In the Studio

Miss Marple returns Apr 26, 2023

Agatha Christie is the world's most translated author, with her work being available in over 100 languages. And one of her most beloved characters, Miss Marple, is about to be resurrected with the help of 12 contemporary authors. In The Studio talks to two of those writers: Dreda Say Mitchell who specialises in a different type of crime story, the gritty gangster genre, and Kate Mosse, who is known for her historical sagas. They reveal how they rose to the challenge of reinventing one of the most famous characters in 20th Century fiction.

Erica Whyman: Directing Hamnet Apr 18, 2023

Maggie O’Farrell’s historical novel Hamnet was published in 2020 to great critical acclaim, winning the Women's Prize. It tells the story of a gifted herbalist, Agnes Hathaway, who is married to a young William Shakespeare. We follow her on her journey as they meet, marry, and later come to terms with the death of their 11-year-old son, Hamnet. Now, the Royal Shakespeare Company is putting Hamnet on stage for the first time in Shakespeare’s birthplace of Stratford-upon-Avon. Presenter Dan Hardoon follows the RSC’s Acting Artistic Director Erica Whyman throughout the rehearsal process. We also hear from award-winning playwright Lolita Chakrabarti on the challenges of adapting the novel for the stage, and from cast and crew as they get ready for opening night.

Kieran Griffiths: telling the John Hume story Apr 11, 2023

Beyond Belief - The Life And Mission Of John Hume is a new drama musical about the Irish politician who was one of the architects of the Northern Ireland peace process. Marie-Louise Muir goes behind the scenes of the production staged in Hume's home city of Derry with its director Kieran Griffiths. She follows his young company of actors rehearsing for a major production which will be streamed live globally on the 25th anniversary of the signing of the historic peace accord, the Good Friday Agreement.

Nikita Gill: Imagining Hekate Apr 04, 2023

The poet Nikita Gill has written several volumes of poetry, and enjoys engaging poetically with her audience using social media. Her work often explores Greek Myths, and her latest project continues with that theme as she embarks on a series of four books, each one focusing on a single goddess. For this episode of In The Studio, we join her as she starts with Hekate, often known as the Goddess of Witchcraft, and about whom little is known, other than that she was brought up in the underworld by Styx. Nikita describes Hekate as a dark anti-feminine goddess and a protest against what is expected of women which is what appealed to her. But how do you go about creating a life for someone who is so mysterious? And as Nikita will also be illustrating her work, how will she decide how to visually portray her? Follow Nikita across several months as she works towards completing her first draft of this exciting new work.

Theo Jansen and the Strandbeests of Delft Mar 28, 2023

Nick Duncalf meets artist Theo Jansen at his studio in Delft, as he creates his latest Strandbeests, multi-legged creatures designed to walk the sands of Holland’s North Sea coast. Outside his workshop, the grass is littered with bleached plastic pipes; the skeletons of strandbeests past. He has been building these creatures for decades. Each year, new creatures - some the size of shopping trolleys, some the size of cars - are designed, tested, and allowed to run free across the sands. At a battered work table, Theo toils over sections of pipe, heating and bending and attaching pieces of what will become the skeletons of the new beests. In recent years, the Strandbeests have become internet stars, hugely popular on Instagram and Youtube. Theo began this project in 1990, when he was 42 years old. He tells Nick of his annual quest to bring these creatures to life, and to prepare them to battle the elements on the beach. Each year brings new challenges, new dreams, new failures, and new triumphs. Aged 74, Theo will not have another 33 years to continue his work. He is confronting the time limitations of this project, and his own legacy as an artist. There is a renewed sense of urgency in his work, and his boundless energy, enthusiasm and optimism mean that this year’s strandbeests will be more ambitious than ever.

Sofi Oksanen: Crafting a new novel Mar 21, 2023

Author Sofi Oksanen shares with Olga Smirnova how she begins a new novel. Olga witnesses how Sofi painstakingly gathers details for the lives of her characters, from choosing the colour of their nail varnish, to the perfumes they prefer, and the difference in the smell of Estonian and Soviet women. Olga visits Sofi’s writing studio in a bohemian quarter of Helsinki where they both listen to the silence which is so important for Sofi to write. We discover why sometimes kneading dough and chopping carrots or onions can help the process. Having an Estonian heritage, Sofi is fascinated by Soviet history. The theme of war in Ukraine is never far from Olga's conversations with Sofi as they discuss how it impacts upon the writing process.

Faig Ahmed Mar 14, 2023

Faig Ahmed is one of Azerbaijan’s best-known contemporary artists, and has won international acclaim for his fantastical woven artworks. Based on Azerbaijan’s ancient carpet weaving traditions, his pieces explore the visual language of classic rug design to radical effect. Pieces can distort and bulge, grow deep-tufted pelts or rise off the walls into the gallery space overhead. His work has been described as psychedelic, surreal, even iconoclastic. Speaking from his weaving workshop in Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan, Faig Ahmed talks to broadcaster and artist Bidisha Mamata about the process of making these pieces, working with a traditionally all-female team of carpet-weavers who use centuries-old techniques to create his intricate designs. Ahmed also works in other mediums including painting, video and installation, all fed by a restless curiosity and experimental zeal. So we also hear about one of his current works-in-progress: A large-scale performance piece, through which he is exploring the fundamentals of social interaction.

Ada Limón: A poem for Nasa Mar 07, 2023

A poet can’t sleep. She sits at a desk in a wooden house at the heart of a palm forest, watching the night sky through the window. The full moon lights up the palm fronds, which dance in the wind. She has been tasked with writing a poem that will be sent into space, to another planet’s distant moon. What should she say? What is the message in a bottle that she should launch out into the solar system? How can she begin writing a poem that speaks of the fragile wonders of our home planet? That expresses our hope that there might be other life out there somewhere, in the stars? In the Studio follows US poet laureate Ada Limón as she crafts an original poem dedicated to NASA’s Europa Clipper mission to Jupiter’s icy moon. Her poem will be engraved on the Clipper spacecraft, which will launch in 2024 and travel 1.8 billion miles to reach Europa - a journey that will last six years. We follow Ada’s creative process over several months, from her first meetings with the NASA team, through many drafts of the poem and a visit to NASA’s jet propulsion laboratory in California to see the Europa Clipper under construction.

Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai - novel number two Feb 28, 2023

Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai is an award-winning Vietnamese writer whose debut novel The Mountains Sing, published in English in 2020, won the International Book Awards in 2021 and was runner-up in the Dayton Literary Peace Prize. It portrays the lives of four generations of a Vietnamese family enduring many hardships, something she understands well from her own upbringing. In conversation with presenter Felicity Finch, Quế Mai shares her writing process as she works on her second novel Dust Child, which is about Amerasians, children of American military men who were abandoned during The Vietnam War. Meetings with her New York publisher and editor Betsy Gleick help guide her through the many months of development as well as her desire to retain the Vietnamese-ness of her prose. This programme was first broadcast in May 2022, but for this version, as dust Child is about to be published, Felicity takes the opportunity to catch up with Quế Mai, to find out how that feels.

Keith McNally's Balthazar Feb 21, 2023

Restaurateur Keith McNally is a 71-year-old Londoner, the son of a longshoreman and office cleaner, who moved to New York in 1976. Forty-five years later, he is one of the most celebrated restaurateurs in the city. In 2004, The New York Times dubbed him “the restaurateur who invented Downtown.” In this episode of In the Studio, we get a glimpse into the mind of this unique creative talent, who used his early career in film and theatre to dominate an altogether different stage. The flagship of his New York restaurants is Balthazar, which is packed day and night and has been in operation for more than 25 years. But who is Keith McNally, and how has he created such an iconic success in such a cutthroat business?

The Sydney Modern Project Feb 14, 2023

Sydney’s main public art museum, the Art Gallery of NSW, recently completed Sydney Modern, a massive expansion project ten years in the making. Almost doubling the existing exhibition space, the new building was designed by the Pritzker Architecture Prize winning Japanese firm SANAA. Positioned within verdant parkland, yet a mere stone’s throw from the city centre, the new gallery is a series of interconnected glass–encased pavilions that seem to cascade down an incline towards Sydney Harbour. With its landscaped terraces and courtyards, the new gallery almost merges with its surroundings, inviting visitors to experience art as part of the environment. Join Masako Fukui as she follows the final stages of this construction project, and talks to some of the key people who have contributed to the creative vision, including the Director of the Art Gallery of NSW, Dr Michael Brand, the architects Kazuyo Sejima and Ryue Nishizawa, as well as artisans, artists and the structural engineer on the project.

Comic Book Artist, Frank Quitely Feb 07, 2023

Denise Mina meets comic book artist Frank Quitely in his Glasgow studio. Frank is one of the biggest names in the comic world, responsible for drawing superheroes like Superman and Batman & Robin alongside his latest collaboration with writer Mark Millar “Jupiter’s Legacy”. Starting on Scottish underground cult comic 'Electric Soup' he progressed to working for Judge Dredd magazine and then The New X-Men gathering an international reputation. As he completes the final few pages of comic book 'Jupiter's Legacy 2', artist Frank explains his artistic process as he completes the project that took over 3 years of his life. He will explain how he turns the written concepts from writer Mark Millar into a coherent visual story and finally put pencil to paper to painstakingly produce his signature style. Denise follows his pencil strokes as he explains artistic and cultural influence as well as soaking in the landscape and atmosphere of his hometown of Glasgow. A real Superhero master class in storytelling, lines and shapes perspective, space and most importantly colour as he creates these last few pages. They cross to the Glasgow Art Galleries where Frank’s career retrospective exhibition is being held and meet up with his writing partner Mark Millar. We’ll learn about their working relationship in this competitive industry of graphic storytelling. During the conversation, Frank discusses with Denise the thoughts that go through his mind in these final stages and talk us through the pressures of creating, plus making, and breaking, deadlines.

Kaija Saariaho: Composing intricate soundworlds Jan 31, 2023

Since the 1980s, composer Kaija Saariaho has been lauded for her explorations of sound and music, from tape and live electronics mixed with layered orchestral textures, to opera, song cycles and smaller scale pieces. In the BBC Music Magazine’s top 20 composers of all time, Kaija Saariaho is the only one alive today; as she moves into her eighth decade, there’s no sign that she wants to stop creating the magical sounds she has become known for. Kaija was born in Helsinki in Finland, but since 1982 has spent most of her time living and working in Paris. Keval Shah meets Kaija in Helsinki just as her most recent opera Innocence is having its Finnish premiere - part of her 70th birthday celebrations. But there’s not much time for Kaija to rest after the conclusion of this huge, 10-year project. A text message prompts her to start thinking about a new work and a new challenge: a trumpet concerto. We visit jazz trumpeter Verneri Pohjola on a grey Helsinki day (with plenty of candles) to find out how Kaija’s composition process develops through collaboration with the musicians who will be playing or singing her music. And we hear some unexpected trumpet techniques that may find their way into the new concerto - from flap tonguing to what Verneri calls ‘white noise'.

Sydney's New Year fireworks Jan 24, 2023

It's estimated that over one billion people worldwide watch the Sydney fireworks display every New Year's Eve. Regina Botros goes behind the scenes of this global event, finding out about the process of putting on an unforgettable light show and the pressures of living up to the expectations of a mass audience. She learns why the team think of the Sydney skyline as their canvas.

Richard Jones on Handel's Alcina Jan 10, 2023

Follow renowned theatre and opera director Richard Jones as he creates a brand new production of Handel’s magical opera Alcina for the Royal Opera House. When Handel composed this opera, he was inspired not only by the possibilities of a new theatre in the heart of London, but also by his collaborator John Rich, who encouraged him to incorporate magic and dance into this new work. Nearly 300 years on, Richard Jones is also inspired by the possibilities of this opera, and with the opportunities created by his many collaborators too. We join Richard at his home to explore his thoughts on the opera, including his ideas for the set design. Further discussions then follow at the Royal Opera House once rehearsals are underway, and we delve into the changes now being made as this new production comes to life on the stage. Movement director and choreographer Sarah Fahie discusses her intensive collaborative journey in assisting in the creation of this new work, whilst soprano Lisette Oropesa, who sings the title role of Alcina, also chats about working alongside Richard Jones.

Rapt Studio: Designing the workplace of the future Jan 03, 2023

David Galullo is the world’s leading designer of futuristic workspaces for the forward-thinking tech giants of northern California. But in a post-pandemic world, how will our homes and work co-exist? Nick Duncalf follows Galullo and his team as they create inspirational new work environments that keep pace with our new lives.

In The Studio - The Artist's Muse Dec 27, 2022

Looking back over a year of In The Studio, we consider the role of the artist's muse. Why does one subject suggest itself above all others, how does an artist then go about incorporating that subject into their work, and what, if any, are the pressures they feel? From Nitin Sawney’s latest work marking the 60th anniversary of Benjamin Britten’s War Requiem; through Sally Beamish, whose Proms composition was inspired by bees; to Yuri Herrera’s historical novel about Mexican leader Benito Juarez, and Stephen Page, whose aboriginal-heritage inspired his dance work for Sydney Festival; to Elizabeth McGovern who took Ava Gardner as her muse for her latest theatrical performance. We explore how each of these artists used their muse to create a work of art.

Žygimantas Kudirka: Slam messiah Dec 20, 2022

Žygimantas Kudirka is Lithuania’s leading spoken-word artist and agent provocateur. A prolific writer and creative artist, he has won Europe’s Best Slam Poet as well as multiple hip-hop awards, blending satire and social critique with dystopian and futurist themes. Žygimantas, who goes by the alias MC Messiah, is shaking up the scene with a new libretto for the opera Brave New Body, teaming up with avant-garde composer Arturas Bumšteinas. Kudirka’s texts play with the idea of the human body as a machine, not without his trademark satire, and sets them to the sutartinė, an ancient polyphonic form found in Lithuania which has Unesco status. Is it possible to combine centuries-old traditional music with hyper-modern dystopian themes? We sit in on rehearsals with the Lietuva Song and Dance Ensemble leading up to the opera’s premiere, commissioned by the Operomanija festival in Vilnius.

Lang Lang Dec 13, 2022

Sean Rafferty spends time in the company of the pianist Lang Lang, one of the most famous classical musicians in the world today. He has had a hugely creative, successful and glamorous career, performing all over the world and collaborating with musicians from Herbie Hancock to Sir Simon Rattle. But during his private time, Lang Lang has spent 20 years of deep study and personal reflection on the music of Johann Sebastian Bach. Bach’s Goldberg Variations is the musical peak that many major pianists have attempted to scale over the course of time. Sean meets Lang Lang at the piano, where he plays and talks about his personal journey towards performing and recording J.S. Bach’s Goldberg Variations – one of the most mysterious, complex and rewarding pieces in all music. Along the way, Sean meets Lang Lang’s wife, Gina Alice, as they perform an informal duet, and Lang Lang opens up about the very personal struggles he faced as a child prodigy, and talks about how the power of music now inspires his work and commitment to young people and music education.

Jessie Burton: Writing The Miniaturist Dec 06, 2022

In 2009, Jessie Burton visited the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, where she saw something that went on to transform her life. Petronella Oortman's doll's house became the inspiration for Jessie's debut novel, The Miniaturist, which was published five years later and went on to become an international bestseller. Eight years on from this success, as its sequel is published, Jessie takes Vic James back to the days when she began writing it. A time when she was doing office jobs by day, whilst trying to build a career as an actor by night. She reveals how seeing that doll's house sparked a story that explores feminism, racism and homophobia, in the form of a thriller intricately laced with a bit of magic. And she discusses the development of the key characters within - not least Petronella Oortman, whose doll's house it was.

Maria Djurkovic Nov 29, 2022

Production designer Maria Djurkovic takes us behind the scenes of Harry Styles' new movie, My Policeman, which was made in the middle of the pandemic. Lockdown presents a number of challenges, expected ones like social distancing and sick crew members. And unexpected ones, like studios being too full and staff being in short supply because more movies were being made during the pandemic, rather than less. Maria kept an audio diary during these unprecedented times for the British film industry, as she battles with crew shortages, schedule changes and a possible bout of Covid.

Nazanin Moradi: Becoming Dragon Nov 22, 2022

What if you could rewrite a part of history? What would you change, and where would you start? For multidisciplinary artist Nazanin Moradi, who was brought up in the Islamic Republic of Iran where women are, “second-class citizens in every sense,” the answer is easy; she would start at the very beginning of “time” to reverse the “unfair” gender roles. In her new project, the multidisciplinary artist challenges male domination and toxic masculinity, within a fragmented historical context where fantasy meets rebellion. She does this by changing the narrative of ancient Mesopotamian mythology, fixating on the legendary battle where the supremely powerful dragon goddess of oceans Tiamat, was killed by the storm god Marduk. Over a period of six months, reporter Sahar Zand spends time with Nazanin at various locations in London to find out how she embarks on the ambitious project, and how it’s affected by the protests in Iran, which take place as she nears the end of her work. Through the mediums of textile design, interpretive dance, digital editing, collage, painting and sculpture, Nazanin rebels against social conventions by using her own body through the creative process.

Mohsen Makhmalbaf Nov 15, 2022

Iranian director Mohsen Makhmalbaf takes us behind the scenes of the making of Kandahar, his film about life in Afghanistan that captured the world's attention when President Bush asked to see it after the attacks on 9/11. He reveals how he managed to film on a smugglers' route between Iran and Afghanistan, and how he avoided the attentions of the Taliban. And he also reveals details of the documentary he is currently making about the return of the Taliban to Afghanistan.

Jarvis Cocker Nov 08, 2022

Jarvis Cocker, the British indie pop star and frontman of the band Pulp, talks to Miranda Sawyer about his autobiography that's not an autobiography. Good Pop, Bad Pop is an inventory of all the stuff that's in his loft: badges, pencils, photographs, chewing gum, etc. But it's also about the memories that are stirred by those objects and seeing them for the first time in decades. He reveals the process of writing the Sheffield version of A La Recherche Du Temps Perdu.

Miss Marple Returns Nov 01, 2022

Agatha Christie is the world's most translated author, with her work being available in over 100 languages. And one of her most beloved characters, Miss Marple, is about to be resurrected with the help of 12 contemporary authors. In The Studio talks to two of those writers: Dreda Say Mitchell who specialises in a different type of crime story, the gritty gangster genre, and Kate Mosse, who's known for her historical sagas. They reveal how they rose to the challenge of re-inventing one of the most famous characters in twentieth century fiction.

Shattered glass of Beirut: The restoration Oct 25, 2022

On 4 August 2020, a massive explosion destroyed the port of Beirut. It's impact was felt across the city, reaching the Archaeological Museum of the American University of Beirut (AUB). The pressure from the explosion shattered a glass display at the museum holding 74 glass vessels, mainly Roman with a few Byzantine and Islamic. The team at the AUB collected the shards from the floor, separated them and sent eight of the broken vessels to the UK. And so began the journey of collaboration between Lebanon and England to restore these ancient vessels at the British Museum. Janay Boulos, a Lebanese BBC News journalist, follows the journey of restoring these vessels and they become a symbol of Beirut, broken into pieces, scarred, and slowly being restored to its formal glory.

Khanyiso Gwenxane Oct 18, 2022

The award-winning South African tenor was a 2014 finalist in the prestigious Belvedere Singing Competition, considered one of the most important global opera showcases. He has since headlined festivals and has worked with many of the world’s top opera directors and conductors. For this In The Studio, actor and filmmaker Tara Gadomski is following Khanyiso for two, fast-paced weeks, as he rehearses for his United States’ debut, singing the title role in Rossini’s Otello at Opera Philadelphia. Discover how he learns the part and takes care of his voice, what it’s like to go from practicing on his own to working with the whole opera company and orchestra, not to mention singing the high C notes while still jet lagged!

Ai Weiwei: Glass artistry Oct 11, 2022

Glass: a functional material and silent witness to our daily lives, so unnoticed we’re usually looking straight through it. But in Venice, glass is an art form, and Ai Weiwei’s latest work is designed to make you look. Having mastered many mediums – wood, marble, even social media - the artist-activist is now turning his hand to glass. Through a collaboration with Adriano Berengo, on the glass-making island of Murano, he’s creating an immense chandelier, made up of over 2000 glass bones, organs and other surprising objects. Set to be displayed at the Basilica of San Giorgio Maggiore, La Commedia Umana is Ai’s attempt to “talk about death in order to celebrate life”. Join Alice McKee in Venice, speaking with Ai Weiwei and the Berengo Studios team, as she follows the life cycle of La Commedia Umana, from the furnace to the church.

Axel Scheffler: The man who drew The Gruffalo Oct 04, 2022

For decades, illustrator Axel Scheffler has been keeping children and adults around the world entertained with his warm and witty illustrations, from the Gruffalo and Stick Man to worms with attitude, gobbly goats and smart giants. He has published more than 150 books, including collaborations with writer Julia Donaldson that have become modern-day classics, translated into dozens of languages and selling millions of copies. Axel was born in Hamburg in Germany and moved to the UK in his twenties, where he has been based ever since. We join him in his attic studio perched high above a leafy part of west London, where he is hard at work on his latest project. This one centres not on a fantastical creature with terrible teeth and terrible claws, but on a small, slightly scruffy dog who may or may not have played a role in the creation of London’s Victoria and Albert Museum. Writer and actor Dame Emma Thompson has conjured up the story and we eavesdrop on a rare conversation between the two - rare because Axel generally doesn’t collaborate directly with his writers. Axel also allows us to witness his unique process, from pencil sketch to finished illustration, as he creates a scene from the new book before our ears.

Christopher Tin - The Lost Birds Sep 27, 2022

In the Studio follows Grammy-winning American composer Christopher Tin as he embarks on the creation of an ambitious new work. Based on poetry and inspired by folk music, The Lost Birds is a musical memorial to bird species driven to extinction by humankind. Edwina Pitman follows Christopher through his composition process, his collaboration with the prolific British vocal ensemble VOCES8 and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. The Lost Birds is an elegiac response to the noise of our times and a haunting tribute to those soaring flocks that once filled our skies, but whose songs have since been silenced.

Errollyn Wallen Sep 20, 2022

Errollyn Wallen, the Belize born British composer, tells Antonia Quirke about the inspiration behind Lady Super Spy Adventurer, which is receiving its world premiere at the proms this year. And she invites her to the place where the piece was composed, a remote lighthouse on the Scottish coast. Errollyn made history when she became the first Black woman to have a work performed at the Proms. She tells Antonia about breaking down barriers, and how living in a lighthouse has influenced her music, and who exactly is Lady Super Spy Adventurer.

Bradley Hemmings: Curating a festival Sep 13, 2022

The opening ceremony of the 2012 Paralympic Games in London was heralded as one of the most spectacular and successful outdoor theatrical events in the world, watched by more than 3.8 billion people. The man behind it was Bradley Hemmings. Bradley is a festival director, and every year is responsible for putting on the Greenwich and Docklands International Festival (GDIF) in London. Now in its 27th year, he tells Anna Bailey about the key elements that make for a great and accessible outdoor event. Follow Bradley as he puts together the line-up for this year’s festival and coordinates the opening night. Collaborating with Jenny Sealey, his co-producer of the Paralympic Games, and with Peter Hudson, the artistic director behind Charon, a 32-foot-high rotating zoetrope as seen at The Burning Man Festival in America, and now one of the main attractions for this year’s GDIF in London.

Braimah Kanneh-Mason: Stringing it together Sep 06, 2022

Welcome to Cremona - city of the violin. These Italian streets are brimming with horse hairs, varnish and chiselled wood. The central square is lined with storefronts displaying beautifully handcrafted wooden instruments. Braimah Kanneh-Mason, concert violinist and member of the musically gifted Kanneh-Mason family, travels to where the Stradivarius was born. Braimah learns about the techniques used to replicate the world’s most famous stringed instruments in the workshop of world-class violin maker Daniele Tonarelli. It was in Cremona, 500 years ago, that Andrea Amati was credited with inventing the “modern” violin. In his footsteps came the likes of Nicola Amati, Guarneri “del Gesù” and, most famously, Antonio Stradivari, who all perfected their craft in this northern Italian city. Daniele is the latest in a long line of Cremonese luthiers. Braimah gets a taste of the age old recipe that created these musical masterpieces hundreds of years ago. It is still used today. Daniele shows Braimah his newest violin – just 20 days old. How does this youthful instrument feel in the young violinist’s hands, and – more importantly – how does it sound? Are today’s Cremonese luthiers living up to the legacy the great violin makers left behind?

Sydney Opera House Aug 30, 2022

The Sydney Opera House is one of the most iconic music venues in the world. And yet it was also known for less-than-perfect acoustics in the main concert hall. The sound was considered thin and scattered. The problem has taken two years and 150 million Australian dollars to fix, involving 174 tonnes of steel in the roof space alone.

Regina Botros joins a team of experts as they enter the final stages of re-tuning the building, ready for an opening night concert where everything has to sound just right.

Presented by Regina Botros.

Executive produced by Stephen Hughes for the BBC World Service.

Carlo Rizzi on Mercadante’s Il proscritto Aug 23, 2022

We journey with the internationally celebrated operatic conductor Carlo Rizzi as he revives Il proscritto after 180 years of neglect.

Mercadante’s opera was first performed in Naples in 1842, and centres on a love triangle set in Scotland during Oliver Cromwell’s rule. The original cast were stellar performers, having previously taken lead roles in opera premieres by Verdi and Donizetti. The Neapolitans applauded Act One, but the following Acts were indifferently received, and Il proscritto fell into neglect.

Complete with a newly edited score and world class performers, Luke Whitlock journeys with conductor Carlo Rizzi, artistic director of Opera Rara, as he prepares Il proscritto to be heard at the Barbican in London, after nearly 200 years of silence.

From collaborating on a new performance edition, heading into the studio to record the opera for commercial release, to journeying to London’s Barbican to rehearse and perform the work before a 21st-century audience, this creative process has been a labour of love for Carlo Rizzi and Opera Rara.

Image: Carlo Rizzi (Credit: Simon Weir)

Arnd Henning Heissen - the Art of Mixology Aug 16, 2022

Frankincense, tonka beans and a steam iron. Just some of the elements that top mixologist Arnd Henning Heissen uses to create his cocktails. Inspired by aromatherapy and the perfumes people wear, he searches the globe for unusual ingredients to recreate that smell in drink form, blending together bark juices and fragrant herbs, working with smell and memories to craft what he calls ‘liquid sculptures.’ Lindsay Leonard meets him in Berlin, Germany as he creates new tastes and sensations for his latest menu.

Producers: Lindsay Leonard and Andrea Kidd

Sally Beamish Aug 09, 2022

Composer Sally Beamish tells Anna Bailey why she decided to write a concerto about bees for the BBC Proms. She reveals that Hive was inspired by a ballet that she's collaborating on with her partner, the writer Peter Thomson, who shares her fascination with queen bees. Anna talks to Sally and Peter on a visit to a local beehive and then joins Sally during the first rehearsal with harpist Catrin Finch, who explains why the harp is perfect for capturing the sound of a beehive. Anna captures the buzz as the piece is rehearsed with the BBC National Orchestra Of Wales, and finally, the hive of activity that is the world premiere at The Royal Albert Hall.

Presented by Anna Bailey Executive produced by Stephen Hughes for the BBC World Service Image Credit: Mihaela Bodlovic courtesy of Sound Festival

James Corner Aug 02, 2022

James Corner, is the founder of the urban landscape design Field Operations, is best known for his work on the New York High Line - the reclamation of a disused former railtrack in Manhattan. He talks about the transformative impact that the High Line has had on the area into a 21st century city - and about the potential for new urban green space in London as he works on another project with a railtrack at it’s heart, the Camden High Line.

With the project at an important stage of planning he describes the challenges of creating a green park alongside a rail track which is in everyday use. We meet James on a visit to the site in London and Olivia Reevell meets him in his new offices which overlook New York’s Bryant Park - he talks about the importance of urban green spaces in cities, post-pandemic, and the inspiration he draws from the work of Frederick Law Olmsted on the 200th anniversary of his birth - Olmsted was the founder of American landscape architecture and the man responsible for creating New York’s central park.

James Corner was born in the the North of England in the UK, and draws inspiration from the natural landscape of that part of the world for his urban design work. He founded Field Operations in New York which has a cosmopolitan team of 100 people and he is at work on other major projects including the Presidio in San Franscisco and the waterfront for the city of Seattle. For this programme he describes the qualities and characteristics of his urban green space design work.

Giffords Circus rides again Jul 26, 2022

The horses are learning their dance routines, the acrobats are perfecting their tumbles and sequins are being sewn onto leotards and leggings - in 2017, In the Studio had ringside seats to the circus. Antonia Quirke met the inner circle of Giffords Circus as they conceived and crafted the show where the theme was the 17th Century Spanish court. The team were led by circus creator Nell Gifford, who left home aged 18 to join her first circus. She then set up her own travelling troupe based in the West of England featuring performers from all over the world. As the circus rides again this summer, Antonia reveals the tragedy that befell the troupe a couple of years after the programme was broadcast.

Joanne Harris - Writing Chocolat Jul 19, 2022

Chocolat was Joanne Harris’s third novel, famously made into a film starring Juliette Binoche and Johnny Depp, bringing the writer worldwide recognition. Set in Southern France, it’s a darkly magical modern folk-tale, in which food, namely chocolate confections, plays a central part. Readers delighted in the story of Vianne Rocher and her six-year-old daughter, Anouk, who set up a chocolate boutique during Lent, right opposite the church, much to the annoyance of the village priest, Francis Reynaud. It’s an act that gently changes the lives of many of the villagers. Having recorded the audio book in recent years, Joanne has revisited the novel, and the writing process behind it. In conversation with Dr Vic James, she reveals how she drew inspiration from her French heritage, why the themes of indulgence and guilt, motherhood and patriarchy are so present, and crucially, about the importance of chocolate to the story. They’re also joined by Laura Grandi who translated the novel into Italian, and has continued to work with Joanne ever since.

Yuri Herrera - starting a new novel Jul 12, 2022

Yuri Herrera is a political scientist, editor, and prize-winning novelist, considered one of the most relevant Mexican writers in the Spanish language. When we meet him he's starting his new novel, which he says will take him in a different direction to his previous books, basing it on Benito Juarez, the first President of Mexico of indigenous origin. What's less known about him is that he was exiled briefly, in 1853, to New Orleans where Yuri now lives. We join him as he walks the streets Benito would have walked, searching for inspiration as he embarks on his writing.

Operation Night Watch Jul 05, 2022

This week, an update on our guest, a Dutch icon - The Night Watch. This masterpiece by Rembrandt is nearly 400 years old and sits centre stage at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, where more than 2 million visitors come to see it every year. So when it became clear the painting needed a serious makeover, taking years to complete, the idea of removing it from display was rejected. Instead the museum’s Director, Taco Dibbits, decided to make Operation Night Watch accessible to all, by building a specially-constructed glass chamber for restorers, scientists and conservators to work under the public's watchful eye; both in the museum and online. Anik See follows Taco and his team during this key phase of Operation Night Watch, diving into state-of-the-art imaging techniques and discovering the masterpiece’s secrets and storied past, to find out why this painting remains so important to us. After her initial report on the restoration process, Anik returns two years later to see what progress has been made.

Cercle: Dance under a waterfall Jun 28, 2022

Cercle is one of the most respected live-streaming platforms in dance music, broadcasting performances in breathtaking locations to tens of millions of viewers across the globe. From hot air balloons to mountain tops, waterfalls, world-heritage sites, and under the Northern Lights in the arctic circle. Part videographers and music curators, part adrenaline junkies, Cercle blend sound with mind-blowing images and aesthetic, creating audio-visual experiences in which viewers are immersed from start to finish. Broadcaster and DJ Frank McWeeny follows founder Derek Barbolla and his team of creatives for nine months, as they plan and broadcast a show under a waterfall in a remote part of Bosnia and Herzegovina. What makes it a perfect location? How is the artist selected? And with multiple cameras, drones, and a live audience of one thousand, how difficult is it to capture? From the importance of colour to the best time of day to film, we uncover the technical and logistical challenges of pulling off a production of this magnitude.

Norway’s National Museum Jun 21, 2022

After nearly 20 years of planning, in June 2022 Norway will open its new National Museum of Art, Architecture and Design in Oslo. The building will merge four museums and galleries into one space. The new National Museum will contain Norway's biggest collection of art, architecture and design. It will display over 6,500 works, from antiquity to the museum’s most recent contemporary acquisitions. Discover what it takes to launch a new world-leading cultural collection. In The Studio follows Stina Högkvist , Director of Collections, as well as curators, conservators and museum staff as they prepare for the grand opening. The National Museum will be topped by a huge 'Light Hall' displaying the work of 147 contemporary Norwegian artists in a special opening exhibition entitled ‘I Call It Art’. As the deadline draws nearer Stina negotiates test events, oversees installations, works with artists and adapts to the changing international situation. The pieces will be on display in an exhibition spanning 55,000 sq metres and 89 rooms, the largest art museum in the Nordic countries. Other exhibitions followed include a collection from the painter Edvard Munch, creator of 'The Scream', loans from the world leading art collection of the Fredriksen family and pieces by Norwegian designer Peter Dundas, who has styled Michelle Obama and Kim Kardashian.

The sound of art with Sonia Boyce Jun 16, 2022

The artist Sonia Boyce has just won the top prize at the Venice Biennale, the Olympics of the art world, where she has been representing Great Britain in a commission for the British Council. Sonia is a multidisciplinary practitioner known for working with audio, video, wallpaper and print. For this project she has been collaborating with four female singers at the famous Abbey Road studios in London, recording a piece of sonic art. It’s part of her award-winning exhibition in Venice called Feeling Her Way. Join the BBC’s Anna Bailey as she follows Sonia on her artistic journey from recording, installing and opening her work at the British Pavilion. Presented and produced by Anna Bailey for the BBC World Service Executive producer: Rebecca Armstrong

An Anthology of Fashion Jun 14, 2022

The Met Gala is an annual fundraiser for The Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute in New York City. Each year it marks the opening of The Costume Institute’s spring exhibition and is widely regarded as one of the most exclusive social events in the world. This year’s theme is 'In America: An Anthology of Fashion', the second in the two-part exhibition. The exhibition follows 'In America: A Lexicon of Fashion', which opened last year and remains on view with part two. This year the focus is on American fashion and Andrew Bolton, The Costume Institute’s head curator, his team and curators from The Met’s American Wing are working with film directors to create different cinematic scenes, installed as still vignettes across 13 period rooms. Each room depicts a different period of history in the world of American fashion. The nine film directors involved include Sofia Coppola, Martin Scorsese and last year's Oscar winner Chloé Zhao. Reporter, Kizzy Cox, has behind-the-scenes access shadowing the team, as they create the exhibition, bringing Andrew Bolton’s vision to life. She also chats to film director Chloé Zhao about how she goes about creating the Shaker Retiring Room vignette.

S-X Jun 07, 2022

In the Studio meets S-X, the Grammy-nominated British record producer and singer-songwriter, as he prepares to launch his career as a solo artist and release his debut album. As a sought-after record producer, S-X, born Sam Gumbley, has worked with the likes of Chance the Rapper, KSI, Skepta, Childish Gambino, Lil Wayne and Nicki Minaj. Laura Sanders follows Sam as he works to transform himself from producer to front-man and show the world who S-X is. Sam demonstrates how he comes up with his tracks, from the first beat to the finishing touches - sometimes using just a podcast mic and laptop. Laura learns some of the tricks of the trade as she goes behind the scenes and watches Sam at work in his Wolverhampton studio as he pieces together his hotly anticipated studio album. He discusses his bi-polar disorder and how he differentiates between his on-stage character S-X and his quieter self, Sam Gumbley. He reveals why he composes his songs on the voice note function on his mobile phone, what it's like to turn your hobby into a job and why that's not always a good thing. He explains why he rarely composes a track before he gets into studio and why waiting around for something to happen can be a bad idea. Plus, we hear tracks from his new album Who We Are, as they're being recorded.

Paco Peña: Flamenco from our elders May 31, 2022

Paco Peña, regarded as one of the world's foremost traditional flamenco players, is coming back to Sadler's Wells Theatre in London with Solera, his new flamenco show, devised in collaboration with long-time friend and theatre director Jude Kelly. Their work aims to showcase the raw talent of young artists, tempered by the understated authority of an older, wiser generation. Solera, the title of this production, refers to the solera process of ageing liquids such as wine. Andalucía, in Southern Spain, where Paco was born, has for generations produced fine wines using a method that stacks oak barrels in several layers. Young wine enters the highest barrel and given time flows down, nurturing its best qualities, until what remains is a delicious wine that can only be achieved with age. The mature solera of the older generations enriches and refines the best qualities handed down to the young. Flamenco is not a written tradition, but one handed down from one generation to the next, constantly striving to find different ways to express; the best of performances will incorporate part of what has been created before by the great practitioners of the past.

Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai - novel number two May 10, 2022

Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai is an award-winning Vietnamese writer whose debut novel The Mountains Sing, published in English in 2020, won the International Book Awards in 2021 and was runner-up in the Dayton Literary Peace Prize. It portrays the lives of four generations of a Vietnamese family enduring many hardships, something she understands well from her own upbringing. In conversation with presenter Felicity Finch, Quế Mai shares her writing process as she works on her second novel Dust Child, which is about Amerasians, children of American military men who were abandoned during The Vietnam War. Meetings with her New York publisher and editor Betsy Gleick help guide her through the many months of development as well as her desire to retain the Vietnamese-ness of her prose.

Nitin Sawhney May 03, 2022

The composer and multi-instrumentalist Nitin Sawhney has been commissioned to write a contemporary piece in response to Benjamin Britten’s piece War Requiem, which was premiered 60 years ago. Nitin’s new piece, like Benjamin Britten’s work, will be premiered in Coventry Cathedral in England’s Midlands. It will be performed both inside the cathedral and in the preserved ruins of the old cathedral that was bombed in WWII. The new work, called Ghosts in the Ruins, will be a response to Britten’s War Requiem but with a 21st century twist, concentrating on the plight of refugees and migrants. In the Studio follows Nitin as he works with professional musicians, poets and community choirs to create this site-specific work of art. Known for studio albums including the acclaimed Beyond Skin, Nitin's career has seen him collaborate with major international artists including Paul McCartney, Sting, Mira Nair, Anoushka Shankar, Norah Jones and Herbie Hancock, as well as working with Nelson Mandela. His film and TV music includes Netflix's Mowgli and the BBC’s epic Human Planet series. In 2017, he received the Ivor Novello Lifetime Achievement Award.

Colm Tóibín: A life of writing Apr 26, 2022

Irish author Colm Tóibín is among the world’s most celebrated contemporary writers. His works includes novels such as Nora Webster and The Blackwater Lightship, but also journalism, criticism, drama and more. His book Brooklyn was adapted into an Oscar-nominated film starring Saoirse Ronan, and his writing has been translated into over thirty languages.

Colm has explored the experiences of other novelists and creative thinkers in his writing. His recent title, The Magician, traced the life of German writer Thomas Mann, and his book The Master, an international literary sensation, told the story of the novelist Henry James.

Alongside the release of his debut collection of poems, Vinegar Hill, Colm gives fellow Irish writer Helen Cullen an insight into how he works, taking her through his writing process, how he gathers his ideas and his approach to refining his work.

They explore the differences and similarities in techniques of writing prose and poetry, and how influence can be drawn from outside the literary world. Helen discovers what it is like to immerse oneself in the creative of mind of figures such as Henry James, and how it shaped Colm as a writer.

Presenter: Helen Cullen Readings: Matthew Durkan Producer: Sam Peach Executive Producer: Rebecca Armstrong for the BBC World Service

Siri Hustvedt writing her next novel Apr 19, 2022

Siri Hustvedt is best known for her novels ‘What I loved’ and ‘The Summer Without Men’ which were international bestsellers. She has in fact written seven novels, two books of essays, a book of poetry and several works of non-fiction. Her work has been translated into over thirty languages and she has been nominated for many international literary awards. In 2015 she won the Los Angeles Times Book for Fiction. She is married to fellow writer Paul Auster and lives in New York in America.

Reporter and actor Tara Gadomski is hanging out with Siri as she starts writing her next novel, ‘The Haunted Envelope’. This process involves very early starts along with lovely walks in the park. Siri has also been recording regular dispatch voice recordings from her desk as she works. We discover how being afflicted by migraines and the pandemic all play a part in Siri’s creative process.

Presented by: Tara Gadomski Produced by: Emma Betteridge for the BBC World Service Image by: Spencer Ostrander

Glyndebourne's Messiah Apr 12, 2022

Handel’s Messiah is one of the great Christian works of Easter. Jeff Lloyd Roberts follows the creation of a new production by the Glyndebourne opera company, looking at the challenges of mounting a huge choral piece and touring with it during a time of rising Covid rates.

While most oratorios put the spotlight on the soloists, Handel’s Messiah has the chorus at its heart. We hear from performers in one of the foremost choruses in international opera, as they take on a piece that wholeheartedly showcases its singers in everything from the exhilarating He Trusted in God to the rapt wonder and stillness of Worthy is the Lamb. Conductor Ben Glassberg discusses the challenge of finding a new way to tell the story of Christ’s birth, crucifixion and resurrection in such a well-known and well-loved work.

Image: The Glyndebourne chorus rehearses Handel's Messiah (Credit: Richard Hubert Smith)

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Afshin Naghouni: Jelly beans and nostalgia Apr 05, 2022

Nostalgia. Sentimentality for the past, typically for a period or place with happy personal associations. But what if this sweet, warm, and fuzzy feeling was exploited by world leaders, and used as a tool to manipulate the masses?

That’s what Afshin Naghouni, a London-based Iranian-born British visual artist, believes has been happening around the world, with increasingly terrifying consequences. Through the rhetoric of the “good old days”, and an insistence on returning to the heyday of a “glorious” past, Afshin believes that some world leaders are tugging on nations’ collective nostalgic heartstrings to further their own agendas, and he explores this in his art.

Reporter Sahar Zand visits Afshin’s studio in West London, to find out how, for his new collection, the artist will paint this “collective nostalgic feeling” for a past we don’t remember correctly or haven’t personally experienced, drawn in our head by some external force. Having had to adapt and relearn how to paint after a life-changing accident, and vowing never to reveal what exactly each piece is depicting, mystery, and the overcoming of adversity, exist alongside imagined nostalgia as vital components in his vivid and evocative artworks.

Reporter/Producer: Sahar Zand Executive Producer: Rebecca Armstrong for the BBC World Service

Meron Hadero: Inside the Mind of a Writer Mar 22, 2022

With the forthcoming publication of her debut short story collection, A Down Home Meal for These Difficult Times, Meron Hadero takes us inside her process of writing short stories revealing how she creates a new, overarching narrative by presenting them as a collection. Over months of conversation with presenter and producer Sonia Paul, and in separate audio diaries and recordings with others in her life, Meron reflects on the themes she is attracted to as an Ethiopian-American writer and explores what it's like to create the space between Ethiopia and the United States with the turn of the page. She shares the nuts and bolts of publishing such a book - from determining the order of stories to working through edits, to deciding on a book cover along with dedications and acknowledgments - she pulls back the curtain to reveal the detailed thought process behind every decision.

Hannah Peel and Paraorchestra: The Unfolding Mar 15, 2022

Northern Irish composer Hannah Peel (Mercury Music Prize and Emmy nominee) has come together with the ground-breaking Paraorchestra to create a new album, The Unfolding. For In The Studio, we discover what lies behind Hannah’s creative vision: as thoughts of deep time and our shared roots as human beings in the universe swirled around her mind, she found the genesis of the project. We hear how the idea developed out of Hannah’s early melodic sketches and how it bloomed from there to celebrate Paraorchestra’s progressive approach to what an orchestra should be - mixing analogue, digital and assistive instruments with a unique ensemble of disabled and non-disabled musicians. As the record finally comes out into the world, we discover what it took to record it in morsels of time over three years, in the midst of a global pandemic.

Carlos Acosta Mar 08, 2022

Carlos Acosta was the most acclaimed ballet dancer of his generation, taking starring roles around the world. His journey from the streets of Havana - where he grew up poor, the youngest of 11 children - to becoming principal male dancer of the Royal Ballet in London is the stuff of legend. Now he passes on his experience to the dancers of the Birmingham Royal Ballet, where he is artistic director. Susan Marling joins Carlos as he rehearses a new and challenging production of Don Quixote with the company. How has he made the transition from dancer to director, and how has he kept the life and energy of the company through the long dark months of the pandemic?

Twyla Tharp Mar 01, 2022

Legendary dancer and choreographer Twyla Tharp has been creating dances for half a century, as well as for Broadway musicals and Hollywood hits like Amadeus and Hair. Since starting her own company in 1965, Twyla has been expanding our idea of what dance can be by combining a huge variety of movement from jazz, ballet and even boxing into her work. She’s won Emmys and a Tony, and is still working aged 80. Clem Hitchcock joins Twyla as her latest performance, Twyla Now, opens at New York City Centre. Back in 1973, it also staged Twyla’s Deuce Coupe, her revolutionary breakthrough work scored to music by the Beach Boys, which mixed classical and modern dance to become the first ‘crossover’ ballet. For this performance, Twyla is drawing on dances from her mighty back catalogue, some famous, some never seen before. In a rare interview, Twyla chats with Clem Hitchcock about refreshing the dances of her past by collaborating with some of the superstars of American dance today. We hear from two of them: New York City Ballet principal dancer Sara Mearns, and James Gilmer from Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre. This includes a version of a dance Twyla first choreographed for herself and Mikhail Baryshnikov back in 1992, but this time switching around the gender of the two leads. She discusses the need for inclusivity and diversity in dance companies, and why for this show she was also keen to work with younger emerging dancers she found on the internet. Never one to stand still, Twyla looks back at how the last two years have been surprisingly productive, including choreographing a ‘Zoom ballet’, and reflects on her lifelong commitment to broadening the appeal of ballet to new audiences through evolving a relaxed, looser, more accessible way of moving.

Johan Holmström's Lo-Fi Masterpiece Feb 22, 2022

Johan Holmström’s music is heard by millions of people every day but very few would know his name, what he looks like, or be able to give you the title of one of his compositions. That is because Johan is the resident composer and sound designer at King, the makers of the incredibly successful Candy Crush - a social game that has been installed over 1.7 billion times around the globe. Downton Abbey composer, John Lunn, joins Johan and follows every step of his creative process. Together, they discover how creating music for TV and film compares with scoring for social games.

Green Planet Feb 15, 2022

We join wildlife sound recordist Chris Watson and go behind the scenes of Green Planet, a new, hugely ambitious BBC natural history television series which offers a plant’s eye view to our understanding of the world. We discover how Chris embraces the challenges of this series, the creative decisions he makes, and how he uses the latest technologies to capture the sounds produced by plants, as well as the sound world inside and around them.

Elizabeth McGovern: Becoming Ava Gardner Feb 08, 2022

The Emmy and Oscar-nominated actor Elizabeth McGovern is about to star as the glamorous Hollywood legend Ava Gardner in a new play that she’s written about her life. Elizabeth is known all around the world for her portrayal of Cora Crawley, the Countess of Grantham, in the British drama series Downton Abbey. In this, her first play, she aims to capture the complexities of Ava’s life and the relationship with her biographer on stage at the Riverside Studios in London. Join Anna Bailey as she follows Elizabeth in rehearsals with her fellow creatives, exploring the action, set, sound and costumes.

Phil Grucci and the Art of Fireworks Feb 01, 2022

Some people have called Phil Grucci "the firework king," but that’s a title he politely rejects, adding that if anything it really belongs to his father and his uncle – older generations of a family-owned fireworks business that was founded in Italy in 1850. Phil Grucci is president and creative director, and is responsible for planning and designing award-winning pyrotechnic spectaculars all over the world. He invites the BBC World Service into his studio as he prepares for another record-breaking performance.

Stephen Page: Staging Indigenous Culture Jan 25, 2022

Wudjang : Not the Past is Stephen Page's swan song after 30 years at the helm of Australia’s First Nation company, Bangarra Dance Theatre. This production is their biggest yet; a contemporary corroboree of story, poetry, song, dance and music, told by twenty-six performers on stage. This is a new work and as the last in Stephen’s long career as Artistic Director of Bangarra Dance, the pressure is on to create his crowning achievement in a short eight weeks where it will premier at Sydney Festival, a huge cultural event that takes place across Sydney in January. The work lives close to Stephen’s experience of family, drawing on his father’s lost language of Mibinyah from Yugambeh Country and the songlines of his Aboriginal heritage. It’s a work that addresses ancestors and new knowledge and connects the past with the present. It’s a fusion of form that elevates and strengthens the continent’s troubled culture and moves from the land and ritual to the stage. Join Regina Botros as she follows Stephen in his creative process from conception to completion. She’ll also talk with the other creatives in this very collaborative production including; award winning co-writer Alana Valentine, composer Steve Francis, designer Jacob Nash and dancer Daniel Mateo. Wudjang: Not The Past is the first co-production between Bangarra Dance Theatre, until recently, Australia’s only First Nations company and Sydney Theatre Company.

Teatro San Cassiano: Turning the impossible dream into reality Jan 18, 2022

Do you have what seems like an impossible dream? Maybe it’s to complete a marathon, swim with dolphins or win the lotto. Or, maybe, it’s to bring the world’s first public opera theatre back to life? Well the latter is the "impossible dream" of Dr Paul Atkin, a business man and musicologist from the UK. 200 years after Teatro San Cassiano was demolished – apparently on the orders of Napoleon – Paul is attempting to recreate this lost opera house, so that the Baroque opera he loves can be performed in the very theatre it would have been composed for. In a tale that’s as dramatic as any opera or World Cup final, join Ella-mai Robey for an episode of In the Studio, which reveals - before even a brick is laid – what it takes to try and turn an impossible dream into reality.

Artists' challenges: Natural and manmade Jan 11, 2022

For nearly five years, In The Studio has been at the forefront of the creative process - with extraordinary access to big names and exciting talent working in the creative industries around the world. Our reporters are right there as works are brought into being, whether that be in design, music, TV and film, photography, sculpture, writing, painting or performance. In this episode Laura Hubber delves into the archive to consider the enormous challenges artists face as they bring their projects to fruition. One of the major obstacles to all artistic endeavours in the last couple of years has been the worldwide pandemic. This programme features Turkish author Elif Shafak who tells how her writing life was shaken up during lockdown, Britain’s Royal Shakespeare Company coping when Covid-19 closed the theatres and New Orleans’s oldest parading organisation, Krewe of Rex, working to keep the Mardi Gras Carnival flourishing despite social distancing and the wearing of very different kinds of masks. There are contributions too from producer Linda Wong Davies battling deadlines and culture differences to stage a western opera in Shanghai, Finland’s Kari Kola struggling in Ireland to mount the world’s largest illuminated artwork and animator Phil Tippett reflecting on the stress of making a film over the course of more than thirty years.

Activism, politics and creativity Jan 04, 2022

For nearly five years, In The Studio has been at the forefront of the creative process, with extraordinary access to big names and exciting talent working in the creative industries around the world. Our reporters are right there as works are brought into being, whether that be in design, music, TV and film, photography, sculpture, writing, painting or performance. During that time, activism and public discourse around issues of contemporary politics has intensified, with others left trying to make sense of it all. Artists and creatives are no exception, often making work with a political agenda, or to encourage conversation, as they engage their artistic sensibilities with the events of the real world. In this episode, Laura Hubber takes a look at some of those In the Studio moments, when creative impulses come face-to-face with realpolitik. With contributions from Chinese artist Ai Weiwei, creator of a participatory light installation on the US-Mexican border Raphael Lorenzo-Hemmer, Zanele Muholi whose photographs address hate crime in South Africa and the team behind satirical television puppetry in Kenya The XYZ Show.

Balla Kouyaté: 800 years of tradition Dec 28, 2021

To say that balafon player Balla Kouyaté was born into a musical family is an understatement. His family line goes back 800 years to Balla Faséké, the first of an unbroken line of djelis in the Kouyaté clan. Djelis are the oral historians, musicians, and performers who keep alive the history of the Mandé people of Mali and Guinea. The balafon is the ancestor to all marimbas and xylophones. Played with mallets, it comprises of wooden slats with rows of gourds acting as natural amplifiers underneath. The story goes that back in the 13th century, when the emperor Sundiata overthrew the villainous Soumaora Kante, he appointed the Kouyaté family to protect the Sosso Bala, the original balafon. That instrument survives today, in the safe keeping of Balla’s father’s in Guinea. With all that history it’s no surprise that Balla is a virtuoso player of the balafon. Now living in Boston in the US, he’s a much sought-after collaborator, playing with the likes of Yo-Yo Ma in his Silk Road ensemble. As well as frequently touring with his own band, he also makes time to fulfil his responsibilities to his community as a djeli, playing traditional music at family events from weddings to baby naming ceremonies.

Nutcracker! with Sir Matthew Bourne Dec 21, 2021

We follow the internationally celebrated choreographer Sir Matthew Bourne as he reimagines his popular work Nutcracker! for Autumn 2021. Taking Tchaikovsky’s ballet and in a set heavily influenced by the lavish Hollywood musicals of the 1930s, Bourne’s production is a spectacle as it journeys between Dr. Dross’ drab Orphanage, through a shimmering, ice-skating winter wonderland, and into the mouth-watering Sweetieland full of dancing sugar coated goodies. Complete with newly-refreshed delectable sets and costumes, combined with sparkling new choreography, Luke Whitlock explores with Bourne how this reinvention comes about. From preparations way ahead of the opening night of the tour, and then heading to London to light up the Christmas Season, the creative process for Bourne doesn’t stop.

Rankin: Capturing the moment Dec 13, 2021

Rankin has been described as one of the UK’s greatest photographers. Perhaps best known for his striking, playful and intimate portraits, he has photographed the likes of Britney Spears, David Bowie and Queen Elizabeth II. His work appearing in magazine’s like Vogue, GQ and Marie Claire. Join Anna Bailey for a ringside seat as Rankin shoots the casts of shows such as The Lion King and Tina Turner The Musical - capturing the moment when London’s theatres reopen after lockdown, for a new book and exhibition. Anna also discovers what lies behind Rankin’s creative vision as he experiments with beauty photography for his latest edition of Hunger Magazine.

Devan Shimoyama: Rhinestones and telephone lines Dec 07, 2021

In The Studio enters the dazzling world of American visual artist Devan Shimoyama as he makes a brand new installation for the recently re-opened Arts and Industries Building at the Smithsonian Museum in Washington DC. Reporter Kristin Vermilya follows Devan in the months leading up to the Smithsonian’s Futures exhibition as he completes work on The Grove, an imagined future monument created in response to the police shootings among Black Americans during the tumultuous year of 2020. We hear the painstaking process of creating a shimmering urban forest of utility poles bedazzled with thousands of rhinestones and Swarovski crystals complete with gem-studded shoes and silk flowers dangling from their power lines. And how drag culture and his grandmother’s innate sense of style has inspired this radiant artwork which represents a space for both collective grieving, and the healing power of hope.

Yinka Shonibare Nov 30, 2021

World renowned British-Nigerian artist Yinka Shonibare has art work exhibited across the globe, but for this project, he’ll be swapping international museum spaces and his trademark, brightly coloured wax batik fabric for a wild, rural landscape and some altogether more industrial materials. Reporter Nicola Humphries joins Yinka Shonibare as work begins on one of his most ambitious projects yet, the Ecology Green Farm. A residency space for artists, agriculturists and researchers, created with a sustainable infrastructure and food security for the local community in mind. We’ll hear from Yinka in his studio in London, and from his collaborator, architect and master planner Papa Omotayo, on the ground in Lagos, as they work together to establish an organic farm across a 54-acre site whilst overseeing their team of local artisans handmake 40,000 bricks to construct a state-of-the art, artists residence and workshop. Gardens will be planted, greenhouses filled and local craft will take centre stage. Across the year they’ll navigate lockdowns and rainy seasons, and gradually witness the centrepiece to this project, a locally styled barn house, rise from the ground, ready to become a place for people to share skills and ideas in an ambitious cultural exchange programme. Yinka shares his personal motivations for establishing the Ecology Green Farm and explains his ongoing beliefs in the relationship between art and social justice, demonstrating with this project, how the combined disciplines of architecture and science can contribute to local eco systems, food security and of course, creativity.

Anifa Mvuemba – preparing for the runway Nov 23, 2021

The fashion label Hanifa was launched in 2012 - Anifa Mvuemba's dream of a label that featured ready-to-wear clothes for women sizes 0-20, finally came true. And now she's preparing for her debut runway show in Washington, DC, and is designing shoes to accompany it, her first foray into footwear. Join Karen Baker as she meets Anifa at the drawing table where the design for a beautiful evening gown is emerging but will it make it to the catwalk? Feel the buzz as preparations for the show pick up pace and Karen meets others involved in preparing for a runway show, from music makers to make-up artists to models.

Billie Zangewa: Silk, stitches and feminism Nov 16, 2021

Internationally-acclaimed textile artist, Billie Zangewa calls her work “daily feminism”. Crafted in silk with thousands of tiny hand sewn stitches, her creations explore the themes of feminine strength and the power of family. As part of the BBC's 100 Women season in 2021, In The Studio joins Billie at her kitchen table in Johannesburg as she creates her latest works - visions brought to life amid one of the harshest Covid lockdowns in the world, and riots that left hundreds dead. All the while, home-schooling her 8-year-old son at the same table. Journalist Vauldi Carelse is invited into the Malawian-born artist’s home as she transforms raw silk into intricate tapestries for solo shows opening in Seoul and London this year.

DRIFT: Coding nature Nov 09, 2021

Working as DRIFT, Dutch art duo Lonneke Gordijn and Ralph Nauta make spectacular immersive installations. For this September's Design Miami fair in Basel, they are presenting their biggest and most complex Shylight project to date. Seeing Shylight is a mesmerising experience, as dozens of silk flower-like lights gracefully open and close above the viewer’s head. We hear about the level of detail involved in creating the Shylights effect, with hundreds of hours spent sewing the delicate silk shapes and programming the choreography of their movement - not to mention the challenge of a global computer chip shortage. DRIFT are known for the way they use technology to explore the hidden mechanisms of nature: the movement in Shylight is inspired by the way some flowers close at night. In other works, DRIFT have programmed drones to swarm the skies in patterns based on bird flight, made concrete blocks float, and captured the fragility of dandelion seed heads. As she anticipates the final reveal in Basel, journalist Bidisha talks to Lonneke Gordijn and Ralph Nauta about their decades-long working partnership.

Abraham Cruzvillegas - Turning Discarded Items into Art Nov 02, 2021

The Mexican artist Abraham Cruzvillegas creates beautiful, thought-provoking sculptures using items that other people have thrown away - from old plastic crates and driftwood to childrens’ toys and birdcages. Anything can be transformed into his art. His inspiration comes from growing up on the outskirts of Mexico City, in a house built by his parents using any materials they could find. He has exhibited across the world including at the prestigious Turbine Hall at the Tate in London. As Abraham constructs his latest exhibition, Autorreconstruccion: Social Tissue at the Kunsthaus in Zurich, Switzerland, he talks to Jo Fahy about his work, his ideas about inclusivity, the importance of beer to his creative process and the challenges when a sculpture collapses.

Sandy Rodriguez: When art, geography and politics collide Oct 26, 2021

Los Angeles-based artist Sandy Rodriguez grew up on the California-Mexico border, descended from three generations of Mexican painters. For In The Studio, reporter Laura Hubber follows Sandy as she creates large-scale map paintings, which tell the story of the current political moment, while harnessing methods and materials from indigenous Mexican culture. These maps explore issues of immigration – deportations, separated migrant children and protests – against the backdrop of California’s majestic desert landscape. Sandy sees her role as ‘tlacuilo’, a Nahua word meaning artist, scribe and sage. This is demonstrated in her unique practice as she creates the maps by collecting clippings of local plants, grinding and boiling them to make her own pigments, and painting onto traditional amate paper – all techniques that come from indigenous Mexican teachings.

Dan Meis: Designing a stadium Oct 19, 2021

Dan Meis has developed a reputation for out-of-the-box, innovative thinking while creating projects that redefine their respective building types. This include a “transformable” venue in Japan that mechanically changes from arena to stadium. He also led the design for the Staples Center in Los Angeles. Host and professional football player Neil Danns gets an exclusive insight into the innovative sports architect's creative process reflected in past, present and future projects, including Everton FC’s new football stadium, a tennis centre in Los Angeles and a pitch for a yet to be named project. Neil examines the creativity it takes to bring a design to life, exploring the process of the designs, how progress is made and how the ever-present challenges are overcome.

Little Amal: The Walk Oct 12, 2021

Meet Little Amal, a 3.5 metre-tall puppet of a young nine-year-old refugee girl, created to represent all displaced children. She is travelling over 8000km, from Turkey, through Europe, ending in the UK. The Walk is an unique and ambitious travelling art festival organised by Good Chance Theatre in collaboration with Handspring Puppet Company, that brings artists, cultural institutions and community groups together in the countries Little Amal visits. Her message is “Don’t forget about us”. But at a time when the world is still fighting the Covid-19 pandemic and when anti-immigrant sentiment is present in certain countries, The Walk does not come without its challenges. Join Cagil Kasapoglu as she meets the people involved, including artistic director Amir Nizar Zuabi and general manager Sarah Loader, who travel with Little Amal across borders and seas.

George Condo: Painting a new world Oct 05, 2021

George Condo, whose work blends pop culture with art history and regularly sells for millions of dollars, is breaking out of his home, his canvases and the style of painting he is best known for. Now he is exploring a new phase and In the Studio has a front row seat. Reporter, actor and filmmaker Tara Gadomski is spending time with the New York artist - who has worked with the likes of Kanye West and Andy Warhol - as he prepares for his biggest show since the world was changed by the Covid-19 pandemic. We discover how George has also been transformed, both by his time in isolation and the tentative steps he has taken back into the crowded city. What is emerging? A cosmos of living, breathing organisms created in paint, ink and crayon. Join George Condo in the studio for a whirlwind ride, as he climbs high ladders to paint the top edges of huge canvases and explains his technique and his thoughts. Prepare to see the world in a new way.

Cameron Menzies: La Boheme in Belfast Sep 28, 2021

Australian director, writer and designer, Cameron Menzies, flew into Belfast from Australia in the midst of the pandemic to start his new tenure as Artistic Director and relaunch Northern Ireland Opera. Puccini's La Boheme is one of the most famous operas ever written, and tells the story of a group of Bohemians who are all desperately trying to find their way in life and love, alongside the difficulties a life of poverty and illness throws at them. This is the opera that Cameron Menzies has chosen to make his debut. It will be staged in the iconic and derelict Carlisle Memorial Church in Belfast in an area of the city which was once the flashpoint for much of the Troubles. Due to Covid, he has flipped this most classic of operas and is presenting it in a way it has never been seen before. The set will be built from scratch, and there will only be a few short weeks between first entering the church to the live performances in September. Join Marie-Louise Muir as she discovers what it takes to stage an opera in less than six weeks, and talks to the other creative voices involved, including the conductor, Rebecca Lang and the production manager, Pádraig Ó Duinnín.

Peter Dundas: Dressing the world’s powerful women Sep 21, 2021

With the autumn fashion season in full swing, we meet the Norwegian designer who’s creating new collections and a gown for this year's Met Gala in New York. Peter Dundas is renowned for his catwalk couture and for dressing some of the world’s most powerful women including Beyoncé and Michelle Obama. Join Anna Bailey, who follows Peter as he makes a bespoke gown for the Grammy award-winning singer-songwriter Ciara, while also preparing a new collection for the catwalk with his team at Dundas in London.

Designing the new Aston Martin Sep 14, 2021

The makers of James Bond's car are entering new territory. Aston Martin, the British manufacturer usually associated with 007's sports car, are launching their first family motor - an SUV. In The Studio has gained exclusive access to the design and manufacturing process. We join head of design, Marek Reichman, in his studio, follow the car through rigorous testing, and finally, see it launched to the public.

Phil Tippett: Mad God, 30 years in the making Sep 07, 2021

A bowler hatted, gas mask-wearing figure descends in a diving bell into an apocalyptic landscape of nightmarish creatures. Flames and searchlights puncture the darkness as the ‘Assassin’ begins his wordless quest in a shattered world. Welcome to Mad God. This is a film that has been 30 years in the making. The dark, disturbing vision of filmmaker and visual FX artist Phil Tippett, Mad God is his tormented love song for the craft and power of stop motion animation. A technique as old as cinema itself but largely abandoned since the coming of digital technology. Tippett won two Oscars for his work on The Empire Strikes Back and Jurassic Park. That film effectively spelled the end for stop motion in major motion pictures. But Mad God remained an unshakeable vision for Tippett. It was begun and abandoned as too costly and time consuming. Tippett had his own all digital vfx studio to run with projects like Starship Troopers & Evolution. That was until the new century and a new generation of colleagues who saw the footage and urged him to revive the project. Tippett mentored these younger animators, all keen to experience the art and craft of stop-motion and volunteering their spare time. Jointly they expanded Mad God from a 6 minute short into a full blown apocalyptic vision. As Mad God enters its final weeks of completion and unveiling, Mark Burman speaks to Tippett and some of his key collaborators about the art, madness and dreams that have fuelled the project and their collective love for the hand crafted magic of stop motion.

Start your engines: Williams Racing with Jodie Kidd Aug 31, 2021

With new leadership in full swing at Williams Racing, model and racing driver Jodie Kidd gets exclusive access to explore the factory of the once-great British F1 team. Nestled in the Oxfordshire countryside, the Williams Racing factory is a hub of activity as engineers and mechanics work around the clock to produce the best car they can. In this programme, we’ll follow the various changes to the barge board, an integral part of an F1 car, through the first half of the 2021 season. Operations director James Colgate gives us a guided tour of the factory floor, while Dave Robson, head of vehicle performance, talks us through the intricacies of the racing car. Jodie also meets Williams driver George Russell, who will take us into the simulator and explain how the smallest of changes can make or break a race. Williams Racing was founded in 1977 by Frank Williams who, until last year, still ran the team, with the help of his daughter, Claire Williams. Through the 1980s and 1990s, Williams was a tour de force, with the best cars and best drivers in Formula 1 and an enviable winning streak. In recent times, though, Williams have found themselves at the bottom of the grid and the league tables on an almost weekly basis. We’ll learn about the intricacies of the car and get a sense of the teamwork involved in building and maintaining one of the world's fastest cars.

Tom Hunt: Dressage music for the Tokyo Paralympics Aug 24, 2021

As the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games begin, we meet the composer who’s creating music for Para Equestrian dressage competitors, Natasha Baker and Laurentia Tan.

Tom Hunt specialises in composing original music for one of the most exciting parts of competitive dressage, Freestyle.

Join Hilary Dunn as she discovers how Tom works with Natasha and Laurentia to make music which brings out the best from them and their horses, and allows them to remain at the top of their game in this highly competitive performance-led Olympic event.

Presented by Hilary Dunn Produced by Hilary Dunn and Eliza Lomas Executive Produced by Ella-mai Robey for the BBC World Service

El Far3i: Palestinian music sensation Aug 17, 2021

We hear from Tareq Abu Kwaik, known by his stage name El Far3i - songwriter and producer.

Michael Harding: In vivid colour Aug 10, 2021

Dick Pope, the Oscar-nominated cinemtatographer of Mr. Turner and The Illusionist, visits master paint-maker Michael Harding at his colour mill in Cwmbran, Wales. Michael takes Dick on a drive to his local stables to collect a special ingredient for an ancient paint recipe. On the way, they discuss the challenges of their respective crafts, and the time-tested ways they each create colour in their work. Back at the colour mill, Michael shows Dick around and recounts some of the weird and wonderful ways paints and pigments have historically been made, taking him into a heavily padlocked shipping container where the special ingredient they collected earlier helps to create a brilliant white paint.

Composer and Pianist Nils Frahm Aug 03, 2021

All Melody is the latest work and tour by contemporary composer and pianist, Nils Frahm. This programme reveals the creative, emotional and physical processes involved when new material is combined with vast stage shows for an international schedule of truly daunting proportions. Captured during a number of visits to his studio, Nils opens up to his good friend, Sebastian Schipper, director of single-take Berlin heist, Victoria, for which Nils composed the award-winning original score. He also chats to his biggest fan, British TV, film and stage writer, Sam Bain. Not only does the show combine three incredible minds of music, film and TV, the audience is also treated to an immersive binaural experience, recorded at London’s Barbican Centre during a run of sold out concerts.

Aditi Mittal: Creating the laughs Jul 27, 2021

Aditi Mittal came to prominence as one of the first female stand-up comedians in India and has won plaudits for her work, observing what she calls “fempowerment” and her life as an Indian woman. Her shows have toured around the world and been on Netflix. Now she’s writing new work from her home in Mumbai for her first online comedy show, and trialling it out on the internet. But without an audience in the room, and with new technical demands, it’s a challenge. Yasmeen Khan follows Aditi over a month as she writes, performs, rewrites and hones her material. How will she adapt to the constraints of Zoom? And with India in the grip of Covid-19, how easy is it to find humour during this time?

Designing Football Boots Jul 20, 2021

These boots - if a success - will go on to sit on shop shelves across the world and grace the feet of the biggest footballing stars.

In this episode of In the Studio, football journalist Raphael Honigstein guides us through this creative duo's process, as they balance new, exciting ideas with tried and tested formulas that have brought the company success before.

We’ll join Dave as he sketches out the new design, discussing the delicate balance between emerging technologies and the dream boots he has in his mind. He’s also keen to reflect the history of the sport too, taking us inside the Archive Room to search for design inspiration from the past.

For Rob, his domain lies in what’s worked before. Armed with the stats about which designs sell well and why, he guides Dave and his team towards a boot that not only looks good, but performs well on the pitch and the shop floor too. But what is success for them both? A slick design? An impressed athlete? Or a sales boom? And which one of these takes precedence when designing a new football boot? We follow the next steps in the process - from the rigorous testing to the storytelling around the launch - and hear the final moment when Dave and Rob get to unbox their creation for the very first time.

Apichatpong Weerasethakul: From Colombia to Cannes Jul 13, 2021

Apichatpong Weerasethakul, the Palme d’Or award-winning Thai filmmaker and artist, is back at the Cannes Film Festival this year with his film, Memoria, which has just been selected for the main competition. Starring Tilda Swinton, Memoria is Apichatpong’s first feature film to be shot outside his native Thailand. Apart from being shot in the mountains of Colombia and centering on a widow, played by Swinton, who goes in search of her own identity after hearing a series of mysterious bangs, many details of the film have been kept under wraps. With exclusive access to the Director, cast and crew, In the Studio joins Apichatpong on the shoot in Colombia and follows him through to the post-production in Thailand.

Emma Kathleen Thomas: A tapestry of species Jul 06, 2021

Emma Kathleen Thomas was confronted with the fragility of life at a young age. The British-Mexican artist lost both of her parents early, and this painful experience has made her passionate about preserving the rich variety of life on earth, protecting the planet for her young children and - she hopes - instilling in them the confidence to bring children into the world themselves one day. To mark International Day for Biological Diversity 2021, Emma has been planning an ambitious collaborative artwork: a tapestry of large-scale images of endangered species, laid out in different-coloured clothes and visible from the air, which will unfold in real time across the planet’s surface. The project will involve participants from countries including Australia, Ghana, the UK and the US, who will create images as diverse as the white-necked picathartes, a bird living in Africa for 44 million years and now critically endangered, and the golden paintbrush, a prairie flower that is disappearing due to the loss of its habitat. Each image will be completed at exactly 17:00 local time, creating a 'Mexican wave’ of endangered species around the globe, with audiences worldwide following online. Danish visual artist Eske Kath joins Emma in Copenhagen as she oversees the Danish leg of the project - a huge image featuring the great yellow bumblebee, laid out in a sports ground in the Danish capital - and finds out how some of the other participating groups have fared.

Ai-Da: The world’s first A.I. robot artist Jun 29, 2021

When the world’s first A.I. “robot artist” was announced in 2019, In the Studio was given exclusive access to the design and making of Ai-Da, a humanoid robot capable of drawing people from real life, and named after Ada Lovelace, the first female computer programmer in the world. As an exhibit of Ai-Da’s artwork is shown at the UK’s Design Museum, and she takes up her first artist residency, we hear how the team used A.I. processes and algorithms, cameras in her eyes and a pen in her robotic hand, to allow Ai-Da to draw from sight. Karl Bos talks to the creative visionary behind the project, Gallery Director Aidan Meller, along with the young engineers tasked with making her drawing arm and the team producing her head, face and body.

Lungelo Gumede: The uncanny art of wax sculpting Jun 22, 2021

As you enter Lungelo Gumede’s studio, in the heart of South Africa's coastal city of Durban, you are greeted by the smell of paint, clay and other materials. Across the room, what you see is surprising. At first glance, you are looking at Nelson Mandela, the recently departed King of the Zulu Nation, Goodwill Zwelithini and Queen Elizabeth II. As you get closer, of course, you discover they are wax figures elegantly dressed in real clothes. That's what Lungelo specialises in - life size statues of prominent global figures in politics, sports and entertainment, with a special focus on African heroes. His art is celebrated across South Africa and, at only 36, he’s on a mission to create the country’s first ever wax museum. Mpho Lakaje spends a week with Lungelo to discover what it takes to make a new wax figure.

Dream machines: Inside Porsche's design lab Jun 15, 2021

Motoring journalist Erin Baker gets behind the wheel of Porsche's latest 911 sports car. Michael Mauer, current chief designer at Porsche, and Tony Hatter, design manager on models including the 993, describe to Erin what it takes to design a car that will be both instantly recognisable and desirable. From the initial sketch to full-scale models and the final product, Erin gets under the bonnet of the design process. Porsche is also the largest high performance vehicle manufacturer in the world. Erin asks what the future holds for Porsche design, and driving for pleasure, beyond the internal combustion engine.

Making Midge Ure’s New Guitar with Jimmy Moon Jun 08, 2021

Scottish guitar maker Jimmy Moon receives an order to make a custom-built acoustic guitar from musician Midge Ure, as the craft of handmade musical instrument making is put in the spotlight in this edition of In the Studio. We follow the process from Midge’s initial specifications of size and finish, to the picking of wood, joinery, engineering work and finishing by Jimmy and his assistant Stephen Devine, to final delivery to Midge.

Midge needs a new acoustic to use on stage for a series of shows where he’s stripping back his solo hits and those as front man with electronic 80s band Ultravox to perform them with just an acoustic guitar. Jimmy has eight weeks before Midge returns to Glasgow, and we follow this master instrument maker as he creates the guitar that will accompany Midge’s catalogue of classic tunes including If I Was, Vienna, Dancing with Tears in My Eyes and the Band Aid classic Do They Know It’s Christmas.

Along the way, Midge talks to guitarist supremo Martin Taylor about the different requirements for him as a jazz guitarist compared to Midge’s rock style. Midge throws up a challenge requesting an all-black matt finish, a first for Jimmy’s order book, so he has to juggle design as well as creating musical tonal perfection.

Cristina Iglesias: To The Lighthouse Jun 01, 2021

A derelict lighthouse…an island only accessible by boat …and the rhythm and sound of water…..all these are crucial components in the latest artwork being unveiled this June by the Spanish installation artist and sculptor Cristina Iglesias. She’s won international acclaim for her work transforming public spaces and her latest project takes this further by remaking the lighthouse as a sculptural site. The lighthouse is on St Clara Island, in the area of San Sebastian, Spain, where Cristina was born. She’s transforming the interior of the building and adding water to recreate the impression of waves. It’s a process that is full of complications with complex engineering and structural logistics.

Reporter Kristina Zorita travels with Cristina by boat to the island for a day to find out how she and a team of specialists work on creating the wave effects. Will the timings of the water sequences work as Cristina has imagined? We also hear about the significance of the lighthouse and the island in Cristina’s artistic imagination and the life of the community.

Eric Whitacre – Creating the Virtual Choir May 25, 2021

As Covid-19 has swept the world we’ve become used to seeing musicians in lockdown presenting videos of virtual performances. But for the Grammy-award winning American composer and conductor Eric Whitacre, the idea of a virtual choir is nothing new because he pioneered the concept over 10 years ago. His first choir of 185 singers became a global phenomenon and has been seen by millions on YouTube. More virtual choir projects followed and the choir videos have featured as installations and as part of the 2012 Olympics and the Davos World Economic Forum. Now Eric’s just released his largest Virtual Choir project to date, which premiered on YouTube a few days ago. It features 17,572 singers from around the world performing his new piece “Sing Gently” for which he’s written the words and the music.

Eric talks to Emma Kingsley about creating this latest project, the inspirations for his other compositions, the idea of the musical “golden brick” and how his early dreams of becoming a pop star changed through singing Mozart in the college choir.

Ini Archibong: Making the Chair May 18, 2021

The designer Ini Archibong has won global recognition for his work with Hermès and Sé and his pieces have been exhibited in galleries across Europe and the USA. He’s known for his designs of luxury items but recently he’s been working on something very different – a partnership with the American design firm Knoll, renowned for its workplace furniture - where Ini has been designing a stackable chair and a table to be used in cafeterias.

Working closely with Ini to make his designs a reality is Knoll’s Executive Vice President of Design, Benjamin Pardo. We follow the discussions between him and Ini over months as they work through the intricacies of making the chair safe and stackable. The programme begins in 2019 when Imogen Foulkes meets Ini at his home in Switzerland and sees how his designs are beginning to take shape. There will be 2 versions of the chair- one with arms and one without. But can what’s in Ini’s head be adapted to the manufacturing processes and the demands of making something like this for a mass market?

As the pandemic takes hold, the process has to be paused – but soon it resumes and, finally, Ini can take delivery of a completed chair ahead of its planned unveiling in the Pavilion of the African Diaspora that he’s designed for the London Design Biennale in June 2021.

The making of U.Me: The Musical May 11, 2021

U.Me: The Musical is a new musical for radio and podcast that premieres on Wednesday 12 May. How – in a period of global pandemic – do you take the idea of creating a radio musical that aims to bring joy and catharsis to a locked down world, and turn that into a reality? This programme examines the huge team effort that goes into crafting a piece of audio art for our times. At the centre of the story are BBC story commissioner and co-writer Simon Pitts, composer and lyricist Theo Jamieson (musical supervisor of West End hit Everybody’s Talking About Jamie), plus Grammy Award-winning record producer Steve Levine. The trio are at the heart of a large cast of artistic talents, all of whom contribute to the final work. Via a combination of video calls, exclusive access to the fully Covid-19 compliant bubble of London rehearsal rooms, actual production recordings featuring the socially distanced BBC Philharmonic, and contributions from show leads Anoushka Lucas and Martin Sarreal, actor and writer Mathew Horne (Gavin Shipman in BAFTA-winning BBC TV series Gavin and Stacey) examines the creative process behind this unique radio production.

Camilo: The making of a Latin superstar May 04, 2021

If there is a winning formula for moving from songwriter to performer, Camilo has found it. At the time of writing, the 27-year-old Colombian star and Latin Grammy-winner has amassed 5.2 billion streams of his song Por Primera and his album, Mis Manos – released just two months ago - has had over 2 billion streams worldwide.

Through his open, warm, and personal approach on social media he has gained 21 million Instagram followers and nearly 23 million TikTok followers - making him the most followed Latin artist on the platform. In 2021 he has already been nominated for a Grammy Award and made his late-night US television debut on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon. As Mis Manos is released, Colombian reporter Natalia Guerrero talks to Camilo - and those working closest to him - as he prepares to break into the Brazilian market by recording his hit song, BEBÉ in Portuguese and dreams of his first ever show in front of a live audience. Will his dream come true?

Olafur Eliasson: Creating “Life” Apr 27, 2021

The award-winning Danish–Icelandic artist Olafur Eliasson is renowned for his work with sculptures, photography and installation art which explores issues around perception, climate and public response. For the past months he’s been working on his next project called “Life”, at the Fondation Beyeler in Switzerland this April and has granted In The Studio special access to follow his creative process.

Olafur is on a mission to ensure that he doesn’t pre-empt his audience’s response to the final work- and that includes not releasing much detail about the project beforehand. But, as reporter Neil McCarthy finds out, it involves a major reconfiguration of the gallery – including removing the famous full-length gallery windows and flooding it with water from the outside lily pond. Reporter Neil McCarthy talks to Olafur at different stages in the execution of the work and also hears from the gallery’s Director Sam Keller about the technical challenges which will need to be overcome to create a work which poses many questions about the nature of space and environment – and which stays watertight!

Edmund de Waal: Creating a memorial Apr 20, 2021

In The Studio follows internationally acclaimed artist and writer Edmund de Waal as he creates new site-specific work for the Musée Nissim de Camondo, a hidden gem in a quiet corner of Paris. Once a flourishing household at the centre of Belle Époque Parisian society, the magnificent building and its spectacular collection of French eighteenth-century art became a quiet memorial for the son who was to have inherited it, but who tragically, died in the First World War.

Edmund de Waal guides us through his creative response to the haunting history of the Camondo family, the last of whom were killed at Auschwitz. We follow him in his studio as he works on a multi-faceted installation for a unique setting, navigates the challenges of creating during lockdown and grapples with the notions of what it means to create a fitting memorial.

Manoj Malde - Garden Designer Apr 13, 2021

British landscape designer Manoj Malde has just designed and constructed his first garden for this year’s Chelsea Flower Show in London. But he is not your typical landscape artist. Having been an acclaimed fashion designer, his design is a homage to Mexican architect Luis Barragan.

Manoj’s garden Beneath the Mexican Sky, celebrates standing out from the crowd with dramatic colours, vibrancy, and the use of raw, natural materials.

Fellow landscape designer Jack Dunckley is following Manoj from the first sketches to the last pebble in place. Whilst they share the same artistic passion, Jack is very much the opposite in style. Breaking with the rules of nature, Jack’s work is steeped in technology and conceptual design. Jack explores how creative worlds can merge – and what a fashion designer can bring to the world of landscaping, as Manoj sees art through an entirely different lens.

Fabergé: The iconic maker of bespoke jewellery Apr 06, 2021

The internationally renowned jewellery company Fabergé is best known for its iconic jewelled eggs, which are synonymous with extreme wealth and luxury.

In the Studio has been allowed rare entry inside its doors, where the inner workings of the commissioning process, resulting in the acquisition of a bespoke Fabergé objet d’art, is revealed.

Felicity Finch follows the company’s unusual partnership with The Craft Irish Whiskey Co. who have commissioned the first Celtic jewelled egg, as part of a seven-piece set featuring the oldest triple distilled Irish whiskey in the world. Felicity speaks with Fabergé’s Global Sales and Business Development Director Josina von dem Bussche-Kessell and Marcus Mohr, the Workmaster who oversees the craftspeople keeping alive the rare, traditional enamelling techniques in their German workshop. She also meets the whiskey company founder and CEO Jay Bradley, who is hoping his deadline will be met despite the difficulties thrown up by the pandemic. Will the dream of holding his very own Fabergé egg in his hands be fulfilled?

RSC: The Bard, the theatre and a pandemic Mar 30, 2021

With a star studded cast including David Tennant and Noma Dumezweni, and a backstage team featuring Artistic Director Greg Doran and Deputy Artistic Director Erica Whyman - In The Studio presents the tale of the Royal Shakespeare Company...

In March 2020, Covid-19 brought the curtain down on productions from this major British theatre organisation. The annual million plus ticket sales of the RSC’s shows in Stratford-upon-Avon, London’s West End and touring productions all over the world dried up overnight - threatening the organisation’s future.

The BBC’s Karl Bos has been following the RSC over several months to find out how they are adapting to the ‘new normal’ - moving their huge international education programmes online and finding innovative ways to keep performing in a digital space. All the while, waiting for news on a crucial government loan that will affect the shape of the organisation. Shakespeare himself was no stranger to pandemics - the theatres were closed for long stretches in his lifetime due to the plague. We'll hear how the Great Bard's words have helped these theatre makers make it through a difficult year and how they've been plotting ways to get back onstage amidst constantly changing restrictions.

Image The Royal Shakespeare Theatre auditorium - Peter Cook (c) RSC Noma Dumezweni as Calpurnia in Julius Caesar, 2009 - Photo by Ellie Kurttz (c) RSC David Tennant as Hamlet in Hamlet, 2008 - Photo by Ellie Kurttz (c) RSC

Arash – Making music in the sun Mar 23, 2021

The singer/songwriter Arash Labaf is a global superstar, having racked up billions of views for hits like “Boro Boro” and “She Makes Me Go”. He’s in demand as a collaborator with artists like Marshmello, Shaggy and Snoop Dogg, he’s a TV personality as well and he’s won numerous awards.

Arash’s roots are Persian- he was born in Iran although his family left for Sweden when Arash was a boy and he stayed living there until recently. A few years ago he moved to Dubai, but he’s continually looking for ways to incorporate his heritage into his music. One way he does so is by singing in Farsi, his mother tongue, on most of his songs.

Georgia Tolley follows Arash in Dubai as he works on his music. She meets Arash’s longtime collaborators, producer Robert Uhlmann and his brother Henrik who’s Arash’s manager, and hears how Arash creates songs and draws on his rich cultural background.

Kazuhiro Tsuji – sculpting Jimi Hendrix Mar 16, 2021

Japanese sculptor Kazuhiro Tsuji is an artist fascinated by faces. A special effects make-up expert, he has spent over 20 years transforming Hollywood actors in films such as Men In Black and The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, winning an Oscar in 2018 for his work on Darkest Hour - where his prosthetics turned actor Gary Oldman into former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill.

Kazuhiro’s love of sculpting has become his main creative outlet in recent years and he has used his unique ability for crafting faces to create hyper-realistic head sculptures of the famous figures who inspire him, from Frida Kahlo to Salvador Dali and Abraham Lincoln. These heads are twice life-size and displayed on bespoke pedestals which make them stand over 2 metres tall, in a celebration of the people they represent.

Laura Hubber meets Kazuhiro in his Los Angeles studio as he embarks on his latest subject – rock legend Jimi Hendrix. There she follows his creative process through clay sculptures and digital enlargement with 3D printers, to the arduous process of attaching Jimi’s hair, strand by strand, as the exhibition deadline fast approaches.

Chick Corea: Accomplishing the goal of art Mar 09, 2021

Chick Corea, one of the legendary figures of jazz, died in February this year. He was a pianist, a 23-times Grammy award winner and he played with all the jazz greats. He was also recognised the world over as a composer, with hits like “Spain” and work ranging from bebop to fusion and symphonic works for classical players.

As a tribute, In The Studio is repeating a programme made about Chick which was first broadcast in November 2020. The programme begins in January 2020 when reporter Renata Sago started recording with Chick as he composed a new Trio Concerto for bass, drums and himself to premiere at the MUPA concert hall in Hungary’s capital Budapest in March. The pandemic meant that the premiere was later cancelled – but Covid-19 hadn’t slowed Chick down. He'd been taking on new projects and was looking forward to playing in front of a live audience again for the first time for months.

Renata caught up with him again to find out what new things he'd been writing, how he’d found a new audience in lockdown and how all kinds of musical styles helped him accomplish the goal of art.

Emily Young: Stone carver and environmental artist Mar 02, 2021

Artists and architects have for centuries been drawn to the stone in the hills of southern Tuscany. It's the home of Carrara marble and the quarry where Michelangelo found the stone for his work. Now it's home to Emily Young – acclaimed as Britain's greatest living stone carver. Her sculptures are collected and displayed around the world, but as a passionate conservationist she also takes her work on to the front line of environmental activism; using sculptures to protect green spaces and take on gangs fishing illegally off the coast of Italy.

Over the course of 4 months In the Studio follows Emily Young as she turns a 3 and a half tonne block of stone into her latest work of art. It becomes a race against time as the days shorten, the light closes in and the deadline looms for Britain to leave the European Union. This is an intimate portrait of an artist for whom the creative process is meditative and usually very private.

Ben Okri Feb 23, 2021

Ben takes us on the journey of a new poem as it forms in his mind and makes its way to the page. Coinciding with a newly published anthology of his poems, A Fire in My Head, he reflects on the poetry writing process and the role of the poet in the 21st century.

Through a mixture of audio diary recorded in London during lockdown and in conversation with the BBC’s Bola Mosuro, Ben offers an unique insight into his way of bringing one of the most ancient literary forms to life.

Rex, King of Mardi Gras Feb 16, 2021

As the Mardi Gras season draws near, In the Studio goes behind the scenes with the Krewe of Rex, New Orleans’s oldest parading organisation, to see how the masters of carnival create their mobile sculptures.

New Orleans reporter, Betsy Shepherd follows Rex’s creative team for a year - the length of time it takes to make the ornate floats that are the fixture of Mardi Gras street parades. But 2020 turned out to be anything but typical. She speaks with creative director Henri Schindler and his team of artisans about the history and craft surrounding this most ephemeral of art forms as well as the challenges and delights of building a fantasy world amidst a pandemic.

What will the 2021 Mardi Gras season bring? Join Betsy for a parade of sounds from Mardi Gras’s most ardent practitioners as they work to keep the spirit of carnival alive.

YouTube’s Life In A Day: The making of a documentary Feb 09, 2021

Director Kevin Macdonald and executive producer Ridley Scott on making Life In A Day 2020

Patrick Woodroffe: Lighting the stars Feb 02, 2021

Patrick Woodroffe is one of the world’s foremost lighting designers.

He has lit shows for stars ranging from Michael Jackson to Bob Dylan, from Lady Gaga to Elton John, as well as being creative director of the Rolling Stones live shows since 1982.

As Patrick takes charge of the technical rehearsal period for The Last Domino? Tour - the sold-out arena tour that sees the remaining original Genesis band members reform for the first time since 2007 - Grammy Award-winning record producer Steve Levine joins him along with band members, Mike Rutherford and Tony Bank.

Max Richter: Writing music based on the Universal Declaration of Human Rights Jan 26, 2021

Composer Max Richter has created his own genre of classical music. His ground breaking eight-and-a-half-hour concert work SLEEP has been broadcast and performed all over the world, addressing the need to pause and seek a sense of community. Elizabeth Alker now follows Max as he works on one of his most ambitious and profound pieces of music about the human condition. The new piece is based on the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which states that "All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights."

Leila Aboulela: Writing the Stories of Scotland and Sudan Jan 19, 2021

The Sudanese writer on developing a story about the rebuilding of Khartoum

Viet Thanh Nguyen: The art of memoir Jan 12, 2021

The Pulitzer Prize-winning author takes on a new, deeply personal challenge

The Big Fix Up: A new, digital venture for Wallace and Gromit Jan 05, 2021

Wallace and Gromit – the eccentric inventor and his loyal dog – are one of Britain’s best-loved comedy duos. Created in plasticine clay by Nick Park of Aardman Animations, their stop motion adventures have won three Academy Awards and a BAFTA. Now, Wallace and his faithful hound are heading into exciting new territory. The pair’s new business venture, Spick & Spanners, needs employees to help them ‘Fix Up’ the British city of Bristol. This interactive story, which takes place on smart phones and uses augmented and mixed reality, is a daring departure from their traditional claymation films. For the first time ever, fans can step directly into the world of Wallace and Gromit. In The Studio goes behind-the-scenes of the production’s final stage, as the technical team grapple with bugs and the directors shoot final takes with their first ever real human character.

Eliza Lomas talks to Wallace and Gromit creator Nick Park about his own childhood dreams of being an inventor, and he opens up his sketchbooks to reveal some very recent, very silly Wallace and Gromit doodles. Presenter: Eliza Lomas

Producers: Eliza Lomas and Emma Kingsley for the BBC World Service

AR Rahman: The man behind the music Dec 29, 2020

AR Rahman is known as the ‘Mozart of Madras’ and for good reason. He has won two Academy Awards, two Grammy Awards, a BAFTA Award, a Golden Globe, four National Film Awards, 15 Filmfare Awards. Perhaps most incredibly he has crossed film genres, languages, nationality and film industries across the globe, conquering Bollywood, Hollywood and Kollywood. It is 10 years since the debut of Slumdog Millionaire but Rahman’s songs still linger in the imagination.

Rahman is prolific and instinctual; working not just as a musical director but now as producer, director, teacher and visual artist. To each project he brings a touch of magic whether it be his latest virtual reality film Musk, his incredible catalogue of Hindi and Tamil film scores, global pop hits such as Jai Ho or in his superstar collaborations such as Super Heavy with Mick Jagger, Dave Stuart, Joss Stone and Damian Marley.

Lifelong fan, producer and DJ Bobby Friction meets Rahman as he reaches the end of his 2018 US tour in Houston, Texas. We learn how the melodies he creates alone in the quiet of night are recreated by a cast of India’s greatest singers and musicians and performed to entertain thousands across America.

For Rahman, and Bobby, music is God. Spirituality is deeply entwined with the process of composition for both men and together they will explore some of the tracks which resonate with their belief in the true power of music.

Rachel Barrie: Master whisky blender Dec 22, 2020

Nick Low follows master whisky blender Dr Rachel Barrie on the final year of a three-year journey, as the launch date looms for her new range of whiskies from the Benriach Distillery in the north of Scotland. Her reputation is on the line as she comes up with 10 new whiskies for a range that includes some whiskies which have matured for up to 30 years.

With whisky containing three basic ingredients of water, malted barley and yeast, Rachel explains the process and skill that goes into making her whiskies world-beating, with expressions containing a myriad of flavours. With her own background being in chemistry, we join Rachel in her whisky lab, as she reveals how she puts scientific theories to work on the ancient art of whisky making and the blending of these natural ingredients. She describes the wooden casks and blends of whiskies she uses in the process like a painter’s palette, fine-tuning the flavours, as this precious liquid, stamped with her name, is bottled up and sent to whisky connoisseurs around the world.

Having personally tasted and “nosed” over 150,000 whiskies in her professional life, and become a judge at the World Whisky Competitions, Rachel is one of the most respected blenders in the business. She will give a lesson in whisky tasting with tips of what to look for and how to get all the spectrum of flavours from a sip of “the water of life”.

René Redzepi on Noma's autumn menu Dec 15, 2020

Every season of every year, chef René Redzepi reinvents Noma, the two Michelin-starred establishment in Copenhagen that is renowned as the most ground-breaking restaurant in the world. It spearheaded a revolution in Nordic cuisine, and its reputation has made Copenhagen a gastronomic capital. The restaurant has spawned the world-famous Nordic Food Lab food research institute, and hosts an annual international food symposium.

Dan Saladino has unprecedented access to the restaurant team. He follows them from their reopening in May as a neighbourhood burger bar, to the evening in October when diners experience their autumn ‘game and forest season’ menu for the first time. He explores Noma’s famous development kitchen, where Mette Søberg, head of research and development, and her team have previously pioneered dishes like the magnificent rotating celeriac shawarma and the delicate butterfly flatbread decorated in flower petals and pollen. He watches the physical transformation of the restaurant, as greenery is replaced by antlers, fungi and moss in the hands of acclaimed designer Christina Rudolph. And he eavesdrops on the restaurant kitchen and head sommelier Mads Kleppe on their first autumn service of 2020.

Guggenheim Bilbao: From Covid to Kandinsky Dec 08, 2020

As Guggenheim Museum Bilbao prepares to open a major show of work by abstract artist, Wassily Kandinsky, In the Studio is behind-the-scenes and discovers how the museum continues to emerge and manage during the Coronavirus pandemic.

Basque journalist Olatz Arrieta speaks to the people at the heart of this cultural institution – from Director General, Juan Ignacio Vidarte and Eva Eguiren in the Visitor’s Centre, to those working closely on the Kandinsky and the exhibitions of the future.

But as Spain records more than one million Coronavirus cases, and authorities in the Basque Country close the regions borders, will the Kandinsky show still open? Join Olatz to find out.

Jordi Savall Dec 01, 2020

Catalan conductor and violist Jordi Savall is the ringmaster of a unique, uproarious musical circus: a time-traveller who bridges centuries and cultures to make six hundred year-old music sound like it was composed yesterday.

He reveals to journalist Lluis Amiguet how he makes the music of the past sound utterly compelling – and relevant – to 21st century ears, as we move back and forth between his home studio in Barcelona and rehearsals for a musical celebration of the life of the 16th century French heroine Joan of Arc in Troyes, France.

What drives Jordi Savall to revive, remix and rejuvenate music from a long distant past? And what makes him seek out musical cultures across the globe – West Africa, South America, Asia and Ireland – and bring them together to help us understand the world in a new way?

Daniel Lee: Revitalising a fashion house Nov 24, 2020

The young British-born designer Daniel Lee was appointed Creative Director of the classic Italian fashion house, Bottega Veneta, in 2018 with the task of reinventing the brand. Since then he’s picked up numerous awards and several of his designs have already become “cult” items.

John Wilson joins the VIP audience – along with music stars Stormzy and Kanye West - to watch the launch of Daniel Lee’s latest Bottega Veneta collection held in London this Autumn. The designer discusses the brand’s trademark of woven leather handbags and shoes, what it takes to create some of the world’s most sought after garments and accessories, and the challenges of putting on a show in the midst of a global pandemic.

Chick Corea: Accomplishing the goal of art Nov 17, 2020

Chick Corea is one of the legendary figures of jazz. He’s a pianist, a 23-times Grammy award winner and he’s played with all the jazz greats, like Miles Davis. He’s also recognised the world over as a composer, with hits like “Spain” and work ranging from bebop to fusion, works for children and symphonic works for classical players.

In January this year, reporter Renata Sago began recording with Chick as he composed a new Trio Concerto for bass, drums and himself on piano. It was to have its first performance at the MUPA concert hall in Hungary’s capital Budapest in March. In his studio in Florida USA, Renata talks to him about how he writes and where his many sources of inspiration come from. And she hears from Chick that although he’s composed the music he’ll be performing, sometimes it’s not easy to play and he has to do a lot of practising!

The pandemic meant that the premiere was later cancelled – but Covid-19 hasn’t slowed Chick down. In fact during the past few months he’s been taking on new projects and is looking forward to playing in front of a live audience again for the first time for months.

Renata catches up with him again to find out what he’s working on now, how he’s found a new audience in lockdown and how he turns to all kinds of musical styles to help him accomplish the goal of art.

Ann Goldstein: The art of the translator Nov 10, 2020

Daniel Hahn and Ann Goldstein are translators, inhabiting a strange world between creation and publication, but with their own literary and linguistic creativity shaping the final form. Goldstein has been translating for decades, turning the words of Elena Ferrante, Primo Levi and Jhumpa Lahiri, amongst others, into English. She works prolifically, and in this episode Daniel, himself a prize-winning author and literary judge, spends time with her over the course of three days in 2018 as she translates an award-winning Italian book.

Daniel Hahn discusses with her how to know where to translate exactly and where to get the sense, how to translate phrases which have no translation, and shares experiences about the politics of translation. He finds out how this literary great came to translating, how she chooses the books she wishes to translate and to what extent she acts – as so many translators do – as an advocate for foreign-language books to English-language publishers. And implicit in all this is what is core to the translator’s art – intercession between cultures, sharing ideas and stories which would otherwise go unshared.

Shobana Jeyasingh: Recreating the 1918 flu pandemic through dance Nov 03, 2020

Choreographer and director Shobana Jeyasingh has been creating dynamic, fearless and ground breaking dance works for 30 years. Born in Chennai, India, her acclaimed pieces have toured internationally, tapping into both the intellectual and physical power of dance.

Two years ago her major new work Contagion was inspired by the Spanish Flu pandemic of 1918 which infected a third of the world’s population. It’s estimated that this flu killed between 50 and 100 million people, more than the First World War itself.

Felicity Finch joined Shobana and her company of eight female dancers, along with the show’s composer and video designer, as they explored the challenge of how to portray the Spanish flu virus and its devastating effects through contemporary dance.

Two years later, Felicity explores how Shobana feels about this piece in the midst of a new global pandemic and how the work is very relevant today.

Evan Kim: Tattoo artist Oct 27, 2020

Evan Kim is one of the most in-demand tattoo artists in New York, thanks to a glamorous list of celebrity clientele which includes Brooklyn Beckham and Frank Ocean.

He's famed for his minimalist, fineline tattoos in black and grey. This is a new style of delicate, intricate graphic art which appeals to the Instagram generation.

Evan’s joined by hip hop artist, documentary-maker and fellow Korean American, Jaeki Cho, in his new studio just a few blocks from the Empire State Building. He’s about to start a fiendishly difficult task: creating a design which incorporates elements of Japanese anime, mythology and magic - but it has to be small enough to fit on the client’s upper arm.

We follow Evan as he works on the tricky design, and then the even trickier application. One slip could ruin those perfect circles and lines. Along the way, Evan shares with us his passion for tattoo design history. On his self-built shelves, there’s an entire library of books from traditional American Sailor Jerry works to Japanese tattoo master Horiyoshi III. But it’s not just a question of beautifying the body. Evan tries to take meaning from his clients’ stories and incorporate them into his designs.

Sharon Olds: Poetry coming down my arm Oct 20, 2020

The American poet Sharon Olds has been one of the leading voices in contemporary poetry since her first book was published in 1980. She won the Pulitzer Prize in 2013 for "Stag’s Leap", her extraordinary collection of poems chronicling the breakup of her marriage, with its themes of love, family, sorrow, desire and memory, which have echoed throughout her work.

But her career as a poet nearly didn’t happen. Her first poems were dismissed by some editors who saw them as not literary enough, perhaps objecting to the intense way she wrote about sexual love and the minutiae of being a woman. But it’s precisely those qualities that have won her new generations of fans and critical praise across the world.

Now after a period of long isolation due to the pandemic, Sharon talks to Emma Kingsley about her work and how lockdown has affected her perception of the world. She describes how she creates new poems and how the words and images literally come down her arm and out through the pen.

Es Devlin: Artist and Stage Designer Oct 13, 2020

Es Devlin is an artist and one of the world’s most influential stage designers - conceiving what she calls stage ‘sculptures’ with the likes of Louis Vuitton, Beyoncé, Adele, Kanye West, The Weeknd and U2, as well as designing the Opening Ceremony of the Rio 2016 Olympics and the Closing Ceremony of the London 2012 Olympics.

Her striking creations are equally well-known in the world of opera and theatre - from Bizet’s Carmen to Pinter’s Betrayal - all of which she does alongside her own solo work as an artist.

From her studio in London, Es Devlin talks to Ella-mai Robey about her work and creative process.

Eric van Hove: Sculpture that Goes 'Vroom' Oct 09, 2020

Eric van Hove makes sculpture that goes “vroom”. For the past few years, this conceptual artist has been working in Morocco on a project called the Mahjouba Initiative, which involves building a series of motorbikes using only traditional craft materials. Eric calls this work “a socio-economic sculpture”, the idea being that the pieces can be exhibited as artworks but also used as the prototype for a new vehicle.

Anna McNamee meets Eric and his team as he works on the latest model – the Mahjouba III – which was to be put on show at the 1-54 Contemporary African Art Fair in Marrakech in 2018.

This story was recorded back in December 2017.

Lisa Reihana: Maori History in 3D Oct 06, 2020

Lisa Reihana is one of New Zealand’s most important artists. Her work, In Pursuit of Venus [infected] became one of the highlights of the 2017 Venice Biennale. It is a 26 metre long animated wallpaper that was many years in the making - a reinterpretation of a 200-year-old panoramic wallpaper created by Joseph Dufour that painted an exotic portrait of the life of Pacific people as described by Captain Cook.

In this story - recorded back in 2017 - Lisa is working on a short 3D film titled Nomads of the Sea which again looks at the meeting of two cultures, featuring an epic encounter between two female warriors. Presenter Tim Marlow joins Lisa Reihana in her New Zealand studio to talk about art, film and creativity.

Juan Gabriel Vásquez: Literature in the centre of my life Sep 29, 2020

The Colombian novelist and journalist Juan Gabriel Vásquez is widely regarded as one of the most important Latin American writers today – known for his novels published in 28 languages, including the award-winning The Sound Of Things Falling, The Shape of the Ruins, and five other works of fiction, plus stories, literary essays, and political commentary.

Born outside the capital city of Bogotá and having lived there as a student, Vásquez says it's a place that helped shaped his creative life and consciousness as a writer. After 16 years in Paris and Spain, he returned to Colombia to live and write. Now, as he embarks on his latest novel due to be published in December, Natalia Guerrero talks to Vasquez in Bogotá to find out how he works on his books.

As he writes he describes his creative process from thought to page and start to finish. We hear how Bogotá has influenced his writing as "a life calling" with "literature in the centre of my life"; and how he keeps to a daily writing routine – including wearing noise-cancelling headphones so that he can have the silence he needs to create his work.

And there are the very intimate moments of writing the final words and sharing his new book with its very first reader - his wife.

Loyiso Gola wants to make you laugh Sep 22, 2020

What does it take to prepare a new stand-up show for the world’s biggest comedy festival? Loyiso Gola is one of South Africa’s most loved comedians - he's performed across the globe and his satirical TV show Late Nite News with Loyiso Gola has had two Emmy nominations, one of television’s greatest accolades.

In this story, recorded back in 2017, In the Studio follows Loyiso as he embarks on the challenge of taking his show, Unlearning, to the Edinburgh Festival in Scotland. With Unlearning, Loyiso takes on those everyday ideas that we’ve learnt throughout our lives, such as who we are as people and how our perceptions of culture and history, race and politics shape how we see and treat each other. But how do you make an audience laugh for an hour, as well as question their perception of the world?

Lynette Wallworth: Changing the way we see reality Sep 15, 2020

Australian artist and director Lynette Wallworth loves to push the limits of technology and works with mixed reality developers, inventing new ways of experiencing art.

Back in the Summer of 2018, Laura Hubber joined Lynette as she worked with the team at the Technicolour Experience Center in Los Angeles, to create a new immersive interactive walk around section to her film Awavena.

Awavena explores the way of life led by the Yawanawa community of the Amazon and their first female Shaman Hushahu. The new section was shown for the first time at the Venice Film Festival that year.

Ocean Vuong: Becoming Briefly Gorgeous Sep 08, 2020

The young Vietnamese writer Ocean Vuong has been called “one of our most gifted poets”. He came to public attention when his poetry collection “Night Sky With Exit Wounds” was showered with awards. His first novel “On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous” followed last year and has also been critically acclaimed.

Ocean’s work often mirrors his own experience as an immigrant. He was born in Saigon, Vietnam but at a young age he and members of his family left Vietnam, as refugees for the United States. After attempting a degree in business, Ocean found his true vocation as a writer and now divides his time between creating new work and teaching university students.

Oonagh Cousins talks to Ocean about the way he creates his work, how ideas and images come to him and the importance of being uncomfortable when he’s writing.

Alan Walker: Behind the mask Sep 01, 2020

Before face masks became compulsory for many of the world’s citizens, the Norwegian music producer and DJ Alan Walker was known for wearing a face covering on stage. It lent an air of mystery to his persona but there’s been no mystery about the popularity of the music he makes. From his first hit Faded, which has been streamed over a billion times, to packed-out stage gigs the world over and recent collaborations with musical giants like film composer Hans Zimmer, Alan – who’s still in his early 20s – has become a global phenomenon.

Recorded during a visit to London, long before Covid-19 devastated live shows, Alan talks to John Wilson about his early upbringing in the UK, how he creates his music, and the crucial importance of ‘the drop’ to electronic dance music.

Nelson Makamo: celebrating children from rural South Africa Aug 25, 2020

Eighteen months ago the work of South African artist, Nelson Makamo, featured on the iconic cover of Time magazine. It placed the already popular artist - with fans like Oprah Winfrey, Ava DuVernay and Giorgio Armani – firmly onto the global stage.

The painting Makamo created for the cover was of Mapule, his now 12 year old cousin, who he’s been painting ever since she was a child. In a touching and practical exchange, he pays for Mapule’s studies.

As he prepares for an exhibition, In the Studio’s Mpho Lakaje meets Nelson at his studio in Johannesburg, to watch him at work and discover why he so often places children from rural South Africa centre stage.

The Bold and the Beautiful: returning to our screens Aug 18, 2020

U.S. daily television soap opera The Bold and the Beautiful has been running since 1987, and at roughly 8,300 episodes and counting is a huge hit all around the world, making 250 new programmes a year.

When coronavirus hit, filming stopped as the industry went into lockdown, but the makers are pioneering new creative ground as they go back into production in Los Angeles, and onto our television screens, at a time when Coronavirus is still rife.

Laura Hubber follows the producers, directors and actors of the daily soap, which includes a lot of intimate scenes, as they use their Hollywood creativity to get the series safely back on air.

How can they show an on-screen kiss in a world of masks and social distancing? We hear about a ‘new normal’ where actors’ real-life partners’ now work as ‘kissing doubles’, joined by a cast of mannequins, dedicated Coronavirus Coordinators, and strict new acting rules.

Costas Cacoyannis: Cyprus’s One-Man Orchestra Aug 11, 2020

Costas Cacoyannis is one of Cyprus’s most prolific composers – turn on the TV or head to the cinema on the Mediterranean island and there’s a good chance you’ll hear his music. Add to that his compositions for ballet, theatre, Hollywood soundtracks, and the more than 25 albums he has released and you get a sense of the scale of his creativity.

He lives and works from his studio high up in the Troodos Mountains in central Cyprus and it’s there that the BBC’s Karl Bos went to meet Costas in 2018, as he prepared for a major performance of his music that June - his biggest live concert in over 18 years - at the Maison de l'UNESCO in Paris.

Follow Costas on a walk through a nearby forest as he derives inspiration from nature, then to a rehearsal in Limassol with his choir, as he guides them on how to express and perform his music as the concert quickly approaches.

Mira Nair: the making of A Suitable Boy Aug 04, 2020

Mira Nair is one of the world’s great film directors. Born in India, but now a self-called ‘global citizen’, she has spent over 30 years making her mark, from Hollywood to Bollywood, and from the fun and laughter of Monsoon Wedding to the sharp politics of The Reluctant Fundamentalist.

In the Studio joins Mira on location in the ancient city of Maheshwar, for her biggest and most ambitious project to date - a six-part television series for the BBC, based on Vikram Seth’s epic novel, A Suitable Boy.

The novel encompasses many of the filmmaker’s favoured topics - family conflict, the portrayal of India, love, humour, beauty and politics. So when she heard it was being made into a TV series she says, “I threw my sari into the ring…It was something I had to do with every fibre of my creative journey.“

Mira Nair talks exclusively to Ravinder Bawa about her own creative journey - from small town girl, to world famous director – and shows how some of the most evocative and dynamic scenes are put together, with the film crew she uses in almost every film she makes.

Eric Whitacre: Creating the Virtual Choir Jul 28, 2020

As Covid-19 has swept the world we’ve become used to seeing musicians in lockdown presenting videos of virtual performances. But for the Grammy-award winning American composer and conductor Eric Whitacre, the idea of a virtual choir is nothing new, because he pioneered the concept over 10 years ago. His first choir of 185 singers became a global phenomenon and has been seen by millions on YouTube. More virtual choir projects followed and the choir videos have featured as installations and as part of the 2012 Olympics and the Davos World Economic Forum.

Now Eric’s just released his largest Virtual Choir project to date, which premiered on YouTube a few days ago. It features 17,572 singers from around the world performing his new piece “Sing Gently” for which he’s written the words and the music.

Eric talks to Emma Kingsley about creating this latest project, the inspirations for his other compositions, the idea of the musical “golden brick” and how his early dreams of becoming a pop star changed through singing Mozart in the college choir.

Janet Echelman: Bending Arc Jul 21, 2020

The artist and sculptor Janet Echelman works on huge pieces of public art that combine high tech design, history and visual imagination to soar above the heads of the public and interact with the environment. Her latest, Bending Arc, has been waiting out the Covid crisis before finally being unveiled to the public in St Petersburg, Florida.

Spanning 427 feet, and held by some 180 miles of twine, this giant net sculpture has needed a team of architects, model makers, computer scientists, aeronautical and structural engineers - all led by Echelman - to create a billowing, multi-coloured artwork that will cast shade and inspire the pier walkers of St Petersburg. It is also an artwork that draws directly on Echelman’s own family history in ready-to-wear fashion.

Andrea Shea has been documenting Echelman's creative processes and now, all that awaits, is the grand opening scheduled for July when the artist’s imagination will billow and dazzle in the sea breeze.

Operation Night Watch Jul 14, 2020

This week our guest is a Dutch icon - The Night Watch.

This masterpiece by Rembrandt is nearly 400 years old and sits centre stage at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, where more than 2 million visitors come to see it every year. So when it became clear the painting needed a serious makeover, taking years to complete, the idea of removing it from display was rejected. Instead the museum’s Director, Taco Dibbits, decided to make Operation Night Watch accessible to all, by building a specially-constructed glass chamber for restorers, scientists and conservators to work under the public's watchful eye; both in the museum and online.

Anik See follows Taco and his team during this key phase of Operation Night Watch, diving into state-of-the-art imaging techniques and discovering the masterpiece’s secrets and storied past, to find out why this painting remains so important to us.

Elif Shafak: Writing in Lockdown Jul 07, 2020

The British-Turkish writer Elif Shafak is renowned for her award-winning novels including The Forty Rules of Love and her most recent 10 Minutes 38 Seconds In This Strange World. She’s also known for being an advocate for women’s rights, LGBTQ rights and freedom of speech, which have led to her being investigated by the Turkish government. Now she’s writing a new novel and has completed a manifesto on staying sane in an age of division, which will be published later this year.

Covid-19 has meant that Elif has been experiencing what it’s like to create and write in lockdown in her London home. In conversation with Emma Kingsley, she describes her new routines, how ideas come to her and the way in which her working life has been altered by the pandemic. She also talks about the importance of using fiction as a space to ask questions about contentious issues and the role of literature as a means of keeping people connected during this new age of self-isolation.

Eimear Noone and Craig Garfinkle: Composers in isolation Jun 30, 2020

Cellist Matthew Barley connects with composer and conductor team Eimear Noone and Craig Garfinkle, as they race to complete a film score from their temporary lockdown studio in rural Ireland.

Eimear and Craig create soundscapes and soundtracks for feature films and video games, including the global hit World of Warcraft. Early in 2020 Eimear and Craig and their two young children travelled from the US to Dublin to compose and record the score for the animated movie Two by Two: Overboard. They recorded the first half of the score in February but then the Covid-19 restrictions radically changed their plans. They had to leave Dublin with what little equipment they could carry and head to Eimear’s family home on the West Coast of Ireland.

With an out of tune piano, limited IT resources, no access to a recording studio or live musicians, and the delivery date looming, the pressure is on. From trying to write upbeat music at a moment of crisis, to managing the baby’s nap time and homeschooling while working out the perfect chord progression for a scene of utopia, Craig and Eimear are navigating new territory. Will they do it?

Demond Melancon: The bead master of New Orleans Jun 23, 2020

This week’s In The Studio is presented by acclaimed actor and New Orleans resident Wendell Pierce (The Wire, Suits, Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan). We join him as he meets Demond Melancon, a fine artist from New Orleans who is also the Big Chief of a Black Masking Indian tribe, the Young Seminole Hunters.

The Black Masking culture of New Orleans is a centuries-old African-American tradition. Around 45 neighbourhood groups - or tribes - spend thousands of hours each year hand-sewing exquisitely beaded ceremonial suits, trimmed with rhinestones, velvet ruffles, and hundreds of brightly coloured feathers. On Mardi Gras day they take to the streets to compete against each other for the prettiest suit.

Every suit tells a story, and this year Demond is depicting Ethiopian history and culture, beading an ancient Nyabinghi warrior on a white horse as the centerpiece of his front ‘apron’. Surrounding it on the left and right sides will be beaded portraits of Empress Menen Asfaw and her husband King Haile Selassie of Ethiopia. On his arms are patches with portraits of reggae music icon Vaughn Benjamin and an Ethiopian soldier.

Usually it takes 12 months of beading to make a suit, but Demond is a rising star of New Orleans’ contemporary art scene, and in high demand for exhibitions and art fairs across the USA, so this year he has just three months to prepare. We join him and his wife Alicia as he works night and day in his Bywater studio doing ‘the needle dance’, as he calls it, in the run up to the city’s world-famous Mardi Gras celebrations.

Nnedi Okorafor: Creating sci-fi worlds Jun 16, 2020

The award-winning science fiction author Nnedi Okorafor always has a project - or three - on the go. From her home outside Chicago she creates stories driven by what she describes as Africanfuturism and Africanjujuism for children and adults - a legacy of her Nigerian roots. Her work now ranges across comics for Marvel, screenplays and yet another new novel due out in the summer.

But she wasn’t always destined to be a writer. She spent her youth training hard to be a top class athlete until she developed curvature of the spine, which put an end to her dreams. After corrective surgery she became temporarily paralysed and it was then, during her darkest time, that she began to create stories.

Now, as Chicago, like the rest of the US endures lockdown, Nnedi’s been adapting to her changed life and restricted movements. Mark Burman talks to her about her work and how her creative process has been affected during the Covid-19 pandemic. During recordings made in April and early May he eavesdrops on some of her writing moments including her fruitful collaboration with the Kenyan director Wanuri Kahiu and their story of an A.I. traffic police robot – and hears about the therapeutic distraction of her trumpet-playing daughter and magnificent cat which now has his own Twitter account!

Julie Baines: The making of a movie, part two Jun 09, 2020

Starring Russell Brand and Matthew Goode – and featuring Michael Caine – the film Four Kids and It is a culmination of 8 years hard graft by award-winning British independent film producer Julie Baines.

Never afraid to take risks to achieve her cinematic dreams this film demands more of her talent, insight and sheer hard work than ever before.

Based on Jacqueline Wilson’s best-selling novel, itself inspired by the E Nesbitt classic 5 Children and It, the story requires an array of sophisticated special effects including flying, dare devil rock climbing and the staging of a pop concert at the O2 in London.

After two failed attempts to finance the film, it was finally given the go ahead and shot in Ireland in the summer of 2018. It’s a wrap, the film is in the can – but this is where our story starts.

Will the film be completed on time avoiding hefty financial penalties? Will the special effects make the grade, without access to the type of budget Hollywood studios can command? And finally, how well will it sell in a very competitive marketplace in a bid to get it in front of the family audiences it was made for?

Hilary Dunn follows British independent film producer Julie Baines for a period of nearly two years, on a revealing journey into the little known art – and science – of post-production.

Julie Baines: The making of a movie, part one Jun 02, 2020

British film producer Julie Baines knows all about long lead times. She often has to work for years to get a project financed before any filming can happen at all. For over six years, Julie had been fighting to bring ‘Four Kids and It’, a script she loves, from page to screen. The story is based on a retelling of the 1902 book ‘Five Children and It’ by the hugely popular children’s writer Jacqueline Wilson.

When we first met Julie in March 2017, filming was scheduled to start in just a few months but there were still deals to be done and actors to be cast. Film stars, including Russell Brand and Academy Award winner Michael Caine, were on board and the locations had been earmarked but would the money start flowing in time for filming to begin?

Film director Joseph Adesunloye followed Julie through the ups and downs of wrangling with lawyers and financiers as she worked to get the cameras rolling.

Tyler Childers: Run these roads May 26, 2020

Tyler Childers was nominated for a Grammy in early 2020. He’s an emerging talent who is true to his Appalachian roots.

He grew up in the foothills of East Kentucky, his father worked in the coal industry, and his songs reflect the tough life in that part of the world - unemployment, broken relationships, drugs, alcohol. He draws on these themes in order to stay faithful to the place: "I hope that people in the area that I grew up in find something they can relate to. I hope that I'm doing my people justice and I hope that maybe someone from somewhere else can get a glimpse of the life of a Kentucky boy."

The lyrics of one of his songs describes the exhilaration of driving recklessly: “A damn good feeling to run these roads". For his most recent Country Squire album, Tyler says much of it was written on the road, including love songs dedicated to his wife. He also drew inspiration from unusual sources, including Allen Touissant's 1970s album Southern Nights.

We take a deep dive into the contemporary life, music and culture of East Kentucky, with help from Brett Ratliff, programme director of community radio station WMMT in Whitesburg, Kentucky, in the heart of Appalachia's coal fields, and hear about Kentucky story-telling from author Silas House.

And with his US tour suspended because of the coronavirus lockdown, we hear how Tyler and his wife Senora May - also a singer songwriter - are drawing on their home, and their own relationship, for creative inspiration.

Marc Quinn: Creating 100 sculptures of refugees May 19, 2020

British artist Marc Quinn has been one of the world's leading contemporary artists for over 30 years. A prominent member of the group known as the Young British Artists (or YBAs) who dominated the British art scene in the 1990s, his high-profile works have included Alison Lapper Pregnant, for the inaugural fourth plinth sculpture in London’s Trafalgar Square; and Self, a series of self-portraits of his own head - made out of ten pints of his own blood - cast and frozen every five years.

In this episode of In the Studio, Marc Quinn takes Edwina Pitman behind the scenes of an ambitious new work called 100 Heads, in which he documents the stories, and casts in concrete the heads, of 100 refugees. Spurred by the images and news reports of the refugee crisis in 2015, Marc began to make plans for not-for-profit public artworks to both raise awareness and money for refugees around the world. 100 Heads is being created in part therefore to raise funds for another ongoing Marc Quinn public artwork called Our Blood, in which 2,000 litres of frozen human blood - drawn from 10,000 resettled refugees, celebrities and other participants - will be encased in a pavilion on the steps of the New York Public Library in 2021.

From the initial meeting and interviewing refugees, through scanning, moulding and casting the concrete, Marc reveals the many processes as well as the technical and logistical challenges of creating 100 portrait heads of people from all over the world. The eventual creation will, he hopes, be a monument to our common humanity, one that emphasises through the power of art, that more unites than divides us.

Romesh Gunesekera: Breathing life into every word May 12, 2020

Sri Lankan born author Romesh Gunesekera does not transcribe reality, he recreates it from a mixture of memory and imagination. Nominated for one of the world’s most prestigious literary awards, the Man Booker Prize for Fiction, for his debut novel Reef – Romesh has been publishing novels, short stories and poetry for more than 30 years.

Harriett Gilbert meets Romesh at his London home in early 2018, to find out how he is crafting his latest novel, Suncatcher. It tells the story of two boys growing up in 1960s Sri Lanka, examining their friendship and the beginnings of a political awakening. Romesh has been working on his book for several years and is now meticulously revising the text – questioning each word – as he prepares to send his precious manuscript out into the world.

Belarus Free Theatre: Directing from a distance May 05, 2020

The award-winning Belarus Free Theatre was founded 15 years ago to create drama around issues of human rights and creative freedom in a country which has been called Europe’s last surviving dictatorship. It creates provocative physical shows attended by audiences in secret locations around Minsk and has achieved international recognition and support.

BFT’s founding artistic directors Natalia Kaliada and Nicolai Khalezin cannot rehearse the actors face to face because they are now political refugees living in the United Kingdom. So, for the past nine years they have been using a Skype line to connect with the performers hundreds of miles away.

Natalia and Nicolai have been rehearsing the actors in a new play called Dogs of Europe, based on the novel by the contemporary Belarusian author Alhierd Bacharevic, which depicts life in a dystopian super state where individual freedoms are taken away. As well as performing in Minsk, the actors were also set to come to London and perform at the Barbican Theatre. But Covid-19 has put an end to that plan. So what will the company do instead?

The BBC’s Olga Smirnova follows Natalia and Nikolai during the process of rehearsal and performance and hears from them and the actors about the techniques of directing from a distance. She also talks to the British actor and writer Stephen Fry who is taking part in BFT’s newest venture.

Mo Abudu: Creating blockbuster movies in Nigeria Apr 28, 2020

Mo Abudu has been described as one of the most successful women in Africa. She made her name presenting the chat show Moments with Mo, that earnt her the title of Africa’s ‘first lady of chat.’

She is the CEO of Ebony Life Television, Africa's first global black entertainment and lifestyle network. In 2013 she set up Ebony Life Films and as Executive Producer is behind films such as the comedies The Wedding Party and its sequel, The Wedding Party 2, which became the highest-grossing Nigerian film in the country’s box office history.

In 2018 Anna Cunningham followed Mo onto the set of her film Chief Daddy – which tells the story of what happens when a flamboyant billionaire industrialist suddenly dies and his family and friends uncover hidden secrets and discover who’s getting the money.

With a star studded cast including Funke Akindele, Kate Henshaw, Folarin ‘Falz’ Falana, Mo hoped Chief Daddy would be a Christmas blockbuster in Nigeria. In this updated episode, find out if she got her wish.

Jakub Józef Orliński: Countertenor in Karlsruhe Apr 21, 2020

The Polish countertenor Jakub Józef Orliński is rapidly becoming one of the most sought-after performers on opera stages and in concert halls around the world. A YouTube video of him singing Vivaldi has had more than 5 million views, his many prizes include a recent Gramophone Classical Music Award and he’s released 2 critically acclaimed albums.

And he’s not just known as a singer - he also has an impressive record as a breakdancer and a fashion model.

Earlier this year, Jakub was preparing to sing the title role in Handel’s opera Tolomeo at the Badisches Staatstheater in the German city of Karlsruhe. Emma Kingsley joined him there to watch him in rehearsal and to hear how he goes about not just perfecting his singing voice, but also writing his own musical ornaments and cadenzas for the solos and duets that he will be performing for these performances and the production’s revival in 2021.

Kari Kola: Lighting up the world Apr 14, 2020

Kari Kola developed his love of working with light in his native Finland, one of the world’s most northern countries, where the winters are long and very dark. Teaching himself to use light in those months - to utilise the darkness – is what inspired Kari to become…a light artist.

For Galway 2020, European Capital of Culture, Kari and his team of Finns are setting their sights on the wild and beautiful Connemara mountain range, as he attempts to create Savage Beauty, the largest lit artwork ever made.

Using the latest technology, and transporting a vast amount of kit to an Irish mountain range in the middle of March, has its own unique set of challenges. It’s a challenge that seems second nature to Kari, who taught himself to play piano without ever learning a note, and has overcome accidents which have left him unable to walk and hear at various times in his life. No wonder, perhaps, that the artist’s motto is “Nothing is impossible; it is just a matter of deciding how much you want to use your energy towards achieving it".

Reporter Orla Higgins pursues the creative process in Galway, and we spend time with Kari in his studio in the easternmost province of Finland, but as the four-day event approaches amid gales and a Coronavirus pandemic, will it all come together?

Michael Rakowitz: Crafting ‘ghosts’ from Iraq’s lost culture Apr 07, 2020

Michael Rakowitz’s Iraqi heritage is a cultural thread running through much of his art. We follow him at work on a new installment of a long-running project called The Invisible Enemy Should Not Exist, which creates what he calls ‘ghosts’ of archaeological objects that have been destroyed or looted from Iraq in the 21st century. Sarah Geis follows him throughout the process of recreating carved reliefs which adorned a room of the Northwest Palace of Nimrud, destroyed in 2015 by the Islamic State group. However, he’s not making them from stone but colourful Arabic food packaging and cardboard – for a fast-approaching exhibition.

We check back in with Michael in March 2020 to see how the project has progressed.

Celeste Mountjoy, aka Filthyratbag Mar 31, 2020

Best known by her alias Filthyratbag, 20 year old artist Celeste Mountjoy’s brightly coloured line-drawn illustrations and phrases are at once confessional and relatable, humorous and heart-breaking. Their appeal, as her 384k Instagram followers testify, extends far beyond Celeste’s native Melbourne. From partying and relationships to mental illness and social media vanity, the artist’s satirical observations about everyday life encapsulate her experience as a Generation Z’er, and a young woman navigating today’s world. As work begins on new illustrations, reporter Rosa Ellen meets up with Celeste to find out what makes her tick, how she creates her artwork - and why her alias is Filthyratbag.

Dada Masilo: From Soweto street dancer to ballet star Mar 24, 2020

Growing up in the township of Soweto, Dada Masilo never thought to dream of ballet training or world tours. She liked street dancing to Michael Jackson and was only introduced to ballet two years after the end of Apartheid, at the age of 10. It was a strange world, she says, of pink shoes and tights. But she loved the discipline and went on to train internationally as a classical ballerina. Still only 34, she now tours the world with her very contemporary takes on traditional ballet. Her Swan Lake tackled Africa’s AIDs epidemic with male dancers playing the love triangle. Her Giselle is a feminist revenge story conceived long before #MeToo. She’s celebrated at Arts festivals from Perth to California, but the themes of her work make it less welcome in parts of Africa.

Lady Pink: The first lady of graffiti Mar 17, 2020

Nicknamed the “first lady of graffiti”, Lady Pink’s work is known for its celebration of women. The Ecuadorian-American artist was one of the first women active on the New York graffiti scene at the end of the 1970s and early 1980s, earning her a lead role in the seminal hip hop film, Wild Style, in 1983.

While still at high school Pink began exhibiting in art galleries and by the age of 21 she had her first solo show. More recently she has designed a perfume bottle for Lancôme and turned her signature designs into a clothing range.

Pink’s latest project is to create a 33 foot long mural on the walls of one of the new World Trade Center buildings, built to replace those destroyed by terrorist attacks on September 11 2001. The artist’s creation for this particular space will be based on her Unity Tree design, because she says, “The world has never been the same, but what we can celebrate is all the peacefulness and happiness that we enjoy in New York City with all the nations and nationalities living together”.

New York reporter Tara Gadomski joins Lady Pink over the course of a week to witness her new painting come to life.

Zanele Muholi: photographer and visual activist Mar 10, 2020

What does it mean to be a visual activist? This week, In The Studio meets pioneering non-binary South African photographer Zanele Muholi, who aims to give the marginalised a presence in the visual archive with their striking portraits of the black South African LGBTI community.

Ahead of Muholi’s first major UK retrospective at Tate Modern this Spring, reporter Mpho Lakaje follows Muholi, in Johannesburg and Durban as they work on their ongoing series “Faces and Phases”. This is an evolving photographic record and part of Muholi’s life’s work to map and preserve an often invisible community for posterity. It also serves to address the serious issue of hate crime in South Africa and its neighbouring countries, where the stigma of homosexuality can often lead to rape, violence, and murder.

We follow Muholi capturing images, interviewing participants and hearing their stories before creating their powerful images in black and white, highlighting and celebrating the beauty of black skin.

Madeleine Thien: The first draft Mar 03, 2020

The Canadian writer Madeleine Thien is working on her next novel, the follow-up to her prizewinning 2016 book Do Not Say We Have Nothing. But she’s finding that it’s difficult to find the internal peace and privacy to begin again, especially after having being catapulted into the public eye after the previous novel’s success.

As the narrative and characters shift and evolve in the author’s mind, there’s much painstaking research and many rewrites to be done. How can Madeleine blend the aspects of past and present which are pre-occupying her at the moment? And will she ever be satisfied enough with the novel to allow it to see the light of day?

Paul Kobrak follows her over several months as she creates different versions of the first draft of the new novel. It’s a process which moves from Berlin in Germany (and a coffee shop which is central to Madeleine’s writing process) to Brooklyn USA (where she teaches Creative Writing to University students) and finally to Portugal's capital city Lisbon, where she hopes to complete it.

Artificial Improvisation Feb 25, 2020

Professor Gil Weinberg has created the world’s first robot musician. Shimon is a marimba-playing robot with eight arms that can improvise live music in any genre.

The world is familiar with musical robots that can play programmed music, but Gil has created robotic musicians. This means they are musicians first, and robots second. In real time, these robot musicians come up with fresh ideas designed to inspire human musicians to play music in new ways.

Award-winning jazz composer Kris Bowers (Green Book, Dear White People, How They See Us) is in the studio with Gil, and many of Gil’s students and local jazz musicians. Together, they are exploring how artificial intelligence can push our understanding of what humans are capable of, and examine whether AI can enhance the abilities of musicians. They also ponder the question of whether a robot can truly be as creative as a human being.

Kris is examining three aspects of Gil’s robotic musicians, and taking part in some experiments that are happening publicly for the first time. The first aspect that Kris examines is Shimon’s ability to mirror the playing style of his fellow musicians; through this, Kris will be able to objectively analyse his own playing, with the hope of improving his craft in unprecedented ways. The second is exploring how Shimon has now been given the ability to improvise lyrics in a live rap battle, and the third is Gil’s work in the field of prosthetics. Kris plays with amputee drummer Jason Barnes, whose prosthetic drumming arm holds a stick that Kris can control with the music he plays.

Ron Arad Feb 18, 2020

In The Studio enters the endlessly surprising and shape-shifting world of architect, designer and artist Ron Arad.

Born in Israel but based in London for over four decades, Arad’s multi-disciplinary career has seen him design and produce everything from sunglasses to skyscrapers, and from hats to hotels.

A Royal Academician and Professor Emeritus at the Royal College of Art, he has designed for numerous major international furniture and design brands, and his public art work can be found in cities across the world including Tokyo, Milan, Toronto, Tel Aviv and Singapore.

Like the man himself, Arad’s work has always evaded categorisation. His constant experimentation with the boundaries and possibilities of materials and his keen interest in cutting edge technology means that nothing is ever as it seems. What at first glance appears to be a map on the wall, turns out to be a bookcase, a vast mirrored sculpture is in fact a ping pong table, a quartz pendant on a necklace doubles as a magnifying glass.

In this programme, Ron welcomes Edwina Pitman into his labyrinthine studio, filled with prototypes and iconic design pieces, to chart the making of one of his many ongoing projects. Inspired by an object found in a flea market forty years ago, Ron’s idea is to create a string quartet that plays itself. Over the course of a year, he reveals how he and his team work on the technology, the design and the commercial possibilities to make this ghostly vision a reality.

Bert & Bertie: Directing Troop Zero Feb 11, 2020

There are very few female film directors in Hollywood, but directing duo Bert and Bertie, otherwise known as Katie Ellwood (Bertie) and Amber Finlayson (Bert), are forging a name for themselves.

Aleks Krotoski joins Bert and Bertie as they direct their latest film, Troop Zero, which stars McKenna Grace and Oscar winners Allison Janney and Viola Davis. The film is set in 1977 in rural Georgia, where a misfit girl dreams of life in outer space. When a competition offers her a chance to be recorded on NASA's Golden Record, she recruits a makeshift troop of Birdie Scouts, forming friendships that last a lifetime.

To get a real insight into the Hollywood system and the role of directors in the making of a film, Aleks joins the Berts on location in Louisiana as they shoot the film, and in the studio during the edit. Not only are the directors both women with young children, but the writers, producers and the majority of the production crew are also women. Bert and Bertie talk to Aleks about how they are proactively trying to change women’s opportunities in the industry through their hiring practices.

Other contributors to the programme include co-writer Lucy Alibar, executive producer Jenny Hinkey and cinematographer James Whitaker.

Staging Semele in Shanghai - Part two Feb 04, 2020

In the second of this two-part documentary….the pressure is mounting.

Producer Linda Wong Davies and the multinational cast and crew have reached Shanghai and have little more than a week before opening night, so there is a lot to do in a very short amount of time.

The Shanghai Symphony Orchestra – who are celebrating their 140th anniversary – have no experience of performing the baroque music required for Handel’s musical drama, Semele.

Shanghai Symphony Hall – a concert hall not designed to house a theatrical set – is about to welcome one through its doors for the first time.

Plus, the lighting and petals are causing a bit of a stir!

With unrestricted access to the making of this cultural event in China, Ella-mai Robey tries to keep up with the action.

Staging Semele in Shanghai - Part one Jan 28, 2020

The mythological story of Semele - a woman so confident in her own desires and ambition that she attracted the King of the Gods as her lover - became the first-ever baroque opera to be performed in China, just over a decade ago.

Ten years on and a completely re-imagined Semele is back, this time in the city of Shanghai, to help celebrate the 140th anniversary of the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra.

With rare and unrestricted access to the creation of such a cultural event in China, Ella-mai Robey joins the multi-national cast and crew for all the drama involved in taking the show from planning stages to first-night performance.

The production is the brainchild of Lady Linda Wong Davies, founder of the KT Wong Foundation, which aims to foster a mutual understanding between China and the rest of the world through creative projects. Together, with Royal Opera House director Julia Burbach, conductor Maestro Long Yu and a cast including soprano Jane Archibald - they have just six weeks to prepare the production from scratch.

The clock is ticking. Will the arrival of a theatrical set – the first in the history of Shanghai Symphony Hall – prove too much?

Conserving the works of the Van Gogh Museum Jan 21, 2020

The Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam in The Netherlands is one of the most visited museums in the world. It houses the largest collection of works by the hugely popular 19th century Dutch painter Vincent van Gogh, as well as many paintings by his contemporaries. All of these pictures need to be looked after and preserved for future generations and in this episode, the BBC’s Karl Bos goes behind the scenes to discover the hidden art of conservation.

Once a painting leaves an artist’s studio, it is at risk of physical damage from poor storage, movement or accident and only becomes more vulnerable as it ages and the materials weaken. You can add to the list of dangers past repairs by well-meaning museum staff that have gone terribly wrong. It’s a hard life being a work of art. We meet Senior Conservator at the Van Gogh Museum, René Boitelle, as he restores a badly damaged painting by Dutch artist Jacob Maris and shows us how Van Gogh’s painting The Furrows, is being cleaned.

Arwa Al-Ammari Jan 14, 2020

Saudi fashion designer Arwa Al-Ammari is one of a handful of haute couture designers to emerge in recent years. She has recently begun combining traditional Saudi design with striking modernity and elegant modesty. Her latest line reaches back into the textures, history and geography of her nation and fuses them with the catwalk elegance of Milan.

Arwa's journey into design began as a painter and sculptor and she brought those multimedia disciplines, and attention to detail, to the fashion scene with her brand ArAm Designs in 2013. In 2016 she won the international reality show Fashion Star and remains determined to put Saudi elegance on the fashion map.

Reporter Cyma Aziz visits Arwa at the design table in her workshop as she prepares a new range for the catwalk.

Superflex: Deep Sea Minding Jan 07, 2020

What do you get when you put a Danish artist group together with oceanographers, material scientists, and marine biologists? The answer is an idea which might just change the way we imagine and design our environments in response to rising sea levels.

As warnings about the effects of global warming escalate, Superflex – an art group founded by Jakob Fenger, Bjørnstjerne Christiansen and Rasmus Nielsen in 1993 – have been working on a long term project to imagine a world where the original function and aesthetics of our carefully designed world may be lost to the tide.

Commissioned by TBA21-Academy, the project is called Deep Sea Minding and it considers whether it’s possible to design and create structures that could serve the needs and desires of both humans and marine life.

So in their headquarters in Copenhagen, the team at Superflex are mixing concrete and amino acids together to see whether they can create bricks to make houses and schools which can be occupied by humans first and then fish. They’re also preparing a prototype structure to be placed on the seabed to test the responses of fish to this new material.

Over the course of nine months Laura Hubber joins Rasmus Nielsen from Superflex for one leg of their epic journey – taking in California, Copenhagen and Jamaica – and meeting a Mermaid along the way.

Singing for the Pope Dec 31, 2019

In this special festive edition of In The Studio, Glyn Tansley goes behind the façade of the Vatican to meet the members of the oldest choir in the world, as they prepare for the biggest night on their calendar.

The Sistine Chapel Choir has a history dating back 1500 years, but it’s still one of the most active cultural institutions at the very heart of the Vatican.

It also has the prestige of being the Pope’s personal choir, performing for him whenever he’s in St Peter’s Basilica. As the Holy Father’s personal choir, it is called upon to play an ecumenical role, contributing to bringing together in art what has been separated by history and politics.

In their rehearsal room, we meet the men and boys who make up the choir as they prepare for Christmas mass, an event watched around the world by millions of worshipers. We’ll come to understand why being in this choir so important to them, and the pressures of being always on display through the Vatican’s global TV and radio services.

This is a rare glimpse into the real lives at the heart of an ancient tradition.

Creating an Icon Dec 24, 2019

For this special Christmas episode, In the Studio goes on a journey with one of the world's most renowned iconographers. Not just to witness the creation of a beautiful painting - but to witness a transformation. The moment a physical image becomes a religious icon - a prayer in paint that, for the faithful, acts as a door between heaven and earth.

Aidan Hart, a former hermit and Greek Orthodox monk whose icons you will find all over the world in churches and private collections - including that of Prince Charles - will paint an icon to celebrate the season of Advent.

Phil Pegum joins Aidan in rural England for five days as he paints a Christmas icon, and shares the secrets of the art form by explaining their symbolism and strange perspectives.

Designing the new Aston Martin Dec 17, 2019

The makers of James Bond's car are entering new territory. Aston Martin, the British manufacturer usually associated with 007's sports car, are launching their first family motor - an SUV.

In The Studio has gained exclusive access to the design and manufacturing process. Presenter Andy Jaye joins Head of Design, Marek Reichman, in his studio, follows the car through rigorous testing, and finally, sees it launched to the public.

Adrian Smith: Reaching for the skies Dec 10, 2019

Architect Adrian Smith designs the world’s tallest towers. How does he use his creativity to develop new designs for each of these buildings, and how does he ensure each building fits within the cultural landscape of the city or land in which it will be constructed?

Adrian Smith’s name and company, Adrian Smith and Gordon Gill Architecture, is synonymous with tall buildings. Millions of people flock to the observation decks of Adrian’s buildings every year, desperate to get a glimpse of a city skyline from its highest point, and the Burj Khalifa in Dubai is now firmly in the top ten list of the world’s most popular tourist destinations.

In Adrian’s studio in Chicago, Eleri Llian Rees sets out to discover what motivates and inspires the man who has created modern day wonders of the world. Adrian describes how he is working creatively with his team at the moment to design a new building for Nanjing, China, incorporating the geography of the land into the design to make it unique.

Adrian tells us that collaboration is at the heart of the firm’s work, knowing that designs can change – sometimes significantly – throughout the construction process, and reveals the surprising part played by small chisels and super glue in creating the majestic art of the skyscraper.

Adrian is a fascinating character, a visionary at the cutting edge of his chosen field, pushing the boundaries of architectural possibility with awe-inspiring imagination.

Cecilia Paredes: Camouflage artist Dec 03, 2019

You might think the aim of most artists and performers is to stand out from the crowd, but not Peruvian-born Cecilia Paredes. Her aim is to blend in, quite literally.

In her series of ‘camouflage’ self-portraits, Cecilia’s body is painstakingly painted - during a ‘performance’ which lasts many hours - to precisely match a colourful and patterned wallpaper or fabric in the background.

The resulting photograph challenges the viewer gaze, to seek out Cecilia’s form from the scene behind. It is an idea which began 20 years ago, when Cecilia first arrived in the United States and found herself trying to blend in.

Céline Ottenburgh finds the camouflage artist amongst a crowded airport, and accompanies her as she goes in search of the perfect wallpaper for her latest project, amongst the walls of an 18th century castle in Belgium.

Pretty Yende: Taking on La Traviata Nov 26, 2019

Pretty Yende is a young South African opera singer at the top of her game. Having enjoyed a meteoric rise performing in opera houses internationally, this autumn she took on the lead role of Violetta in Verdi's 'La Traviata' at Paris Opera. In this ‘In the Studio’, the cellist Abel Selaocoe talks to her about her preparations for the role, follows her as the challenging production takes shape, and meets her after her triumphant first performance to find out what it means to her. ‘Even if I want to admit it or not, being the first black person to sing this role at Paris Opera is a huge deal’ Yende tells Abel after opening night. For someone who became interested in opera aged 16 after hearing the Flower Duet on a TV advert, success has come swiftly. She made her debut at the Metropolitan Opera in New York in 2013 when she was just 27, and released her first album in 2016. Abel talks to Yende about her background in a Zulu speaking home in Piet Retief in South Africa, and asks what it took for her to get where she is. She reveals the way she approaches her work, and reflecting on the opportunities she has had, says: “I represent every person that was never given the chance to be here. Every one of my brothers and sisters with tremendous talent that never got here. I get to be entrusted with the honour of saying ‘it’s possible’.

Rafael Lozano-Hemmer’s Border Tuner Nov 19, 2019

Imagine huge searchlights which can be seen over a ten mile, 15 kilometer radius talking to one another across two countries. This is exactly what electronic media artist Rafael Lozano-Hemmer is creating this November between Ciudad Juárez in Mexico and El Paso in Texas.

Called Border Tuner, the project will see enormous bridges of light connecting the US-Mexico border for the first time.

When lights from the stations (three on each side) are directed at each other and they manage to make a connection, a massive bridge of light is formed. This activates microphones and speakers allowing participants to communicate with one another across the border. The “light bridge” flickers like morse code as the participants listen and speak to one another. If they don’t like what they are hearing they can retune to a different light beam.

This is not the first time Rafael Lozano-Hemmer has used search lights in his art but he’s never done anything on this scale or with this complexity before. Born in Mexico City in 1967, he first produced a remote-controlled searchlight project in 1999 for the Zócalo Square in Mexico City. Since then he has created installations in dozens of cities around the world where the public controls the searchlights using the internet, mobile phones, megaphones or heart rate sensors.

Jeff Staple: Designing for Timberland Nov 12, 2019

Jeff Staple is an acclaimed American fashion and graphic designer, founder of New York Design agency Staple Design, Staple Clothing and Reed Space boutique. He has collaborated and released lines with brands such as Nike, Coca-Cola, Oakley, Uniqlo, PUMA and Clarks. He serves as Creative Director for TGS Holdings, Inc - an innovative group of retail outlets.

As a designer he is respected for his keen eye and his dynamic yet practical and diligent approach. We get an exclusive insight into Jeff’s design philosophy, approach and process, as we spend time with him in his studio in New York City, whilst he works on his collaborative release with leading footwear titan, Timberland.

In addition, we hear from key figures within the industry about what makes Jeff and his work so iconic. These contributors include Chris McGrath (Vice President, Timberland Global Footwear Design), Rob Stone (Co-Founder of Cornerstone and The Fader), Sophia Chang (Illustrator), Upscale Vandal (Consultant - Roc Nation / PUMA / Billionaire Boys Club) and Bernie Gross (Artistic Director, Extra Butter).

The show is presented by Bobbito Garcia, the New York based critically acclaimed author, award-winning film-maker, presenter and DJ.

Dancing with the Stars in Myanmar Nov 05, 2019

Known in the UK as Strictly Come Dancing and across the globe as Dancing with the Stars, this BBC brand is known for pairing celebrities with professional dancers, having their performances scrutinised by a panel of judges and allowing the public to vote for their favourite. This autumn the show is being created for the first time in Myanmar. What does it take to bring this format to a new audience and create the programme from scratch?

The venture is the passion project of French brothers Henri and Benoit de Lorme. They’ve already brought formats like Masterchef to the country. But dancing is a very different proposition, and in Myanmar there are many cultural sensitivities to be aware of. One is around the design of the costumes, where the need to create something flamboyant which works for camera also needs to take into account local sensitivities around how much flesh can be exposed.

It’s also a challenging country to work in as the media companies are still in their infancy and there are shortages of people with the necessary skills to realise these big projects.

In addition there is the deadline to build the set, the process of getting the celebrities and new judges trained and the last minute cast changes. With so much to do in a short space of time, it’s going to be a challenge to get everything in place by the first broadcast.

Ali Fowle follows the show as it evolves and finds out how the de Lorme brothers work together - and what legacy they plan to create.

This is an updated version of the podcast - edited to correct a minor factual error.

Seven Worlds, One Planet Oct 29, 2019

The coldest, driest, windiest and most daunting continent on the planet is Antarctica. This is home to Gentoo Penguins. When the chicks fledge and head to the water’s edge for the very first time, they can have little idea of what lies ahead. Not only do they have to navigate huge blocks of glacial ice to reach the open water where they can feed, but patrolling the bay are leopard seals. These are powerful, fierce predators and an encounter can be fatal for the young birds.

After Blue Planet and Dynasties we go behind the scenes of the BBC’s latest Nature blockbuster Seven Worlds, One Planet and join wildlife cameraman John Aitchison on location to discover how the dramatic story of the challenges facing these young penguins is filmed. This hugely ambitious series narrated by David Attenborough transports viewers around the globe to tell the remarkable stories of how the landscape and conditions of each continent have shaped the unique animal life found there.

Major wildlife series are some of the most ambitious programmes on television. Each six to seven minute sequence can take a year or two to plan and several weeks to film and edit. They are made by highly specialised teams which combine technical expertise with an artist's eye, natural history knowledge and the hardiness of old-time Antarctic explorers. As we discover, it doesn’t matter how much preparation you do, the unexpected can and usually does happen and the Natural World can be thrilling, challenging and horrifying.

A new MoMA Oct 22, 2019

On 15 June 2019 the Museum of Modern Art in New York closed its doors ahead of a four month refurbishment and the final stage of a $400 million overhaul. When it re-opens its doors in October, MoMA will not only have reconfigured its galleries but also rehung the entire collection on show.

In this special edition of In The Studio, Paul Kobrak follows Ramona Bronkar Bannayan, Senior Deputy Director of Exhibitions & Collections, and Lana Hum, Director of Exhibition Design & Production, as they oversee this epic feat of creativity and choreography.

This time, instead of moving to a temporary space as they did for MoMA's last renovation 15 years ago, they are deinstalling and reinstalling nearly 170,000 square feet of gallery space in just under 4 months. Roughly 10,000 art moves are being undertaken between conservation, storage, and the galleries; and around 2,000 individual works of art are going into the frame shop - with 1,550 new frames having to be constructed.

But it is not just the logistical nightmare that is keeping Ramona, Lana and the Museum’s curators and staff awake at night. With 40,000 square feet of additional space, as a result of expanding into a new residential skyscraper, they also aim to rethink the way the story of modern and contemporary art is presented to the public – balancing the presentation of Claude Monet’s crowd-pleasing Water Lilies and Vincent Van Gogh’s The Starry Night, with lesser known works covering the full range of MoMA’s massive collection, including photography, sound works, performance, moving image and art forms not yet imagined.

With exclusive access over an eight month period, Paul Kobrak traces the team's progress as they prepare for the Museum’s closure and the subsequent re-opening on 21 October 2019. Presented by Paul Kobrak. Produced by Paul Kobrak , Ella-mai Robey and Emma Kingsley for the BBC World Service. North/south section-perspective through the new gallery spaces at The Museum of Modern Art, looking east along Fifty-third Street.

World of Warcraft Oct 15, 2019

World of Warcraft is one of the most popular computer games on the planet and it’s managed to sustain that popularity for 15 years, outlasting countless rivals. The game is produced by creative artists, designers and programmers who work together to create the mystical land of Azeroth.

Presenter and gamer Alex Humphreys spends time with the sound department, who play a critical role in the development of the game. The key to the success of World of Warcraft is maintaining the desire of players to come back for more, day after day. They have to be immersed in the game and feel like they’re playing in a real place.

Following the team as they prepare for their next content update, Alex talks to writers, producers and sound designers to find out how each of them play their part in creating Azeroth. From the meeting room, to the recording studio and the edit suite, each step along the way contributes to the player experience and the success of the game.

Kadir López: Lighting up Havana Oct 08, 2019

As Cuba’s capital city Havana celebrates its 500th birthday, one artist has been making it his mission to recreate the famous neon signs that used to adorn buildings and light up the streets and squares.

Kadir López has had his multimedia work exhibited worldwide, but over the past few years he has been driven by a passion for neon and the concept of connecting Havana’s present with its colourful past. He and his small team of skilled craftspeople remake the signs in a workshop in the centre of Havana, often in searing heat and soaring temperatures. There are specialist procedures needed for the bending of the neon and the colouring and design. Then the signs have to be carefully re-positioned on buildings, using scaffolding and cranes.

Julia Galiano-Rios watches Kadir as he brings the signs to life and hears how the use of neon can throw new light – both physical and spiritual – on a city.

John Saunderson: The man who makes hit records Oct 01, 2019

He’s not a singer, writer or a musician but he’s earned a reputation as a Number 1 hitmaker across the globe with credits like “Bonkers” by Dizzee Rascal.

John Saunderson has been in the music business for over 40 years and has an uncanny knack of working with his team of songwriters and colleagues at Notting Hill Music to choose exactly the right song for the right artist. He’s had over 30 number 1 hits in 15 countries around the world and is always looking for the next big thing.

Anna Bailey follows John to find out what the different processes are in the life of a hitmaker. She watches as his team work on composing with the former Pussycat Doll singing star Melody Thornton and hears how a song is created, often in a very short space of time.

Anna also follows the initial steps of choosing a song for the South Korean pop phenomenon J.Fla who is looking for something to appeal to a Western audience. Her team have a very specific set of requirements, including wanting a “hook” or earworm that will be distinctive. Will John and the team be able to deliver?

The XYZ Show: Kenya’s satirical puppets Sep 24, 2019

Since 2009, the XYZ Show has been holding Kenyan politicians and other global figures to account, with a hilarious and cutting form of satire, starring... puppets! The brainchild of widely syndicated political cartoonist Gado, the XYZ Show aims to get people talking about issues through humour – in the tradition of famous satirical puppet shows like the UK’s Spitting Image and France’s Les Guignols. From President Uhuru Kenyatta to Donald Trump – a latex avatar is ready and waiting to spring into life.

After a break of over a year, the XYZ Show is back on air for its 13th season, and the BBC’s Anthony Irungu has gained exclusive access to go behind the scenes. Follow him as he meets the puppet masters and makers, scriptwriters, directors, producers and voice artists that create each carefully crafted episode from scratch in just 10 days – and asks why puppets are so effective in satire.

Andile Vellem: Hearing through movement Sep 17, 2019

Music and dance are so tied together, it might be hard to imagine how a profoundly deaf dancer can become an international star in the contemporary dance world - but South African Andile Vellem has done it. Vellem lost his hearing at the age of five, but that hasn’t stopped him from dancing, or becoming the Artistic Director of one of South Africa's leading integrated dance companies, Unmute.

Andile grew up in a house full of dance. His parents were famous ballroom dancers - one of the few professional dance genres open to non-whites - and as a small child he remembers his sister holding his hand to a speaker so he could feel the vibrations created by the music. As he grew older, inspired first by Michael Jackson, and later by the rich musical history of the Cape, he learned to sense music through vibration - creating his own style of dance, including sign dance.

Our presenter, British singer and musician Nathaniel Mann, travels to Cape Town for a close encounter with the talented dancer, as he embarks on a new production called Trapped Man, in which he and another dancer are bound tightly together, struggling for release.

Nathaniel follows Andile through the work’s creation, from the inspiration for the choreography, through rehearsals and the composition of its unique soundtrack – inspired by a century of South African music – as he builds towards the all-important public performance.

Steppenwolf Theatre Company Sep 10, 2019

Nick Duncalf follows Tina Landau and Tarell Alvin McCraney of the Steppenwolf Theatre Company as they rehearse their revolutionary new stage show, Ms Blakk for President.

In Chicago, Illinois, two of the ensemble’s key creatives, Tina Landau and Tarell Alvin McCraney, are bringing a theatrically daring and politically charged new show to life. Ms Blakk for President tells the extraordinary true story of an African-American drag queen who ran for president of the United States in 1992, at the height of the Aids crisis. Tarell is a critically acclaimed playwright who won an Oscar for his screenplay for the film Moonlight, based on his own childhood growing up in Miami, Florida. Not only has this show been created from scratch at breakneck speed, but Tarell is playing the lead role, after a 15-year absence from the stage. Inspired and supported by the company’s history and success, Tarell, Tina, and Steppenwolf’s artistic director, Anna D. Shapiro, are determined that this cultural institution must be theatrically and politically revolutionary in order to not just survive, but thrive in the 21st century.

Founded 45 years ago in a leafy suburb of Chicago, the Steppenwolf Theatre Company has forged a reputation as one of the world’s foremost producers of electrifying, actor-led theatre, from their breakthrough productions of Balm in Gilead and Sam Shepard’s True West, to the Pullitzer Prize-winning August: Osage County, written by one of their own ensemble members, actor-turned-playwright Tracy Letts. The ensemble, expanding over the years to include 50 members, has won Tonys, Emmys, Pullitzers and multiple Oscar nominations, and includes John Malkovich, Laurie Metcalf, Gary Sinise, Joan Allen, Bruce Norris, and many more.

Nii Obodai: Finding the image Sep 03, 2019

The acclaimed Ghanaian photographer Nii Obodai is renowned for his distinctive black and white hazy silhouettes of distant landscapes and his stark compassionate portraits. As a youngster he spent time in England and now he’s back as artist-in-residence in the East Riding of Yorkshire, where he’s working on a new exhibition on environmental themes.

Nii is spending time in the marshes and woodland of the nearby nature reserve, photographing wildlife and the people who tend the landscape. But he’s not using the latest digital camera to take his pictures – instead he’s interweaving the techniques of the past by learning to photograph with an old-fashioned large format Deardorff camera, shooting in black and white and making prints. The work is based on techniques used by one of the founding fathers of British photography, William Henry Fox Talbot.

Felicity Finch joins Nii as he explores the marshlands and prepares to take his pictures which will be displayed in the Beverley Art Gallery. She follows him through the process – which can take hours – of waiting for the birds to come into shot, pressing the shutter and reloading the films. She also watches as he takes portraits of the workers at the reservoir.

Later in the seaside town of Scarborough we hear how Nii develops the films in the total darkness of an ad hoc darkroom and uses the traditional method of salt printing to create images in a variety of monochrome tones of rich earthy browns. It’s a learning process for Nii and while most of the images turn out the way he wants, others are less successful. We hear how he begins to make his final selections and how he is influenced by the potency of memory and landscape.

Protoje: Jamaican reggae star Aug 27, 2019

Grammy nominated Jamaican reggae star Protoje gives us an exclusive insight into his creative and thought process as he begins to produce his fifth studio album. Following on the heels of the Grammy nominated A Matter of Time album, we visit Jamaica to catch up with the man who is being heralded as spearheading a new movement in the Caribbean with a new wave of young, energetic and passionate artists. Protoje has helped the likes of Chronixx, Lila Ike and Koffee by giving them a platform to develop their talents and present the emerging sound of Jamaica to a global audience.

We delve into the success of his previous album, his approach to the new set, why he felt having his own studio would aid his creativity as well as visiting the new space. We focus on his lyrical ability, and the importance he places on being lyrically astute and rhythmically different from what would be expected from a Jamaican artist. Presented by award winning BBC reggae DJ Seani B, this is a rarely seen insight into a highly anticipated piece of work from Protoje.

Daniel Schoppen: Roller coaster designer Aug 20, 2019

Inside a simple, white walled office in one of the world’s smallest countries, Daniel Schoppen is busy designing roller coasters that will scare, excite and delight riders from all over the globe. Swiss journalist, Sarah Fluck, travels to Liechtenstein to meet the German born roller coaster designer as he puts the finishing touches to his latest creation, ‘Taiga’, for Linnanmäki Amusement Park in Helsinki, Finland. With the park located just north of the city centre on top of a rocky terrain, placing the coaster was always going to be a challenge. Have the limitations of a small footprint impacted on Daniel’s plans to create Finland’s longest and fastest ride yet? Sarah then joins Daniel as they travel to Linnanmäki to experience his new creation for the very first time, questioning whether roller coaster design is mere mathematics, or indeed a piece of art?

The Frouds: Creating creatures Aug 13, 2019

Brian Froud is not just an artist and illustrator; he is the conceptual designer behind the 1982 movie, The Dark Crystal, the first ever to have an all-puppet cast.

Now decades later, Netflix return to the world of Thra where the film was based, with a new 10 part prequel series. Ahead of its release on 30 August, Clem Hitchcock joins Brian - who is back on board as Creature and Costume Designer for the new series - at his home in rural Southwest England, where his characters begin their lives on his drawing board. As he sketches, Brian explains how the brooding surrounding landscape of Dartmoor inspires his ideas for Thra and all its weird and wonderful inhabitants.

But turning his drawings into physical puppets is a family affair – on set at a secret London location Brian is joined by Wendy, his wife, and Toby, their son. Brian and Wendy first met on the original Dark Crystal and they have collaborated together ever since. Wendy is a sculptor and a doll maker and was part of the team that built the original Yoda for Star Wars. Whereas sculptor and fabricator Toby was literally born into the business, playing the baby in another cult classic the Frouds worked on – Labyrinth, starring David Bowie.

Working on their most complex creation to date – a creature with a human performer and several puppeteers to bring it to life as its filmed – the Frouds explain how they struggle to keep the spirit of Brian’s original designs – with all the quirks and imperfections of real life.

Junya Ishigami: Architect of London's Serpentine Pavilion Aug 06, 2019

Every year since 2000 London’s Serpentine Gallery has offered an architect who has never built in the UK a very special challenge - to design a boundary pushing temporary building to stand in the heart of Kensington Gardens, London. They have just six months, a sixth of the average amount of time it takes to design and construct a building.

Architect Maria Smith follows Junya Ishigami and the pavilion team as they use their experience and ingenuity to try to construct the design. It’s a forest of slender white columns supporting a 61 ton roof of Cumbrian slate, a structure Junya refers to as 'a black bird flying through the rain'. How can they realise such a technically demanding building in such a short time and what will the public and the critics think when it’s finally complete?

Featuring a diverse selection from the huge team which contribute to the building, including architect Sir David Adjaye, curator Amira Gad, Project Manager Ted Featonby, Engineer Michael Orr and Serpentine Head of Construction and Buildings Julie Burnell. With access to almost every facet of the project Maria takes us into the normally unseen corners of this complex, challenging and internationally unparalleled architectural event.

Rufus Norris: Artistic director of the UK’s National Theatre Jul 30, 2019

How is a script transformed into a staged play? The UK’s National Theatre is one of the world’s most prolific producing houses and its artistic director Rufus Norris might have the biggest job in British theatre: balancing its commercial success with the need to take a chance on a new play. His latest production, Small Island, is the first theatrical adaptation of the well-known novel by Andrea Levy about Caribbean migration. Set in the 1940s, it deals with the experiences of Jamaicans and Britons around the arrival of the Empire Windrush in London.

Arts broadcaster and journalist Fiona Lindsay talks to Rufus Norris, as well as members of the cast and crew, to explore the technical and creative challenges of this epic production. With unique access to the rehearsal room, she takes us behind the scenes at the National Theatre to discover how a complex and much-loved story is brought to new life on stage

Sir John Eliot Gardiner: Restoring early music Jul 23, 2019

In 1744, in the grand surroundings of London’s Royal Opera House, a musical scandal occurred. During the austere Christian season of Lent, George Frederick Handel (composer of Messiah, The Water Music, and Zadok the Priest) premiered his new opera Semele. Drawing on ancient writings by Ovid and more recent ones by playwright William Congreve, Handel’s ‘musical drama’ Semele broke the rules, social and musical – with the story of a disastrous love affair between the mortal Princess Semele and Jupiter, King of the Gods.

Sir John Eliot Gardiner is one of the world’s leading musicians specialising in the ‘restoration’ of early music. With a peerless 50-year track record, he strives to recreate the sounds that composers like Handel and JS Bach would have imagined and heard. His approach combines musicology, scholarship, and an uncompromising passion for the music: rather like a picture restorer, he painstakingly strips away the layers of musical varnish and tarnish that have accumulated over generations, to present the music afresh, as its composers intended.

Composer and musician Lloyd Coleman follows John Eliot Gardiner’s work to prepare a brand new 2019 production of Semele. Visiting rehearsals just across London’s Waterloo Bridge from where Semele was first heard 275 years ago, Lloyd talks to John Eliot Gardiner about his philosophy and strategies, and asks some of Gardiner’s many colleagues about how they collaborate with him to realise this ambitious and thrilling project.

Imran Qureshi: Beauty and Carnage Jul 16, 2019

An internationally renowned artist from Lahore in Pakistan, Imran Qureshi is a master of the very delicate and the very brutal: combining tiny brushstrokes inspired by the 16th Century Mughal masters with large-scale installations evoking the carnage left after a bomb attack, his work has the power to shock and intrigue in equal measure.

An unlikely friendship connects him with Christian Louboutin, one of the world’s best-known shoe designers, whose trademark red-soled, beautifully crafted pumps are worn by the likes of Gwyneth Paltrow and Rihanna.

For this programme, Christian meets Imran at Galerie Thaddaeus Ropac, a huge warehouse turned art gallery in Paris. It is the venue of a major solo exhibition, and Christian joins Imran as crates are unpacked and last-minute changes made to individual paintings and the exhibition as a whole, with some new work inspired by the bomb attacks on two mosques in New Zealand in March 2019.

“There is an element of violence in the work,” Imran says, “at the same time, when you get close to it, it becomes poetic as well.”

He has even brought a piece of his studio with him from Lahore, which becomes part of his installation in its own right – and as he and Christian discuss each other’s art, it emerges that these two creative giants have a surprising amount in common.

Bicycles of the Future Jul 09, 2019

From Picasso to Ai Weiwei, from Iris Murdoch to HG Wells, cycling has long been the inspiration for artists and creative minds. Yet the fundamental design of a bicycle has remained unchanged for over a hundred years and the material of choice to build the frames is usually metal or carbon.

Top endurance cyclist Lee Craigie travels to Denmark to meet cutting edge bicycle designers Paul Harder Cohen and Mette Walsted, who are taking a very different approach and crafting bikes from a material that’s been around for millions of years: wood.

Paul and Mette take Lee through their creative process in their buzzing dockside studio workshop in Copenhagen, as they design and construct their bike frames from a combination of ash and walnut. Each bike takes over two months to make and each one is unique thanks to the organic nature of the wood they are crafted from.

As well as getting involved in the creation of a new bicycle, Lee finds out about ways that form and function intersect, and hops into the saddle to reflect on how this design gives a highly distinctive feeling of interaction between rider and machine.

(Photo: Bike designers Mette Walsted and Paul Harder Cohen, with kind permission)

Richard Curtis: Writing Yesterday - Part two Jul 02, 2019

This month a new film by the award-winning screenwriter Richard Curtis (Four Weddings and a Funeral, Notting Hill, Love Actually) will be launched in cinemas across the world. ‘Yesterday’ is inspired by the music of the Beatles and although the germ of the idea was not his, the story, its construction and the characters created are all Richard Curtis originals.

Yasmeen Khan has been talking to Richard as the film developed over the last two years with the various drafts shaped, reshaped and edited.

In this, the second of a special two-part In The Studio, Yasmeen joins Richard on the film set as the words he’s worked on so carefully are brought to life by actors and the Oscar-winning director Danny Boyle. Yet even here there’s a role for the writer as tweaks and changes are made during filming as the raw material of the screenplay becomes the digital material ready for editing. Yasmeen also joins Richard as the film gets its first trial screening in preparation for its release.

Richard Curtis: Writing Yesterday - Part one Jun 25, 2019

This month a new film by the award-winning screenwriter Richard Curtis (Four Weddings and a Funeral, Notting Hill, Love Actually) will be launched in cinemas across the world. Yesterday is inspired by the music of the Beatles, and although the germ of the idea was not his, the story, its construction and the characters created are all Richard Curtis originals.

Yasmeen Khan has been talking to Richard as the film developed over the last two years with the various drafts shaped, reshaped and edited.

In this, the first of a special two-part In the Studio, she hears how his first attempts failed to satisfy his fiercest critic, his partner Emma, who also operates as his script editor. There’s also been the addition of a director, the Oscar-winning Danny Boyle, who provides another set of ideas that need incorporating. All the while Richard strives to ensure that the music of the Beatles, that’s been so important to him throughout his life, should remain at the heart of the final film.

Alice Sara Ott: Leading concert pianist Jun 18, 2019

Barefoot, sitting cross-legged at the piano, sometimes even with her own blood streaked across the keys, German-Japanese pianist Alice Sara Ott believes everything should come from your hands.

We meet Alice in her rehearsal room at Steinway Haus on a hot day in Munich as she prepares for new live performances in France, Germany and the UK. Alice shares her sense of humour, explores how she interprets music, talks about the colours she adds, what kind of piano she favours, and why she always travels with a Rubik’s Cube.

And as Alice says; you don’t have to be educated to listen to classical music; you get educated by listening to it. T-shirts, flip flops, popcorn - all are welcome at a concert with Alice Sara Ott.

The pieces come from her new album Nightfall with piano music from Satie, Debussy and Ravel. The album is a personal project for Alice, the recording last year coinciding with her 30th birthday and a sudden illness in her family. The album has taken on an even stronger personal significance for Alice, following her recent diagnosis with Multiple Sclerosis.

Joana Vasconcelos: Mask out of mirrors Jun 11, 2019

Another chance to hear how the artist Joana Vasconcelos creates her impressive Mirror mask.

The Portuguese artist Joana Vasconcelos is renowned for her large scale sculptural pieces which have featured in galleries across the world. She’s used materials such as fabric, plastic and even tampons to construct her works.

In June 2018 her new exhibition, called I’m Your Mirror, opened at the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, Spain. For this Joana made a series of new sculptures, including an enormous Venetian-style mask, made of overlapping mirrors. After being shown in Bilbao, the mask is now on display at the Museu de Serralves in Porto, Portugal with another version of it also on show in Venice at the Kempinski on San Clemente Island.

The construction of the huge mask was a process full of challenges as the enormous structure took shape in Joana’s Lisbon studio. Anna McNamee follows Joana through the process of working with the mirrors and explores how the piece is designed, shaped and packed up ready to begin its journey to Bilbao.

Ai-Da: Putting the art into artificial intelligence Jun 04, 2019

With the announcement of the world’s first A.I. robot artist, In the Studio also announces a ‘first’ as we follow non-human artist, Ai-Da - a humanoid A.I. robot named after Ada Lovelace, the first female computer programmer in the world.

Karl Bos gains exclusive access to the design and making of what is hoped will be the first robot capable of drawing people from real life. Using A.I. processes and algorithms, cameras in her eyes and a pen in her robotic hand, Ai-Da’s ability as a robot to draw from sight has never been achieved before, and could make Ai-Da an artist in her own right.

The project is the brainchild of Gallery Director Aidan Meller who talks Karl through her creation, along with the young engineers making her drawing arm and the team producing her head, face and body. And in the final moments, once she’s assembled, will Karl hear from the artist herself?

(Image: The world’s first robot artist, Ai-Da. Credit to Nicky Johnston)

Iris van Herpen: Wearable works of art May 28, 2019

This May the musical superstar Björk has been performing a series of concerts in New York, entitled Cornucopia. One of the costumes she appears in is a dress specially created for her by the pioneering Dutch designer Iris van Herpen. Iris is renowned for her fluid designs and pioneering use of techniques such as 3D printing and has dressed many international celebrities. This new dress for Björk will be made of many different parts, blending design, art and science to create something truly unique.

Anik See visits Iris in her Amsterdam studio to observe the garment being created and worked on. We also hear from Björk herself in a special interview for this episode.

Iris has worked with Björk several times before, but with this project, the pressure is on as there’s a tight timescale and logistics to sort out of getting the dress fitted and shipped in time. Anik watches as the different components are made separately and sees the team at work assembling and fitting. As well as being striking, the dress must be able to move in the way Björk requires for the show - and be durable enough to withstand many nights of wear.

Ibrahim Mahama: Salvaged materials and grand installations May 21, 2019

Ibrahim Mahama’s architectural installations have already been seen in cities such as New York, Athens and London - but now the 31 year old's work is being shown in Ghana’s first ever National Pavilion, at one of the most prestigious contemporary art exhibitions in the world, the Venice Biennale.

Ibrahim’s grand-scale installations can be years in the making because he often collaborates with local workers and uses salvaged materials which he carefully sources from Ghana, where he lives and works – materials like the jute sacks found in food markets, and which he’s become synonymous with.

Frenny Jowi travels to Ghana and Venice to meet Ibrahim and follow him as he prepares for one of the highest profile shows of his career.

Danielle de Niese: Opera’s coolest soprano May 14, 2019

Danielle de Niese, “opera’s coolest soprano”, opens the door of her rehearsal room to Edwina Pitman, as she prepares to make her London West End stage debut. Swapping the world of baroque opera for musical theatre, Danielle will be starring opposite Kelsey Grammar in the award-winning classic musical Man of La Mancha.

The daughter of Sri Lankan immigrants in Australia, who began her career aged nine winning a TV pop talent contest, Danielle de Niese has a ferocious work ethic which she applies to every role she takes on, whilst also maintaining the gruelling schedule of one of the most sought-after opera singers on the planet. From her rigorous technique and intense training to careful scrutiny of all her rehearsal footage, de Niese reveals her process of perfecting the emotional heart of a role, which to her is the most important aspect of her performance.

We also catch a glimpse of her home life at Glyndebourne, in her off-stage role as one half of the husband-and-wife team behind one of opera's oldest festivals, where de Niese herself became an overnight sensation when she made her debut there as Cleopatra in Handel’s Giulio Cesare in 2005.

Tarik O’Regan: Composing The Phoenix May 07, 2019

In April 2019 a new opera with music by the composer Tarik O’Regan had its premiere at Houston Grand Opera. Called “The Phoenix”, it’s based on the life of Lorenzo Da Ponte, best known as Mozart’s librettist.

The opera has been years in the making, from Tarik’s first idea to the final rewrites. We follow Tarik through months of creating the music, the orchestrations and the workshop processes with his collaborator, the librettist and director John Caird.

From Tarik’s original base in the former Swaziland, now known as eSwatini, to meetings in London and rehearsals in Houston, we hear how the process of working on an opera is a global business and how the music evolves over a long period from first sketches to opening night.

This is an updated version of the podcast. We changed the ending because the next podcast will be with the opera star Danielle de Niese, rather than Iris Van Herpen. We’ll get to Iris soon.

Opening Ceremony: Fashioning a new collection Apr 30, 2019

The fashion label Opening Ceremony is led by its Asian-American creative directors Carol Lim and Humberto Leon, who are also the co-creative directors at fashion house Kenzo. Since it began in 2002, the pair have developed Opening Ceremony into a brand known for its bold clothing design, social activism and for artistic partnerships with film-maker Spike Jonze and the New York City Ballet amongst others. In an exclusive programme, In The Studio follows Humberto and Carol through the entire process of creating their Pre-Spring 2019 collection. Simon Pitts joins the pair at their NYC Chinatown offices, learning about the cycle from initial design through to the final show. We hear how Carol and Humberto’s background as children of immigrants inspires their work and Simon meets the wider OC team who shape the designs, source materials and work out the crucial price points for each garment.

Tamara Kvesitadze: Kinetic artist Apr 23, 2019

Tamara Kvesitadze, a kinetic artist from Georgia, is best known for Man and Woman, a 26-feet tall moving sculpture located in the coastal city of Batumi. Each evening, along the seafront, the two huge steel figures move closer together, and momentarily merge, before passing through one another.

Tamara’s large-scale kinetic sculptures often combine elaborate moving mechanisms with evocative imagery, and her latest project, Sigh, is no exception. Due for installation at a Buddhist resort in the Chinese city of Wuxi, Sigh has been commissioned to be a reflection on the country’s traditional philosophy, as well as the more progressive thinking of modern day China. Natalia Golysheva follows the story of Sigh by joining Tamara as she works on the project across several months, taking her from London to Georgia and back, and searches for the perfect way to balance the modern and the traditional.

Aleksandr Maltsev: Synchronised swimming champion Apr 16, 2019

Russian synchronised swimming champion Aleksandr Maltsev is a two-time World Champion, a four-time European champion and the first man to represent Russia in mixed-gender synchronised swimming at the highest level - as men only became allowed to compete in 2015. However, Aleksandr is unfazed, and remains a vocal advocate of gender-equality in the sport - his aim being to get men to compete at the next Olympics as a part of the mixed duet. Alina Isachenka meets Aleksandr in Moscow on one of his days off, which he decides to spend looking at paintings by one of his favourite artists, Frida Kahlo. She then travels with him to the closed sports base on the outskirts of the city, where Aleksandr lives and trains from dawn until dusk with his mixed duet partner Maya Gurbanberdieva, and their perfectionist coach. It’s here, in and around the pool they practice in, that Alina gains unique insight into the process of creating - what is hoped will be - a gold-winning routine for the FINA Artistic Swimming World Series taking place in Kazan in April.

David McLay Kidd: Top golf course designer Apr 09, 2019

Walk the rugged wilderness of the United States’ Pacific North West with golf course designer David McLay Kidd and presenter Ashley Ahearn. David is a revolutionary in the field: an artist who dared to shun the manicured parkland and neatly-trimmed grass of the typical American golf course to bring the sport right back to its roots. It’s all about the thrill of adventure – a visceral experience that plunges the player deep into the essence of a place - involving them in a challenge that walks a tightrope between intoxicating…and maddening.

Anthony Horowitz: Writing Alex Rider Apr 02, 2019

Full of gadgets, villains and violent ends, the adventures of teenage secret agent Alex Rider have sold millions of copies worldwide. Delve into the murky world of espionage writing with British author Anthony Horowitz, as he works on the next novel in the series, “Nightshade”.

Meagan Duhamel and Eric Radford: Skating for gold Jan 22, 2018

Canadian Pairs skaters going for gold at the 2018 Winter Olympics. Meagan Duhamel and Eric Radford call on choreographers, costume designers and their own artistry and physical endurance to prepare for their final competitive performance together.

Bolanle Austen-Peters: Reinventing theatre in Nigeria Jan 15, 2018

The former lawyer bringing musical theatre to Lagos. Artistic director Bolanle Austen-Peters uses all her theatrical tricks to create and develop a musical play based on six of the 27 wives of legendary Nigerian musician Fela Kuti.

Louise Penny: Inspiration for a murder Jan 08, 2018

Chief Inspector Gamache, the hero of Louise Penny's books, was based on a man she could marry, very like her husband Michael, a doctor who treated children with cancer and saw life and death every day.

When the Canadian crime fiction writer first began writing, she battled five years of writer’s block to bring her murder mysteries to life.

Alain Boublil: Master of musical theatre Jan 01, 2018

Audience participation will shape the new musical Manhattan Parisienne. How can Alain Boublil, Les Miserables co-creator, incorporate this idea into rehearsals and the performance itself?

Lorna Goodison: Jamaica's history in poetry Dec 25, 2017

Jamaica's first female poet laureate writes about slavery and the cultivation of sugar. She says, "What went on on those ships is indescribable in so many ways. I know I'm going to have to write about that."

Elijah Moshinsky: Rebellious director of opera Dec 18, 2017

Masterminding an operatic ‘forensic examination of evil’ in Verdi’s Macbeth. British opera director Elijah Moshinsky battles nerves to produce a successful new production of the classic opera at the Buxton International Festival.

Kenyan rapper Octopizzo Dec 11, 2017

The Kenyan rapper finding inspiration in the people of his birthplace, Kibera. Octopizzo’s latest album pays homage to jazz - the music his late father loved. After a night-time journey around Africa’s biggest slum, we follow one of the continent’s greatest rappers into a recording session as he lays down new tracks.

Doris Salcedo: Weeping names Dec 04, 2017

Honouring the dead. An artwork that weeps the names of those who have died. Colombian sculptor, Doris Salcedo, is one of the most significant Latin American artists working today. For the last thirty years she has been making pieces on the theme of mourning. Her latest work honours those who died during the ongoing migrant crisis. An immense technical challenge, the effect is that stone slabs appear to weep the names of the dead.

Esben Holmboe Bang: The art of food Nov 27, 2017

Every flavour is a note, the secret is to build those notes into a symphony. Esben Holmboe Bang is a three Michelin-starred chef working in Norway. He only uses local produce and collects some of his ingredients from the local forest. His aim is to tell the story of Norway through food.

Christian Louboutin: Ingenious wizard of shoes Nov 20, 2017

The world-famous shoe designer with the Oscar-nominated actress Dame Kristin Scott Thomas. The secrets behind the red-soled, stratospherically high-heeled shoes. Travelling the world for inspiration, anything that catches his eye can be transformed into a detail on a shoe: from a Parisian cake decoration to an exotic Portuguese rock garden. And he discusses what makes a high heel incontrovertibly sexy.

Itay Mautner: Uniting Jerusalem? Nov 10, 2017

From a volcano billowing smoke on the rooftops of Jerusalem to documentary theatre bus trips and Kulna music, Israeli artistic director Itay Mautner navigates the joys and challenges of designing the city’s season of culture - the Mekudeshet Festival.

The Black Madonna: DJ, composer and feminist Nov 06, 2017

Writing music and touring Europe with one of the hottest DJs on the planet. Curator. Composer. DJ. Feminist. Black Madonna’s inclusive ethos infuses everything she does. Already a veteran of the USA’s rave scene, join her as she conquers the main stages of Europe.

Lee Child: Writing Jack Reacher Oct 30, 2017

Tom Cruise starred as the ex-military investigator but how are the novels written? Millions have been sold worldwide. Author Lee Child allows us to join him as he creates his next story.

Image: Lee Child, Credit: BBC

Hannah Kendall: Turning poetry into music Oct 23, 2017

Creating a premiere for the biggest music festival in the world. We follow award-winning composer Hannah Kendall, as she develops her world premiere piece The Spark Catchers for the BBC Proms. It is played by Chineke! - the UK’s first black and ethnic minority orchestra.

Christopher Doyle: Master movie maker Oct 16, 2017

"Go beyond words." On set with the multi-award-winning cinematographer, as he creates his latest film. It is a love letter to Hong Kong, “The White Girl”. We watch as Christopher Doyle frames, shoots and muses.

Vik Muniz: Tickling your brain Oct 09, 2017

Chocolate, diamonds, leftover pasta – getting creative with everything, with one of Brazil’s most successful artists. Castles on grains of sand and cartoon clouds in the sky. Vik Muniz prepares for an exhibition full of trickery and illusion.

Ai Weiwei: China’s dissident artist Oct 02, 2017

World renowned Chinese artist and activist in his bunker. Imprisoned in China, Ai Weiwei’s views and life are reflected in his work. Discover the mind behind the art. Now living and working in Germany, he reveals the one thing he believes all artists are trying to find.

Imtiaz Dharker: Perfecting poetry Sep 25, 2017

A poem is like love, arriving “when you’re least looking for it”. Hear poetry being crafted by the award-winning Imtiaz Dharker. She draws her inspiration from the world around her and we join her as she works through the night.

Marlon James: Novelist at work Sep 18, 2017

Creating his “African Game of Thrones”, the award-winning novelist reveals his notebooks. We join the Jamaican writer, Marlon James, as he works on his much anticipated Dark Star Trilogy. He won the prestigious Man Booker Prize for Fiction in 2015 for his novel A Brief History of Seven Killings, based around the assassination attempt on Bob Marley in the 1970s. He is in his studio in Minneapolis in the US.

David Simon meets Kwame Kwei-Armah Sep 11, 2017

Behind the scenes access to a brand new play, as it is being developed. The award winning Kwame Kwei-Armah invites the creator of The Wire to rehearsals, days before the world premiere in Baltimore. Kwame is the Artistic Director at Baltimore’s Center Stage Theatre. We watch cast and crew, as they work on the stage version of Toni Morrison’s novel, Jazz.

Why In The Studio? Sep 01, 2017

Introducing In The Studio – our brand new podcast. We explain the concept and let you know what to expect. Hear clips from our first two episodes and meet presenter Tim Marlow and the team.

Introducing In The Studio Aug 28, 2017

Just for you – because we can’t wait until Episode 1. An extraordinary journey awaits – a sneak peek of what’s to come.

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