Phoebe on the Radio
Posted on June 20, 2005 by Nick Yulman
On a recent Friday afternoon, some of 826NYC’s brightest young radio stars assembled at the tutoring center’s subterranean offices, entourages in tow, for the premier of Tales of Adventure From the Brooklyn Superhero Academy. Recording had wrapped several weeks earlier with the last session of the Superhero Radio workshop and all were eager to hear the finished piece. After settling in with a round of lollipops, they sat back to enjoy the fruits of their labors.
For the workshop, which I taught along with Peter Hilleren, each member of the class invented a Superhero character that they wanted to play in the show. Superpowers ranged from traveling into the 2nd dimension to morphing into anything described in a book. As a group, we plotted out the adventures of this team of superkids as they struggle to save Brooklyn from the villainous Evil Eye, played with convincing ill-will by Clay Chapman. Optimal efficiency was achieved during brainstorming sessions though use of the controversial “You may only speak while holding the green pencil-sharpener” technique.
As they listened to the show, the co-creators could hardly contain their excitement, and in at least one case didn’t. They pantomimed the sonically rendered action and made sure that everyone in the room knew when their big scenes were coming-up.
Afterwards, congratulations went around and future projects were discussed. When one admiring fan/parent wondered out-loud where the lifelike sound effects had come from, John, who plays the gruff yet bunny-loving hero, Tiny, happily demonstrated. Utilizing his amazing vocal prowess, he perfectly recreated the sounds of time travel by cupping his hands over his mouth to produce an odd whirring noise.
Tales of Adventure from the Brooklyn Superhero Academy stars Andrew (Eraser Kid), Basia (Time-T), Daylon (Disappearing Danny), John (Tiny), Phoebe (2Dee) and Rafaello (Bookworm) and can be heard in the writing gallery. Also, stay tuned for more superhero radio activity from 826!
Posted by Nick Yulman