summary
PoetUp hosts MalChi, Bluz, and Jay Ward welcome Quentin Talley, a South Carolina-born actor, playwright, poet, singer, and theater-maker, for a wide-ranging conversation about the experiences that shaped his creative life. Q traces his path from childhood performances and Winthrop University to Charlotte’s arts community, then recounts the emergency heart surgery and strokes that changed his relationship with performing; the episode closes with playful ranking games and a freestyle session.
Chapters
00:00 Awkward Moments with Jay: a Greyhound ride and a misunderstanding
04:18 Meet Quentin Talley, actor, playwright, poet, and singer
08:25 The first-grade role that sparked a life in performance
11:07 Black poetry, Greenwood, and childhood imagination
16:17 From dancing to writing and producing Black and Blue
27:35 Winthrop theater training and learning the craft
37:12 How Charlotte’s poetry scene became home
40:41 Leadership U and theater as a collaborative puzzle
48:27 Black theater history, local pioneers, and original work
54:14 Building Miles and Coltrane from many writers’ voices
58:21 Soulful Noel’s 21 Times and the emergency that followed
01:03:24 Surgery, strokes, recovery, and vivid dreams
01:10:46 Candy, dance moves, and malt liquor rankings
01:20:20 Where to find Tally and why returning to the stage takes time
01:25:28 The PoetUp freestyle session and closing shout-outs
keywords
Quentin Talley, PoetUp Podcast, Charlotte theater, Black theater, spoken word poetry, Miles and Coltrane, Soulful Noel, creative career, stroke recovery
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