November 2, 2023 / Modified apr 17, 2024 2:46 p.m.

"The Left Hand of Darkness" grips The Rogue Theatre.

Also on Arizona Spotlight: NPR's Ari Shapiro on "Och & Oy: A Considered Cabaret"; Luis Alberto Urrea recalls his friendship with K. Le Guin; and, Stories that Soar! returns with "The Spelling Test".

Och and Oy spotlight Alan Cumming & Ari Shapiro will be at the Fox Tucson Theatre for their show “Och & Oy! A Considered Cabaret” on Nov. 8th.

Arizona Spotlight

November 2, 2023

NPR
(Download MP3)

Featured on the November 2nd, 2023 edition of ARIZONA SPOTLIGHT with host Mark McLemore:

For event and ticketing information, click here

Alan cumming ari Shapiro unsized VIEW LARGER Alan Cumming and Ari Shapiro join forces for a night of "tunes and tall tales" in “Och & Oy! A Considered Cabaret”

  • The visionary science fiction novel “The Left Hand of Darkness” fascinated readers when it was published in 1969. This month, a new stage adaptation of author Ursula K. Le Guin’s masterpiece is being staged by Tucson’s Rogue Theatre. Hear the director and the lead actor discuss the themes of the play, exploring race, gender and relationships in unexpected ways…
Kevin and Cindy spot The star of Rouge Theatre's production of "Left Hand of Darkness" Kevin Aousou with Director Cynthia Meier in the AZPM Studio.
Leah Britton / AZPM
LHOD spot 1 The cast of Rouge Theatre's production of The Left Hand of Darkness at the gathering of the Commensals. Left to right: Hunter Hnat, Shannon Elias, Christopher Johnson, Joe McGrath, Kevin Aoussou, Aaron Shand, Christopher Pankratz, Ryan Parker Knox, and Chelsea Bowdren.
Photo by Tim Fuller
LHOD spot 2 Matt Walley and Kevin Aoussou as Estraven and Genly Ai on the ice.
Photo by Tim Fuller
Left hand of darkness poster VIEW LARGER Promotional poster for the Rouge Theatre's production of "The Left Hand of Darkness."
  • At the very beginning of his award-winning literary career, author Luis Alberto Urrea got to meet one of his writing heroes, Ursula K. Le Guin. Urrea tells how the two started a mentor and student relationship that became a lifelong friendship, and shares happy memories of knowing the woman behind some of fantasy and science fiction’s best-loved works…
Luis Alberto urea spot Luis Alberto Urrea was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize for his 2004 book "The Devil's Highway: A True Story", about a group of Mexican men who cross the border into the United States.
Joe Mazza/Little Brown
Ursula K. Le Guin spot Ursula Le Guin at home in Portland, Oregon, in 2005.
Dan Tuffs/Getty Images
  • And, the Tucson non-profit Literacy Connects sponsors a group of performers and musicians called “Stories That Soar!”. They help young writers realize the power and potential of bringing their stories to life, for the stage, video, and radio. We are now presenting these stories on the first Thursday of every month here on Arizona Spotlight.

This time, “Stories That Soar!” shares a tale about the fears and challenges that a 2nd grader must deal with when confronted by a surprise spelling test. "Spelling Test" was written by Makenzie, a 2nd grader at Robison Elementary School.

Aspiring student-age writers can submit their stories to The Magic Box Story Portal now!

stories that soar spot Literacy Connects presents “Stories That Soar!”, a program where the Tucson non-profit empowers students of all ages by bringing their stories to life with professional actors and musicians.
spelling test unsized VIEW LARGER The Spelling Test, written by 2nd grader Makenzie from Robison Elementary.
Courtesy of Stories that Soar!

Webpage by Leah Britton.

By posting comments, you agree to our
AZPM encourages comments, but comments that contain profanity, unrelated information, threats, libel, defamatory statements, obscenities, pornography or that violate the law are not allowed. Comments that promote commercial products or services are not allowed. Comments in violation of this policy will be removed. Continued posting of comments that violate this policy will result in the commenter being banned from the site.

By submitting your comments, you hereby give AZPM the right to post your comments and potentially use them in any other form of media operated by this institution.
AZPM is a service of the University of Arizona and our broadcast stations are licensed to the Arizona Board of Regents who hold the trademarks for Arizona Public Media and AZPM. We respectfully acknowledge the University of Arizona is on the land and territories of Indigenous peoples.
The University of Arizona