As Music Mountain Theatre celebrates Pride Month, "Just Upstage of Downtown" discusses issues related to acceptance, inclusivity, gender nonconformity, and progress within the theatrical world. Joining the podcast for this episode are MMT co-artistic directors Jordan Brennan and Louis Palena and performers John Dwyer, Olivia Frankenbach, Grace Paulicelli and Bill Weir in a revealing roundtable discussion that crosses many decades and generations leading up to the present day.

Have you ever been "bitten by the bug?" Did it happen as a kid or as an adult? In this episode of "Just Upstage of Downtown," stand-up comedian and bestselling author Aidan Park talks about his journey to "make it" as a professional musical theatre actor, a quest he set aside almost a decade ago -- before a cross-country engagement to play Leo Bloom in Music Mountain Theatre's 2022 run of "The Producers" rekindled his love of musicals. Aidan also discusses the need to be versatile and develop a wide range of skills as an artist, and what he's been doing to further his career as a content creator while overseeing his own charitable foundation.

In May 2022, a COVID-19 outbreak knocked out nearly one-fifth of the cast and some of the crew of Music Mountain Theatre's production of "The Producers." Almost exactly one year later, "Just Upstage of Downtown" reunites several of those cast members to discuss how an already chaotic run was thrown into sudden mayhem -- including a Saturday night performance unlike any other MMT has been witness to in its six-year history.