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Brooke McCarthy
4.7k Plays1 year ago
How to be an Ethical Slut is the award-winning solo by Brooke McCarthy. Experience the ride of your life as an unethical slut penetrates lies, STDs, triads, orgies, and love in her musical journey to becoming an Ethical Slut.
Lead performer and solo daredevil - Brooke McCarthy is an actor, singer, dancer, content creator (YouTube: Bartender Brookie), playwright, and teaching artist. She holds her MFA in Acting from the University of Georgia. She's originally from NJ and currently resides in Charlotte, NC.
Part solo show, part cabaret, the play covers the life of an unethical slut named Blake Valentini as she struggles between dating the socially acceptable way - monogamy - or daring to open her mind to unusual relationship pleasures and tribulations. This bold, sexy, and vulnerable story touches upon topics that are often unseen onstage such as sexual health and nonconventional relationship styles. Everyone, including Blake, may learn a thing or two about honesty and sexuality throughout this wild ride.
The limited run in NYC 2023, plays February 18 - 27 at UNDER St. Marks in the East Village. How to be an Ethical Slut is directed by Robyn Accetta and has played to packed houses and won numerous awards in 2022 including the “Spirit of the Fringe” (St. Lou Fringe Festival), “Philly Fringie” Audience Choice Award (Philly Fringe), and the "Best of Fest" (Hartford Fringe Festival).
Brooke McCarthy discussed what inspired her to write the show, “I wanted to share my personal journey with polyamory and all of the hard lessons it taught me about honesty, relationships, and owning our unique identities. Not only is non-monogamy not the norm in our society, but it was also something I did not talk about openly in my personal life nor is it something that appears often in a positive light on stage. I was inspired to use parts of my own life to craft a story that inspires honesty in our relationships while empowering us to embrace the unconventional ways that people may love each other. After all, love is love.” She went on to share, “Whether my audience identifies as polyamorous, monogamous, or polycurious, I hope they absorb a new perspective on life and love.
Upcoming Performances of How to Be an Ethical Slut
Frontera Festival in Austin, TX Jan 29, 30, Feb 4
Frigid Fest NYC Feb 18-27
Visit Brooke's homepage at http://www.howtobeanethicalslut.com/
Follow Brooke on Instagram @howtobeanethicalslut and Tik Tok @howtobeanethicalslut
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Transcript
Introduction and Host Welcome
00:00:03
Speaker
You are listening to something rather than nothing. Creator and host, Ken Zalante. Editor and producer, Peter Bauer. Sike to have you on.
Award and Philly Performance Significance
00:00:20
Speaker
Philly French Fest, you won that?
00:00:23
Speaker
I didn't win no but I did win like an audience choice award so the Philly fringe runs for four weeks and I won in the third week like an audience pick which was really exciting because it's my favorite city and one of my favorite fringes
00:00:37
Speaker
That's awesome. Nah, it's really great to hear. I saw that because when I was looking at the show, I was like, wait a second, is she ready to jump into this one hot off the skillet? And then I said, oh, okay, she didn't feel it. Like I was like, I didn't know. Like I wasn't sure you had performed and be like, and I asked you how you feel. You're like.
00:00:57
Speaker
I don't know what's going to happen. No. So how to go, how to go, how to go. It was great. Yeah. Philly was a big deal for me. I had been touring to a couple other, um, I would just say smaller cities in Southern and Midwestern places. And it was doing really well, but I used to live in Philly. I have a lot of friends. I grew up in South Jersey. Um, I really respect the theater and arts community in Philly. And so I was like, go big or go home. I'm going to go to Philly and I'm going to do six shows in the fringe. And so, uh,
00:01:27
Speaker
Yeah, it was a big deal. I was a little more nervous the first two shows than I hope to hope to have been. But overall, it was very successful. And, you know, lots of old friends and acquaintances came. Lots of new people came.
Return to Philly Excitement
00:01:41
Speaker
I had an interview on W H Y Y, which is Philly's NPR station. So that was cool. I heard that. I heard that. That was a cool that was a cool bit. Yeah. Yeah. Thank you. I was super stoked about that. So
00:01:53
Speaker
that brought some more people in. And it was just really good to get back into Philly after having lived in the South for like, I guess, four years now. And so ultimately, fast forward to now, I just moved back. So I'm very excited to be back up here. And the fringe went really well, made lots of really cool new friends, caught up with old people and just got to support a lot of the other artists in the city, which was really awesome.
00:02:17
Speaker
Yeah, I love that. I have a few friends from Philly, and I actually never been to Philadelphia. I'm originally from Rhode Island. It's just one of the East Coast cities like I never met. Yeah, I belong in Philly, at least for a certain amount of time, so a lot of respect there. We're talking about Brooke McCarthy, and I'm super excited to have this interview.
'How to Be an Ethical Slut' Overview
00:02:43
Speaker
She's doing a one-woman performance cabaret play, How to Be an Ethical Slut. So you got the provocative title down. But Brooke, I was telling you, the one question I had, I have the arc questions and we'll get into those.
00:03:00
Speaker
For me, I want to tell you this is a host of the show. I am dazzled by performers who do the high wire and this this feels like a high wire. I've talked and I'm trying to book comedians for the show. It feels very much like.
00:03:18
Speaker
No, no ropes, no nothing. And so I got to tell you, you know, personally, I'm fascinated by, you know, you jump in and leap, you know, into this in this high wire. Let me ask you a question. Does it feel like a high wire act doing this one woman play? And just just tell us a little bit about how how it came about where you you're on stage doing it.
Writing During the Pandemic
00:03:44
Speaker
Well, thank you. I love bedazzling, folks. But yeah, it was definitely a scary piece to jump into. And so if we're using the high wire as the metaphor for life, you're taking a big risk, right? When I originally decided to write the piece, it was, of course, like many artists probably lately, it was during the pandemic, surprise, surprise.
00:04:10
Speaker
was looking to do something that really challenged me artistically, but they also felt very me. And as an actor, I've often shied away from leaning into my personal experiences to act, because I find that sometimes that has been taught very dangerously towards our mental health. And so I very much thrive as like an external actor, a very physical actor, but
00:04:37
Speaker
When I decided to write this piece, I really wanted to challenge myself and I always believe like one of my thriving, you know, through line mottos is get comfortable with the uncomfortable. And so when I decided to write this piece,
00:04:51
Speaker
I was because I felt like for the first time in my life, I had a story to tell that was worth telling. And I was ready for the vulnerability and the uncomfortability that I was setting on a path down because I knew that I hoped that I would be able to inspire other people to just really own themselves and be themselves and inspire other people who maybe are
00:05:20
Speaker
are monogamous or polycurious to just kind of expand and open their minds about the world of polyamory and what it looks like to dive into polyamorous relationships.
00:05:35
Speaker
One of the things I was wondering about, about the performance is, because I can't get the, I haven't heard, you know, the music went along with it, and I can imagine it. What do you, what do you find with, with the audience?
Musical Connection in the Play
00:05:53
Speaker
You're in a neat position to be like, okay, you know, you know, I mean, they purchased the ticket and it's, it's, it's, it can be challenging content for them. Who knows? Yeah.
00:06:03
Speaker
but but but what about the what about the audience when when you're doing that in in in Connected to that the the music does that help connect to some of the complication? Yeah, yeah, absolutely part of the reason that I wrote the show the way that I did as So it's sort of for all the listeners. It's basically a theatrical piece that is a one-woman
00:06:29
Speaker
solo show musical comedy but it's set as a cabaret show so like you're going to watch someone sing a bunch of random songs right but obviously it's a theater piece so there's a through line and the story is very much inspired by my life but I am Brooke McCarthy but the character I play is Blake Valentini and so Blake
00:06:50
Speaker
is performing her cabaret, how to be an ethical slut. And through the music that she chooses that I chose to write into it, it's varying genres of music. So there are pop songs, there are musical theater parody songs, and there are jazz songs, as well as an original song. And the purpose for all of that music was not only because that reflects me. I like all those styles of music very much. As a singer, I like to sing in different genres.
00:07:19
Speaker
But also because I wanted to make sure that every audience member could find a way to connect to the show, knowing that some of the topics might be very unfamiliar or very taboo or uncomfortable to people. But if they could find a way to be like, oh, I know that song. Oh, and just really feel the energy and vibe off of it. I was hoping I could just bring even more people together and allow them to connect.
00:07:43
Speaker
Yeah, yeah, I appreciate your answer. I think, you know, in hearing you talk about the performance and talk about the work itself, there's, you know, there's there's a piece in there really, really attached to as far as, you know, the shows, a philosophy show.
Themes of Honesty in Relationships
00:07:59
Speaker
Right. And I think there's a strong piece in there beyond the beyond the pizzazz or like, what is this about? And it seems, you know, lured that that is is quite simply about
00:08:13
Speaker
Honesty and you talk about honesty and so I think there's a fundamental piece that I that I see within it where you like well, I View it this way we get engaged in relationships to our lives no matter what they are in their Agreements and at the cornerstone of what you say regardless of any more is religious sexual or otherwise you say
00:08:38
Speaker
I think that if there is honesty in engagement and understanding between people, human adults should engage in their agreements to the best of their happiness. And I find that core to be really strong. Do you think that works? Do you think that that piece hits for folks?
00:09:04
Speaker
Oh, yeah. So the two things there for me are, like you said, honesty and relationships. That was a huge driving force in writing this show in my life, the chapter of my life that this show is based off of. That was just an underlying theme. And both sides of honesty, because you have honesty and dishonesty. And we're imperfect. And as artists, we represent the human condition.
00:09:34
Speaker
I think that honesty and my audience, one of the things that I hope they take away and which people have said to me as they leave that they think back about their own life and their relationships and relationships even being friendships, not necessarily intimate relationships being, you know, familiar with relationships, any sort of relationship under that, you know, spectrum
00:09:57
Speaker
And as a person, I strive to live a very honest life. Sometimes that might get me into trouble because I can be a bit blunt, but it's always coming from a place of love. And I find that in our relationships and friendships, if we're able to cultivate honesty from a very genuine standpoint with love and care, then we can grow so much as humans and together in those relationships. And so.
00:10:25
Speaker
When people walk away from the show and say, wow, I left and all I could do was just reflect on my own relationships. I know that honesty is a big piece in that because, you know, you think about things like divorce rates, which I say this in my show at some point in one way or another, think about divorce rates and, um,
00:10:48
Speaker
you know, I say in my show, maybe if more people were in open relationships, maybe marriage wouldn't be so bad. That's pretty much a direct quote. But really what that comes down to is, it's a lack of communication. There's some sort of a communication breakdown. And maybe honesty is a big part of that, whether you're saying things out loud or not. And so I hope that one of the big things, not only that you're like laughing and having a good time and learning some stuff, but you're able to walk away and really understand that
00:11:18
Speaker
Honesty is important and it's hard. And the character Blake goes through her entire journey where, you know, she is dishonest at times. She's even an unreliable narrator, which makes her a great plot twist. But I love unreliable narrators. Thank you. Yeah, me too. And honestly, that is one of so sidebar. I have a really good friend who is a writer and stand-up comedian and his name is Dave Toruso and he
00:11:48
Speaker
As I was asking him to help me with some of the drafts of my show really early on, he was like, Brooke, you have this way when you tell me stories that you'll like, tell me a bunch of details and we'll go back and forth and like be friendly and give advice to each other. And then he's like, but then you drop these bombs of like, oh, and also this, which just totally changes everything you just told me. And he's like, what if your character does that? And I'm like, oh, that's brilliant because that's kind of,
00:12:16
Speaker
how at times in my life, I did deliver information, whether it was to friends or partners. And that doesn't always work out well. But again, you're learning from those honest, dishonest mistakes. Yeah, yeah. And I think I think the the that level and that level of engagement, I, you know, I think I cover a lot of art that
00:12:39
Speaker
engages folks, interacts with them, shakes them. I mean, I find that the art that I, it's different purposes, but I find that as I work in the organizing and political sphere as well. So, I mean, I know when I've come to say something like union organizing or for disruption, I'm like, well, everything's stacked against me. So then you set a different code and set different type of rules and kind of say, you know,
00:13:08
Speaker
If it's that tipped over, I want to brace some consciousness. I want to say this is bullshit. I want to be able to tell people that they can swear at their boss. Not right at them because I'll have to represent them as a union rep, but just something to disrupt the whatever.
00:13:29
Speaker
before we're going to jump into art a little bit further, but I want to capture a piece of going to this role and just broaching the art conversation. So I want to start with when you saw yourself as an artist. That's a big question I asked performers. So that identity piece.
00:13:51
Speaker
you know, when were you walking around and people like that? That's an artist or you're presenting yourself that way. How was that? What was that like for you? That's a beautiful question. And I know that I'm probably not the only one, definitely not the only one who has
From Accountant to Artist
00:14:05
Speaker
struggled with that own identity crisis or what's the word I'm looking for? When, so for example, okay, so the moment. Yeah.
00:14:17
Speaker
Went to grad school for acting, so quick tangent. I am a certified public accountant. I have been an internal auditor for a big bank, and I left that world to go back to grad school for acting to get my MFA. And when I got there, even though I worked hard, of course, and have been performing since I was five, like singing, I had complete and utter imposter syndrome my first semester of grad school for acting.
00:14:46
Speaker
And so that journey of grad school really allowed me to disconnect. So I always, I also say I'm both right and left-brained and I am very grateful for that. But my left brain, the logical side has definitely been in charge most of my life. And so I've allowed myself to have creative expression through auditioning for other people's musicals or singing in a cabaret. But the creation side, I hadn't
00:15:16
Speaker
the right side, creative side, hadn't really honed in on much because I didn't know that I could. And I didn't believe that I could. And so then I get to grad school and I've already done some cool stuff and I'm pretty proud of where I'm at, right? And it probably, I really do think that I realized that I had become blossomed into the artist that I wanted to be, that I want to be, that I am when I was in the middle of writing my show.
00:15:45
Speaker
had to be an ethical slut. And I wrote that. Yeah. And I was like, wow, I am an artist now. And because I was, as I'm writing it, you know, I, I was just so proud of myself.
00:16:01
Speaker
even though there were times when I'm like, this is garbage, which we all go, we go through that journey as artists. Like you really, you think you're hot shit one minute and then the next minute nobody's gonna like this. Nobody's looking, nobody's listening. Look my way. This is my biggest thing ever. You're passing by. Exactly. And, but as I'm, as I'm in the middle of this really intense writing process, because I didn't give myself a lot of time because I didn't have a lot of time to write it because of
00:16:31
Speaker
Pandemic and school things and deadlines and dates and thesis proposal all that, right? But I was in the middle of this writing process and I'm just like, wow, I'm I'm doing this this is this and I like what I'm creating and I'm and I'm getting better at it each day that I'm writing each day that I'm editing each day that I'm Creating new parody songs or something
00:16:53
Speaker
Yeah. Yeah. That's wonderful to hear about that process going through there. And I got to tell you, you must take some pleasure in the accounting and how to be an ethical slut. I mean, I was just assuming that that just sitting there, you know, explains. Everyone is always shocked on both sides, like from the accounting, corporate side, they're like, you do what?
00:17:17
Speaker
And then from the actor side, they're like, wait, you're like smart? Oh, yeah. Yeah, nobody wants to. Nobody could feel they could integrate the world, which is I mean, I find that a lot with with with with artists. I think we end up looking at folks in a particular way. And I know I talk to artists all the time and I'll even ask the question about their art and the identity and stuff. And it's it's really interesting to see
00:17:42
Speaker
Like like say you could have you could have said to me i was a little kid i was running around i knew i was performing when i was four or you could say something but it was for you and not knowing but hearing about your experience it was like that creating in that embodiment with what you're doing in your like.
00:17:58
Speaker
I'm the person doing this. I'm the artist and that's really special. So about this, you've had the prep for other art performances and do other art. What's different about doing this in this type of way as far as preparation and like how you perform, right?
00:18:21
Speaker
Well, yeah. So, um, I pretty much wear every hat, which I used to wear the hat of performer. And now I wear playwright, marketer, um, you know, press for my frigid run in New York, specifically, I did hire someone to help for the first time, which is so nice. Yeah. Right. Help. Really, really helpful.
00:18:46
Speaker
But even so, I mean, I do all my social media. I have reached out to get interviews. And then, yeah, just the whole producer aspect of it as well. It's a lot. And so I will say I'm not perfect at it, but I think I do pretty well because I have a lot of energy. And when I put my mind into something, like watch out a world, get out of my way, it's going to happen.
00:19:11
Speaker
And so the hardest part is really just reminding myself to take that step back, to take that time to prep specifically as the actor. Yeah. Yeah. And so sometimes that's looked like five minutes before I go on being like, okay, I can't, I can't deal with anything in the lobby. I'm backstage now. I just need to get into Blake's headspace.
00:19:35
Speaker
I need to get in touch with my body and I need to just kind of hone in on the show, on the energy that I want and need for the show and just to really get into the present moment because my brain can be doing like 50 things at a time.
00:19:52
Speaker
Oh, but those tickets and that person in that present, you know, but really just allowing myself to say, OK, I'm an actor now. Yeah. Yeah. And that can alleviate, you know, I'd imagine for you just like a lot and existent in that space. That transformation is part of the reason I like I do to show us like the transformation or the magic or the unexplainable that, you know, that that that that occurs about the
00:20:18
Speaker
unexplainable. You're an artist, you create, you perform, try to transform, but what
Art as Connection and Reflection
00:20:27
Speaker
is art? What is art for you? Because you put your soul into the art, but what is art? What a grand question.
00:20:38
Speaker
uh to me today because this could change tomorrow but today in this moment I believe that art is connection and an exchange of energy and so what that looks like to me is I think that art is a wonderful way to allow us to reflect on the world and to be a reflection of the world and that
00:21:03
Speaker
allows me, for example, with my show specifically, it's allowed me to interpret and process parts of my own life while maybe allowing other people to connect to parts of that and open other people's minds and just also bring us together. And then art in a grander sense, I think that it's a really wonderful way to see the world without necessarily traveling. We can get so much
00:21:30
Speaker
from culture and human and humanity, human connection through different art, especially, you know, if we can go to the museum and see art from different parts of the world and just really reflect on what that means. And then going back to connection, you know, it brings people together and especially with the medium of theater, performance, music.
00:21:54
Speaker
I might have created the work mostly alone, but then when I perform it, hopefully there's people there, right? But there's people there and we're sharing this same ephemeral experience and that moment in time is beautiful.
00:22:11
Speaker
And I think that's so different than, you know, something that I might post on social media. Like I am here in person with you. I am I'm exchanging my energy. I'm giving it out to you. You're receiving it. You're listening to it. You're feeling it. We're creating this. And also there's all these other people in a room that we're bringing together.
00:22:33
Speaker
And same thing for visual art. It's so different to be in front of a painting or a sculpture than it is to just look at it on our phones. And so I think art, especially live and in person, is a beautiful way to connect and exchange energy. And at the end of the day, I hope to just make people feel things, to laugh and to ponder.
00:22:56
Speaker
Yeah, I love what you said, just identifying like live performance because I think like for many years when I was younger, I was just like a lot of things that I wanted to maybe music or listen to and hear. So it's like very much like what's the standard version? You know what I mean? Like it's like that's what I know. My mind was looking for that.
00:23:18
Speaker
And as time has gone by, I become really fascinated with the energy that exists within, you know, within performance. So I'll give you an example. Yeah. In the last last fall, working on the podcast, I've been working on three years or so. And whenever you experience creating and doing some for a while, you feel all the different things like you had said about things coming about or this is happening or I feel really good with this energy. And
00:23:44
Speaker
I don't know, I was just like languishing a little bit or like trying to find the energy through interaction and one of the things that broke it for me and I could feel it was I did the podcast in a different way. I just did it on the street with a music band Death Valley Girls and it's just like this super short episode and we're just
00:24:07
Speaker
It wasn't like what is our it was like we're outside of Portland you're gonna be performing It was just a really cool conversation before they went in and then I recorded some inside and I really loved their music and there was this like particular track that was just pounding and kept going and drawing you in and So I recorded that as well. So at the end of the time I was like I had captured just the going in in this
00:24:32
Speaker
Most of the time, you're experiencing music, not necessarily recording it and having it as a piece, but being able to listen to the energy that was inherent in the performance really energized me and catalyzed me being like, on this show, I need to have it.
00:24:50
Speaker
connected to some of that energy. It's not like every time somebody pops on and be like, hey, you know, like, but I needed to connect to that. And it really made a difference and really made me understand that I was desiring something that was from, hey, you know, just something that was happening right then. And that I've tried to try to infuse that that energy is just so
00:25:12
Speaker
something. What do you get on the energy bit though? You're in there in front of the audience. Like what, how do you, what is the, you know, is there a boundary? And just like, it's before the questions like is, is like you put this shell boundary actress actor boundary around you to like, cause the energies might be like super weird coming back, but just on that exchange, how does it feel for you going through the performance?
00:25:36
Speaker
Yeah. I mean, sometimes it's really exciting and exhilarating and energizing. And then other times it's terrifying because so when, so the way that I opened my show.
00:25:49
Speaker
I sing a song and then I try to purposefully, no fourth wall, talk to the audience, ask a few questions, you know what? Hey, thanks for coming all you sluts and I really get them like excited and engaged because I want to let them know that it's okay to do that. It's okay to be engaged because we're both going to have more fun if we are exchanging energy. If you feel permission to talk and laugh and who and holler or cry or gasp,
00:26:17
Speaker
please, because I want that energy. I want everyone to be able to feel that. And so, because I can't stand when I go to a theater show, and I know that we're supposed to be all proper sometimes, but when everyone's sitting there just like, and I'm like, bopping, like, yeah, this is- Come on, come on, join me. This is participatory. We're allowed to have fun. And so I want my audience to know they're allowed to have fun. They're allowed to participate. They can say things.
00:26:46
Speaker
And so that's how I like to start off the show. And oftentimes that works and people are engaged. Sometimes they're like a little skeptical. And then we've all had our performances in cities where maybe people are just like, what's happening? And so you have that energy too, where you're like, they're locked up, they're scared, they don't know what to do. And with the nature of my show, I totally understand that. I expect that at times. And so in those moments, it's just a matter of
00:27:16
Speaker
really honing in on what I'm doing and keeping the momentum forward in hopes that they will loosen up. And the more that I play, the more that they'll loosen up. And almost every time by the end, I think audiences do, but that exchange of energy as a performer is so important. And I have said for a while now that I think comedy is the scariest genre. Yeah, I mean, yeah.
00:27:44
Speaker
that you write yourself. What does your comedian friend that you reference, what's he say about the performance, what type of conversations you have about doing comedy? Because the joke that worked in Portland, Oregon didn't work in Denton, Texas. Right. Well, specifically, I don't really know how to answer that question.
00:28:13
Speaker
Because he helped me a lot with the first several drafts. And so just about the comedy in general, I will say what I've noticed is that it is different going from city to city. And this is the first time that I've not only traveled with the show, but I've traveled with my own show.
00:28:31
Speaker
And my own job is to be a comedy, or at least hopefully. It's a tragedy in the heartland, in the wrong town. Oh, exactly. And honestly, I have noticed that in the South and the Midwest, it is 100% a comedy. In the Northeast, it is a dramedy. And so it's just interesting the way that different audiences react to it.
00:29:00
Speaker
It's a big learning experience for me as an artist to see how different, yeah, different cultures, different areas of the United States so far react. Yeah. We get the next big manifestation of the show. Talk about that. Talk about what's upcoming and the performance on the stage in New York City.
Upcoming NYC Performance
00:29:21
Speaker
Yeah, yes. So I am very excited because I will be performing in New York City's Frigid Festival.
00:29:29
Speaker
which is a very awesome fringe festival. And it, my show runs from, it's the second half of February. I have five performances under St. Mark's, which I'm very excited about. And, you know, again, it's like another dream come true. I really wanted to perform at Philly. I really wanted to form in New York and- NYC. NYC. I mean,
00:29:55
Speaker
That's, you know, every theater person's dream or at least goal at some point. And so to be able to perform my show in New York is very exciting.
00:30:05
Speaker
That's incredible. I've had performers. I love connecting with performers out there in New York City. I'm filmmakers. I had Liz Kiger and Matthew Kyle Levine on the show. A good friend of mine growing up, Yael Thomas, was in the Bronx. I've gotten over on the show for about seven, eight, nine artists. I adore New York City. Haven't been in a while, but I could make it down there growing up in Rhode Island.
00:30:32
Speaker
Once I wanted to, I wanted to go on my own and do my things. So it's exciting to read about that coming up. And then, of course, coming right off the filly with the fans' response down there in the Fringe Festival is really exciting. I wanted to ask you a question about art and probably even particularly the art that you're doing.
Art's Role in Modern Society
00:30:55
Speaker
I asked the question about arts importance. And the fundamental question is, at least for me, the world feels different now than maybe a few years ago. Awareness around, you know, not awareness, but, you know, climate crisis and political turmoil and pandemic, all those type of things, which have kind of disrupted things.
00:31:20
Speaker
Do you think through that, that art's importance or role right now has changed? Or do you think it's art's art still trying to do what it's done? Do you think something's changed? I would argue that art has always been important, but I remember in the pandemic, when the heat of it, when everything was super locked down and we were pretty much all isolated in our homes, that all we could do was turn towards
00:31:49
Speaker
connection and art. And, you know, we all have probably seen the conversations or memes or whatever go around about, oh, like you want to watch Netflix now, but you don't want to pay actors a livable wage and that kind of stuff. And and then I remember, too, again, I think art is about connection. And I remember connecting with some of my best friends.
00:32:12
Speaker
who lived states away through Zoom because, I mean, that was all we had, but just that reminder of connection. And then, so anyway, going back to just our, I think it is important more so now than ever in the increasingly digital age, because I think we're sort of stuck in this disconnection on our phones. We think we're always connected over social media, but that is not the same kind of energy exchange as having those, as having like an intimate in-person conversation with your best friend or
00:32:43
Speaker
standing in front of an artist's painting and feeling the energy of it, or even standing in a crowd at a music performance, or for me, being a performer on a stage and vibing off of the audience's energy. And after being so isolated for so long and then the current, like I said, the current digital age where we're so
00:33:09
Speaker
fakely, falsely connected through our phones and social media, I think art is so important because it allows us to find ways to come together.
00:33:21
Speaker
One of the, I find it really important, I think with the conversations about art too, is one of the things that strikes me is, you know, I think a lot of people have a definition or are trying to figure out what, you know, what I as the host are saying is, you know, referring to as art. But I think the piece I really like from you is talking about that energy and the performance is why I really like to talk to
00:33:51
Speaker
live performance and the performing arts. And talking about painting, which I adore, there's always challenges in figuring out what is it that the art experience is in getting that through you. And I enjoy talking to you about that because I get that energy towards it and really excited to hear about
00:34:15
Speaker
about, you know, what you're doing. All right. So, Brooke McCarthy, you've been talking to Brooke McCarthy, artist, great conversation. We have a little bit more to talk about, but I wanted to, while you still have energy, hit you with the big question of why is there something rather than nothing,
Creative Process and Personal Experience
00:34:39
Speaker
Brooke?
00:34:39
Speaker
Yeah. So I was really excited when I first heard about your podcast, because it reminded me of this incredible workshop that I took. I think it was January of 2017. So there is a theater company in Philadelphia called Pig. I'm a theater company and they are both like a physical theater, devised company. And they also have an MFA program in, you know, devised theater. And so they did a two week workshop called something from nothing. And, uh, and that is sort of,
00:35:08
Speaker
inspired me a lot when you know creating art because also art is creation and so when you're thinking about something from nothing it's like everything is nothing or nothing is something and so you have to start somewhere and so even in this workshop i basically learned that you can create something from scratch but it's not really from scratch because you're starting somewhere whether you're starting from
00:35:37
Speaker
a picture and you're trying to put this picture into your body. Like let's say there's a bunch of polka dots and you just start jumping around the room because you're like, I am docs. Like whatever it is you're starting and then what is jumping around the room makes me feel like, Oh my God, it's making me feel really anxious. Maybe this is going to, maybe I'm going to go into a monologue about anxiety. I don't know, but something is or nothing is something. And so, and that is also creation.
00:36:04
Speaker
And so it's just beautiful how I think like any little idea is valid for art and can turn into art and can turn into a story, can turn into connection and exchange of energy.
00:36:16
Speaker
Oh gosh. Yeah, I don't have anything to say after that. I'll just knock the mic over. No, thank you. You know, the thing is when I asked the question too is, you know, is really like a license to talk about like why the heck we're doing anything, but also exactly your point that whether we're talking about creation of everything or we're talking about
00:36:39
Speaker
us piecing together things in creating something new. That process is fascinating because it's staking out a little bit of territory and saying, okay, this is what's going on here. That's where I think that I mentioned before, that magic or that space where it's like, I don't know how it happened, but it went from here over to here and now it's there. That's all.
00:37:08
Speaker
And then with my show, it was like, well, there was this time in my life that I learned a lot and grew so much as a person. And so I'm gonna turn it into a show. And it's like, how do you take three years of your life and turn it into an interesting, dramatic story? But again, you're taking something that seems like maybe nothing to someone else, but turning it into beautiful,
00:37:37
Speaker
a something of art of connection. I really appreciate your answer and your thoughts. Thank you. I want you to make sure you cover and tell the listeners
00:37:57
Speaker
particularly where to where to find you, where your various arts are, how to get and go to how to be an ethical slut in the performances and just let people know where to find Brooke McCarthy.
Performance Details and Social Media
00:38:12
Speaker
Great. Yeah. So first thing I will say is, like I said, I have performances the second half of February in New York City for the Frigid Fest. I'm also going to Austin, Texas at the end of January.
00:38:27
Speaker
to perform in Frontera Fest, which is Austin's Fringe Festival. So all of the information for anything, any way you want to find me, you can go to my website at www.howtobeanethicalslot.com. So hopefully you got that one. Wow. You got that one. Jump right in. I got it. Yeah. Good on you. I have merch on my website too. So if you're feeling extra slutty and you just want to rep it, go ahead and buy some merch. And that of course goes back to just help
00:38:55
Speaker
with all of the expenses of traveling and being a touring artist. And then the best way to just connect with me in the show is from my Instagram for the show, which is at how to be an ethical slut. And then same thing, I also have a TikTok, same handle at how to be an ethical slut. I post a little bit, sometimes I post like little extra things on TikTok, but Instagram is like my primary. If you want to know what's going on, check out Instagram. If you want to check out my Facebook,
00:39:25
Speaker
It's BM productions, LLC. And that basically is just for like to find the events in your area. So yeah, that's, that's where to find me. That's fantastic. I want to point out, thank you for your coverage in, in, in bravery and doing this, like I said, in starting in about the, um, you know, the, the, the high wire act and, and, and, and, and, but also I think, um,
00:39:50
Speaker
you know outside of the you know the The titillation of the of the title or the invitation or shock of the title. I think at essence What what you're getting at is you know?
00:40:10
Speaker
Read them expression connection with who you are as an individual individual. And I think the main thing I would say as far as conclusion like taken like from what you say is like.
00:40:23
Speaker
knowing who you are and not allowing something that you haven't analyzed or haven't vetted or haven't questioned dominate your life, right? Like, you know, like I'm not gonna become an artist because I'm doing this. I'm supposed to be checking the numbers, Brooke, and counting.
00:40:40
Speaker
And but I find humans so much and even myself at times where you get so limited in your scope of what's possible. And I just want to recognize the task of you performing this and also coming out to podcast show, you know,
00:41:00
Speaker
with the guy, you know, the philosophy guy, which I've been around philosophy guys, and sometimes they're they trip over their own feet a bit. But I just want to thank you so much for doing what you're doing. And I also like being to root for and be excited about.
00:41:16
Speaker
the show before it goes out there to New York City and look to keep a close look at that. I have friends out in New York City, too, so I'm going to try to share that out that way and see if I can get like, see what organic reach I have with the with the podcast. But we have some wonderful artists, of course, in New York City.
00:41:39
Speaker
Brooke, I wanted to thank you for coming on to the show and sharing with us. I just wanted to give you a final word or bye-bye, so whatever you want to do. Sure. Well, first of all, thank you, Ken. I really appreciate the time to nerd out about art, honestly. Yeah, that's what it is.
00:41:58
Speaker
It's really awesome. I mean, you don't really get to do that in every day unless you're around your like other super nerdy art friends. So I appreciate that. I appreciate what you do. I love that we're able to talk and have these conversations to just sort of push forward the positive meaning and influence that art has on our world and on us as humans, whether we're realizing that or not. And so thank you for what you do.
00:42:21
Speaker
It was this was a really great conversation and always every time I have a conversation like this, it just reminds me that, you know, art really is important and I hope to see more people own themselves and own their artistry.
00:42:36
Speaker
Yeah, yeah. Thank you, thank you for that. And yeah, and then for the show, looking at a big 2023, there's an energy that you and I have talked about and energy that you do, but it has to do with tapping in that energy and letting people feel like, you know, whether it is okay to geek out about art, it is okay to ask what the frig we're doing in life, it is okay to say,
00:43:00
Speaker
Am I being honest or am I caught in the life that I fucking hate or whatever you need? And then do something about it. Art is doing as well. And do something about it.
00:43:16
Speaker
Thank you, Brooke McCarthy. Best luck with the play and congratulations on your accomplishments thus far. Hopefully, you know, get you moving around the country with this and, you know, see, but great fortune and success for your artwork and
00:43:39
Speaker
I hope we chat again soon, maybe on the other side of the whole thing. But thanks again, Brooke. Yeah. Thank you so much, Ken. I really enjoyed this. Thank you. Bye. Bye-bye. This is something rather than nothing.