VANCOUVER, Wash. – Re-Imagined Radio returns in May with two new radio plays: “The Immortal Sherlock Holmes” on May 10, and “Exuberance Is Beauty” on May 17.
The hour-long episodes will be broadcast at noon May 10 and May 17 on two local radio stations: Vancouver’s KXRW-FM (99.9 FM) and Portland’s KXRY-FM (91.1 FM or 107.1 FM). Rebroadcasts will be offered by Portland’s KUIK-AM (1360 AM), Salem’s KMWV-FM (98.3 FM), and CKXU, Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada, which in turn distributes Re-Imagined Radio across Canada. The performance will also be available online via the stations’ websites and will be archived at reimaginedradio.net.
The Immortal Sherlock Holmes
Arthur Conan Doyle introduced fictional detective Sherlock Holmes in 1887. Doyle’s 56 short stories and four novels are now considered milestones in the literary genre of crime fiction. Playwright and actor William Gillette adapted a script by Doyle into a 3-hour stage play, which in turn became the basis of a 1938 radio broadcast by Mercury Theatre on the Air. Drawing on all these sources and more, Re-imagined Radio has created its own adaptation of the Holmesean legacy.
“With this episode, we celebrate the greatest detective who never lived yet will always be immortal,” said John Barber, founder of Re-Imagined Radio and faculty member in the Creative Media and Digital Culture program at WSU Vancouver.
Exuberance Is Beauty
This episode tells the story about a secret love affair between Eve Miller, a young war widow, and a married art professor, Jeff Lambert. It is a contemporary interpretation of the biblical allegory of Adam and Eve, providing access to Eve’s internal monologue. “Exuberance Is Beauty” was written by Donna Barrow-Green and performed by Illuminus Productions, both based in Portland, Ore. It is adapted from their longer podcast series.
Barber called the radio play “a celebration of sound-based storytelling” that “provides a rich and detailed soundscape of post-World War II Portland.”
Community Partners
Re-Imagined Radio draws on community voice actors, Foley artists, musicians, sound artists and engineers. Partners include Holly Slocum Design, Illuminus Productions, the Kiggins Theatre, KXRW-FM, Martin John Gallagher Theatrical Music and Sound Design, Fuse Audio Design, Metropolitan Performing Arts, Regina Carol Social Media Management and Photography, and Willamette Radio Workshop. For the Sherlock Holmes episode, post-production sound work will be done by Marc Rose, a three-time Emmy winner for sound design, who lives in Portland.
About Re-Imagined Radio
Re-Imagined Radio was begun by Barber in 2013 to celebrate sound-based storytelling and pay tribute to the radio programs of the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s. Episodes initially were stage productions for live audiences, with limited opportunities for broadcast or streaming. Now, with COVID-19 restrictions, Re-Imagined Radio has become a monthly broadcast and livestreamed event.
About WSU Vancouver
As one of six campuses of the WSU system, WSU Vancouver offers big-school resources in a small-school environment. Both in person and online, the university provides affordable, high-quality baccalaureate- and graduate-level education to benefit the people and communities it serves. As the only four-year research university in Southwest Washington, WSU Vancouver helps drive economic growth through relationships with local businesses and industries, schools and nonprofit organizations.
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MEDIA CONTACT(S)
Brenda Alling, Office of Marketing and Communication, 360-546-9601, brenda_alling@wsu.edu