‘Wives and Daughters’ by Elizabeth Gaskell presented by The Online Stage.

‘Wives and Daughters’ follows the daily life of a widowed county doctor, Mr. Gibson, and his daughter, Molly. During our time with the Gibsons, Mr. Gibson decides to marry a woman who has a daughter near Molly’s age, Cynthia. Molly and Cynthia grow up together, fall in love, and spend their days with the many characters in Hollingford.

Cast:

Narrator – Sybil Johnson

Mr. Gibson – Rob Goll

Molly Gibson – Anna Grace

Mrs. Kirkpatrick – Elizabeth Klett

Cynthia – Amanda Friday

Squire Hamley – Jeff Moon

Mrs. Hamley – Sara Sheckells

Roger Hamley – Tyler Hyrchuk

Osborne Hamley – Lance Rasmussen

Lord Cumnor – Graham Scott

Lady Cumnor – Lillian Rachel

Lady Cuxhaven – Shaina Summerville

Lady Agnes – Grace Keller Scotch

Lady Harriet – Leanne Yau

Lord Hollingford – Kyle Alan

Mr. Preston – Andy Harrington

Mrs. Goodenough – Sara Morsey

Miss Phoebe – Trisha Rose

Mrs. Parkes – Sarah Mitchell

Old Silas – Josh Innerst

Aimee – Tiffany Halla Colonna

Grandchild – Isabelle Friday

Audible/Amazon

The Trojan Women by Euripides, translated by Ian Johnston, presented by The Online Stage.

Euripides’s play follows the fates of the women of Troy after their city has been sacked, their husbands killed, and their remaining families taken away as slaves. It serves as an anti-war narrative as it highlights the suffering of the women left behind. The tragedy also calls attention to how women were treated as commodities in the past by showing how they were divided among the remaining men as spoils of war.

Cast:

Narrator – Jeff Moon

Hecuba – Sara Morsey

Chorus Leader – Sybil Johnson

Chorus / Athena- P. J. Morgan

Talthybius – Jon Bolitho-Jones

Poseidon / Menelaus – Rob Goll

Helen – Amanda Friday

Cassandra – Shaina Summerville

Andromache – Nichole James

Audible/Amazon

Artists in Ukraine have lost their livelihoods. The Ukraine Audiobook Relief Project was launched to support artists in Ukraine whose lives are threatened because of war.

It is a fundamental aspect of war to suppress story, language, and culture. Moved by this crisis of culture, members of PANA (the Professional Audiobook Narrators Association) created this audiobook to raise money for Ukrainian relief. Joined by writers and musicians, we have volunteered our work to show our support for artists living through war.

100% of the profits from the sale of this audiobook donated by PANA (pronarrators.org) will provide financial support to the Artists at Risk Connection in Ukraine through PEN America, a non-profit organization that endeavors to safeguard the right to artistic freedom of expression and ensure that artists and cultural professionals everywhere can live and work without fear. We urge you to support humanitarian efforts in Ukraine by supporting its artists.

The folk wisdom of Ukraine includes this expression: “A word is not a sparrow … once it flies out, you won’t catch it.”

‘A Word Is Not A Sparrow’ is a diverse anthology of stories set amid Russian repression through the centuries; personal narrator testimony about the impact in America of immigrant grandparents from Ukraine and elsewhere; powerful fables and allegories that deliver universal messages about displacement, migration, and human connection; and classic Cossack folk tales that are a touchstone of Ukrainian culture. Listen as we let these words fly out around the world.

Narrated by PANA member volunteers Barry Abrams, Jennifer Jill Araya, Dave Arlington, Rosemary Benson, Anna Crowe, Claudia Dunn, Andrea Emmes, Gary Furlong, Rebecca Gallagher, Caroline Hewitt, Susan Iannucci, Elizabeth Jasicki, Tom Jordan, Jennifer March, Janet Metzger, Rich Miller, Erin Moon, Sara Morsey, Traci Odom, Sheri Saginor and Tiffany Williams.

Music by Michael Nazaretz & the Samovar Russian Folk Ensemble, Jeff Crompton, Roger French, and Kenny Raskin.

Writers include Barry Abrams, Sholem Yankev Abramovitsh, Andrea Emmes and Karen Bogle, Vladislav Davidzon, Christopher Dewees, Thaisa Frank, Teresa Johnson, Alla Kudzieva, Taras Shevchenko, and Marsha Forchuk Skrypuch.

©2000, 2022, 2023 Yulia’s Morning © 2023; Jewish Ukraine Fights Nazi Russia © 2022; Four (by Two) © 2022, by Teresa Johnson. Excerpt from Fishke the Lame published in Yiddish in 1869 by Mendele Moykher-Sforim. Translation by Ken Frieden © 2000 by Syracuse University…licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 license. Other stories are in the public domain or have been contributed by contemporary authors (P)2024 PANA

Audible/Amazon

Heidi by Johanna Spyri presented by The Online Stage.

Heidi, a five-year-old orphan girl, is sent to live with her grandfather up in the mountains of Dorfli after her Aunt Dete receives a job offer in the city. Enchanted by the old man and his jaded attitude towards the villagers and God, Heidi wins him over with her enthusiasm and love. When her aunt returns, she insists Heidi go to live with a wealthy family in Frankfurt. Disappointed to leave her grandfather and her friend, Peter, Heidi reluctantly agrees. There she meets Clara Sesemann, a young girl who cannot walk, and the two girls strike up an immediate friendship. But Heidi misses her grandfather and cannot wait to return once again up the mountain.

Cast:

Narrator – Amanda Friday

Heidi – Isabelle Friday

Grandfather – Jeff Moon

Clara – Anna Grace

Peter/Sebastian – Tyler Hyrchuk

Grandmother – Sara Morsey

Frau Sesemann/Barbel – Nancy Peterson

Herr Sesemann – Max Gallo

Doctor/Pastor – Josh Innerst

Fraulein Rottenmeier – Elizabeth Klett

Brigitta/Tinette – Erin Grassie

Dete – Sydnee Fullmer

Boy – Jonah VanderLugt

Amazon/Audible • iTunes

A Gene Stratton Porter Collection

Freckles and A Girl of the Limberlost are two of Gene Stratton Porter’s most famous novels. Set primarily in the Limberlost Swamp of Indiana, USA, Freckles follows the story of Freckles, a lame orphan whose innate character rises above his circumstances. A Girl of the Limberlost is the story of Elnora, blamed for her father’s death by her mother, who nevertheless meets every challenge that comes her way with admirable resilience. Uplifting and encouraging family listening!

Narration by Susan Iannucci. Also featuring the voices of David Shears, Sarah Bacaller, Ben Stevens, Linda Barrans, Graham Scott, Marty Krz, John Burlinson, Trisha Rose, Lee Ann Howlett, J D Sutter, Lee Ann Howlett, Andy Harrington, Emma Faye, Adam Skousen, Sara Morsey, and Kendra Murray.

Amazon/Audible • iTunes

Emily of New Moon by L.M. Montgomery presented by The Online Stage.

Emily Starr is sent to New Moon Farm on Prince Edward Island following the death of her dear father. She lives with her two aunts and her cousin Jimmy. Emily has a hard time getting along with Aunt Elizabeth but has great plans to become a writer.

Less well known than the Anne of Green Gables series, L.M. Montgomery reportedly feels closer to Emily in personality and even experienced some of the same events in her own life.

Cast:

Narrator—Amanda Friday

Emily Starr—Anna Grace

Aunt Elizabeth—Merete Mohs

Aunt Laura—Erin Grassie

Cousin Jimmy—Tyler Hyrchuk

Ilse Burnley—Grace Keller Scotch

Aunt Tom—Sara Morsey

Great-Aunt Nancy—Alyssa Petrey

Dr. Burnley—Marty Krz

Father Cassidy—Jeff Moon

Miss Brownell—Tiffany Halla Colonna

Teddy Kent—Andy Harrington

Perry Miller—Tim Sailer

Ellen Greene—Rosie O’Toole

Amazon/Audible • iTunes

Why do good women stay with bad men?

What if political wives are just as calculating as their infamous husbands?

If Hillary Clinton had left her marriage, she might only be known as the spurned wife of a retired politician. Instead, she became the first woman to run for U.S. president on a major party ticket.

Veteran political journalist Anne Michaud knows the hidden agendas women employ to gain and cling to power. Working as a reporter for The Wall Street Journal and awarded “Columnist of the Year” by the New York News Publishers Association, Anne has researched the women behind some of the most notorious men in the public eye.

She discovered a surprising pattern as old as the dynastic maneuverings of England’s medieval queens. Today, women married to the “royalty” of our times—politicians—make bold decisions to keep their “thrones” and their family’s history-making potential.

Why They Stay reveals the inner lives of eight political wives as they fight to maintain a grip on power and pursue personal ambition:

Melania & Donald Trump: A foreigner’s desire to live the American dream

Hilary & Bill Clinton: One masterful decision launched her political career

Jackie & John F. Kennedy: Coping in bed and all the way to the bank

Eleanor & Franklin D. Roosevelt: A lifeless marriage sparks a social champion

Marion Stein & Jeremy Thorpe: Riding out British scandal to provide for her sons

Wendy & David Vitter: Married to the Party versus married to a man

Silda Wall & Elliot Spitzer: Real-life drama spawns TV show The Good Wife

Huma Abedin & Anthony Weiner: How to win against a man and the Media

These political wives aren’t powerless pawns. They are shrewder than you expect. Why They Stay pulls back the curtain to reveal why women throughout history stand by their man … for better and for worse.

Amazon/Audible • iTunes

Queen Marguerite de Navarre (April 11, 1491-December 21, 1549) was one of the most powerful women of her age, having helped to negotiate the Treaty of Cambrai, known as the Ladies’ Peace. She was the wife of both Charles IV, duke of Alençon, and Henry II of Navarre, and the grandmother of King Henry IV of France.

Her masterpiece, The Heptameron, is a collection of some 72 stories told by five gentlemen and five ladies who find themselves stranded in an abbey. Proposed as an edifying way of passing the time while a bridge is being repaired, the tale-telling – as well as the conversations that follow each story – quickly becomes a battle of wits between the sexes, with tales concerning illicit lovers, romantic conquests, lecherous monks, manly honor (and their opposite), and women’s virtue (and their opposite). The stories include intimate details of adultery, flattery, betrayal, rape, and war, and their candor may startle even 21st-century listeners.

This is a full-cast production, narrated by Cate Barratt and featuring the voices of Linda Barrans, John Burlinson, Mark Crowle-Groves, Denis Daly, Susan Iannucci, Grace Keller Scotch, Jeff Moon, Sara Morsey, Kendra Murray, and Graham Scott.

Audio edited by John Burlinson.

Amazon/Audible • iTunes

Presented by Voices of Today

First published in 1909, A Girl of the Limberlost is a novel by American writer and naturalist Gene Stratton-Porter. This classic of Indiana literature is a sequel to Stratton-Porter’s earlier novel Freckles. Wholesome, sensible, and beautiful, the heroine, Elnora, is also compassionate, self-reliant, and intelligent. Neglected by her mother, Elnora reaches through this hardship toward education, friendship, and love. There are no shortcuts and her hard work brings joy to herself and all those she loves.

Cast

Narrator – Susan Iannucci

Elnora – Emma Faye 

Philip Ammon – Adam Skousen

Wesley Sinton – Ben Stevens

Mrs. Comstock – Sara Morsey

Edith Carr – Kendra Murray

Also featuring the voices of Sarah Bacaller, Trisha Rose, JD Sutter, John Burlinson, Lee Ann Howlett, and Andy Harrington.

Amazon/Audible • iTunes

The Beloved Tales of Beatrix Potter

Presented by The Online Stage

Pull up a chair, snuggle under your favorite blanket, gather the kids, and enjoy the charming stories you know and love. This multicast production brings to life all your favorites!

This collection includes 19 stories: The Tale of Peter Rabbit, The Tailor of Gloucester, The Tale of Squirrel Nutkin, The Tale of Benjamin Bunny, The Tale of Two Bad Mice, The Tale of Mrs. Tiggly-Winkle, The Pie and Patty-Pan, The Tale of Jeremy Fisher, The Story of a Fierce Bad Rabbit, The Story of Miss Moppet, The Tale of Tom Kitten, The Tale of Jemima Puddle-Duck, The Roly-Poly Pudding, The Tale of the Flopsy Bunnies, The Tale of Mrs. Tittlemouse, The Tale of Timmy Tiptoes, The Tale of Mr. Tod, The Tale of Pigling Bland, and Ginger and Pickles.

Cast:

• Michelle Marie
• Sara Morsey
• John Burlinson
• Chris Marcellus
• Nancy German
• Ted Wenskus
• Lee Ann Howlett
• Lillian Rachel
• Rob Goll
• Anna Grace
• Jonah VanderLugt
• Russell Gold
• Miranda Hodges
• Boone VanderLugt
• Josh Innerst
• Elizabeth Klett
• Isabelle Friday
• Jennie VanderLugt
• Shirley Savage
• Jeff Moon
• Jennifer Fournier
• Ella Lynch
• Tyler Hyrchuk
• Liz Blackett
• Andy Harrington
• Trisha Rose

Amazon/Audible • iTunes

This is an unusual short classic by poet William Carlos Williams.

Written in 1923 and originally published in France, The Great American Novel examines the impossibility of writing such work in America.

Williams not only writes the novel with poetic satire and pathos but allows us into his writing process, as he strives to define a young America at the end of a World War and the beginning of the “Roaring ‘20s”.

Amazon/Audible • iTunes

The Online Stage presents The Professor by Charlotte Brontë.

The first novel written by Charlotte Bronte, The Professor follows a young man named William Crimsworth on his teaching career in Brussels as well as the relationships he forms while residing there. At the behest of the headmistress, Zoraide Reuter, William tutors fellow teacher Frances Henri in English and finds himself falling in love with her. Jealousy drives Zoraide to dismiss Frances from the school as well as refusing to assist William in discovering her whereabouts.

Cast:

• William Crimsworth – Lance Rasmussen
• Mademoiselle Zoraide Reuter – P. J. Morgan
• Mademoiselle Frances Henri – Sydnee Fullmer
• Mr. Hunsden – Andy Harrington
• Monsieur Francois Pelet – Rob Goll
• Madame Reuter – Elizabeth Klett
• Madame Pelet – Sara Morsey
• Sylvie – Tiffany Halla Colonna
• Hortense – Libby Stephenson
• Eulalie – Anna Grace

Amazon/Audible • iTunes