Press Kit
“There is a stranger outside your house. He is old, ragged, and dirty. He is tired. He has been wandering, homeless, for a long time, perhaps many years. Invite him inside. […] Bring him some food, the best you have, and a cup of wine. Let him eat and drink until he is satisfied. Be patient. When he is finished, he will tell his story. Listen carefully. It may not be as you expect.”
- The Odyssey, translated by Emily Wilson
Hearthbound is a queer musical audio drama podcast set in a post-apocalyptic Great Basin. It’s a love story, a road trip, and a poultice in an age of loneliness.
The story is a softer and warmer reimagining of The Odyssey. It’s a story about found family and ecological restoration that embraces the radical joy inherent in hopepunk. It doesn’t shy away from the complexities of relationships, loss, and grief, but neither is it weighed down by them.
Made for an audience that believes that community has the power to heal new wounds and old scars, Hearthbound hopes to hold us all closer together, even when we are apart.
About Hearthbound
Writer and Producer: Jo Chiang
Director: Jack Towhey Calk
Music Director: Ginger Dolden
Sound Designer: Levi Sharpe
Odessa is voiced by Jo Chiang
Cal is voiced by Manami Maxted
Paulie is voiced by Amy Surratt
Medea is voiced by Liba Vaynberg
Circe is voiced by Arielle Yoder
Hank/Man on Tape is voiced by Francisco Alvidrez
Penelope is voiced by Keren Abreu
Uri is voiced by Othello Pratt Jr.
Theo is voiced by Leana Gardella
Tig is voiced by Blair Medina-Baldwin
Cassandra is voiced by Niki Asfar
Manny is voiced by Pete Winfrey
Helen is voiced by Tosha Taylor
Nico is voiced by Schuyler Van Amson
Antony is voiced by Joey Odom
Markus is voiced by Jack Towhey Calk
Disc Jockey is voiced by Lillian Meredith
Cast and Crew
Jo Chiang is a queer Taiwanese-American storymaker/agitator based in Brooklyn. Her film work has been featured by Women & Hollywood, Wifey.tv, Everyday Feminism, and Upworthy. Her work as a performer has mostly fallen into two categories– that is, really weird experimental theatre and Shakespeare, while as a writer she plays jumprope with the line between the dystopic/utopic. She has been seen onstage at Dixon Place, 13th Street Repertory Company, and La Mama ETC.
About the Creator
Website hearthboundpod.com
Email hello@hearthboundpod.com
Release Date Fall 2024
Release Schedule Biweekly on Tuesdays
Recording Studio
Multitude in Greenpoint, Brooklyn
Bantam Studios in Park Slope, Brooklyn
Social Media Follow creator, Jo Chiang (@everjoslightly), for social updates on Instagram, Twitter, Tiktok, and Tumblr.
Podcast Details
Trailer
As a team of predominantly Q/POC cast and crew, we believe representation matters. Characters were cast and revised to respect and elevate the talent who portray them, and the themes running through our story are dear to our hearts as members from the intersections of many communities.
Some episodes contain occasional swearing.
Episode 6 depicts a scene that includes graphic violence.