Jess Ryan
Co-Host of Take Me To Coffee
Jessica Ryan is a changemaker, creator, and founder at the intersection of the arts and entrepreneurship. She has written for some of the biggest companies in the world including Amazon and GE, directed digital content with Tituss Burgess (Kimmy Schmidt) and Kirstin Maldonado (Pentatonix), voiced spots for Starbucks and Old Navy, performed at Goodspeed & Berkshire Theatre Festival and once sang a jingle for an adult superstore in North Dakota (true story, Annabelle’s if you want to look it up).
Jess is also the founder of Broadway Unlocked, a startup pushing the boundaries of theatre beyond the footlights, creating innovation for any stage. Set at the intersection of the theatrical skillset and entrepreneurship, its portfolio includes The Giveback Concert, Take Me To Coffee, Full STEAM, Storytelling for Leaders and The Salon, among others. The company is at the forefront of innovation in the arts and delivers powerful collaborations, content, products and partnerships across business, cause and culture.
In case you’re not exhausted yet, she’s an ambassador for the Summit community, member of the Zuckerberg Institute and Creator of the #Giveback Concert, as well as this here podcast. @JessicaRyanNYLA
Jess Ryan has hosted 40 Episodes.
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BONUS EPISODE #4: Scott Miesse
Episode | January 7th, 2020 | 34 mins 47 secs
coffee dates, mentorship, new work, off-broadway, playwrighting
Hot 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) reminds you to ask for help and never take no for an answer.
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The First 90 Days: Jess & Andrew
Episode | December 31st, 2019 | 57 mins 27 secs
community, content, podcast, technology
Just 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!
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Illusions & Magic: Reza
Episode | December 24th, 2019 | 54 mins 51 secs
branson, illusions, live shows, magic, touring
Magic 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 into the life of this amazing man.
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Broadway Workshop: Marc Tumminelli
Episode | December 17th, 2019 | 49 mins 40 secs
acting, broadway workshop, child star, gender identity, stage parents
For 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 learn for everyone!
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God, Sex & Rich People: Mattie Jo Cowsert
Episode | December 10th, 2019 | 1 hr 5 mins
blogs, fitspo, instagram, sexual purity
Andrew 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.
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#GivingTuesday: Antuan Raimone & Crime Victims Treatment Center
Episode | December 3rd, 2019 | 1 hr 13 mins
#givingtuesday, hamilton, social impact, survivors
TW: 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, moving and brave conversation that we hope will answer a lot of questions and inspire you to speak up along with us.
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That Viola Kid: Drew Forde
Episode | November 26th, 2019 | 59 mins 16 secs
classical music, instagram, julliard, viola
We love things that go together. Turkey and stuffing. Kid and Play. 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 labeled an 'influencer'.
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TEASER: That Viola Kid: Drew Forde
Episode | November 22nd, 2019 | 15 mins 10 secs
classical music, content creation, teaser, viola
BIG 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!
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Comedy Bits: Danny Pudi
Episode | November 14th, 2019 | 54 mins 46 secs
We 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 what his dream role is - 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!
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Classical Piano + YouTube: AyseDeniz
Episode | November 7th, 2019 | 55 mins 35 secs
advice for musicians, classical piano, social media, subpop
Talk 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 coffee date, so settle in and enjoy!
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Video Game Audio Design: Zack Quarles
Episode | October 31st, 2019 | 55 mins 27 secs
audio design, mentorship, strogg, video games
Ever 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 Strogg language ZQ created from scratch for Quake.
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BONUS EPISODE #1: Our Very First Episode with Jermaine Blackwell
Episode | October 24th, 2019 | 56 mins 40 secs
actor, how to make a podcast, jermaine blackwell, new york city
Friends, 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!!!
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BONUS EPISODE #3: Our Very Third Episode with Jay Klaitz from Jessica Jones
Episode | October 24th, 2019 | 42 mins 45 secs
broadway, jessica jones, mentorship, waffee
Broadway, 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.
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BONUS EPISODE #2: Our Very Second Episode with Christina Anthony of Mixed-ish
Episode | October 24th, 2019 | 1 hr 25 secs
improv, los angeles, mixed-ish, multi-hyphenate, pilots, second city
Little 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, what she'd ask Barack Obama and Mr. T if she could take them to coffee, and how she came up with her nickname for Lin Manuel Miranda.
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Comedy: Dana Powell
Episode | October 17th, 2019 | 1 hr 15 mins
acting, comedy, improv, la, modern family
Modern 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, picking up Christmas presents for Joey Lawrence (WHOA!), making motherboards for NASA, how a waiter at a Modern Family party became a collaborator, what it was like to be on the set of Bridesmaids and why she was hiding a small flying squirrel in her boobs during college classes. It's a wild one, folks. Strap in.
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Sports & Identity: Joon Lee
Episode | October 10th, 2019 | 49 mins 44 secs
baseball, diversity, espn, joon lee, sports
Jess 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, why he likes to dig into the personalities of the biggest stars, 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!