Take Me To Coffee
42 episodes - English - Latest episode: almost 4 years ago - ★★★★★ - 29 ratingsWhy have just one mentor when you can have the whole internet? #TM2CPodcast is for anyone who looks outside of their box for inspiration and knows just how important a great mentor can be. Each week, co-hosts and theatre creators Jessica Ryan (Broadway Unlocked) and Andrew Call (Hamilton) have coffee with experts across every field imaginable, from the founder of CURVYcon and Instagram influencer CeCe Olisa, to star of NBC's Community, Danny Pudi, to sex worker and therapist Janis Luna. If you're already reading this, we bet you're one of us. So, grab a cup of coffee, leave us a #VideoAsk to be featured on an episode, and enjoy the ride!
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Episodes
Covid Conversations: Actor's Equity with Brian Myers Cooper
April 28, 2020 13:00 - 1 hour - 47.9 MBAs a result of Covid-19, the theatre industry is experiencing a mind blowing100% unemployment rate, with no real understanding of when or how that's going to start to change. In the midst of this, Actor's Equity, the union that governs and protects professional actors and stage managers is about to hold an election that will define the next decade of live theatre. Whether you are a theatre maker or a patron who loves to watch plays and musicals, this episode is a must-listen. We rang up our f...
Covid Conversations: Finding Your Purpose with Rick Cowley
April 21, 2020 21:00 - 1 hour - 61 MBRick and Jess met four years ago, at an event in Australia put on by an entrepreneur they both knew. Turns out, that entrepreneur had met Rick when he attended his retreat VysionQuest in Bali. His time with Rick gave him the space to open up, ask himself what his purpose was, and it led to the idea for what has become a 100 Million dollar business that is driven by that purpose and passion. Since then, Jess has watched Rick help friends, colleagues and collaborators completely change their li...
Covid Conversations: Classical Music & TikTok with Nathan Chan
April 15, 2020 15:00 - 1 hour - 47 MBWe've been chomping at the bit to talk to Nathan Chan, after hearing about him from our guests Drew Forde and Ken Kubota - and it did not disappoint. This conversation about how live performers navigate the loss of our space and jobs rollercoasts from hilarious conversations about bananas and nervous poop (don't ask, just listen) to trying to figure out what role the giving economy will play in t he arts, to what a world looks like if artists have no income, to how TikTok gives us permission ...
Covid Conversations: Classical Music & TikTok
April 15, 2020 15:00 - 1 hour - 47 MBWe've been chomping at the bit to talk to Nathan Chan, after hearing about him from our guests Drew Forde and Ken Kubota - and it did not disappoint. This conversation about how live performers navigate the loss of our space and jobs rollercoasts from hilarious conversations about bananas and nervous poop (don't ask, just listen) to trying to figure out what role the giving economy will play in t he arts, to what a world looks like if artists have no income, to how TikTok gives us permission ...
Covid Conversations: The Artist + Activist Relief Fund with Michael Skolnik
April 07, 2020 15:00 - 1 hour - 50.4 MBThis episode is a valentine, lighthouse (and primal scream tbh) for all of our listeners who have been changing the world through the arts and activism and are facing the reality that we have been left with very little in this crisis. Our guest, Michael Skolnik, has been at the center of the major civil and gender rights fights of our lifetime - the racial police shootings, #metoo - and now, he and his agency The Soze Agency along with Task Force and Invisible Hand are the first to recognize ...
Covid Conversations: Travel & Content with Sarah Dandashy
March 31, 2020 19:00 - 1 hour - 42.6 MBHere at #TM2C, we love when a guest is willing to really dig in and road map how they built their career, even if the beginnings were humble. Sarah Dandashy, aka AskAConcierge, built her Instagram following to 100k brick by brick, video by video, and she has so many great tips for all of us building our own followings and marrying our passions. We also end the episode with our #CoronoaQuestion: What does Sarah see next for the Travel Industry? ☕️☕️☕️ Why have just one mentor when you can have...
Covid Conversations - Broadway with The Broadway Husbands
March 24, 2020 16:00 - 1 hour - 47.8 MBCoronavirus can't stop our coffee dates! This is one is for all our artists friends and listeners grappling with what comes next as our livelihoods have been moved online. The Broadway Husbands, Bret Shuford and Stephen Hanna, join Jess and Andrew to work through their feelings, debate about the urge to create vs just be still, talk about parent-panic and dig into the best and worst of how live performance translates in the digital realm. ☕️☕️☕️ Why have just one mentor when you can have the...
The Daily Server: Rob Darwell
March 17, 2020 18:00 - 1 hour - 46.2 MB*UPDATE: *If you have the means and enjoy the episode, please go to the show links and donate to the US Bartender's Guild Emergency Relief Fund. All of the beautiful servers and bartenders Rob features are out of work for at least 4 weeks and need our help. We can hardly believe entertainment lawyer Rob Darwell agreed to come on and have coffee with us, and let us tell you - this conversation didn't disappoint. He's run legal on some of the biggest film and television deals of our lifetime, ...
BONUS EPISODE #5: Big Changes: Sommvivant Returns
March 10, 2020 15:00 - 38 minutes - 26.9 MBIf you've been with us since the beginning, you know Amanda McCrossin, aka @Sommvivant, has been working as a sommelier at one of the best restaurants in the world. And now she's not. Say WHAT. After 10 years of working to build her reputation as a digital content creator in the wine industry, she's taking that terrifying step and going out on her own. Since this is a mentorship podcast, we all thought it would be pretty damn cool (and useful) to keep building on our original episode with Am...
#GayCountry: Brian Falduto
March 03, 2020 15:00 - 54 minutes - 37.6 MBRemember the movie School of Rock, with Jack Black? The cutie-patootie kid (who also happened to be gay) in that movie is all grown up now, and has used his talent and fame to stand up for a whole new generation of kids who need to hear that they are loved and seen. He's a life coach and a gay country music star who has a new song hitting the charts this spring. It is accurate to say that Brian "life coached" the shit out of Jess and Andrew on this coffee date, and it's also a great chat abou...
Haus Urban: Hassan Sayyed
February 25, 2020 12:00 - 55 minutes - 38.4 MBHow do you go from theatre actor to laid-off performer with a major injury and then end up as a skincare entrepreneur with a cult following of broadway stars, high profile makeup artists, pro athletes, and multiplatinum recording artists? If we learned anything on our coffee date with Haus Urban founder Hassan Sayyed, you do it with grace, humor, a whole lot of grit and the all-important science and technology library in Los Angeles. Special thanks to #tm2c listener Avery for introducing us!...
Sex Work Affirming Therapy: Janis Luna
February 18, 2020 14:00 - 53 minutes - 36.9 MBWell, this is one of the coolest conversations we've ever had. Janis is a stripper, writer, and sex work affirming therapist living and practicing in NYC and get ready because we are going to learn all the things together today, not the least of which is: what those of us not in the sex industry can take into our lives after listening. Other interesting topics of note: Why it's necessary to talk our financial realities when we talk relationships and what Janis is interested in learning more ...
Sideways the Experience: Mary Giuliana & Vanessa Conlin
February 11, 2020 18:00 - 52 minutes - 36.4 MBOn February 20th, Napa Valley takes over NYC with Sideways the Experience at the Pecadillo Theatre Company - yes, that Sideways of Paul Giamatti hates Merlot fame. Why's it an experience, you ask? If you're a VIP, your evening includes delicious food from celebrity caterer Mary Giuliani and fabulous wine pairings from Vanessa Conlin, Head of Wine at Wine Access. In honor of their opening, we're sitting down to coffee (maybe vodka?) to talk all things Sideways, what Mary, a graveyard and a Fer...
Ring of Keys: Andrea Prestinario
February 04, 2020 09:00 - 1 hour - 46.5 MBOn February 16th at Joe's Pub in NYC, Ring of Keys is celebrating its 2nd Birthday with QUEERING THE CANNON, a cabaret concert that flips the songs you thought you knew, and introduces new tunes to our book that tell stories we don't usually hear in musical theatre. We sat down with the co-founder of Ring of Keys, Andrea Prestinario, to talk all things art, activism, building a non-profit as your side gig and why just nearly everything should be BANISH'ED we say!!!! ☕️☕️☕️ Who doesn’t want fr...
JHM Jams: Ken Kubota
January 28, 2020 15:00 - 1 hour - 49.8 MBClassical Cellist Ken Kubota has hundreds of thousands of people tuning into his JHM Jams every week and brand collaborations every which way you look - but like most stories, the way it all got started is much less glamorous and involved hunting people down in practice rooms, trying to avoid being sued by Julliard and thinking that Instagram was a photo editor. Also on tap: we challenge all the social media creators we know to take the one week "Do Nothing" story challenge. ☕️☕️☕️ Who doesn...
How To Save The World: Meghan Offtermatt
January 21, 2020 09:00 - 1 hour - 58.7 MBThis was Andrew's last coffee date with coffee pods, thanks to actress and sustainability superhero Meghan Oftermatt- it's all fresh ground and pourover from here! She's like an unstoppable bundle of zero waste wonderwoman who left our heads spinning as she dished out all the advice and made us realize how easy it actually is to reduce your waste and do a little bit to save the planet. Listen up to learn why food waste is so problematic if it isn't composted, why our purchasing power is the s...
Take A Ten: Andy Roninson
January 14, 2020 09:00 - 49 minutes - 46.2 MBEver been curious how musicals get written or what a composer loves in their actors? Get. Into. This. Coffee. Date. Because, oh god, we got nerdy AF with Larson Award-Winning Composer Andy Roninson, trying to figure out what parts of song structure affect why we do or don't like a song, whether a perfect rhyme actually matters (and also wtf is a perfect rhyme anyway), and what we're supposed to do when malaise hits and we'd rather play video games than make something. ☕️☕️☕️ Who doesn’t want...
BONUS EPISODE #4: Scott Miesse
January 07, 2020 09:00 - 34 minutes - 24.3 MBHot on the heels of our 90 day review of the process of making a podcast from scratch, we bring you a coffee date with the very person who was responsible for the original idea of Take Me To Coffee! When a waiter from Cleveland, OH asked his guest Jess if she'd go to coffee with him (ballsy!), she never imagined it would eventually lead to this podcast, and he never imagined the play he wanted advice for would be about to open Off-Broadway. This is a special bonus episode that (we hope) remin...
Abnormal: Scott Miesse
January 07, 2020 09:00 - 34 minutes - 24.3 MBHot on the heels of our 90 day review of the process of making a podcast from scratch, we bring you a coffee date with the very person who was responsible for the original idea of Take Me To Coffee! When a waiter from Cleveland, OH asked his guest Jess if she'd go to coffee with him (ballsy!), she never imagined it would eventually lead to this podcast, and he never imagined the play he wanted advice for would be about to open Off-Broadway. This is a special bonus episode that (we hope) remin...
The First 90 Days: Jess & Andrew
December 31, 2019 09:00 - 57 minutes - 39.9 MBJust in time for New Year's Eve and all the reflection that goes with it, #TM2C turns 3 months old and Jess & Andrew step into the hot seat for an episode that's real talk about making a podcast. From ups to downs, surprises, equipment lists and secrets about this little podcast that could, join us for a peek inside the show and how if we can do it, so can you! ☕️☕️☕️ Who doesn’t want free advice from people that are wildly successful and probably more good looking than we are? In most career...
Illusions & Magic: Reza
December 24, 2019 09:00 - 54 minutes - 38.2 MBMagic is one of those things that has always been done a certain way, and Reza is completely smashing that out of the water. From his residency in Branson, Missouri, to touring the US, Reza has built every piece of his empire from scratch and - like so many of our guests - he is completely re-imagining what a live magic show should be. From what it's like to never have a day off for five months, to why there aren't more women leading magic shows, it feels like we barely dipped our toes in the...
Broadway Workshop: Marc Tumminelli
December 17, 2019 09:00 - 49 minutes - 34.5 MBFor over 12 years, Broadway Workshop has been training young actors and giving them a professional experience that has sent kids like Andrew Barth Feldman (Dear Evan Hanson) and Micaela Dimond (Cher Show) straight to Broadway, not long after their time with founder Marc Tumminelli. You can tell how much these kids love him by the hilarious and massive amount of questions we got on Instagram for this week's coffee date. And we even got a few great ones from the parents, so there's lots to lea...
God, Sex & Rich People: Mattie Jo Cowsert
December 10, 2019 09:00 - 1 hour - 45.3 MBAndrew and Jess finally picked their jaws up off the ground after this crazy episode with actress and writer Mattie Jo Cowsert, who leads them through her childhood of evangelical upbringing, sexual purity and what it was like to have a complete identity shift when she moved to NYC. This coffee date is a horrifying, hilarious, complicated look at the expectations put on women in evangelical cultures and what's it like to turn that experience into content. ☕️☕️☕️ Who doesn’t want free advice ...
#GivingTuesday: Antuan Raimone & Crime Victims Treatment Center
December 03, 2019 09:00 - 1 hour - 51.3 MBTW: Sexual Assault. Eight years ago, Antuan Raimone (Hamilton) and Jess Ryan set out to raise money for Crime Victims Treatment Center. Antuan had survived childhood sexual violence, and CVTC provided free services and therapy to Antuan and many of their other friends, saving their lives. Over the course of the next few years, they both realized that people have a hard time speaking up about this topic. Today's episode is devoted to sparking a conversation we all need to have - a frank, movin...
That Viola Kid: Drew Forde
November 26, 2019 09:00 - 59 minutes - 41.3 MBWe love things that go together. Turkey and stuffing. Macy's Thanksgiving Parade and the Rockettes. Viola and Instagram. Wait, Viola and Instagram? Sounds weird, but it's totally not when Drew Forde aka That Viola Kid is around. In this coffee date, we go deep on what it takes to be a live performer at the top of your craft and harness social and digital content, what the tradeoff is when you don't follow the traditional path and why dating is tough when you're labelled an 'influencer'. ☕️...
TEASER: That Viola Kid: Drew Forde
November 22, 2019 17:00 - 15 minutes - 20.9 MBBIG NEWS ya'll! We're moving your coffee date to Tuesday starting next week. We didn't want to leave you without any inspiration during the move, so here's a little amuse-bouche of next week's episode for your listening pleasure. Drew Forde aka That Viola Kid and Jess talk about the trade-off when you're a live performing artist who gets insta-famous for your digital content. Anyone else struggling with this? @ us and let us know! ☕️☕️☕️ Who doesn’t want free advice from people that are wildl...
Comedy Bits: Danny Pudi
November 14, 2019 18:00 - 54 minutes - 38.1 MBWe got some great questions from listeners for this episode with actor Danny Pudi (you might remember him from a little show called Community?). We find out what made Danny laugh the hardest on the set of Community and how he juggles new and old friendships - but we also talked about when Hollywood's going to finally write that screenplay for Danny about a half Indian, half Polish dancer growing up in Chicago. C'mon H-town, we want to see that! ☕️☕️☕️ Who doesn’t want free advice from people ...
Classical Piano + YouTube: AyseDeniz
November 07, 2019 16:00 - 55 minutes - 38.8 MBTalk about using the powers of social media for good! Classical pianist and composer AyseDeniz has harnessed YouTube, Facebook and Instagram to help expose a new generation to classical music and make it cool again. There's nowhere and nothing she won't play, too - they've dropped a piano into Burning Man for her, they've dropped a piano into Cappodocia for her, she's mashed up Pink Floyd, Coldplay and it was all inspired by what a badass she thinks Franz Liszt was. This was a pretty cool cof...
Video Game Audio Design: Zack Quarles
October 31, 2019 09:00 - 55 minutes - 38.6 MBEver find yourself playing a video game and thinking to yourself, "Man, I love this game but I don't know why - and it's not just the visuals"? Turns out the audio design of a game can make or break your experience, and Zack Quarles, or ZQ to his friends, is the man behind the games you've loved through the years, including Killer Instinct, Quake and more. Listen in for advice to aspiring sound designers, why video games are getting more like digital theatre every day, and insight into the St...
BONUS EPISODE #1: Our Very First Episode with Jermaine Blackwell
October 24, 2019 18:00 - 56 minutes - 39 MBFriends, we're ten episodes in and that means it's time for a BONUS WEEK! Gather round for a very special commentary track episode, wherein Andrew and Jess pull back the curtain and let you listen in to the very first episode they ever recorded, with NBC Diversity Scholarship winner and actor Jermaine Blackwell. Here's a hint: It was absolute chaos. It starts with a fire alarm going off and Andrew's apartment almost catching on fire. Go us!!!! Here's the good news: We're releasing the next t...
BONUS EPISODE #3: Our Very Third Episode with Jay Klaitz from Jessica Jones
October 24, 2019 18:00 - 42 minutes - 29.4 MBBroadway, TV and Film actor Jay Klaitz took time away from his brand new (super cute) baby to chat with us in our third ever episode of Take Me To Coffee. We talked all things theatre (he is a legend of Broadway with Lend Me a Tenor, Rock of Ages and High Fidelity under his belt), why he volunteers his time as a mentor to younger people, what it was like to shoot on Jessica Jones and Vinyl and what's ahead for his new production company. ☕️☕️☕️ Who doesn’t want free advice from people that ar...
BONUS EPISODE #2: Our Very Second Episode with Christina Anthony of Mixed-ish
October 24, 2019 18:00 - 1 hour - 42.1 MBLittle did we all know that Christina Anthony's life was about to be forever changed, when she agreed to be our second test guest back in March of 2019 and sit down for coffee with us. She had just shot a backdoor pilot for a new show called Mixed-ish, but no one knew if it would be picked up. SPOILER ALERT: SHE'S SO FAMOUS NOW! But back in that moment, Christina sat on her bathroom floor in her Hollywood studio apartment and dished out hilarity and wisdom about what it means to never quit, w...
Comedy: Dana Powell
October 17, 2019 09:00 - 1 hour - 52.6 MBModern Family. Veep. Bridesmaids. Dana Powell is a comedic powerhouse who has graced the screens of some of our favorite shows. Today, we're sitting down to coffee with her... well, no. Laying down to coffee with her? She did the whole episode in her bed in LA, so not really sure what the right thing is to say here. And by "with her", we mean Dana, her cat Daphne, her evil cat Cutters, her dog and her lizard. Together, we all dive into trying not to get eaten by coyotes at your survival job, ...
Sports & Identity: Joon Lee
October 10, 2019 08:00 - 49 minutes - 45.8 MBJess is stuck in the wilds of eastern Oregon, so Andrew helms the ship for an incredibly inspiring conversation with Joon Lee. Joon is a 24 year old Korean-American sportswriter for ESPN, and he takes us on a wild journey through his time at Bleacher Report, the representation inception that happened when he covered Chloe Kim and the Olympics in South Korea, and why pornstars are people too. Plus - our producer Emily Ho makes a special guest appearance! Cool stuff we talk about in the epis...
Wine: Amanda McCrossin aka Sommvivant
October 03, 2019 09:00 - 1 hour - 47.1 MBWine always feels fancy, but our guest Amanda McCrossin spends the hour answering our dumb questions and helping us feel like maybe it isn't something that far out of our reach. Plus - we get the top 3 Instagram tips from Amanda, who grew her own following from nothing to 25k, Jess trolls Andrew on their own podcast and we find out good legs don't mean the ass is going to be great too. ☕️☕️☕️ Who doesn’t want free advice from people that are wildly successful and probably more good looking ...
Community & Entrepreneurship: The Zuckerberg Institute
September 26, 2019 21:45 - 56 minutes - 39.3 MBToday we have coffee with the co-founders of The Zuckerberg Institute, Randi Zuckerberg's new initiative for entrepreneurs around the globe. We hear about Brian Patrick Murphy's biggest failure in business and what he learned from it, what it was like for Michael Littig to start a non-profit in a conflict zone, and we do a lot of talking about why the struggle is what to love the most when you're building something. ☕️☕️☕️ Who doesn’t want free advice from people that are wildly successful a...
Activism: Idealist.org
September 26, 2019 21:00 - 1 hour - 51.3 MBAmi Dar, founder of Idealist.org, has always had one mission in life: connect the people who want to do good, and make it easier to do that good. Never was there such an inspiring episode as talking with he and their Director of Organizing, Abby Graf Subak about how they that happen through a job board, grad fairs and Idealist Days around the world. We dig into beiing a book nerd, the needs for Globes and Atlases, grassroots organizing around your digital content and the volunteer economy, ...
Female Empowerment: Laura Behnke
September 26, 2019 21:00 - 1 hour - 62.2 MBEven though Jess and Andrew did a bit of birdwalking at the top of the episode, things got back on track quickly and we got to hear about Laura Behnke's incredible journey from television sportscaster who was owned by everyone else to entrepreneur and fashion icon who owned it all herself! This episode is a must-listen for anyone who is starting to think there's a better life out there but is scared to make a move. ☕️☕️☕️ Who doesn’t want free advice from people that are wildly successful an...
Founding a Fitness Empire: Mark Fisher
September 26, 2019 21:00 - 56 minutes - 52 MBIt seems like every Broadway friend of ours (including Andrew's wife!) keeps in shape at Mark Fisher Fitness. On our coffee date with the man himself, we found out that's because he is one smart dude, in addition to being a whacky, dada-loving unicorn. We chat about why Mark reads two plus books a week, how the Snatched emails have changed over the years, the ways in which running a business is like a rehearsal room and why Andrew and Jess now say "Skill Aquisition" every fourth sentence. ☕️☕...
The Mughal Empire: Audrey Truschke
September 26, 2019 21:00 - 1 hour - 50 MBAudrey Truschke has created a name for herself on Twitter but it's probably not for anything you'd guess. She's an academic and author whose specialty is Muslim & Hindu conflict, The Mughal Empire and Sanksrit. We get down and dirty to learn about the role of academics in censorship, why people are so upset about her research and who was a better cheater at games as a kid, Audrey or Jess? ☕️☕️☕️ Who doesn’t want free advice from people that are wildly successful and probably more good looking...
Beer: Jeremy Danner
September 26, 2019 20:00 - 1 hour - 61.5 MBWhat didn't we talk about on this date coffee with Kansas City beer geek Jeremy Danner? We hit what it means to sewer a batch of beer, what Jeremy thinks a brewery needs to do to go from good to great to amazing, and most importantly we invented the Shut Up And Drink Your Beer Beer (tm) during a really fun hour. Be sure to check out 4 Hands Brewery (https://4handsbrewery.com/) and Jeremy's Twitter account (https://twitter.com/Jeremy_Danner?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauth...
CURVYcon: CeCe Olisa
September 24, 2019 19:00 - 1 hour - 67.3 MBtheCURVYcon founder CeCe Olisa helps kick off our brand new podcast! We sip on some tasty coffee and talk about why following your feelings can lead you to the place you want to go, CeCe's advice for theatre kids who don't fit in and why CeCe is obsessed with Episode 5 guest Brian Patrick Murphy of The Zuckerberg Institute. Be sure to check out everything CeCe is up to! Want the link to Cece's TedX talk? Text "tedxcece" to 44222 and you'll get a personal message back from her + the link! Ot...