Posted by | Ray Cornelius
HBO debuted its new six-episode podcast on Wednesday (February 14) titled “Where Do You Exist?” The first episode is available now on Apple Podcasts and SoundCloud. Highlighting central themes from HBO’s new series created by Alan Ball, “Here and Now,” the podcast weaves together a series of live, pre-recorded stories from thought leaders and special guests across the country exploring the complexities of identity, belonging and family.
The “Where Do You Exist?” podcast was recorded live in Portland, Los Angeles and New York City. Each live event invited speakers to share humorous, yet timely, personal stories touching on experiences of trials, triumphs and moments of personal discovery that helped define who they are in the context of today’s world, tapping into Here and Now’s core themes.
“Here and Now” centers on a progressive couple played by Tim Robbins and Holly Hunter, who have one biological daughter and three adopted multicultural children from around the world – an effort to create a new kind of family. Exploring what it’s like to be an “other” in America, the series touches on political, familial, cultural, spiritual and psychological issues of today’s society.
The “Where Do You Exist?” live recordings were hosted by notable comedian Chris Garcia, whose credits span NPR’s This American Life, The WTF Podcast with Marc Maron and Comedy Central’s @Midnight, among others.
In Portland, speakers included Chris Garcia, Luis Ortega, Nong Poonsukwattana, Lucia Martinez Valdivia, Margaret Jacobsen and Solomon Georgio; Los Angeles speakers included Samantha Futerman, Mary Beth LaRue, Ira Madison, Andrew Ti, Priyanka Mattoo and Julissa Calderon; and New York City speakers included Baratunde Thurston (pictured above), Lacey Schwartz, Lisa Pollak, Eudora Peterson and Emil Wilbekin.
Speakers shared anecdotes exploring identity via various topics ranging from the moment they realized their own race, to discovering their adoption status as a young adult, to reconciling sexual identity in the context of faith and familial relationships.
Photo Credits: HBO
