For 35 years, “Selected Shorts,” the beloved National Public Radio program, has brought the art of storytelling to radio audiences across the country. On March 9, the show left its longtime home at Symphony Space in New York City for a live taping at the Stissing Center in Pine Plains — filling the venue to capacity.
As in every episode, “Selected Shorts” paired celebrated actors with carefully chosen short stories, all tied to a theme. The theme for the show recorded in Pine Plains: transitions.
The presentation, featuring four distinct stories, was hosted by comedian and writer Ophira Eisenberg, who warmed up the audience of nearly 250 people by saying she was excited to be up in the country for one reason: “eggs!” With a dozen selling for $10 in her Brooklyn neighborhood, she said she was considering getting a chicken for her apartment.
The first story was read by David Strathairn who received an Academy Award nomination in 2006 for his portrayal of journalist Edward R. Murrow in “Good Night, and Good Luck” and has had a long and significant career in both film and on stage. Strathairn read “Green,” by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Steven Millhauser. In “Green,” a suburban town is infatuate by the idea of replacing grass with decorative tile — then takes the concept to extremes. Strathairn’s calm, clear delivery brought the comedic and frightening twists and turns of Millhauser’s strange fictional town to a satisfying conclusion.
Lauren Ambrose, who has Emmy and Tony nominations to her credit, read “Quantum Voicemail,” by Kristen Iskandrian, a writer who co-owns a bookstore in Alabama. The story presents two women who are supposedly best friends though they have not met face-to-face in two decades, communicating only by voicemail. When one decides to come visit, the protagonist is shaken by the prospect, then fully disturbed when she doesn’t recognize her friend when she arrives. Eisenberg read the third offering, a brief tale by Israeli writer Etgar Keret. Both humorous and poignant, “Squirrels” follows a family after the death of the paternal parent. The squirrel, a large one, has a short but central role as the concept of reincarnation enters the family’s consciousness.
The final story, “Blessed Deliverance,” by Jamel Brinkley, a teacher at the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, was read by Teagle F. Bougere. A stage actor with a long list of accomplishments, Bougere recently portrayed James Baldwin in “Debate: Baldwin vs. Buckley,” which was performed in New York City, Chicago and Europe. “Blessed Deliverance” follows five teens as they learn to understand and appreciate a man from their neighborhood who had been considered mentally ill.
The Stissing Center performance was recorded for broadcast and will air no earlier than May. “Selected Shorts” is heard locally on WAMC at 11 a.m. on Sundays — at 90.9 FM, 103.3 FM, or 105.1 FM, depending on location.