Susan Lewis

As the Free Library of Philadelphia continues its celebration of A Year of  Dickens, WRTI's Susan Lewis considers the lasting appeal of the 19th-century writer - 200 years after his birth.

The exhibition AT HOME ON THE STAGE: Charles Dickens and Theatre  is at the Rare Book Department of the Parkway Central Library through January 3rd, 2013.  A variety of Dickens-related programming is also scheduled, including literary salons that are considering a different Dickens novel each month. 

Philadelphia is a city rich with classical musical offerings, from Philadelphia Orchestra concerts at the Kimmel Center to recitals in homes, neighborhood churches, and community centers.  But there haven't always been public venues to hear chamber music – or presenters to bring in top talent.  

WRTI’s Susan Lewis looks at a driving force behind the city’s vibrant chamber music scene:  The Philadelphia Chamber Music Society. PCMS has been presenting world-class chamber music and recital concerts to the Greater Philadelphia region for more than a quarter century. The organization is committed to offering affordable tickets to listeners from all walks of life.

Check out the PCMS website for a lineup of extraordinary performances.

Trumpet virtuoso, singer and bandleader Louis Armstrong propelled jazz onto the mainstream stage, shaping the music with his own distinctive style.  Jazz documentary producer Ken Burns says “Armstrong is to music what Einstein is to Physics, and the Wright Brothers are to travel.”

Yet,  the man behind the legend is less well known.  The Wilma Theater is now staging Satchmo at the Waldorf, a one-man show by Terry Teachout, who is also the Wall Street Journal drama critic and the author of Pops: A Life of Louis Armstrong.  Both the book and the play are informed by audio tapes Armstrong made of his private conversations with friends and family.

Susan Lewis talks with playwright Terry Teachout, actor John Douglas Thompson, and WRTI's Maureen Malloy about Armstrong and his life, and about how the tapes, the book, and the play reveal a different, lesser-known side of the jazz icon.

As The Wilma Theater in Philadelphia stages the Terry Teachout play about the legendary trumpet player Louis Armstrong, Susan Lewis explores the life and work of this musical icon.

Information about Satchmo At The Waldorf at The Wilma Theater through December 2nd.

A new master plan for cultural and economic development in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania - Creative Montco - is investigated by Susan Lewis.

In the midst of a still rocky financial landscape, one suburban Philadelphia county is investing in the arts as a path to a more vibrant local economy. This fall, Montgomery County unveiled “Creative Montco” – an initiative created by a collaboration of  cultural groups, county government, community planners, and business, education, and foundation leaders.

Although it did not explicitly ban drinking, the 18th Amendment to the United States Constitution prohibited the manufacture, sale, or transportation of intoxicating liquors. Ratified in 1919, it took effect in 1920. By the time of its repeal, 13 years later in 1933, prohibition had triggered major changes in the American social, political and economic landscape.  The National Constitution Center is now staging an exhibition about that era.

As Philadelphia’s Rodin Museum reopens, WRTI's Susan Lewis explores the life and work of the iconic French sculptor Auguste Rodin (1840-1917).

As the National Constitution Center stages a major exhibition on Prohibition, WRTI's Susan Lewis looks at the early 20th-century ban on alcohol, and its consequences for American culture.

American Spirits: The Rise and Fall of Prohibition is at the National Constitution Center from October 19, 2012 to April 28, 2013.

Classical music is a complex art form, and learning an instrument well takes not only talent but many hours, days, and years of lessons and practice. While the talent necessary to play an orchestral instrument hasn’t changed much over the years, today, Internet and video technology are offering  new ways of teaching and learning an instrument, with the potential to connect large numbers of  students with some of the best musicians in the world.