Ep. #123 – Feat. Angélique Roché

In this episode Matt chats with the incredible Angélique Roché. Angélique is a host, attorney, content creator, and writer focused on the intersections of activism, policy, politics, current events, and nerd culture. The two chat about Angélique’s podcasts and the creative processes behind them. She also talk about how she got started as a content creator and writer. Finally, Matt and Angélique geek out about a great many things including comics, novels, TV, movies and video games.

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Ep. #122 – Feat. Rex Halligan

In this episode, Matt welcomes stage kitten, burlesque performer and punk rock enthusiast Rex Halligan. Matt and Rex chat about how he got involved in burlesque as well as how he pursues new acts and updates existing ones. The two also talk about the NYC club scene and how performances and venues have changed over the years. Rex shares his love of pets, and opens up about what burlesque truly means to him.

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Ep. #121 – Feat. Ophidian

OH YEAH! This week Matt welcomes professional wrestler, Ophidian The Cobra, to the podcast! To start, the two reminisce about wrestling days of old and chat about how Ophidian got his start in the ring. They chat about Closet Champion, a wrestling costuming business, run by him and Kate Nyx. They also dive into the similarities between burlesque and wrestling, and why shows like Tasselmania and GLOB (Gorgeous Ladies of Burlesque) are matches made in heaven. Finally, Matt learns about what it’s like for Ophidian to teach wrestling and what he’s learned along the way.

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Ep. #120 – Feat. The Return of Viktor Devonne

This week Matt welcomes back burlesque producer, performer, and podcaster, Viktor Devonne. The two catch up on all the new things in Viktor’s life since his last appearance on the show. They talk about “WE Burlesque: The Podcast,” the growth and change of White Elephant Burlesque, getting married, and new acts he’s developed. Viktor also talks about his upcoming new podcast “2 Night Stay: Stories from The Gilman.”

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Ep. #119 – The Brother of Death: Neil Gaiman’s Sandman and Goth Culture

This episode deviates from the norm a little. Instead of an interview, this is the live recording of a panel that Matt was on about Neil Gaiman’s Sandman and Goth Culture at Dark Side Of The Con 3 presented by VampireFreaks. Matt is joined by Raina Sinclair and Caitlin Strachan. Raina is a writer, burlesque performer and co producer for Magical Girl Burlesque as well as a self proclaimed weeb and huge comic book nerd. Caitlin works as a freelance product manager with a focus on production design and also in her free time she volunteers and waxes poetics on various nerdy subjects. A huge thank you again to the incredible crowd, Jet, Julia O’ Connell and VampireFreaks for making all of this possible.

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Ep. #118 – Q+A with Stabbing Westward

In this episode, Matt had the pleasure of moderating a Q+A with Mark Eliopulos, Christopher Hall, and Walter Flakus of the band Stabbing Westward. The panel took place at Dark Side Of The Con 3, presented by VampireFreaks. This podcast deviates from the usual formula as Matt mostly plays the role of facilitator to the con crowd’s great questions while still asking a few of his own along the way. A huge thank you to the incredible crowd, Jet, Julia O’ Connell and VampireFreaks for making all of this happen as well as Mark, Chris and Walter for taking the time to chat.

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Ep. #117 – Feat. Hazel Tart

On this episode of Autographs, Matt chats with the incomparable drag and burlesque badass, Hazel Tart. Hazel talks with Matt about how she got her start in the drag scene, her discovery of burlesque, her love of a variety of nerdy pursuits, as well as what goes into building a performance. They also discuss the great lengths to which Hazel goes in order to craft unique narratives in those performances. Finally, Matt and Hazel dive into Hazel’s hiatus from performing — and why she felt she need to take a step back.

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Ep. #116 – Feat. Miss Frankie Eleanor

This week Matt welcome burlesque performer and producer, Miss Frankie Eleanor, to the podcast. Miss Frankie shares the story of her start in burlesque and tells Matt what lead to her creating her own show, Butter Pecan Burlesque. They talk about Rabbit Hole Production’s upcoming show, Tasselmania 3, and how Miss Frankie got involved. She also talks about her process for creating acts, how she draws inspiration for creating, and how she’s working to constantly evolve her performances.

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Ep. #115 – Feat. Julia O’Connell

On this latest episode, Matt welcomes Julia O’Connell — blogger, goth nerd, and panel coordinator for this year’s Dark Side Of The Con III in Parsippany, NJ, presented by VampireFreaks.com. The two chat about how Julia got her start writing for Vampire Freak as well as creating her own Gothic literature blog, The Gothic Library. We also discuss how she got involved with Dark Side Of The Con III, what she’s most looking forward to at this year’s event, and what panels Matt will be appearing on. Finally, we discuss the tropes and stereotypes about goth culture, and how this con looks to challenge those.

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Ep. #114 – Feat. Ben Milton and Addy Thomas

On this week’s episode, Matt chats with the creators of the Certain POV podcast and podcast network, Ben Milton and Addy Thomas. They share stories of their old radio days, the start of the podcast, as well as the creation of the network. The guys nerd out about Star Wars, speak about future projects in the works, and talk next steps for the network. Be sure to check out Matt’s other podcasts on Ben and Addy’s network: Reignite, “Fun” & Games and Screen Snark.

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