Take Me To Coffee

How To Save The World: Meghan Offtermatt

Episode  |  January 21st, 2020  |  1 hr 24 mins

composting, podcast, sustainability, zero waste

This 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 strongest way of voting and find out what is better than bees, bats and worms when it comes to sustainability (spoiler alert: NOTHING!)

Take A Ten: Andy Roninson

Episode  |  January 14th, 2020  |  49 mins 57 secs

composers, musicals, new work, podcast

Ever 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.

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.

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!

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.

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!

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.

#RaiseYourVoice

Article  |  December 4th, 2019
By Jess Ryan
hamilton, social impact, soldier of love, survivors

Anyone who survives violence deserves help and services, regardless of their financial ability. This week's episode and blog are dedicated to the incredible work of Crime Victims Treatment Center.

#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.

@ThatViolaKid Takes Us To School

Article  |  November 29th, 2019
By Jess Ryan
classical music, content creation, social media, thatviolakid, viola

Classical music is taking over the internet and our minds are blown.

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'.

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!

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!

A Danny Pudi GIF Hole

Article  |  November 13th, 2019
By Jess Ryan
comedy, community, danny pudi, troy and abed

Just a little light GIF watching in preparation for our episode with Danny Pudi tomorrow...

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!

When The Arts Are Not In Reach

Article  |  November 6th, 2019
By Jess Ryan
adpianist, aysedeniz, classical music, piano, summit

We all know the arts are so important, but as one fan pointed out to this week's guest, AyseDeniz, it's incredibly hard to get access to what you need when you're in a rural area. That made us think of all the amazing people we know working hard to make sure everyone has access to music and theatre. Read on for more inspiration!