Joining Janeane at 9:00am Wedneday July 22nd - Julia Hotz Author of THE CONNECTION CURE (Simon & Schuster), Social Prescribing USA Advisor, Journalist, Keynote Speaker, Fellowships Manager at Solutions Journalism Network

 

Julia Hotz, Author of THE CONNECTION CURE (Simon & Schuster), Social Prescribing USA Advisor, Journalist, Keynote Speaker, Fellowships Manager at Solutions Journalism Network

Author of THE CONNECTION CURE (Simon & Schuster)—1st book exploring science, stories, and spread of social prescribing around the world. Speaker at TEDx, ACLM, WONCA, AHIP, Yale, Harvard, and more. Adviser to Walk with a Doc and Social Prescribing USA. Solutions-focused journalist (NYT, The Boston Globe, BBC, TIME) who helps other journalists via the Solutions Journalism Network

The Connection Cure: The Prescriptive Power of Movement, Nature, Art, Service, and Belonging

*A NEXT BIG IDEA CLUB MUST-READ*

*A HARVARD PUBLIC HEALTH MAGAZINE BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR *

COVERED IN NPR, NBC, BBC, CNN, FOX, Ologies, The Guardian, Slate, PBS, Wall Street Journal, Scientific American & more.

"Everyone should read this book.” —Dr. Sanjay Gupta, Chief Medical Correspondent at CNN and New York Times bestselling author

In this combination of diligent science reporting, moving patient success stories, and surprising self-discovery, journalist Julia Hotz helps us discover the lasting and life-changing power of social prescribing.

Traditionally, when we get sick, health care professionals ask, “What’s the matter with you?” But around the world, teams of doctors, nurses, therapists, and social workers have started to flip the script, asking “What matters to you?” Instead of solely pharmaceutical prescriptions, they offer “social prescriptions”—referrals to community activities and resources, like photography classes, gardening groups, and volunteering gigs.

The results speak for themselves. Science shows that social prescribing is effective for treating symptoms of the modern world’s most common ailments—depression, ADHD, addiction, trauma, anxiety, chronic pain, dementia, diabetes, and loneliness. As health care’s de facto cycle of “diagnose-treat-repeat” reaches a breaking point, social prescribing has also proven to reduce patient wait times, lower hospitalization rates, save money, and reverse health worker burnout. And as a general sense of unwellness plagues more of us, social prescriptions can help us feel healthier than we’ve felt in years.

As the first book on social prescribing, The Connection Cure empowers you to find, experience, and implement this revolutionary medicine in your own community. While touring the globe to investigate the spread of social prescribing to over thirty countries, Hotz meets people personifying its revolutionary potential: an aspiring novelist whose art workshop helps her cope with trauma symptoms and rediscover her joy; a policy researcher whose swimming course helps her taper off antidepressants and feel excited to wake up in the morning; an army vet whose phone conversations help him form his only true friendship; and dozens more. The success stories she finds bring a long-known theory to life: if we can change our environment, we can change our health. By reconnecting to what matters to us, we can all start to feel better.

Los Angeles Premiere of ACTING LIKE WOMEN Feature Documentary from Filmmaker/Artist Cheri Gaulke Free-to-the-Public Screening at The Getty Center. Janeane is in conversation with Cheri Gaulke Wednesday July 22nd at 9:30am on KUCI 88.9fm

                               photo credit courtesy of See Through Films

Los Angeles Premiere of ACTING LIKE WOMEN

Feature Documentary from Filmmaker/Artist Cheri Gaulke

Free-to-the-Public Screening at The Getty Center

WHO:

Available for Quotes / Interview: Writer/Director, Producer Cheri Gaulke



WHAT:

ACTING LIKE WOMEN Free-to-the-public screening (Reservations are required)

Special viewing of archival objects from the Woman’s Building

Accompanied by a pre-screening conversation between Director Cheri Gaulke and Getty Research Institute chief curator Glenn Phillips from 1:00-3:00pm (PT).



ACTING LIKE WOMEN Feature Documentary Debut of Artist/Filmmaker Cheri Gaulke Executive Produced by Lily Tomlin and Jane Wagner



WHERE:

The Getty Center: 1200 Getty Center Drive, Los Angeles, CA

Date & Time: Sunday, July 26, at 3:00 pm (Pacific Time), 2026



WHEN:

Please contact See-Through Films if you would like to schedule a Zoom or in-person interview with Filmmaker Cheri Gaulke



WHY:

The highly personal, first-person filmmaking of ACTING LIKE WOMEN addresses themes of feminist, activism, performance art, LGBTQ+, herstory, and art. A rebellious art form, exploding onto the scene in the late 1970s and 1980s gave birth to the “performance art as protest” movement seen around the world today. Led by female, feminist, artists determined to bring women’s bodies and voices into the art world, from a foundational feminist art space called The Woman’s Building in Los Angeles, the radical rebellion gave rise to powerful activism at the apex of the Women’s Movement.



TEASER:

https://vimeo.com/892732842



LOGLINE:

Revisiting the groundbreaking feminist performance art movement in 1970s Los Angeles, one artist spotlights the inspirational, transformational, radical community exploding the narrative and status quo.


SYNOPSIS:

Through interviews, archival footage, and personal reflections, feminist artist Cheri Gaulke revisits the 1970s Los Angeles foundational art space, The Woman’s Building, laying bare how a collective of artists transformed their bodies and voices through performance art into a powerful tool for activism, reshaping the cultural landscape for generations of women.


The film includes the voices of over 50 artists including Suzanne Lacy, Judy Chicago, and Senga Nengudi; the works of The Waitresses, Sisters Of Survival, and Feminist Art Workers among others, as well as the music of artists such as Billie Eillish, The Linda Lindas, and Phranc. Original Score is composed by Miriam Cutler.


Acting Like Women builds an intimate narrative where art intersects life. Guided through Gaulke’s lens, the film reveals an explosive time of change and individual empowerment with a through-line enriched by her own experience as the daughter of a Midwestern Lutheran minister, through the sexual revolution where she joins the feminist community, to her realized self as noted performance artist, lesbian, educator, and mother of twins.


The history of performance art is the herstory of California feminist performance art. It’s not a footnote about artists on the fringes, but a tome on the essential and highly influential period at the core of an artistic medium’s development. Interviews reveal personal stories brought to life alongside visually powerful performances, giving insight into what this period meant and means for women, and those struggling to define themselves today.


FROM THE DIRECTOR

This film is a love letter to the 1970s, Los Angeles, performance art, and my feminist community at the Woman’s Building. It holds the belief that art can make a difference in society. It is my gift to not only young people, but all of us, who today are still fighting the same battles today for equality and freedom of expression.

When I was four, I found out I could not be a minister like my father, simply because I was a girl. It broke my heart. With that knowledge I became aware that the world is not fair, and especially not for girls. I consider that moment to be my first feminist thought. It instilled a deep sense of injustice in me that I have been fighting against ever since.

As I began to formally study art, I became aware of a new obstacle. Though my classes were over 50% women, the gallery and museum exhibitions rarely showed women at all. Female artists were the lovers and muses of male artists, the subjects, often nude in paintings through time. Our bodies were our only currency.

Being a part of the Feminist Studio Workshop at the Woman’s Building profoundly changed my life. The entire alternative art scene in Los Angeles was a multicultural hotbed of activity: Women artists and artists of color were mad as hell about being excluded by the art world establishment so we created our own spaces.

A supportive community was key. I learned how to build walls and write a press release, how to bare my body and soul through performance art and get it out in the world. Suzanne Lacy was my performance mentor. Another mentor, art historian Arlene Raven, defined our mission: Feminist art would “raise consciousness, invite dialogue, and transform culture.”

The concept of “acting like women" occurred to me in 1980 when I wrote an essay for High Performance magazine, the first international magazine of performance art. In the essay "Acting Like Women: Performance Art of the Woman’s Building” I began to define feminist performance art in Los Angeles and why it was so unique within the history of art. In many ways, the film Acting Like Women is the cinematic expression of that essay.

In 2019 I turned my attention full-time to this film. I was ambitious about its scope and wanted to be thorough. Much to the chagrin of my producers I decided to interview 50 people, mostly feminist art elders, and a handful of men. I felt a sense of urgency to record their voices because already some of my mentors, like Rachel Rosenthal and Arlene Raven, had passed away. Since filming, two of our interviewees, Ulysses Jenkins and Steven Durland, have also passed away. I knew I had to capture and preserve the remaining voices even if I couldn’t use them all in the film (my dream is that someday they will be available in an archive so others can build new projects from their stories).

Cementing time and place through the age-old tradition of oral storytelling, 50 artists, curators, and scholars sat down in my living room and shared their lived stories and experiences about this largely untold/undocumented era of art history.

After gathering so much rich material my team and I had to weave these many voices into a clear and compelling narrative. Early on it had been suggested that my own story serve as a spine for the film. Initially I was uncomfortable with that because so many women’s stories were equally valid. I had to separate my personal feelings away from my role as director, and I came to understand that my story could bring the audience into the narrative by offering an individual to identify with. Presenting myself as a daughter, artist, mother, teacher, and activist hopefully provides various entry points for all viewers.


An aesthetic challenge in making this film was to bring the intimate storytelling alive through a rich tapestry of archival film, video, and photographic materials. The voices of my interviewees are supported by a dynamic collision of rare archival photographic and video documentation, original collage animation, and performance art recreations.

The animation respectfully brings to life select still images by using collage techniques to provide a moving documentation where in most cases there wasn’t one. By definition, much of the performance art from the time was immediate, ephemeral, and undocumented.

It’s partly why this period of radical art innovation has been so easily marginalized in the art historical canon and the reason capturing these oral histories before they disappear was so important. ACTING LIKE WOMEN works to correct that, placing at the forefront this period of transformational work that is largely missing from art history books and teachings.

One of my goals in making the film is to write women into the history of art. We pioneered new kinds of art and new ways that art could have an impact on society. That deserves being part of the art history canon, which is still dominated by men.


About the Filmmaker Cheri Gaulke featured on today's show

Producer, Director, and Writer: Cheri Gaulke is a pioneer in the feminist art movement in Los Angeles and an award-winning filmmaker whose films have screened in national and international film festivals.

Gaulke’s work has been presented at the Museum of Modern Art (NY), the Museum of Contemporary Art (LA), in a Smithsonian-touring exhibition, and in settings all over the world including buses, churches, and prehistoric temples.

Known for her solo performance art, she also co-founded the collaborative performance groups Feminist Art Workers and Sisters Of Survival who were featured in a Getty-sponsored exhibition in 2011. Gaulke has received artist fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts, California Arts Council, City of Los Angeles, California Community Foundation, and California Humanities.

Recent short films include: Gloria's Call about women and surrealism (40 film festivals; Best Documentary, Ann Arbor Film Festival; 2022 Venice Biennale); Miss Alma Thomas: A Life in Color about this under-recognized African-American artist (for a museum retrospective); Inside the Beauty Bubble about a gay hair salon owner (50 festivals; Audience Awards at San Luis Obispo Film Festival and Dances with Films); and Old Girl in a Tutu: Susan Rennie Disrupts Art History about a queer butch elder artist (40+ festivals).

In addition to her distinguished art and film career, Gaulke is also an award-winning educator, now-retired after having taught at Harvard-Westlake school for 31 years. During her tenure, she co-founded a California youth film festival; created The Righteous Conversations Project for teens and Holocaust survivors to make films that have screened at the Cannes Film Festival; and traveled with students to countries recovering from conflict to make professional documentaries.

Many of her former students (Jason Reitman, Nick Lieberman, Josh Margolin, Liz Yale Marsh, Jamie Ember, Fran Kranz, Gabe Barcia-Colombo) are leaders in the art and entertainment industries and who have created video art for museums and Metro stations, produced TV shows, premiered their films at Sundance, and directed blockbuster and Academy Award-nominated films.

Anne Gauldin

Co-Writer, Producer: Anne Gauldin is a feminist artist, graphic designer, and business entrepreneur. She received her M.A. through the Feminist Studio Workshop at the Los Angeles Woman’s Building, exploring prehistoric archaeological sites in Western Europe and contemporary feminist art and education. Gauldin served as the Slide Librarian at the Woman’s Building overseeing the Center for Feminist Art Historical Studies collection created by Arlene Raven and Ruth Iskin. Gauldin was a founding member of The Waitresses and Sisters Of Survival performance art collectives. These collectives' archives can be found at the Getty Research Institute which has been restoring a costume created by Gauldin in 1977 for the “Ready to Order?” performance. Inspired by the ancient Diana of Ephesus sculptures, Gauldin cast replicas of "The Waitresses” breasts in latex and sewed them onto the costume. The Getty Research Institute conservators fondly refer to it as the ‘breast dress’. She ran her own successful graphic design company for many years. Recently she collaborated with Cheri Gaulke as a producer-writer of the 2018 documentary film Gloria’s Call. Gauldin’s work has been exhibited and performed nationally and internationally.

Cheryl Bookout

Producer Cheryl Bookout is a filmmaker and visual storyteller based in Joshua Tree, California. Bookout’s producing credits span narrative, documentary, and experimental work, including Just a Friend, Gloria’s Call, and the sci-fi short PURE. Her debut narrative screenplay, Women of Steel, is garnering recognition in national and international screenwriting competitions. 

Her recent directing work includes the award-winning short documentary Inside the Beauty Bubble. She is currently directing the forthcoming feature documentary Moving Like Pond Water, a hybrid film exploring the transformative power of creative expression among U.S. military veterans.

Beyond her creative practice, Cheryl is deeply rooted in community arts and nonprofit leadership. She is the co-founder and executive director of The Chimaera Project, a nonprofit championing women and non-binary filmmakers. She serves as president of the board of directors for the Joshua Tree Retreat Center and sits on the advisory board of the Mil-Tree Veterans Project. Cheryl is also the past president of the Southern California Women’s Caucus for Art and has been invited to speak on filmmaking and arts panels across the United States.

Meg Linton

Producer: Meg Linton is an independent curator, writer, and producer with 22+ year’s experience running non-profit and academic contemporary art spaces in Southern California dedicated to helping artists produce their best work. Linton was the co-curator and lead organizer of “Doin' It in Public: Feminism and Art at the Woman's Building” that was part of The Getty's initiative Pacific Standard Time: Art in LA 1945-1980 in 2011. She has conceived and organized hundreds of exhibitions, publications, events, and videos in her various roles as: Director of Galleries and Exhibitions at the Ben Maltz Gallery, Otis College of Art and Design (2003-2014); Executive Director of the Santa Barbara Contemporary Arts Forum (1999-2003); Curator of Exhibitions at the University Art Museum at California State University, Long Beach (1997-1999). 

The breadth of Linton’s interests and vision has taken her into working with an extremely wide spectrum of art, media, and practices. She is firmly rooted in collaboration and cooperative efforts, thus guaranteeing the reach of her practice and therefore in making visual arts and contemporary culture an active ingredient in the life of the cities she has lived in over the years, especially in greater Los Angeles.

Linton is a Consulting Producer on the forthcoming documentary film, Bad Girl Marcia Tucker, about her mentor, friend, and colleague Marcia Tucker (1940-2006) who founded the New Museum in New York in 1977.

Liz Yale Marsh

Producer: Liz Yale Marsh is a 2-time Emmy-winning, Grammy, Peabody, and GLAAD-nominated documentary film and television producer under an exclusive overall deal with Universal Television Alternative Studio to spearhead documentaries and premium series for the studio. Liz recently produced the 3-part documentary High Horse: The Black Cowboy, Executive Produced by Jordan Peele with original music by Raphael Saadiq. Liz’s other series with Universal to date include Face to Face with Scott Peterson (Peacock), Death Row Confidential (Peacock) and Billionaire Boys Club (CNN Originals/ HBOMax). Prior to joining UTAS, Liz produced the feature documentary Little Richard: I Am Everything directed by Lisa Cortes, which premiered opening night of the 2023 Sundance Film Festival and was distributed theatrically by Magnolia Pictures and released by CNN Films and MAX. She also recently produced the documentary short film Facing the Falls, directed by Celia Aniskovich and Executive Produced by Hillary Clinton, Chelsea Clinton, Sam Pollard, and Brenda Robinson. Previous work includes Executive Producing the true crime anthology series It Couldn’t Happen Here for Sundance Channel/AMC+ and Executive Producing the CNN Original Series Vegas: The Story of Sin. Liz Co-Executive Produced the 3-part series Manifesto of a Serial Killer for Peacock; the feature documentary film The Panama Papers, directed by Alex Winter; the Emmy-winning NBC series GIVE, The Preppy Murder, a 5-part documentary for Sundance/AMC, and the award-winning Lifetime documentary series Surviving Jeffrey Epstein, both directed by Ricki Stern and Annie Sundberg. Liz was formerly the Head of Documentaries & Premium Series for production company Bungalow Media + Entertainment, and spent five years at Radical Media prior.

Liz is a Founding Board member of UNICEF’s Next Generation and is the Founder of the Westflix Film Festival in Los Angeles. She is a former wine educator and consultant who lives in Los Angeles with her two children.

Kristy Tully

Director of Photography: Kristy Tully is a Documentary Cinematographer with films at Sundance, SXSW, San Francisco Film Festival, Big Sky and several others. Her narrative work on the film The Women won Best Cinematography at the Woman's Comedy Film Festival in Chicago in 2021. Raise Hell: The Life and Times of Molly Ivins took the Audience Award at SXSW in 2019. She also employs her skills working as a camera operator on narrative films and television such as HBO’s We’re Here. More recently she filmed the Netflix Original film Feminists: What Were They Thinking? 

Kristy Tully is a seasoned cinematographer whose journey began in the trenches of the lighting department, starting as an electrician and working her way up to Gaffer. These early years shaped not only her technical expertise but also her collaborative spirit, teaching her the importance of teamwork and creative problem-solving on set. 

Her Narrative Film " The Women" won Best Cinematography at the Woman's Comedy Film Festival. The award-winning film “Once More Like Rainman”, Directed by Sue Ann Pein is currently enjoying the Festival circuit, (continuing to pick up awards as it goes).  ”ALOK”, Directed by Alex Hedison not only opened the Sundance Film Program in the Shorts Program in 2024, but is currently making its way through the (Oscar qualifying ) Film Festival circuit. "Raise Hell: The Life and Times of Molly Ivins”, Directed by Janice Engel took the Audience Award at SXSW and was shown at several other festivals.

Susan Metzger

Editor: Susan Metzger has edited feature documentaries, Thank You for Coming, Right Footed, Democracy at Work, and Manzanar, Diverted: When Water Becomes Dust (Best Documentary, San Diego Asian Film Festival; awards finalist, Big Sky Documentary Festival). She began her career assisting Academy Award-winning editor Kate Amend on such films as Jimmy Carter: Man from the Plains, There was Once…, and Birth Story: Ina May Gaskin and the Farm Midwives. She produced and edited the feature film, Democracy at Work. She has edited a range of short content – her episode Artist and Mother for KCET’s Artbound is one of its most popular. She recently edited the HBO series Angel City and Gaulke and Bookout’s Inside the Beauty Bubble. 

Nick Lieberman 

Story Consultant: Nick Lieberman is a Los Angeles–based writer-director. Theater Camp (2023), his feature directorial debut, premiered at Sundance (U.S. Dramatic Jury Prize for Ensemble) and was nominated for three Independent Spirit Awards (Best First Screenplay, Best Editing, Best Supporting Performance). Theater Camp was purchased by Searchlight. He has made music videos with a variety of artists, including Ben Platt and Remi Wolf, and his commercial work includes projects with Samsung, Billboard, and Fendi. Lieberman is next set to direct That Time We Met starring Pete Davidson and Ella Purnell. He is represented by CAA and Entertainment 360.

Miriam Cutler 

Composer: Three-time Emmy-nominated Composer, Miriam Cutler has an extensive background in scoring for independent film & TV projects, as well as two circuses. Her passion for documentaries has led to a focus in non-fiction award-winning and festival favorites. She wrote the scores for RBG (CNN) and Dark Money (PBS) which both premiered at Sundance 2017 and Love, Gilda (CNN) which premiered at Tribeca 2018. All three films had theatrical releases with RBG being one of the highest earning documentaries ever. RBG was nominated for an Oscar and four 2019 Primetime Emmys (1 for score), winning 1 Emmy. Love, Gilda was nominated for two Primetime Emmys (one for score). Other highlights include BAFTA nominated Lost In La Mancha, Emmy winners One Last Hug, Vito, Ghosts of Abu Ghraib, Desert of Forbidden Art (score also nominated); Oscar-nominated shorts Poster Girl and Kings Point; Emmy nominated Ethel, Thin, and Pandemic: Facing Aids. Sundance Special Doc Jury Prize winners American Promise and License To Kill.

Miriam Cutler recently released a compilation album from 18 of her film scores (http://moviescoremedia.com/film-music-miriam-cutler/ ) and the Lakeshore release for the Love, Gilda soundtrack (http://smarturl.it/LoveGilda)

JANE WAGNER

Executive Producer: Jane Wagner, a distinguished American playwright, has won numerous awards, including two Peabody's, four Emmy's, a Writer's Guild Award for her work in television and the seldom-given NY Drama Critics' Circle Special Award for her Broadway success, The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe.  Wagner made her writing debut with the acclaimed CBS teleplay entitled J.T. and her book of the same title.  In 1970, Wagner began working with Lily Tomlin on an Edith Ann album, Edith Ann:  And That’s the Truth (1971), which began an award-winning, creative alliance that has lasted for over fifty years.  They went on to co-write and produce two more Grammy-nominated albums, Modern Scream (1975) and On Stage (1977).  Together, Wagner and Tomlin also produced six television specials as well as three animated specials that starred the precocious Edith Ann.

In 1977, Wagner wrote and directed Appearing Nitely, a one-woman show in which Tomlin made her Broadway debut.  Wagner subsequently wrote the screenplay for the movie, The Incredible Shrinking Woman.  In 1985, Wagner brought The Search to Broadway, where it became one of the most acclaimed plays of the 1985-86 Broadway season.  The hardcover edition of The Search became the first play in twenty years to appear on The NY Times bestseller list.  In 2013, Harper Collins issued a new release of the book to celebrate twenty-five years in print.  More recently, Wagner has written and produced an HBO documentary, An Apology to Elephants.  She also entered the world of social media with a new game app for children, City Adventures with Edith Ann, based on the beloved character.  In 2020, Wagner was honored with the prestigious Lambda Literary Visionary Award, for her “innovative and barrier-breaking work.” 

Wagner and Tomlin together founded the Goosebump Garden at the internationally known LGBT Fenway Health Center in Boston and have been involved in its growth for over 25 years.  They have also founded the Los Angeles LGBT Center’s Lily Tomlin/Jane Wagner Cultural Arts Center.   On New Year’s Eve 2013, she married her long-time partner, Lily Tomlin.  Wagner’s continuing career in writing, drawing, art, text, photos and videos can be found at www.lilytomlin.com.  

LILY TOMLIN

Executive Producer: Lily Tomlin rose to national prominence in 1969 on the television series, Laugh-In, with her characterizations of Ernestine, the irascible telephone operator, and Edith Ann, the devilish six year old.  Tomlin went on to star in six comedy television specials, which she co-wrote with Jane Wagner.  In 1977, Tomlin made her Broadway debut in Appearing Nitely, written and directed by Wagner.  Tomlin next appeared on Broadway in 1985 in Wagner’s critically-acclaimed play, The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe.   

On film, Tomlin’s 1975 debut in Robert Altman's Nashville was nominated for an Oscar, and the NY Film Critics voted Tomlin Best Supporting Actress.  Over the next forty years, she has starred in over 25 movies, including Jane Wagner’s The Incredible Shrinking Woman, 9 to 5,  All of Me, Big Business, The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life In the Universe, Tea With Mussolini, Disney’s The Kid, I Heart Huckabee’s, A Prairie Home Companion, Admission and the critically-acclaimed Grandma.  She recently starred in two movies, Moving On and Eighty for Brady, in 2023:  Moving On is a dark comedy, written by Paul Weitz for Lily and her frequent co-star, Jane Fonda; and Eighty for Brady is a grand comedy romp with Jane Fonda, Rita Moreno, and Sally Fields.

On television, Tomlin has been seen in many series, including The West Wing, Desperate Housewives, the FX series, Damages, NCIS, and Web Therapy.  In 2014, Tomlin started filming the hit NetFlix comedy, Grace and Frankie, with Jane Fonda, which has become the longest-running NetFlix original series.  The seventh season was aired in 2021.

Tomlin is well-known for supporting philanthropic organizations, particularly those focused on animal welfare, civil rights, health care, protection of elephants, women’s issues, environmental concerns, overcoming homelessness and supporting the LGBTQ community in all aspects of life.  She has given countless fund-raising performances for organizations across the country, including The Ann Richards School for Young Women Leaders, Rosie's Place in Boston, Project Home in Philadelphia, Fenway Health Center, One Fair Wage, and many community action groups.  Tomlin has contributed in other ways to improve conditions for all living things, such as founding the Los Angeles LGBT Center’s Lily Tomlin/Jane Wagner Cultural Arts Center.  Tomlin and Wagner together also founded the Goosebump Garden at the internationally known LGBT Fenway Health Center in Boston and have been involved in its growth for over 25 years.

As part of her concern for animals, Tomlin earned an Emmy for her narration of the documentary An Apology to Elephants.  She works with elephant activists all over the country to take elephants out of zoos, has served on the boards of Actors and Others for Animals and the Shambala Sanctuary. Tomlin's humanitarian efforts earned her the Honickman Foundation’s Golden Heart Award for her impact in breaking the cycle of homelessness and poverty.

Throughout her career, Tomlin has received seven Emmys, two Tony Awards, a Grammy, two Peabody Awards, the prestigious Mark Twain Prize, The Kennedy Center Honors Award and numerous other notable honors.  She continues to appear around the country in concert performances.  On New Year’s Eve 2013, she married her long-time partner, Jane Wagner.  Tomlin and Wagner can be found on Facebook, Twitter, and other social media, and their entire careers in art, text, photos and videos can be found at www.lilytomlin.com.  

IAMBE FILMS

IAMBE FILMS is a production company formed by artist and filmmaker Cheri Gaulke in 2022. The company’s purpose is to produce film and media projects celebrating marginalized voices and giving a platform to women and LGBTQ+ working in arts and culture. IAMBE FILMS is the sole owner of the film ACTING LIKE WOMEN and operates in the state of California as the legal entity IAMBE, LLC. 

Coming up July 15th at 9:30am - Ryan Hallahan who plays Draco Malfoy in Harry Potter and the Cursed Child at the Segerstrom Center for the Arts joins Janeane

 

photo courtesy of SCFTA.org 

 

HARRY POTTER AND THE CURSED CHILD will make its Costa Mesa premiere at Segerstrom Center for the Arts from July 11 - 25, 2026. Today's show will feature Ryan Hallahan who plays Draco Malfoy.

 

 

🎙️

LISTEN to today's show with Ryan Hallahan 

About Ryan Hallahan
Ryan comes from Chicago where he’s appeared on stage at Steppenwolf, Chicago Shakespeare Theatre, Writers Theatre, Goodman, Northlight, Indiana Repertory, Peninsula Players, and Steep Theatre. Film: Pass Over (Spike Lee/Amazon), Working Man, Orpa. Television: “Chicago Med,” “Chicago Fire.”


Based on an original story by J.K. Rowling, Jack Thorne and John Tiffany, HARRY POTTER AND THE CURSED CHILD is a play by Jack Thorne, directed by John Tiffany.  

HARRY POTTER AND THE CURSED CHILD features movement by Steven Hoggett, set by Christine Jones, costumes by Katrina Lindsay, music & arrangements by Imogen Heap, lighting by Neil Austin, sound by Gareth Fry, illusions & magic by Jamie Harrison, music supervision & arrangements by Martin Lowe. US Casting by Jim Carnahan, CSA.


From the moment eleven-year-old Harry Potter met Rubeus Hagrid, Keeper of Keys and Grounds at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, his adventures have left an indelible mark on popular culture. Today, over 25 years later, the Harry Potter phenomenon thrives as one of the most successful and best-loved entertainment properties in history.

MEDIA ADVISORY/PHOTO OPPORTUNITY:

 CAMERAS INVITED TO HARRY POTTER AND THE CURSED CHILD HOUSE PRIDE NIGHT WEDNESDAY, JULY 15^TH

 

 

It’s Time to Celebrate Your Inner Gryffindor, Slytherin, Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw



WHO: HARRY POTTER AND THE CURSED CHILD HOUSE PRIDE NIGHT

WHAT: Cameras are invited to capture witches and wizards of all ages dressed in their Hogwarts House colors at a special community event celebrating the Harry Potter and the Cursed Child production. Segerstrom Center for the Arts will welcome fans for an evening of interactive experiences and photo opportunities, including an exclusive wand dance choreography class led by a member of the Harry Potter and the Cursed Child company, special gift bags with training dowels, as well as the chance to enter the Triwizard Goblet for magical prizes, vote on fan art submissions, and more! 

Fans who arrive in costume will receive a commemorative Harry Potter and the Cursed Child poster, and the evening will conclude with the announcement of the Harry Potter Fan Art Contest Cast Choice winner. Guests are encouraged to proudly represent Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, or Slytherin. All TV cameras must be self-contained. To learn more about House Pride Night and register for the wand choreography class, please visit https://scfta.org/HousePride To enter the Harry Potter fan art competition, click here.

WHEN: Wednesday, July 15th at 5:30 pm

WHERE: Julianne and George Argyros Plaza at Segerstrom Center for the Arts

600 Town Center Drive, Costa Mesa, CA 9262

HARRY POTTER AND THE CURSED CHILD

The production will run from July 11 - 25, 2026. Tickets start at $44, are available for purchase online at scfta.org, in person at 600 Town Center Drive, Costa Mesa, CA 92626, and by phone at 714.556.2787. For inquiries about group ticket discounts of 10 or more, call the Group Services offices at 714.755.0236.



PRESS CONTACT
Carla Cruz 714.942.6209, CCruz@scfta.org
Susie Lopez 714.556.2122 x 4076, slopez@scfta.org

Jacqui Pash 714.556.2122 x4726, jpash@scfta.org

Joining Janeane July 15th at 9:00am - Dr. Pius Kamau, a tireless advocate for education and equity, shares a remarkable story in his new book Running with Lions

 

🎙️

LISTEN to this week's show 

Running with Lions is a remarkable story! Dr. Kamau is a tireless advocate for education and equity, among other causes. Kamau established Africa America Higher Education Partnerships (AAHEP), a nonprofit that helps African women scientists to pursue graduate degrees in the US, and is the host of Never Again, the podcast of the Coalition Against Global Genocide.


Dr. Kamau champions education and equity, supporting African women in STEM and serving on boards to expand minority access to science. His philosophy is rooted in openness, inquiry, and service—striving for a more humane world through healing and storytelling. As a Health Equity Leader, he continues to inspire with a vision of unity and the power of diverse voices

Born in Kenya and trained in Spain, Pius Kamau has been in surgical practice in the Denver area for three decades. He was a columnist for The Rocky Mountain News and has written for The Denver Post. Kamau’s commentaries have also been featured on NPR, in the Huffington Post and other national magazines and newspapers. He’s also contributed to several books and recently finished his memoir.


"A perceptive psychological exploration of the impact of racism and colonization."
-Donna Bryson, author of It's a Black-White Thing and Home of the Brave

As a boy in colonial Kenya, Pius Kamau learns early what it means to run with lions-both the metaphorical powers that stalk his people and the real leopard he encounters alone in the forest, the first of many times he will stand eye-to-eye with death.

Born under British rule and hardened by the unspeakable violence of the Mau Mau Rebellion, Pius grows up where curable illnesses claim loved ones and hope feels scarce. Inspired by his tubercular father, he dares to believe education can be his escape. He flees on foot toward Sudan in search of schooling but is arrested and sent back. He refuses to surrender. A scholarship to Strathmore College in Nairobi leads to medical studies in Spain, where Europe's art, philosophy, and culture widen his world even as he confronts the contradictions of colonialism.

Returning to an independent Kenya as a doctor, Pius discovers oppression has simply changed hands. This powerful memoir traces his journey from dirt-poor village boy to physician and eventually to surgeon, proving resilience, intellect, and courage know no color or border.
About the Author

Pius K. Kamau, MD, thoracic surgeon and author, has written for HuffPost, Denver's Dailies, and the Denver Gazette. He's been published in NPR's This I believe, Marlo Thomas's The Right Word at the Right Time, Chicken Soup for the Soul: The Cancer Book, and Medical Business. He also penned the mystery novel Doctor's Date with Death. Kamau established Africa America Higher Education Partnerships (AAHEP), a nonprofit that helps African women scientists to pursue graduate degrees in the US, and is the host of Never Again, the podcast of the Coalition Against Global Genocide.



Publisher ‏ : ‎ Koehler Books

Publication date ‏ : ‎ July 14, 2026


by Pius K Kamau MD (Author)

Here's a link to just some of his pieces from NPR News/ KUNC



From colonial Kenya to Colorado: Local surgeon and humanitarian recalls 'running with lions' in powerful new memoir

DENVER, CO., July 14, 2026—Thoracic surgeon, author, and humanitarian Dr. Pius Kamau has released his newest book with Koehler Books. His powerful memoir tells the extraordinary true story of his journey from a small village in colonial Kenya to a career as a physician and surgeon in the United States.

Growing up during British colonial rule and the violence of the Mau Mau Rebellion, Kamau witnessed firsthand the devastating effects of poverty, disease, and political oppression. Determined to pursue an education despite overwhelming obstacles, he fled his village in search of schooling, even enduring imprisonment before ultimately studying medicine in Spain and going on to become a respected thoracic surgeon.

When asked about how he’s scaled these seemingly insurmountable barriers, he says, “My life may have been full of deep valleys of despair and seeming loss, but it too was a life full of kind people, full of generous men and women. I believe that I did well because I allowed charity and kindness to shine on my dark days and nights. And in addition to my persistence and resilience I kept hope alive. I still keep hope alive.”

The memoir explores themes of perseverance, faith, and the enduring pursuit of justice. Through deeply personal stories—including surviving encounters with wild predators, political violence, and life-threatening hardship—Kamau reflects on the experiences that shaped both his character and his calling to medicine.

In addition to his work as a thoracic surgeon, Kamau is an accomplished author whose writing has appeared in HuffPost, The Denver Gazette, NPR's This I Believe, Chicken Soup for the Soul of the Cancer Patient, and other national publications. He is also the founder of Africa America Higher Education Partnerships (AAHEP), a nonprofit that helps African women scientists pursue graduate education in the United States, and hosts Never Again, the podcast of the Coalition Against Global Genocide.

Kamau's memoir offers readers an intimate look at one man's determination to overcome extraordinary adversity while illuminating the lasting impact of colonialism, the transformative power of education, and the resilience of the human spirit.

For more information about Dr. Pius Kamau and his new book, visit koehlerbooks.com.


ABOUT PIUS KAMAU, MD

Pius Kamau, MD, thoracic surgeon and author, has written for Huffpost, Denver’s Dailies, and the Denver Gazette. He’s been published in NPR’s This I believe, Marlo Thomas’s The Right Word at the Right Time, Chicken Soup of the Soul of the Cancer Patient, and Medical Business. He also penned the mystery novel Doctor’s Date with Death. Kamau established Africa America Higher Education Partnerships (AAHEP), a nonprofit that helps African women scientists to pursue graduate degrees in the US, and is the host of Never Again, the podcast of the Coalition Against Global Genocide.   

Coming up July 8th 9:30am - A Billion-Dollar Drug. A Trail of Dead Teenagers. One Doctor Refuses to Stay Silent. Writer/Director Doug Bremner talks about his film,THE GOOSE THAT LAID THE GOLDEN EGG - which premiered at DANCES WITH FILMS JUNE 27.

 

THE GOOSE THAT LAID THE GOLDEN EGG WORLD PREMIERING AT DANCES WITH FILMS ON JUNE 27 BASED ON A TRUE STORY!!

photo courtesy of K.O. PR To view the trailer, go to: https://vimeo.com/1104117373 🎙️LISTEN to today's show🎙️

WRITER/DIR: Doug Bremner  PRODS: Doug Bremner, Julia Hobgood, Catherine Kagan, Joshua Looby, Viola Vaccarino CAST: Andy Evans, David de Vries, Hannah Fierman, Shaan Sharma, Caroline Avery Granger, Nisey Woods When a psychiatrist discovers that a medication for the treatment of acne is causing teenagers to kill themselves, the pharmaceutical company sets out on a campaign to destroy the source of the threat to their billion-dollar-a-year drug. Described as Erin Brockovich meets The Constant Gardener, THE GOOSE THAT LAID THE GOLDEN EGG is inspired by a true story that involves greed, power, lies, tragedy, danger, and death. After the death of her son, Amanda Bellaconda seeks the help of Dr Jack Forteo to understand why teenagers are suddenly taking their own lives after taking a medication for acne. Carinaderm is the goose that keeps laying golden eggs, an acne medication bringing in a billion dollars a year for the Renzon Pharmaceutical Company. When Dr. Forteo sees a potentially lethal side effect of their blockbuster acne pill, Renzon doesn’t hesitate to pull out the stops with personal attacks and accusations of fraud, bringing Forteo’s marriage and career to the brink of destruction. With nothing left to lose, Forteo goes on a journey to revisit a tragedy from his own past. When he unearths painful secrets and deceptions that parallel those he has discovered in the pharmaceutical company, his voyage of self-discovery gives him strength to resume his struggle, leading to the ultimate conclusion. THE GOOSE THAT LAID THE GOLDEN EGG team includes writer/producer/director Doug Bremner and executive producers Neil Shulman, M.D., Patch Adams, M.D., and Raymond Schinazi., PhD. Producers include Bremner, Julia Hobgood, Cat Kagan, Joshua Looby, and Viola Vaccarino. The lead role of Dr. Jack Forteo is played by Andy Evans (86 Melrose Avenue). Plaintiff’s attorney Red Leghorn is played by David de Vries (The Founder). The bereaved mother of the teenage suicide victim, Amanda Bellaconda, is played by Hannah Fierman (VHS). Shaan Sharma (The Chosen) is Ryan Singh, plaintiff’s attorney. Jack’s wife, Isabella Forteo, is played by Caroline Avery Granger (Cobra Kai), and Crystal Watson, the ruthless attorney heading up the Renzon legal team, is played by Nisey Woods (Vampire Diaries).   THE REAL STORY… Douglas Bremner is professor of psychiatry and a researcher. He did brain imaging research on the effects of an acne medication, isotretinoin (Accutane), on the brain, and as a result became an expert witness in multi-district litigation related to depression and suicide in teenagers who had taken the drug. The research was funded by private donations from affected families. THE GOOSE THAT LAID THE GOLDEN EGG is a fictionalized story with elements of truth. In reality, the plaintiffs settled with the drug manufacturer and part of the settlement was that they couldn’t talk about the settlement. The film has a running time of 92 minutes. It is currently not rated by the MPAA and is available for sale in all territories.     THE GOOSE THAT LAID THE GOLDEN EGG PREMIERES AT DANCES WITH FILMS ON JUNE 27 AT 3:45 p.m. IN THEATER 4 https://danceswithfilms.com/2026-the-goose-that-laid-the-golden-egg/