Podcast
The Gray Area
Hosted by Edward Champion · EN
The Gray Area is an audio drama anthology series, with very subtle and ever growing changes in the stories. It features talking animals, mysteriously enthusiastic receptionists, deranged scientists, a genius writer, strange portals that open into other universes, impostor gods, formidable business tycoons, alien invaders, and many, many demons.
10episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
Libromendel
Aug 500:53:29Tap to summarizeDuring an unspecified "government transition" in the near future, the young scholar Alejandra Cortez (no relation to AOC) returns home from Rhinebeck on an extremely rainy night and stumbles into a West Village café where she was once a regular during the Second Trump Administration. But aside from the rowdy RPG players, what happened to all the colorful eccentrics? Why does nobody remember the history of Café Gluck aside from an overworked barista named Sporschill? Who is the strange new owner claiming to be a "crypto king"? And why doesn't anybody remember the charming and eccentric old bookseller Jaime Abrego Mendel who set up shop in the adjacent card room every day? This full-cast 332 track standalone epic examines the true human cost of removing vital figures from American life. (Running time: 54 minutes) Written, produced, and directed by Edward Champion Adapted from the short story "Buchmendel" by Stefan Zweig Original music soundtrack by Edward Champion (You can listen to the soundtrack on YouTube. Subscribe to @finnegansache.) CAST: Alejandra: Belgys Felix Mendel: Wolf Reigns Florian: Zack Glassman Standhartner: Sally Maitland Sporschill: Julie Chapin Ramirez: Melissa Medina Dirks: Luvelle Pierre Tallis: Jack Ward Becky: Emily Carding ICE Officer: Will Billingsley ICE Officer #2: Frank Romeo Felicia/The Radio: Samantha Jo Clueless Customer: Glenn Kenny The New Yorkers: Heath Martin and Pauly Sinatra Boris: Pete Lutz DM: Dr. Implausible The Staffers: Ella Gans and Jay Silver Victim: Zoraya Christian Exuberant Customer: Lokia Rockwell Café Patron: Laura Spear and Edward Champion as The Assassin. This is a co-production of The Sonic Society and The Gray Area. Café songs licensed through Epidemic Audio Editing, sound design, mixing, foley recording, engineering, and mastering courtesy of an eccentric bald man in Brooklyn who buys and reads far too many books Special thanks to Jack Ward, Russ Marshalek, Laura Spear, Spacebar Recording, and Penny House Café for their incredible generosity and support during the making of this production. This production is dedicated to the many innocent and hardworking immigrants in the United States who are presently facing some of the most disturbing authoritarianism in this nation's history, as well as the late beloved bookseller Michael Siedenberg.
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Introducing Onlychatter.com
Dec 16, 202100:35:12Tap to summarizeWe've just launched a bold new experiment in independent podcasting and micropayments. It's called onlychatter.com. Our creator Edward Champion outlines the details of this new venture and unveils the first episode of a new comedic investigation podcast he's producing called HOW THE WORLD MAKES US. Please go to onlychatter.com and consider becoming a member today! For the price of a pint, you'll have instant access to 40 new episodes of lively podcasts!
Transcribe →An Alarming Message from Universe 224B
Oct 3, 202100:01:01Tap to summarizeWe've intercepted an alarming transmission from Universe 224B. Something about attending the 302nd Bureaucosmological Conference on October 16, 2021 at 7:00 PM at the Gene Frankel Theatre. We pass this information onto you so that you can make sense of this.
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13.4. Pattern Language: Mirrors of the Soul
Aug 31, 202100:55:44Tap to summarizeOur intrepid heroes visit the New York Public Library to meet up with visiting literary scholar Merrill Malone, an eccentric and the foremost expert on Virginia Gaskell's life and work, to get, once and for all, all the answers about the portals. What they don't realize is that shocking personal revelations and the very ground beneath their feet will alter forever within the library's seemingly pristine walls. (Running time: 55 minutes, 43 seconds.) Written, produced, and directed by Edward Champion. CAST: Chelsea: Katrina Clairvoyant Emily McCorkle: Belgys Felix Professor Malone: Robert Garson Jenna: Devony DiMattia Miss Gaskell: Chris Smith Maya: Tanja Milojevic Ed Champion: Edward Champion The Executive: Rachel Matusewicz Audrey: Amanda Rios Romero: David Ault Joe: David Sinkus The Guard: Graham Rowat and Zack Glassman as The Receptionist Incidental music licensed through Neosounds and MusicFox. Additional music composed by Edward Champion Sound design, editing, engineering, and mastering by a bald man in Brooklyn who clearly has some corporate identity issues to work out. Thank you for listening!
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Inside the Gray Area: "Pattern Language: An Iris for Emily"
Aug 28, 202100:30:28Tap to summarizeOur showrunner Edward Champion discusses Part 3 of "Pattern Language." Subjects discussed include WandaVision, the careful balance between realism and pastiche, the Faulkner short story as a starting point, Love and Rockets, why the memory of an inspiration is often better than closely examining the source text, designing the 1970s announcer voice, using 1970s television effects to create a sound design, being careful with laugh tracks, why Carol Jacobanis is an extraordinary actor, the advantages of recording with Belgys and Carol together in the same room, an abandoned first season script set within a talk show, Eric Bogosian's Talk Radio, avoiding rehashes while writing, inverting the Neil LaBute/David Mamet formula for women, the strange Italian references throughout The Gray Area, Heath Martin, Louis CK's apology, creating walla sounds for the journalists, how Carol struck the perfect balance between realism and stylized voices, the need to know where a story is heading within five minutes, story beats, the candid dialogue, growing up in a prudish household, both-siderism vs. all sides in journalism, statements on the public record, bullies and therapy, young people who talk down at older people, the impossible behavioral ideal in the digital age, Dostoevsky's Crime and Punishment, the fajita demon origin story, why Pompano made an appearance here is an NYC restaurant, fish metaphors, The Shawshank Redemption, meeting Frank Darabont as a young man, behavioral patterns and therapy, paying respectful homage to Richard Russo, the great versatility of Monica Ammerman, how a recording accident created an opportunity for greater authenticity, the Chico State backstory, how his California origins influenced the script, fluid sexuality, ghost writing, why alcoholics keep cropping up in The Gray Area, annoying the audience, animal sounds, Catholicism, why the ukulele was used in a music cue, Jeff Russo's Fargo cue, Tarantino and surf music, balancing demons and humans, Evita and fascism, Argentine history, the disadvantages of being a horror movie fan while doing sound design, beta listener feedback, arriving at natural storytelling beats, the importance of the cart sound effect, electromatter sound design, learning the keyboard and composing primitive music, the high price of music clearance, barking dogs and the "black dog" of depression, being careful with storytelling explanations, wordplay as a source of creative inspiration, double-tracking to get vocal effects, creating ethereal sounds from homegrown recording, how using a keyboard altered the sound design, the responsibility of following up on storytelling points, a minor story problem in "An Iris for Emily," Johnny as Ed's dark half, and overly dramatic performance vs. melodrama. (Running time: 30 minutes, 27 seconds.)
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13.3. Pattern Language: An Iris for Emily
Aug 17, 202100:38:02Tap to summarizeEmily McCorkle has landed the media appearance of a lifetime: a guest spot on the most respected talk show in America. But why is the host so concerned with her private details? And why are so many skeletons from her past making guest appearances? And who is the strange man with the hot dogs? (Running time: 38 minutes, 1 second.) Written, produced, and directed by Edward Champion. CAST: Emily McCorkle: Belgys Felix Ophelia Kakanakis: Carol Jacobanis June: Monica Ammerman The Fajita Demon: Pete Lutz The Cunning Demon: Leanne Troutman Morris Pressman: David Tao Jimmy Markson: Heath Martin Johnson: Hilah Hallaway Emily's Mom: Melissa Medina Emily's Dad: David Sirkus Chelsea: Katrina Clairvoyant Maya: Tanja Milojevic Ed Champion: Edward Champion Reporter #1: Glenn Bulthius Reporter #2: Alice Fox and Zack Glassman as The Receptionist Creature Voices by Samantha Cooper and Rachel Baird Incidental music licensed through Neosounds and MusicFox. Additional music composed by Edward Champion. Sound design, editing, engineering, and mastering by a bald man in Brooklyn who has become a TikTok junkie seemingly against his will. Thank you for listening
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Inside the Gray Area: "Pattern Language: Not a Frown Further"
Aug 10, 202100:26:09Tap to summarizeOur showrunner Edward Champions dives into the second chapter of "Pattern Language." Subjects discussed include creative dissatisfaction, basing the story arc on being personally libeled by a journalist, writing as an act of being peace, resisting the temptation to write from revenge, fantasy as a genre where real-life people incapable of empathy express it as new characters, designing the telephone muttering, invasion of privacy, when culture doesn't allow people to change, how Belgyis Felix landed the role by staying in character as a demon during a play, the Adelphi school of acting, the remarkable acting range of Belgys Felix, how McCorkle's recalcitrance reflected his own arrogant past, the immaturity and narcissism of star journalists, the public profile vs. the private character of a person, the "worst X" as a headline, wishful thinking about editorial standards, Kevin Fogelberg and Dan Fogelberg, allusions to the Hulk Hogan Gawker suit, the New York Times vs. Sullivan standard and libel, advertorial articles and puff pieces in the magazine industry, ideologues who claim to be journalists, basing Morris Pressman on Ben Hecht plays, larger-than-life characters, Slate reporters who manipulate content for white-collar workers, floral allegories, the influence of Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me, his tendency to write stylized men, recording subway and New York sounds, tying the many loose strands together, the Ed and Maya conversation as a callback to "Dearer than Earsight," why it's important to cast someone better than you if you appear in your own audio drama, addressing the events of "Fuel to the Fire," why he had to hire a German translator, why Tanja Milojevic is brilliant, scouring for German idioms, why there are so many Receptionists in the main universe, the influence of Stranger than Paradise on music licensing, casting a real estate broker as a corporate tycoon, the parallels between Chelsea and The Wizard of Oz's Dorothy, location audio in Midtown, the tendency to run into random people quite frequently in New York City, coincidental run-ins in stories, clarifying previous story details, chase scenes, the crazed amount of Tony Danza research done for The Gray Area, Christopher Alexander and "pattern language," and demon transformation. (Running time: 26 minutes, 8 seconds)
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13.2. Pattern Language: Not a Frown Further
Aug 3, 202100:32:23Tap to summarizeMonths after the events of "Paths Not Taken," Chelsea is working hard to turn a corner and improve her life. But when Emily McCorkle, the smear merchant journalist who severely damaged her reputation, returns to write a followup piece, Chelsea is thrown into a jarring maelstrom that involves demons, people from her past, and the possibility of redemption. (Running time: 32 minutes, 22 seconds.) Written, produced, and directed by Edward Champion. CAST: Chelsea: Katrina Clairvoyant Emily McCorkle: Belgys Felix Maya: Tanja Milojevic Morris Pressman: David Tao Ed Champion: Edward Champion Alicia: Elizabeth Rimar Johnson: Hilah Hillaway The Fajita Demon: Pete Lutz The Cunning Demon: Leanne Troutman Lucinda: Emily Carding Mrs. Gelding: Westlake Stark and Zack Glassman as The Receptionist Creature Voices by Samantha Cooper and Rachel Baird Incidental music licensed through Neosounds and MusicFox. Additional music composed by Edward Champion. Sound design, editing, engineering, and mastering by a bald man in Brooklyn who does his best to resist mayonnaise but can't entirely fight the allure for a good tuna sandwich. Thank you for listening!
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Inside the Gray Area: "Pattern Language: The Tainted Grimace"
Jul 20, 202100:19:09Tap to summarizeOur showrunner Edward Champion discusses the first chapter of "Pattern Language." Subjects discussed include his hesitations about creating, the dangers of revealing too much, Chris Ware, being dubious about your own work, why the first part of "Pattern Language" was split into two parts, why Pete Lutz is a marvelous man, how an old UCB trick resulted in the strange mix of Shakespeare and I Love Lucy, designing custom vernacular, the absence of slang in fantasy stories, Total Meats as a metaphor for Whole Foods, scouring through mythology to come up with obscure beast and creature names, the influence of Hitchhiker's, Douglas Adams, the number of alternative Eds buried within The Gray Area, why Leanne Troutman is a magnificent actor, Peter Falk impressions, the importance of being present as a director, the number of takes you should do with an actor, using every spatula in the house for the BBQ sound design, how being a prolific cook inspires fictitious food dishes, convincing eating moments on film, Moonstruck, how his opposition to self-checkout in stores inspired worldbuilding, London store technology, people and robots, creating fictitious geography, why the Johnsons matter in The Gray Area, the fajita demon origin story, the influence of Fritz Leiber, Terry Pratchett and the Rincewind novels, recording electrical sounds for the Gray Area, having doubts as an artist, stylizing the demons as wiseacres, showing the humanity of outliers, why the demons are obsessed with exercise, using music to cloak deficiencies, Terminator 2, and telling a story from the demon's perspective. (Running time: 19 minutes, 8 seconds.)
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13.1. Pattern Language: The Tainted Grimace
Jul 20, 202100:20:55Tap to summarizePat Goras and Lucy Didas are a happy couple living in a fantastical suburban realm preparing for a delightful dragon brisket barbeque with their neighbors. But when a strange portal opens in their backyard, their lives and roles become permanently altered within the very Gray Area itself! (Running time: 20 minutes, 54 seconds) Written, produced, and directed by Edward Champion. CAST: Pat Goras/The Fajita Demon: Pete Lutz Lucy Didas/The Cunning Demon: Leanne Troutman The Neurotic Demon: Melissa Medina The Counting Demon: Vlasto Pejic The Angsty Demon: Nick Boesel Miss Gaskell: Chris Smith and Zack Glassman as The Receptionist Creature Voices by Samantha Cooper and Rachel Baird Incidental music licensed through Neosounds and MusicFox. Additional music composed by Edward Champion Sound design, editing, engineering, and mastering by a bald man in Brooklyn who once considered reciting Dr. Seuss's Green Eggs and Ham in Latin. Thank you for listening!
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