Podcasts Archives - The Fictional Café: Recent Episodes
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Hello there, you faithful, loyal, intrepid, adventure-seeking audiophiles. It’s Jack, Fictional Cafe’s hosta witha mosta, pinch-hitting for Ruby who is on vacation (sure hope she comes back!). Here are the first episodes of “The Coach,” about the journey (sic) of Evan Nixon, a former performer turned Life-Coach. Aided by his husband, Kevin, his best friend, Minxy, and his mentor, Miss Erica (of Miss Erica’s Life-Coaching Institute and Cross-Dressing Academy), Evan navigates a host of zany clients, all while “life-coaching” his own journey. It’s hysterically funny and you’d better agree or we won’t play any more episodes for you.
Please listen to Episode 1 before you go on to Episode 2. Did you listen to Episode 1 first? Then Episode 2? If you skipped ahead, go back now or none of this will make any sense. Possibly.Thought there were only two, right? HAH! Gotcha. If these three, count’em three, episodes actually do make sense, you might want to listen to more. If this is in face the case, be sure to send us a comment below and we’ll charge ahead. Or something. The post Your Saturday Podcast: The Zany “The Coach” appeared first on The Fictional Café.
Debuting an Extraordinary Realization from Auteur Philip Gabbard and Fat Unicorn Society Studios
The Fictional Café is thrilled to join in the worldwide release today of Philip Gabbard’s stunning work, “La Llorona.” He wrote the story, wrote and orchestrated the music, and produced this video, which features a heartbreakingly beautiful duet. This truly incredible visual portrayal of the legendary La Llorona stars Angela Muniz in her debut performance, accompanied by Mexican recording artist Federico Valdez.
In just three minutes, “La Llorona” will take you on a journey through centuries of folklore and cultural heritage, revealed with a new artistic perspective on this age-old story. Take a listen, enjoy, peruse the lyrics and read the interview with Phil below. We would love for you to share your thoughts in the Comments section, and please share this post with your friends.
“La Llorona” Lyrics in English and Spanish
Singers Angela Muniz and Federico Valdez
An Interview with Philip Gabbard
FC: How did you become interested in the “La Llorona” story?
PG: Anyone who hears about the legend of La Llorona for the first time is unlikely to forget it. It’s a shocking tale that begs endless questioning and offers little resolution. It’s an immensely dark story, and its explanation is somehow a foreboding for senselessness.
When I first heard the tale, I thought it similar to parables such as Hansel and Gretel, Snow White or a Little Red Riding Hood. Those stories, for the most part, provided a lesson from some looming disaster that was narrowly escaped. “La Llorona” provides no such relief. It’s a tragedy and its lessons bend us toward an exploration of the darkest sides of love, pain, regret and remorse. It’s not a sugar-coated tale. It’s stuck with me from the very first time I heard it 30 years ago.
FC: You retell it so artfully in this production. Can you tell us a little about your creative process? How your initial interest blossomed from writing the story about her into creating and producing a short film?
PG: I had no intention of making sense of the La Llorona folklore. I was writing the backstory for a screenplay called “Every Saint, Every Sinner,” about a character, modeled on my own tragic tale, who was serving a self-imposed lifetime sentence of regret and remorse. As I considered how to tell this piece of my story, I thought back to the tale of La Llorona. I was thinking mostly along parallel lines between her and me, but also of all the senseless tragedies in life portrayed in literature and the world’s great, unanswered questions that torment us for all eternity. This is what I was attempting in my screenplay and in my new song.
In the song, many tormenting suppositions are offered: simple and haunting questions like, “What I have I done?” which is despair and regret, met with accusation from another point of view that plaintively demands, “What have you done?” and “Why have you abandoned me?” At tragedy’s most impassioned crossroads two stories appear: one the victim’s and the other the accuser’s. Two points of view. I wanted to tell that tale so I wrote a poem which became a song. And this song will undoubtedly serve as a cornerstone in the soundtrack for my movie, once made.
FC: Your visual storytelling is compelling. How did your engagement with the two actors come about?
PG: I’m fortunate, as a creative, to have built my Fat Unicorn Studios on the El Paso/Juarez, Mexico border, which attracts diverse creative talents who are eager to learn from me and contribute in return. My vision for the La Llorona tale is as one detail of a greater story, and to take what was established in folklore and modernize it while keeping it as culturally relevant as the original legend. I recognize I’m telling a story about disparate aspects of life – death, despair, cultural diversity – all the while weaving a contemporary, relatable experience for audiences, regardless of language. I feel the work provides an opportunity for continued conversations – and questions – about the commonalities we all experience when tragedy strikes. A feeling about the answers to life’s greatest questions which are never provided . . . and in understanding that, how our lessons are learned.
The song was a collaborative experience that just kept getting better as we progressed from writing to composition. The melody inspired us to keep trekking forward and we were soon fast-tracking our video production to meet our deadline for the musical release. Our idea, as a production company, was to release the song and video to the world together with the hope of stirring interest in our greater aspirations: not just making our movie, but drawing attention to our other stories as well, and moreover to inspire other creatives to share their projects with us to consider for future collaborations.
FC: Those are all wonderful goals. Tell us a little about yourself, your books, your work.
PG: I’m a thinker, a creator, a writer, a producer of audio and video works for the public at large. I’ve published two books, THISday and Thrivation, and hope to write more, make more movies, and always be a creative mentor to many. [more]
A Visit With Phil A Visit With Phil
My work? Not knowing what comes next is often a universal sentiment. It’s what being creative truly means to me. We make what we feel, and we share it with as many people as we can. It’s beautiful.
The post Mexico’s Legend of “La Llorona” in Story and Song appeared first on The Fictional Café.
Welcome back to the second installment of our spooky October Audio Adventures! Here for your enjoyment are Frightening Tales!
Welcome brave listeners to my collection of frightening tales, scary stories and ghostly yarns. Each season runs from May till the finale on All Hallows Eve. I‘ll post a new story for my listeners each Friday till then. So, make yourself comfortable and settle in for a spooky time, if you’re brave enough.
Humanity has often defiantly mimicked things that were dangerous, who would have thought that unofficially something as innocent as hide and seek started more malevolently?
Learning the in’s and outs of the family business can often dig up the ghosts of our family history revealing the true sacrifices a family does for one another. In this tale a man is faced with the weight of taking on the family business.
We hope you enjoyed Wilhelm’s Frightening Tales. If you wish to hear more of these spooky stories, please check them out on their website and Spotify. And if these audio adventures weren’t to your liking, please check out Fictional Cafe’s Audio Arts Page. We have a new episode, every other week, Friday, 7 PM, EST. So don’t change that dial!
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We’re excited to bring you a top-notch podcasting team from the British Isles in performance here at the Cafe. They’re called Oblivity, and that’s the eponymous title of their production as well. “Oblivity” is about a disgraced war hero who’s posted to the remote ice plains of Pluto (think banned, punished, relegated, etc.) It’s her toughest mission yet: to oversee a small, dysfunctional research team. Then it starts to get humorous. Cate Nunn plays Commander Falconer, and Hannah Wilmshurst is First Officer Christy. Hey, more fun, a female crew! What? Oh, yeah, sorry! Also starring Max Windich as Officer Burney and Ash Hunt as Officer Lowell. Here they all are. Tonight, please listen to the trailer and the first two episodes of Season One. If you like what you hear, you can slide over to...
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Welcome . . . if one chooses to willingly enter into H.P. Lovecraft’s horrific universe . . . to an audio reimagining of “The Hound” by Micah Delhauer. Ruby Fink, FC’s Audio Arts Barista, said of it: “This is a brilliantly done audio performance which totally creeped me out even during the day! I’d recommend putting up a warning, “not for the faint of heart.” So consider yourselves warned. I recommend you turn the lights out, put on your headphones, and immerse yourself in some great audio storytelling. Featured Image credit: “The Hound” by Gou Tanabe, a talented and well known Japanese artist, and illustrator, from his manga book H.P. Lovecraft’s The Hound and Other Stories. Please click on the arrow below to listen to “The Hound.” About the Audio Auteur: Micah Delhauer is a...
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We’ve received a number of very cool Halloween drama submissions in anticipation of Halloween, so we decided to give you Coffee Clubbers a twofer! The first is tonight, in our regular Saturday night podcast slot, but the second will be published on October 31, Halloween night. Tonight’s story is called “Opferung,” from Lightning Bolt Theater: In the town of Earl Grove, there is a legend. No one will talk about it, except for one night, the night of a total lunar eclipse. But is it merely mass hysteria affecting the town or does she exist, this Sorceress of Blood Moon Hill. “Opferung” was written, directed, produced and stars Krystal Donahue in the roles of Natalie and the Sorceress of Blood Moon Hill. Hey, this is fun! And don’t forget, there’ll be more podcast fun right here on Halloween night at...
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Here’s another audio arts work from our friends at Penumbra, this one a scary, futuristic drama, Second Citadel: The Battle At World’s End. As the title implies, it’s a gripping tale: Two giants bearing broken swords Stood by a river’s bend Whose water fell straight down to Hell: They battled at World’s End. Listen here to Episode 1. If you like what you’re hearing, be sure to visit the Penumbra website for more episodes, to buy some great swag, and don’t pass up the opportunity to become a supporting member on Patreon for a mere pittance.
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We’re delighted to introduce Penumbra Podcasts to Fictional Cafe – especially upon learning we’re all more-or-less Boston creative types. Penumbra is making truly excellent podcasts, or audio arts as we like to call them because that term brings out the multiple dimensions of this work: excellent scripts, high-quality studio recording and mixing, and really delightful foley work (sound effects to you listeners). But let’s hear what the Penumbra people have to say for themselves: “We’ve always loved stories, whether they be science fiction, swashbucklers, high fantasy, horror, or mystery. We grew up passionately reading, watching movies and TV, and playing video games. But eventually we started to notice that a lot of the stories we consumed were the same ones over and over again, and we got tired of it. “Why did every boy and...
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It’s always a pleasure to welcome ZBS back to the Fictional Cafe, and tonight is no exception. For your listening delight, we present all eight episodes of “The Night Has Begun,” a Dixon and Sparks radio drama. ZBS audio is very high quality, so headphones are recommended. We’re also very happy to display Genevieve Shapiro’s artistic talents in the featured image (so like a record album cover) here at FC again. Genevieve, in addition to her art for ZBS audio works, created the featured image for ten-year-old Joy Son’s very first published short story, “Princess Olivia.” Thank you for sharing your art with us, Genevieve! The story: Polly Parker believes someone has put a curse on her fiancé, Clifford Barnett. Clifford and his partner, Alan Hendrix, are what’s called headhunters — they find executives to run...
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As William N. Robson used to say on the “Suspense” radio dramas, “Listen . . . Listen, then . . .” as we present a surreal, ultra-contemporary podcast by JoAnne Maffia. A pseudo-biographical narrative, it delves into the mind of a woman trying to understand her identity in a world that, she feels, forces her to defend and justify it. As she grapples with her creative demons, her mind has become a kinetic fortress leading to what appears to be . . . but that’s for you, the listener, to determine. Listen, listen then, to “Kinetic Fortress.” Originally broadcast on PRX, used here on FC with the author’s permission. https://www.refoundsound.com/radio-works “Practise07” featured art painting by Tadao Ando, https://www.deviantart.com/taodao/art/practise07-319848260
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We’re quite delighted to present a superb new podcast series tonight, “Six Cold Feet,” from the pen of J. M. “Josh” Donnelan, an Australian poet, novelist, and podcaster. This podcast is exceedingly well produced, with multiple character portrayals, sound effects, and narration. Headphones are highly recommended. Quite as captivating as if you were watching it on Netflix with your eyes closed, haha. ‘Six Cold Feet” is the story of a guy named River as he searches for his sister Harmony, who has suddenly and inexplicably (and painfully) disappeared. Herewith the first three episodes. If you like what you hear, visit the Six Cold Feet website and learn how/where to download all ten episodes, and listen to the author’s site recommendations at the close of each. Before, during or after you listen, take a moment to reflect...
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Dear FC Coffee Club members and visitors to our ‘zine, For many years, we weren’t able to permit unfettered comments from you, our members, because the gate to the Comments section was wide open to spam – and boy, did we get it. With the new version of WordPress software, this is no longer the problem it was. Where before you had to have a WordPress account, login and password, now you don’t. We would love to hear from you! All you have to do is drop down to Leave a Reply and type away in the Comments box below. (Don’t forget to click the Post Comment box.) We’ve been testing it, and it works great. The only thing that would make it better is the involvement of our treasured Coffee Club members. So don’t...
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Dear FanGirlz and FanBoyz, tonight we present Chapters 7 and 8 of Kurt Clopton’s outrageous and funny novel, Superguy. Yes, originally written as a novel, the story of Superguy was transformed into a audiobook by Ruby Fink and her talented voiceover artists at Faux Fiction Audio. You won’t see it as a choice on Amazon just yet, but you will, soon. If, after listening to these first eight chapters, you simply can’t wait another minute to hear the rest, you can find the complete audiobook here on SoundCloud. Please click the arrow below to listen to Chapter 7 of Superguy. Please click the arrow below to listen to Chapter 8 of Superguy. A few words about audio production and the team at Faux Fiction Audio. The act of creating characters in audio recordings is called...
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