Our dear friend Craig Thomas, working at the highest levels of network television, is proof positive that mentorship doesn't end at graduation. Craig is the co-creator of CBS's smash sitcom HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER, which received 30 Emmy Award nominations in its nine-season run. His prose has been published in The Iowa Review, The Boston Globe, The New Yorker, McSweeney’s, and the Weekly Humorist. In this episode, he joins us in conversation with Rob Greenberg, who, as a writer/producer on FRASIER, won three Emmys, and a Writers Guild Award. Rob was an executive producer for the pilot of HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER, where he remained as consulting producer -- and mentor to Craig and co-creator Carter Bays -- for the show's first six years. At the time of this recording, he and his partner, Bob Fisher, are writing, directing and producing the second season of ANIMAL CONTROL for Fox.

The Zuckerman sisters have been partners-in-crime their whole lives. From the time they bought a secret TV to watch Twin Peaks without their parents knowing to their collaboration as showrunners of the Peacock hit show Poker Face, Lila and Nora Zuckerman are powerhouse women together and as solo acts. The hour we got to spend with them was pure delight - 10 out of 10, no notes!

We’re welcoming you back to new episodes with a bang! Lili-Ann Brown is one of the leaders of American regional theatre, directing all over the country from Chicago’s Goodman Theatre to the New York City Center Stages. We hosted an amazing conversation between emerging superstar director Nadia Guevara and Lili-Ann, two powerhouse women who explore everything from the crucial role of social capital in art-making to why making animal sounds is the secret to success. C**k-a-doodle-doo y’all!

One more from the vault! This one is producer Doug's favorite Season 1 episode. Bill Strickland is the founder of Manchester Craftmen’s Guild and Bidwell Corporation. He's also a MacArthur Fellow. Sharif Bey is an artist and professor, whose work is focused on the visual heritage of Africa, Oceana, and contemporary African American Culture. He's also the winner of The United States Artist fellowship. Bey got his start at Strickland’s Craftman’s Guild, and counts Strickland as one of his earlier and most influential mentors. These two master ceramicists join together for a wide-ranging discussion on the beauty of clay, the value of mentorship, and the power of art to “heal cancer of the human spirit.”

This week we're bringing back another episode from the vault for some of our new listeners! On this episode, we talk to an Emmy-award winning writer from “The Daily Show.” We talk to a writer from “How I Met Your Mother,” one from “Parks and Recreation,” one from “Veep,” and one from the deeply under appreciated “Bored to Death.” We also reconnect with a friend from our high school with the singing voice of an angel. And what do you know... It’s all the same person! We are thrilled to introduce you to the brilliant Rachel Axler, who has brought along her teacher from her days at Williams College, award-winning author, Jim Shepard.

Part 5 of our ongoing mini-series "Erica & Alek Chats," where our hosts take a deep dive into a specific aspect of arts learning-and-teaching from Erica's book, How the Arts Can Save Education.

On this episode we celebrate all things Midwest with Chicago-based actor and comedian Mizha Lee Overn and her mentor, Milwaukee Repretory Theatre’s Director of Training, Jeff Mosser. Mizha’s experiences at Milwaukee Rep launched her into a successful professional life as an actor – join us to hear how that happened and celebrate the power of the understudy/overstudy as a mentorship relationship that’s crucial for young artists!

One of our favorites from the archive... The incomparable Cecily Strong!! Fresh off her search for signs of intelligent life, soon to once again be live from New York, Cecily sits in conversation with Mary Lou Rosato, her CalArts acting teacher – the kind of acting teacher every artist dreams of having. As they talk sonnets, Lady Macbeth, and sketch comedy, you'll be very glad we started this conversation with her at our party.