OFF ROAD with Peter Palmisano - An RLTP Podcast

When LeRoi C. Johnson was managing the business of his brother Rick James, he put his law career and his colorful art career on temporary hold. But since then, he has grown both in status and renown. Today, his paintings can be found all over the world, and he talks to Peter about how his life and his art have evolved and experienced great success!

Since Doug Zschiegner first moved to Western New York, he has impressed the Buffalo theater community with his many talents and his dedication to educating future theater artists. We are lucky to have him in town, and Peter was lucky to get this busy man to sit down for a look at his life and his careers as an actor, a director, and an educator!

When he was attending Buffalo State, who would have suspected that the multi-talented Tom Calderone would someday become the leader of the MTV/VH1 networks, only to return to his adopted hometown of Buffalo to head the continuing renaissance of PBS and Buffalo Toronto Public Media?

Joe Grifasi is one of the most recognizable faces on stage, television, and film, with plenty to talk about. But when he discovered he was being interviewed by a “paisan,” the fun really began.

The multi-talented Brandye Merriweather was named the president of the Buffalo Urban Development Corporation in March, an incredibly important and demanding position. But she somehow found time to sit down with Peter to chat about her life, her goals, and her plans to continue Buffalo’s thriving “comeback.”

Peter zooms into a fascinating look behind RLTP’s hit show Hand to God when he interviews the hilarious playwright Rob Askins. How did this play come about, and what events in Rob’s life led to its inception? Rob holds nothing back!
Advisory: Explicit language.

The star(s) of RLTP’s Hand to God join Peter this week for a fun, and strange, visit. The discussion with Dan Urtz (and “friend”) includes the joy of re-opening a hit show with great expectations, learning how to manipulate a puppet, and then learning how to avoid having it manipulate you!

A pioneer actor/director/theater-manager, David Lamb could arguably be said to have been the father of the modern age of theatre in Buffalo. His journey from British schoolboy with dreams of playing Rugby for the national team to the founding of the Kavinoky Theatre turned out to be a pivotal moment in Buffalo’s history.

Jeff Miers is a writer, a musician, a composer, a father, and a reviewer for The Buffalo News…not necessarily in that order! And on this week’s “Off Road,” this man of many talents and many passions sits down to talk about where he’s been and where he’s going in a fascinating chat with Peter.

With a flourish of diverse theaters, the telling of the modern age of “A History of Buffalo Theatre” comes to a close. In this episode, Torn Space, Raíces and others, are joined by the well known initials of JRT, RLTP, SGT, and ARTA, among others. And with this, our saga comes to and end…until tomorrow!