The State of Things

Rondy McKee began her professional life in advertising in downtown Detroit, MI. She decided to learn self defense after a few close calls with criminals. That training led her to become the first Westerner to ever join the Korean Tigers, a professional martial arts team. Today, she is also the owner of White Tiger martial arts school in Cary, NC. Host Frank Stasio talks to McKee about the sport of taekwondo.

Writer Franz Kafka died relatively unknown in 1924, but today his name has been immortalized in the term “Kafkaesque.” It's a word used to describe the surreal realities of the modern world, so it’s no surprise that Kafka is more popular now than he ever was in his lifetime. Writers John Kessel and James Patrick Kelly have put together a new anthology of stories called "Kafkaesque" (Tachyon/2011). It includes stories written by Kafka, inspired by Kafka and reminiscent of his style. Host Frank Stasio talks to Kessel, a professor in the English Department at North Carolina State University about the creative writing collection and why today’s readers can relate to Kafka’s works.

The last couple of years have been one big dance party for Archbishops of Blount Street. The 10-member, Triangle-based band specializes in ska music, a Jamaican-born blend of upbeat calypso, jazz and R&B that predates reggae. They join host Frank Stasio in the studio to play live and discuss the origins of ska and how it has inspired musicians around the world for generations.

The Monti StorySLAM is a competitive storytelling event that’s grown in popularity in the Triangle and Triad regions of the state. Willing contestants are randomly selected from the audience to tell short stories that relate to a certain theme. Tonight, StorySLAM will take place at Triad Stage UpStage Cabaret in Greensboro, NC. But first, its founder Jeff Polish, and host Frank Stasio give the WUNC listening audience a taste of the event on-air along with three “celebrity judges” from Greensboro: Preston Lane, artistic director of Triad Stage; Donna Baldwin-Bradby, a theatre director and professor at North Carolina A&T University; and Katie Southard, owner of The Green Bean café and co-founder of Downtown Alliance GSO.

Catholic priest and philosopher Thomas Berry believed that humanity and nature must coexist if human beings were going to continue to survive on this planet. He grew up and died in Greensboro, NC. In between, Berry wrote books, taught and spread the gospel of ecospirituality. Host Frank Stasio talks about Thomas Berry and his legacy with Berry’s niece Ann Somers, a lecturer in Biology at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro; and Valerie Vickers, a teacher of science education at UNC-Greensboro and the winner of the Greensboro Public Library’s 2011 Thomas Berry Award.

Saxophonist Maceo Parker left Kinston, NC when he was offered a shot at the big time with James Brown’s band. Parker toured with Brown for years before joining Parliament Funkadelic and eventually going out on his own. His band has been called, “the toughest little funk orchestra on earth.” Maceo Parker brings it all home to North Carolina tonight when he plays Memorial Hall at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill at 7 pm. He joins host Frank Stasio to talk about his days touring with the “hardest working man in show business” and the musical tribute they are paying to James Brown on campus.

North Carolina author Margaret Maron takes fictional District Court Judge Deborah Knott on a crime-solving adventure in New York City in her newest book "Three-Day Town" (Grand Central Publishing/2011). It is the 17th book in Maron's Deborah Knott series. Host Frank Stasio talks with the author about the new setting for her North Carolina-born heroine and where she finds her inspiration.

When local musician David LaMotte found himself frustrated by rising levels of bigotry in the national conversation, he decided he had to do something. So, he put on a show. LaMotte invited Dawud Wharnsby, an Islamic musician, and Dan Nichols, a Jewish musician, to meet him on stage at Duke University. The three will perform together in support of cultural and religious harmony tonight at Page Auditorium. They join host Frank Stasio to talk about the concert, which they're calling The Abraham Jam.

Duke University freshman Lucas Metropulos likes to help his community. He's volunteered in soup kitchens, grown food in community gardens and now he's leading his own volunteer organization. Metropulos started Fishing for Families in Need to teach people how to fish, and he teamed up with fishermen to donate fresh fish to soup kitchens. The program started in his hometown of Boca Raton, Florida, but the program has spread to Louisiana, Massachusetts and now North Carolina. Host Frank Stasio talks to Lucas Metropulos about Fishing for Families in Need.

The Occupy Wall Street movement has spread across the country and captured the attention of millions of Americans. The movement deals with national issues, but it doesn't necessarily represent all factions of society. Are minorities being well represented in the revolution of the 99 percent?