{: response.message :}
Selected Shorts
Below is the schedule for upcoming and previous Selected Shorts episodes.
Our most recently released shows are available for audio streaming HERE.
12/31/2020
“The Luncheon,” by Jeffrey Archer, performed by Jefferson Mays
“Love Is Not a Pie,” by Amy Bloom, performed by Hope Davis
12/24/2020
“Powder,” by Tobias Wolff, performed by Isaiah Sheffer
“Gifts of the Jewish Magi,” by Allegra Goodman, performed by Michael Cerveris and Dana Ivey
“Christmas in New York,” by Jeanette Winterson, performed by Richard Masur
12/17/2020
Excerpt from My Way of Life, by Joan Crawford, performed by Cole Escola
“Crazy They Call Me,” by Zadie Smith, performed by Karen Pittman
“Interview” by Will Eno, performed by Will Eno
“I Am Narcissus” by Elizabeth Olmstead, performed by Bebe Neuwirth
12/10/2020
“How to Travel with Salmon,” by Umberto Eco, performed by Jin Ha
“Marabou,” by Joy Williams, performed by Michael Emerson
“The Twenty-sixth Second,” by George Fox, performed by Linda Lavin
“The Hat,” by Patrick Modiano, performed by Robert Sean Leonard
12/03/2020
“Cultural Relativity,” by Charles Johnson, performed by Regina King
“The Lazy River,” by Zadie Smith, performed by Zadie Smith
“The Hope Chest,” by Jean Stafford, performed by Dana Ivey
11/26/2020
“A Wild Swan,” by Michael Cunningham, performed by Valorie Curry
“Fox 8” excerpt, by George Saunders, performed by John Cameron Mitchell
11/19/2020
“They Tell Me, Now I Know,” by Shay Youngblood, performed by Viola Davis
“A Small Sacrifice for an Enormous Happiness,” by Jai Chakrabarti, performed by Bhavesh Patel
11/12/2020
“The Flowers,” by Alice Walker, performed by Crystal Dickinson
“Star Food,” by Ethan Canin, performed by David Strathairn
11/05/2020
“A Drama,” by Anton Chekhov, performed by Cynthia Nixon
“Rapture,” by Anton Chekhov, performed by performed by Robin Miles, Sam Underwood, Rainn Wilson, and Di Zhu
“Verotchka,” by Anton Chekhov, performed by Rainn Wilson
“Which Is Better?” by Anton Chekhov, performed by Rainn Wilson
10/29/2020
“Story of a Parrot,” by Ana Menéndez, performed by Jacqueline Kim
“In Paris,” by Ivan Bunin, performed by René Auberjonois
10/22/2020
“Sibyl,” by Carys Davis, performed by Jane Kaczmarek
Beloved (excerpt), by Toni Morrison, performed by Andre Braugher
Goodbye, Vitamin (excerpt), by Rachel Khong, performed by Jennifer Ikeda
10/15/2020
“The Orange,” by Benjamin Rosenbaum, performed by John Cameron Mitchell
“The Man, the Restaurant, and the Eiffel Tower,” by Ben Loory, performed by Stana Katic
“I, Gentile,” by David Gordon, performed by Michael Urie
10/08/2020
“Trivial Pursuit,” by Jac Jemc, performed by Jordan Klepper
“Baghead,” by Renée Jessica Tan, performed by Karen Chee
“Spanish Winter,” by Jennifer Egan, performed by Melora Hardin
10/01/2020
“Feeding the Fussy,” by Laurie Colwin, performed by Tracee Chimo
“Home Turf,” by Kiran Desai, performed by Angel Desai
“Watkyn, Comma,” by Joan Aiken, performed by Sonia Manzano
09/24/2020
“Girl,” by Jamaica Kincaid, performed by Hattie Winston
“Lars Farf, Excessively Fearful Husband and Father,” by George Saunders, performed by James Naughton
“A Domestic Dilemma,” by Carson McCullers, performed by Joanna Gleason
09/17/2020
“Ancient Rome,” by Kyle McCarthy, performed by Tavi Gevinson
“The Thing Around Your Neck,” by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, performed by Condola Rashad
09/10/2020
“Fully Zipped,” by Shelly Oria, performed by Katja Blichfeld
“Bad Latch,” by Curtis Sittenfeld, performed by Justine Lupe
“Future Cat,” by Xuan Juliana Wang, performed by Parker Posey
09/03/2020
“The First Kiss,” by Clarice Lispector, performed by Pepe Nufrio
“Hellion,” by Julia Elliott, performed by Donna Lynne Champlin
08/27/2020
“Yancey,” by Ann Beattie, performed by Mia Dillon
“The Mappist,” by Barry Lopez, performed by Joe Spano
08/20/2020
“The Cruise,” by Alix Ohlin, performed by Laura Benanti
“A Permanent Member of the Family,” by Russell Banks, performed by Zach Grenier
08/13/2020
“Nayla,” by Youmna Chlala, performed by Rita Wolf
“Life Off My E,” by Susan Perabo, performed by Hope Davis
08/06/2020
“Any Number of Little Old Ladies,” by Bruce Jay Friedman, performed by Blythe Danner and Maulik Pancholy
“In Naples,” by Roxana Robinson, performed by Betty Buckley
07/30/2020
“A Printer’s Tale,” by Robin Hemley, performed by Robert Sean Leonard
“Oh Shenandoah,” by Maura Stanton, performed by Kelli O’Hara
07/23/2020
“The Baby,” by Simon Rich, performed by Jason Mantzoukas
“Buttony,” by Fiona McFarlane, performed by Jin Ha
“Crumb Cake,” by Etgar Keret, performed by Andy Richter
With an introduction by Aimee Bender
07/16/2020
“Snow Blind,” by Elizabeth Strout, performed by Melora Hardin
“August Evening,” by Joyce Carol Oates, performed by Sonia Manzano
“Half a Day,” by Naguib Mahfouz, performed by Bruce Altman
07/09/2020
“The Long Voyage,” by Leonardo Sciascia, performed by John Turturro
“Invitation to Dinner,” by Alba de Céspedes, performed by Dawn Akemi Saito
“The Miraculous Beach, or, Prize for Modesty,” by Massimo Bontempelli, performed by Hugh Dancy
07/02/2020
“A Knowing So Deep,” by Toni Morrison, performed by Tayari Jones
The Bluest Eye (excerpt), by Toni Morrison, performed by Anika Noni Rose
Jazz (excerpt), by Toni Morrison, performed by S. Epatha Merkerson
“Sweetness,” by Toni Morrison, performed by Phylicia Rashad
With commentary by Fran Lebowitz
06/25/2020
Including selections from The Stonewall Reader, edited by The New York Public Library: Stonewall memories from Jayne County, Mark Segal, Lucian Truscott IV, and Holly Woodlawn
“Wedding,” by Gary Eldon Peter, performed by John Benjamin Hickey
“We Did It!” by Perry Brass, performed by Ivory Aquino and Kate Bornstein
“Song for the Kicked Out” (poem), by Kay Ulanday Barrett, performed by Kay Ulanday Barrett
06/18/2020
“Belles Lettres,” by Nafissa Thompson-Spires, performed by Eboni Booth, Mary Karr, and Shalewa Sharpe
“About Two Nice People,” by Shirley Jackson, performed by Lilli Cooper, Ethan Slater, and Julie Halston
06/11/2020
“The Pangs of Love,” by Jane Gardam, performed by Jane Kaczmarek
“Hat Trick,” by Edith Pearlman, performed by Sharon Gless
06/04/2020
“Farewell, My Lovely Appetizer,” performed by S.J. Perelman, performed by James Naughton
“Shiftless Little Loafers,” by Susan Orlean, performed by Dave Hill
“The Counterfeit Secret Circle Member Gets the Message, or the Asp Strikes Again,” by Jean Shepherd, performed by Isaiah Sheffer
“Awake,” by Jenny Allen, performed by Jane Kaczmarek
05/28/2020
“Second Hand,” by Andrés Neuman, performed by Jane Kaczmarek
“Dinner on the Rocks,” by Dawn Powell, performed by Christina Pickles
“Fortune Cookie,” by Hubert Selby, Jr., performed by Michael Imperioli
05/21/2020
“The Walk,” by Elizabeth Strout, performed by Ellen Burstyn
“Listen,” by Susan Minot, performed by Jennifer Ikeda and Khris Lewin
“Speak! Speak!” by Julia Alvarez, performed by Selenis Leyva
“Lines to Ida B. Wells,” by Katherine Davis Chapman Tillman, performed by Crystal Dickinson
“Speech Delivered to Women’s Rights Convention in Akron, Ohio” (excerpt), by Sojourner Truth, performed by Kaneza Schaal
“Afmerica,” by Mary E. Ashe Lee, performed by Kaneza Schaal
05/14/2020
“The Princess Who Stood on Her Own Two Feet,” by Jeanne Desy, performed by Jane Kaczmarek
“Beauty and the Beast or The Enormous Wound,” by Clarice Lispector, performed by Kate Burton
05/07/2020
“Riding the Doghouse,” by Randy DeVita, performed by Michael Cerveris
“Mrs. Turner Cutting the Grass,” by Carol Shields, performed by Kathleen Chalfant
04/30/2020
“Tough as Bob War and Other Stuff,” by Molly Ivins, performed by Judith Ivey
“The Pony Problem,” by Sloane Crosley, performed by Kirsten Vangsness
“The Waltz,” by Dorothy Parker, performed by Parker Posey
“Lamentations of the Father,” by Ian Frazier, performed by Isaiah Sheffer
04/23/2020
“Breadman,” by J. Robert Lennon, performed by Kyle MacLachlan
An excerpt from Heartburn by Nora Ephron, performed by Joan Allen
04/16/2020
“Wedding Announcement,” by Colin Nissan, performed by John Cameron Mitchell
“The Eyes of the Soul,” by Michel Faber, performed by Kirsten Vangsness
“Lime Pickle,” by James Lasdun, performed by David Schwimmer
04/09/2020
“What We Talk About When We Talk About Doughnuts,” by Michael Gerber and Jonathan Schwarz, performed by Joey Slotnick
“The Office Party,” by Corey Ford, performed by Jordan Klepper
“The Sorrows of Gin,” by John Cheever, performed by Kathleen Chalfant
04/02/2020
“Bee Beard,” by Ryan Boudinot, performed by Tony Hale
“The Dummy,” by Susan Sontag, performed by Justin Kirk
“The Swim Team,” by Miranda July, performed by Parker Posey
03/26/2020
“Midrash on Happiness,” by Grace Paley, performed by Mia Dillon
“The American Embassy,” by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, performed by Karen Pittman
“My Father Sits in the Dark,” by Jerome Weidman, performed by Josh Hamilton
03/19/2020
“The Greatest Man in the World,” by James Thurber, performed by Michael Ian Black
“A Warm Welcome to the President, Insh’Allah!” by Meera Nair, performed by Aasif Mandvi
Featuring an interview with Meera Nair
03/12/2020
“The Elevator Dancer,” by N. K. Jemisin, performed by Laura Gómez
“Marigolds,” by Eugenia W. Collier, performed by Sharon Washington
“The Wife’s Story,” by Ursula K. Le Guin, performed by Joanna Gleason
03/05/2020
“Distractions,” by Simon Rich, performed by Erinn Hayes
“Love in a Kitchen Garden,” by Douglas Lawson, performed by Richard Kind
“Brand Values,” by Emily Buckler, performed by Maulik Pancholy
02/27/2020
“Fly Already,” by Etgar Keret, performed by Liev Schreiber
“Where Are You?” by Joyce Carol Oates, performed by Dianna Agron
“One Gram Short,” by Etgar Keret, performed by Ira Glass
“Assassin,” by Joyce Carol Oates, performed by Becky Ann Baker
02/20/2020
“The Dreamlife of Toasters,” by Heather O’Neill, performed by Yvette Nicole Brown
“The Invisible Collection,” by Stefan Zweig, performed by René Auberjonois
02/13/2020
“The Sock,” by Lydia Davis, performed by Kaneza Schaal
“Deep Lie the Woods,” by Meg Wolitzer, performed by Blythe Danner
“Nightblooming,” by Kenneth Calhoun, performed by Josh Charles
02/06/2020
“Yours Truly,” by A.M. Homes, performed by Beth Malone
“Omakase,” by Weike Wang, performed by Jennifer Lim
01/30/2020
“No Bikini,” by Ivan E. Coyote, performed by Becca Blackwell
“The World with My Mother Still in It,” by Kathryn Chetkovich, performed by Phillipa Soo
“At the Zoo,” by Caitlin Horrocks, performed by Kate Walsh
With an introduction by Celeste Ng
01/23/2020
“Love and Hydrogen,” by Jim Shepard, performed by Sam Underwood
“The Coat,” by Carys Davies, performed by Becca Blackwell
01/16/2020
“Miss Marple Tells a Story,” by Agatha Christie, performed by Lois Smith
“Accident,” by Agatha Christie, performed by Hugh Dancy
With commentary by Megan Abbott
01/09/2020
“Hello?” by Dmitry Biriukov, performed by Mike Doyle
“How to Tie-Dye,” by Jenny Allen, performed by Jane Curtin
“From the Diary of a Hot-Tempered Man,” by Anton Chekhov and translated by Peter Constantine, performed by Sam Underwood
01/02/2020
“My Date with Neanderthal Woman,” by David Galef, performed by Giullian Yao Gioiello
“Edna in Rain,” by Marie-Helene Bertino, performed by Colby Minifie
“Leak,” by Sam Ruddick, performed by Peter Sagal
“The Little Heidelberg,” by Isabel Allende, performed by Kathleen Turner